Even the Score

by Beth Ehemann

  I sighed and ran my hands through my hair, frustrated with the applicants that had come through my office already.

  “That was a short interview.” Ellie’s eyes widened as she leaned forward with her elbows on her desk.

  I turned toward her and looked from left to right, mouthing silently, “Is anyone else here?”

  She shook her head.

  I threw my hands up in the air and started pacing. “Oh my God, that guy was a moron! We sat down, and I asked him the basics . . . how long he’d been an agent, why was he interested in joining my firm, what athletes did he currently represent . . . and do you know that idiot actually listed Justin Sutter as one of the athletes he represents?”

  Ellie’s mouth fell open and her blue eyes widened with shock. “No he did not!”

  “He did! I couldn’t make this shit up if I tried, El.” I walked over to the waiting area and flopped onto the couch, feeling completely discouraged with how I had anticipated this day was going to go versus how it was going.

  Justin Sutter was the hard-hitting, left-handed first baseman for the Chicago Cubs, and he was represented by me, not the dumbass who just lied and tried to claim him as his own.

  “The bright side is now you have fifteen minutes free that you weren’t planning on. Why don’t you have a snack and take a break?”

  “Yeah, maybe.” I sighed and looked at my watch. “How many more interviews?”

  “Just one. Danicka Douglas.”

  Well, if she turned out to be a dud like all the others, at least she’d be pleasant to look at for half an hour. “Okay, let me know when she’s here.” I pushed myself off the couch and sulked to my office.

  Fifteen minutes passed.

  Twenty minutes.

  Twenty-five minutes.

  I picked up the office phone and called Ellie. “No word from her yet?”

  “Nope. She’s officially ten minutes late, and I haven’t heard a thing. Want me to call her?”

  “No, that’s okay.” I hung up the phone and turned my attention toward my computer. She could’ve at least called instead of blowing me off. Totally unprofessional.

  Ten minutes into a recruiting video of a prospective quarterback from Florida State, my office phone rang again. “Shaw,” I answered.

  “Mr. Shaw, Ms. Douglas is here. Would you like me to send her in or reschedule?”

  “Oh, uh . . .” I stammered, taken aback that she’d shown up after all. “Go ahead and send her in.”

  I stood quickly and put my suit jacket back on, running a hand through my hair. After a few minutes with no knock at my office door, I walked over to see what the hell was going on. Danicka was on the phone in the waiting area with her back to me. Her foot tapped against the floor as she listened intently to whatever the person on the other end of the line was saying. I didn’t want to say anything and interrupt her, but I did let my eyes travel up and down the length of her body quickly.

  “Right. Well, sit tight. All we can do for now is call your lawyer and see if we can block the dashboard cam from being released, at least for a little while.” She turned around and noticed me standing in the doorway. Covering the phone with one hand, she crinkled her eyebrows together and whispered, “I’ll be in in two seconds, I’m so sorry.”

  I nodded and returned to my desk, leaving the door open for her.

  “Ugh,” she sighed heavily as she breezed through my office doorway about three minutes later. “I’m so terribly sorry about that. One of my clients got a DWI overnight, and I’ve been dealing with it all day, unfortunately.”

  Must be an agent thing to pretend you’re on the phone to cover your ass when you’re running late.

  I stood as she walked over to the desk and held her hand out. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Shaw. I’m Danicka Douglas.”

  “Nice to meet you, too, Ms. Douglas. Please, have a seat.” I motioned over to the couch and chair where I’d been sitting with the other agents all day. As professional as I tried to be at all times, I was still a warm-blooded male, and I couldn’t help but notice her legs as I followed her over to the couch. They were toned and tanned, and I knew I was going to have to force myself not to stare at them throughout the whole interview.

  “Can I have Ellie get you coffee or a bottle of water?”

  “No, I’m fine.” She saved her hand. “Thank you, though.”

