“He’s…he’s not a bad guy, per se,” Jillian struggled to form a copacetic assessment. “Brash…loud…annoying…overbearing…crude—yes. But not a bad guy.”
Holding her smile, Maxine nodded. From what Drew—and now Jillian—had disclosed, she knew she’d be in for a treat meeting Adam. No one seemed to really hate him, yet no one liked him much either. Maxine reserved judgment until she had the opportunity to sit down with him herself.
However, she also knew that, according to Drew, Adam harbored a long-standing, unrequited crush on the lovely lady beside her. In her effort to maintain workplace decorum, though, Maxine refused to ask any questions. She had a feeling the story of Adam’s longing for Jillian would unfold on its own.
“So your dad must miss you like mad now,” Jillian said.
“He does, but he also knows that this is where I need to be,” Maxine said. “I think it helps that I’m living with Ben, but he still worries.”
“Have you told him about Drew yet?”
The full radio silence on Maxine’s end of the conversation gave Jillian her answer.
Dismissively, Jillian waved her hand. “It’s alright. You have plenty of time,” she assured Maxine. “I’ve found that the less I tell my parents about my life here in New York is the best.”
“They didn’t want you to move here?”
Regretfully, Jillian shook her head. “They don’t get it,” she shrugged. “They would have preferred that I stayed in Michigan like my sister…get married young. Forego my dreams of a career…”
“I’m sorry, Jill,” Maxine took her hand. That did sadden Maxine. While her father had his reservations, he never had an inkling to stop her from moving. And Judy would have packed her bags, had she been alive.
“It’s alright, Max,” she said, putting on a brave front. “I made my peace with it long ago.”
Maxine wondered if she really had. The bitterness Jillian attempted to hide was evident in her eyes. She truly looked up to Jillian, and Maxine even considered her a friend. Her heart ached for the sense of disconnect Jillian felt for her family.
Once they’d returned to their desks, Maxine was surprised to find her phone lit up with a voice mail. Shock pervaded her, however, and she played the message twice just to make sure that she’d heard the caller correctly.
“Yes!” Jillian popped her head over the cube as she eavesdropped. “Randy called you back! I knew he’d want to talk to Lex!”
“So…” Maxine looked up and found a smile to meet her own. “I’ll set this up!”
“She’ll go to him. Coffee. Lunch. Whatever he has time to do…”
And Maxine’s fingers raced over the numbers to dial him back.
“It’s Randy…”
“Hi, it’s Maxine Kirk from D & D Public Relations, returning your call…”
“Max-ine,” he said in two distinct syllables. “How are you today?”
Taken a bit aback, she didn’t expect a reporter from such an esteemed newspaper to try to make chit-chat with her, but she willed herself to relax. He’d already told her that he wanted to interview her client. That was half the battle.
“I’m doing well, and you?”
“Just dandy, Maxine. Just dandy,” he said. “So…let’s set up a conversation with Lexi. How’s Friday afternoon?”
“Friday afternoon?” They’d planned to release the media alert the following morning, but in her voice mail, she’d promised him an exclusive.
“We’ll hold the release. We’ve got time,” Jillian coached her from above.
“Friday works…” Maxine responded. “And we’ll honor your exclusive and hold the release.”
Jillian’s two thumbs up made her smile.
“Fantastic. Have her pick a place, and we’ll meet there,” he said. “Will you be there, too?”
“Will I be there…?” Jillian nodded fiercely and pointed to herself as well. “Yes, I will.”
“Perfect. Would love to discuss a few of your other clients, too, after I have a chat with Lexi.”
“Oh, that’s great,” Maxine said. “Can I send you any additional information right now? Press releases? Photos…?”
“No, I’m all set. But shoot me an e-mail and let me know the deets for Friday.”
“Will do,” Maxine said. “And looking forward to meeting you.”
“Likewise, Maxine…”
Before she could even hang up the phone, Jillian was already hugging her. “You got your first interview with the Times!” she squealed. “Oh, Jeffrey is just going to go nuts!”