  “Okay. Then why don’t you start by telling me a little bit about yourself?” I sat in the chair across from her and set the legal pad I’d been jotting notes on all day on my lap.

  “Well.” She cleared her throat and flashed her million-dollar smile. It was even more beautiful in person than it was online. “I graduated from University of Illinois with a degree in sports management, obviously, and worked in Chicago with the Star Alliance Group for a couple years before accepting a position with Leighton Management and moving up here.”

  “May I ask why you’re willing to leave Leighton Management now?”

  As she thought about how to answer that question, she crossed her legs, and I had to remind myself once again not to look down.

  “That’s where my life gets a little complicated,” she finally answered. Her smile faded as she bit her lip nervously. “I’m sure you know this already, but the Leighton group is run by two brothers, Jack and John. I’ve always gotten along great with both of them, until recently.” As she spoke, her eyes bored straight into mine. They were so dark and intense that I was having trouble concentrating. I had to break her stare for just a second, so I turned to the side and lifted my fist to my mouth as I fake coughed.

  “Excuse me,” I said, turning back to her.

  “I’m not an idiot, Mr. Shaw.” With that sentence she officially had my full attention. I had no idea where she was going next. “I know what people say about me. I’ve seen the articles from the Internet and read the comment threads. I know that people call me Double D and have said all sorts of things about who they perceive me to be because of my looks and what I do.”

  Not really sure how to respond to that, I just nodded.

  “But they’re wrong. About a month or so back, I had a football player get a little—aggressive—in my office. He didn’t hurt me at all, but he was very intimidating in the way he spoke to me and let me know what he thought I should do for him. That didn’t sit well with me. People can say whatever the hell they want about my looks, but I take my career seriously. I know I’m still fairly new to this business, but I’ve worked hard to get the clients I have, and I want to be a big name one day. I won’t get there by letting people push me around, so right there on the spot, I told him I was done representing him.”

  My head jerked back in surprise. “Wow. Nice move.”

  “Yeah, well, the Leighton brothers didn’t think so, particularly John, and he not so nicely told me to call back and apologize. I told him where he could shove that apology, and needless to say, the relationship between us has been a little strained ever since.” She sat back against the couch and crossed her arms.

  I shook my head slowly. “Wow! That’s crazy. But I will say this: kudos to you for putting a stop to that right away.”

  “Thanks.” A shy smile formed on her lips. “So anyway, now I’m looking for a new home. And . . . I have at least five athletes that I’m sure are coming with me, possibly eight.”

  “That’s impressive, for sure. Is one of them your ‘DWI guy?’” I laughed, using my fingers to do air quotes.

  She narrowed her eyes and cocked her head to the side. “I don’t get it.”

  “Come on.” I chuckled again. “You were running late and you faked a phone call to get out of it. We all do it, it’s okay.”

  Arching one eyebrow as high as I’d ever seen, she lifted her head up straight and ran her tongue in between her top lip and teeth. Without saying a word, she pulled her phone out of her purse and set it on the coffee table in between us. Still silent, she pushed a button and glared right at me.

  After a few seconds the ringi
ng stopped, and the sound of a man’s voice filled the room. “Yo!”

  “Bobby, it’s D. Was I on the phone with you about fifteen minutes ago?” she asked, not taking her eyes off mine.

  “Huh?”

  “Just answer the question.”

  “Yeah.”

  “And what did I say to you in that call?” she asked him in a tone so cold I thought for sure it was going to start snowing in my office.

  “You told me to chill until we talked to my lawyer. Why the weird questions?”

  “Thanks, Bobby. I’ll call you later.” I swallowed hard as she hit the button to disconnect the call and dropped the phone back into her purse. She stood up, swung it over her shoulder, and scowled down at me.

  “Next time you conduct an interview, Mr. Shaw, perhaps calling the person you’re interviewing a liar isn’t the best route to take if you actually want them to consider working for you.”

  With that she turned and marched out the door.