“We have a lot to do—call Lexi’s agent, make reservations…prep her for the interview…” Maxine rambled.
“And stop for a second to enjoy this, Maxine,” Jillian said and gave her shoulders a quick squeeze. “One doesn’t get The New York Times every day…”
“We’ve already celebrated this afternoon,” Maxine insisted. “And I’m anxious to see all of this through to the end.”
“Alright, you get moving on the details, and I’ll let Jeffrey know,” Jillian said. “We’ll be on a conference call for about an hour. Hold the fort for me?”
“You bet!”
When she finally left the office near six o’clock that evening, Maxine was actually quite stunned over how quickly the day had passed, considering she’d been up since five. However, as she passed through the revolving door in the lobby, a familiar face met her on the sidewalk.
“Maxine…”
“Lou…” she grumbled. “I guess we’re both going to be in trouble if I don’t agree to leave with you.”
He walked her toward the waiting car then popped open the door. “Yes, we are,” he said with a false air of cheerfulness.
“Yeah, he wasn’t too happy with me this morning…”
“He wasn’t happy with me either.” Lou waited until she’d buckled up before closing the door. The last thing he needed was to have Drew pissed off at him twice in one day. “So how was your first day on the job?”
Maxine knew that was Lou’s first attempt at conversation with her beyond where they were driving and what they were doing. “I had an incredible day and thank you for asking,” she said. She knew that he was probably going to report back to Drew. That was his job, and he did it without question. “And how was your day?”
“After Mack tore into me for letting you ride the train this morning?” he turned around briefly from the driver’s seat to look at Maxine. “It was pretty damn good. Dropped the boy off at rehearsal…went back home to Bay Ridge…had lunch with some of my boys at Tuscany Grill. Futzed around a little. And now here we are again, Maxine…”
“Well, it sounds like you had a lovely day,” she continued on, hoping that a little discussion focusing on him might bode her well in the long run.
“Oh, I did—once I got away from Mack,” he said.
“So…uh…Lou…?” she began. “This isn’t going to be a daily occurrence, is it? You picking me up and taking me to and from work. Is it?”
“I dunno, Maxine,” Lou said. “You should probably address that with the Master himself.”
Their banter continued on up Madison Avenue, and by the time Maxine got out of the car in front of the townhouse, they were both chuckling. Lou’s bite wasn’t nearly as bad as his bark. He was just one of those old-line, traditional New Yorkers, and Maxine had to admire that in him. Maybe one day, they would become allies, but for now, she just had to work on softening his edges a bit.
“And Maxine…?”
“Yes, Lou?”
“One last thing,” he said. “Mack said he’ll call you at nine sharp.”
“Great. Tell him that I’ll be waiting…”
Rather than rushing through the front door, though, Maxine thought she just might take advantage of the lovely fall evening as dusk began to settle over the city. She sat right down on the stoop in her pencil skirt and pulled out her phone to call her dad.
Tom had been on her mind all day. She’d last spoken to him not e
ven twenty-four hours ago, but she was anxious to tell him all about her new job. While she could never confide in her father as openly as her mother, Tom managed to step into the role of her go-to parent rather effortlessly. She called him at the end of every day now, just to catch up.
“Princess!” Tom’s voice nearly shouted over the line. He, too, had been thinking about Maxine. In fact, she never left his thoughts as he wondered where she was and what she was doing during her first day at the office. “How did things go?”
“Well, I convinced The New York Times to talk to one of our clients.”
“I guess that’s a good thing?”
While her mother always told her that one day she’d become a publicist, Tom had not a clue how the media industry worked. He just made Maxine smile.
“It’s a very good thing,” she said. “And they had a lovely little welcome lunch for me.”
“That’s so nice of them, sweetie,” he said. “You liking your co-workers?”
“They’re wonderful! Especially Jillian, my boss. She’s only a few years older than I am, but she’s great. She’s really trying to teach me everything she knows.”