  CHAPTER 6

  Danicka

  “Son of a bitch!” I dropped my purse on my kitchen counter and sighed. I’d had four interviews in the last two weeks, and none of them had gone like I was anticipating. At least this last guy didn’t hit on me like all the others, but how damn rude to assume that I was lying just to cover for being late. Thinking about it was making me mad all over again, and I needed to relax. I opened my fridge and bypassed the wine for a beer. I kicked my heels off, narrowly missing my poor dog’s face as she lay sleeping on top of the vent, where it was cool.

  “Oops! Sorry, Roxy,” I said out loud. She hadn’t even noticed the shoe, but she did crack one eye at the sound of her name.

  I twisted the cap off my beer with my hand as my phone buzzed from inside my purse.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, sorry I missed your call, babycakes. What’s up?”

  If there was anything in the world that would cheer me up, it was a call from my best friend, Sadie. Sadie James was the peanut butter to my jelly. We’d only met a couple of years earlier, at a wedding where we were bridesmaids together, but our friendship was intense, and we’d been inseparable since that night. We knew everything there was to know about each other within two weeks, and by three weeks we were discussing sex and female issues. She was a newlywed herself back then, and now she was a mom to her three-month-old daughter, Skyler.

  “Nothing. I just had the worst freaking day, and I wanted to chat.” I set my beer on a coaster and plopped down on my couch with a sigh. Seconds after I sat, Roxy hopped on the couch and curled up in my lap. I petted her soft fur as she slowly closed her eyes again.

  “I love when you call me with your bad days. It helps remind me that there’s real life happening out there somewhere.”

  I giggled at her dramatic response.

  “I’m not kidding!” she said with a laugh. “My days are full of nothing but baby puke and me googling to see what poop colors are considered normal.” She sighed. “Spill it.”

  “So you know I had that interview today over at Shaw Management—”

  “Oh, God. Did you get hit on again? Didn’t I tell you to start wearing a poncho to these interviews?”

  “Would you shut up?” I giggled again. “No, I didn’t get hit on, but as I got to the office, Bobby Martin called. The idiot got a DWI early this morning. I sat in the car and talked to him for a minute but was running late, so I had to go in. Well, when I got in there, he called again because he’s a needy baby, and Andy Shaw, the guy doing the interview, overheard part of my conversation.”

  “Is Andy hot?”

  “Sadie. Focus. Yes, but focus. So the interview was going great, I thought, and then the jerk had the nerve to hint that I’d lied and pretended to be on the phone to cover up for being late.”

  “What?” she shrieked into the phone. “Who even does that?”

  “I know, right? What an asshole.”

  “He is an ass, but at least he didn’t try to get in your pants like the other scumbags.” I knew Sadie was trying to cheer me up, but I was still bummed. I needed to get out from under the Leighton brothers, and the thought of branching out and starting my own company had crossed my mind more than once, but I just wasn’t sure I had the clientele to support that yet.

  “I know, Sadie, but I really wanted this one.” I pinned the phone in between my ear and shoulder and readjusted Roxy, pulling her up closer to me as she let out a soft sigh. “Walking out of those other offices was a relief, but this one felt different. His company is growing, too, and it just seemed like the perfect fit.”

  “I’m sorry, babe.”

  “Thanks. I’ll be better tomorrow. Tonight I think I’ll just drink too many beers and hit the hay. I need to go into work early tomorrow to make some calls and send out more résumés.”

  “I fully support the idea of getting drunk. Have one—or six—for me while you’re at it. Breastfeeding is great and all, but this mama is ready for a night out.” Skyler fussed in the background.

  I laughed. “You are ready for a night out. Have you been out at all since you had her?” Thinking back hard over the last three months, I couldn’t remember a time that we had been out without Skyler.

  “Unless the grocery store counts, then nope.”

  “Okay, this weekend, you and me. Got it?” If it weren’t Monday and I didn’t have to get up early in the morning, I would’ve driven to her house and picked her up that very minute.