“I love to hear that, Maxie,” he said softly. “Glad that people are taking care of my little girl up there in that big bad city.”
“Oh, it’s not so bad, Daddy,” she insisted. Maybe he’d see for himself one day, she hoped. “And…well…I have some other news, too.”
Ever since her conversation with Jillian over lunch, guilt gripped her. She simply had to tell him.
“What’s that? Ben switched teams?” he teased.
“Daddy…” Maxine admonished. “You sound like his mother now.”
“No, I don’t because I know better,” he said. “But the Kirks happen to love him just the way he is.”
With all of his brutish hobbies and somewhat gruff exterior, one would have guessed that Tom Kirk would be the first person to have a problem with Ben’s sexuality. Not true. Like Judy, he only cared for the manner in which Ben treated his daughter. In fact, Tom had often told Ben that he’d be willing to get the shotgun out of the cabinet to defend his honor, too.
“Well…I don’t want you to get too excited here—or…rush to any conclusions…”
“Will you just tell me already?” he snapped finally. Tom hated procrastination, an art that Maxine had mastered.
“I’m seeing someone…”
“Wha-aat?”
That single word stung her eardrums as it shot across the line. Fuckballs. Of the greatest kind.
“Now, Daddy…”
“You’ve been there for a week!” he shouted. Yes, shouted. He wanted to know who this son of a bitch was, where he lived, what his credit history revealed, background check, security clearance…and social security number. “How can you be dating someone?”
“Daddy…”
“And who is that jagoff who’s whispering sweet-nothings in my baby girl’s ear?” Now, Tom was going full-on-force Pittsburgh on her. A “jagoff” was not a good thing.
“Drew McKenzie. That name ring a bell?”
“Drew Mc…” he muttered. Maxine could just envision him at full pace, back and forth like a rabid animal, tearing through their kitchen as he prepared dinner for himself that night. “Why the hell do I know that name?”
“Think about it,” Maxine said. “Drew McKenzie…”
“Wait a minute…didn’t you have a crush on a guy named Drew?” her father said at last, as he scrambled to remember. “Some show or something? Oh, you and your mother with that Broadway stuff…”
“That would be the Drew!” she said gleefully, knowing that her father probably already loathed him. Oh, this was going nowhere fast. “We actually met at a party through work.” Yes, they met through work. That was the perfect way to couch this to her father. “And he’s been showing me around the city.” That he had. “And we’re getting to know each other.” Also true. But Poppa Kirk could be spared the intimate details. “Taking things slowly. He just began rehearsals today. And with my new job…and did I tell you, he’s best friends with our CEO…”
“He’s still dating my little Princess…” Traces of doubt and maybe even a bit of agitation flecked his voice. “My little Princess…”
A side of Tom’s personality emerged that she hadn’t had the chance to witness before since she never actually dated. Poor Drew. She’d warned him. However, she never knew that her father would be this distraught.
“Daddy, it’s not like he’s asked me to marry him!”
“Marriage?” Now Tom was shouting. “Marry my tiny little baby girl? He doesn’t even know her! I haven’t even met him. Ben must be raging. What does Ben think? I bet he has an opinion. He does with everything else!”
“Ben likes him,” Maxine assured him. “Quite a lot, actually.”
Already, Maxine knew that Tom would be calling her best friend before the night was over, digging around to find out who this Drew McKenzie was.
“Ben likes him?” Tom countered. “Or Ben…likes him?”
“Daddy! Stop it right now!”
“Oh, Max, this is just…my baby’s dating!” he said, flustered suddenly.
“I’m almost twenty-two. It’s about time.”
“Yeah, I know,” Tom muttered, defeated. It was time for him to finally admit that Maxine had grown up. She wasn’t the little girl who followed him into the woods anymore. She had her own mind and her own life now. And as her father, he had to support her. She was bound to make some mistakes along the way, but it was his job to lift her off the ground and see to it that she smiled again. “So…do I get to meet this Drew when I come up?”
At last, she released that single breath she’d been holding. Now, after their weekend together, Maxine could answer her father without a doubt. “Yeah, Daddy, you will,” she said. “Just don’t bring your guns with you. He’s not into weaponry.”
“Can always change that, Max,” he chuckled. “He’s making you happy, though? And you said Ben approves?”
“Yes to both questions.”
“Then I guess I’ll have to give this Drew guy a chance. But if he even thinks about breaking my little girl’s heart, I’m gonna—”
“Daddy…”
“Princess…?”
“I love you…more than chocolate cake.”
“And I love you, too. More than potato chips. But just remember—I’m the first guy who ever said that to you.”
“He hasn’t said it yet,” she said.
“Yeah, well, I’m glad for that, but he’d be stupid not to fall in love with you. So…he better…”
“You know what?”
“What, Max?”
“I have the best father in the entire world…”
Chapter Five
By Friday, Maxine was more than ready for the weekend upon them. In a mere five days, she’d learned the meaning of the phrase “New York Minute.”
With everything happening at once, she was proud of herself for keeping her appointment with her psychiatrist that week. On her own, she’d felt as if she’d made some inroads into managing her problems, but she needed that extra vote of confidence—especially now that Drew had confided in her. She also embraced the idea that, for those forty-five minutes each week, she could focus on herself alone without worry for the multiple directions into which she’d found herself being pulled. She could share and grieve and open her heart with honesty.
Drew, though, had spoiled her with attention the previous week, and Maxine found it quite difficult to fall into a new routine without him being at front and center stage of it all. He’d managed to stop by rather late on Wednesday night on his way home from rehearsals, only for both of them to fall asleep together on the couch.
They’d awakened again in each other’s arms, but Drew had to shuffle off to rehearsal as Maxine scooted her ass to work. Texting and sexting didn’t cut it. However, such were the realities of life, Maxine reasoned. Spending every waking moment together wasn’t possi
ble, and she had to adjust to both his schedule and her own.
Adjusting to the corporate world was much easier than adapting to Drew’s erratic working hours. The pace was indeed rapid-fire at D & D, but nothing she couldn’t manage. In fact, she worked so efficiently that Jillian was able to give her a few additional projects, all of which Maxine welcomed.
However, she was quite surprised when a crisis arose on Friday morning, and Jeffrey himself suggested that she escort Lexi Tate to the interview with the Times—alone.
With one of their clients—an aging diva with a longstanding but hushed substance abuse problem—in a kerfuffle with both the cops and the media after trashing a room at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, Jeffrey and Jillian were both at their collective wits’ end. They’d been stuck in meetings with her family and attorneys since morning, and there was no way that either one of them were getting out of that office by two in the afternoon.
Both of them assured Maxine that this baptism by fire would all work out in the end, but she couldn’t shake her nerves. She’d monitored interviews during her internship, but Jillian was usually sitting at her side and the media outlets were on a much smaller scale. While Randy might have been a newbie to the theater beat, he still wrote for one of the biggest newspapers in the country. In truth, he didn’t carry enough influence in his own career yet for Maxine to make any mistakes with him. However, with her own ambition hovering in the forefront of her thoughts, she just couldn’t fuck this up.
They’d agreed on Sardi’s for a snack and some coffee. The legendary Times Square eatery was an iconic institution in the world of Broadway, where all of the opening night parties were held and—many moons ago—where most of the stars themselves hung out. Nowadays it remained a staple in the theatrical community without the movie glamor of its heyday. The Tony Awards were usually announced from its hallowed, red halls that were lined with famous caricatures of celebrities who’d stepped foot on the legitimate stage. Sometimes one could still do some star-spotting amongst the tables.
Maxine had visited Sardi’s a few times with Judy for lunch, so she found it odd to walk in on her own and on the hunt for two people she simply didn’t know. However, much to her luck, the restaurant was nearly empty that mid-afternoon, just before the theater rush of early evening, and she recognized Lexi, who sat alone with a glass of white wine.
WRAPPED: The Manhattan Bound Series, Book Two Page 8