  “Yes. I’m totally in. One hundred percent.” Her voice grew with excitement, and it was understandable why. Skyler was adorable, and I knew Sadie loved being a mom, but I couldn’t imagine not going out for three months and being cooped up in the house like that.

  “Eight o’clock, Friday night. I’ll even drive so you can get as wasted as you want,” I offered with a laugh.

  A happy sigh filled my ear. “Pump ’n’ dump, baby! This is why I love you.”

  The next morning I woke up early and threw myself together as quickly as I could to try to beat everyone else to the office. I cautiously opened the door to our suite and was relieved to see the lights still off. Since the day I quit representing Cole Woods after the incident in my office, the atmosphere at work had shifted so quickly and so sharply that coming in wasn’t fun anymore. I loved my job, but being in that office made every muscle in my body tense up.

  I opened the door to my small office and set my lunch bag and purse on my desk, wasting no time as I fired up my computer. I wanted to get a few résumés out before either of the Leighton brothers came in. It was no secret that working together had grown uncomfortable, but I didn’t want them to have any clue I was going to be leaving until I had another job already lined up.

  “You’re in early.”

  I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sound of Jack’s voice. He was peeking around the door frame with a smile on his face.

  “Hey. Yeah, I had a few contracts to look over, and since I left early yesterday, I thought I’d get an early start today.” I pressed my lips together and gave him a tight smile back, faking it the best I could.

  “Speaking of that, how’s your dad feeling?”

  “Oh, he’s better. Much better. Thanks for asking.” For a fleeting second I felt bad, lying about my dad to leave early for a job interview, but my dad was the one who taught me that it’s a dog-eat-dog world and you gotta do what you gotta do to survive. I leaned my chin on my fist, turning my attention to my computer, hoping that he’d get the hint that I was busy and walk away.

  “I’m actually glad to see you here alone, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.” He took a step into my office and leaned against the door frame, his large body taking up the whole doorway. Jack was only in his midforties, a couple of years younger than his brother, John, but his dark hair was already graying around his temples, and his eyes always had bags under them. This job definitely was not easy. “Did you get a chance to think any more about what John said to you? About calling Cole Woods and apologizing? Try to
get him back on your roster?”

  Without looking up from my computer, I answered, “You mean did I think any more about allowing a client to sexually harass me? No, I didn’t.”

  “Danicka.” Jack sighed as he stepped into my office and dropped himself in the chair across from my desk. “It’s not about allowing yourself to be harassed, it’s about being a team player.”

  I blinked hard and slid my eyes from my computer to him. “And you think being a team player means letting a man make constant remarks about my breasts and ass?”

  “No, I don’t think that at all.” He shook his head as he lied through his teeth. “But Cole is a big name and a huge contract. John called him and tried to get him on with another agent, but he only wants you. He was adamant.”

  “You do realize that actually makes it worse, right?” I was being condescending at that point, but I didn’t care anymore.

  “It’s not worse, it’s flattering.”

  I rolled my eyes and turned my attention back to my computer. “Jack, I’m not about to let some guy run his mouth and say disgusting things to me so that you guys can feel powerful with him under your label. It’s not happening, and I’m not discussing it anymore. Frankly, just knowing that you’d still be willing to keep him on as a client after that day is repulsive. So much for having your agent’s back, huh?”

  Jack closed his eyes and rubbed his face with his hands. “Fine.” He stood quickly. “I can’t argue about this now. It’s too early in the day.” After he left my office, I walked over and shut my door . . . hard.

  On a scale of one to ten, my frustration level was at a forty-nine. I was so angry and hurt that instead of supporting me, like they should be doing, they were asking me to basically put up with the asshole’s behavior so they could make a buck and keep a high-profile name.

  I grabbed my phone and texted Sadie.

  Friday . . . Screw eight o’clock. Make it six.

  She responded within seconds.

  S: Uh oh. Great morning already, huh?