The Hating Season

by Linde, K. A.

  Together.

  He’d said we were together.

  Fuck, I didn’t know what to think about that. Was it too soon? Should I care if it was?

  I didn’t know. All I knew was that I didn’t want to overthink it, and I was too damn busy to stress it.

  I’d just gotten off the phone with Carmin, a business real estate agent Court had recommended. She’d promised to get together a list of possible locations for the new office, and we could tour them this weekend if all went as planned.

  I checked that off my list and was about to move on to the next item that I had to tackle when my phone started ringing.

  “Anna English,” I answered automatically.

  “Anna, hello. This is Mayor Kensington’s office.”

  “Oh, hi. How can I help you?” I asked, straightening in my seat.

  “The mayor wants to schedule a meeting with you this afternoon. She’s at the campaign office at four thirty. Does that work for you?”

  “Yes,” I said before even checking my schedule. I’d rearrange if I had to. “That works. Did she say what we’re discussing?”

  “She did not,” he said amicably. “I’ll mark you down. Thanks, Anna.”

  I hung up the phone with a frown. Just what I needed to take up my afternoon, a meeting with Court’s mother.

  I flopped backward, sighing heavily. It was overdue, to be honest. I had to tell her that I’d quit the agency. I would honor the next two weeks up until the election, as per my commitment, but I couldn’t after that. She’d have to find someone else. It wasn’t a conversation I was looking forward to. Hence why it had been at the bottom of my to-do list.

  Still, I changed into a suit, braved the rapidly decreasing fall temperatures with my winter coat even though Court made fun of me for it, and headed to the mayor’s campaign office.

  With the temperature change, the traffic was brutal. I was used to it coming from LA, but it was still a pain in the ass. Especially as my nerves hit me fresh. I usually varied heavily between extreme self-doubt and unwavering confidence. As long as the confidence hit when I needed it to, I could fool anyone into believing the self-doubt never existed.

  The cab finally pulled up in front of the mayor’s campaign office, and I headed inside about twenty minutes early. Thank fuck I’d left well in advance.

  I pulled off my jacket as soon as I stepped inside, slung it over my arm, and went in search of Lark. Her assistant was seated at her desk and smiled brightly at me.

  “Hey, English,” she said cheerfully.

  “Hey, is Lark in?”

  “Sure thing. Go ahead.”

  “Thanks, Aspen.”

  I passed her assistant and strode into the room to find Lark piled under mounds of paperwork up to her ears. With empty coffee cups littering every free surface.

  “Is Lark under there somewhere?” I asked with a laugh.

  Lark popped her head up. “English, hey! I didn’t know you were coming by.” She checked the time. “Did we have plans? I swear I didn’t forget. It’s just been crazy, and you know… it’s less than two weeks until the election.”

  I held up my hand. “We didn’t have plans. Breathe.”

  “Thank god,” she said with a sigh.

  “I have a meeting with Leslie.”

  “What about?”

  I bit my lip. “Probably because I quit Poise.”

  Lark’s eyes bulged. “You did what?”

  I explained to her what had gone down between Josh and Margery and how I’d left Poise behind for good.

  “What are you going to do?” she gasped frantically.

  “Uncertain. Court kind of suggested I should start my own company.”

  “Wait, we’re giving Court credit? I said that months ago!”

  I laughed. “You did. I give you credit.”

  “Are you going to do it?”

  “I’m looking into it at least. I have to talk to Leslie first. My contract for Court was through Poise. So, technically… we don’t work together anymore.”

  Lark clapped her hands together in excitement. “Does this mean what I think it means?”

  I shook my head and then nodded and then shrugged. “I don’t know what you think it means.”

  “That you and Court are an item.”

  “Well… he said we were together. But I didn’t say anything back. I don’t know exactly.”

  “Oh my god,” Lark gasped and jumped up. She dragged me into a hug. “I’m so happy for you. I know, after Josh, things were so bad, but Court seems to make you happy.”

  “You don’t think it’s too soon?” I whispered my fear out loud.

  “Does it feel too soon?”

  “Sometimes,” I admitted. “It’s only been three months, and Josh and I were together for five years. But… I like being with him.”

  “Then, I don’t think it’s too soon. Someone else might say that because they don’t know you. But I know that you wouldn’t rush into anything unless it felt right. I’m surprised it’s Court,” she said with another laugh, “but also glad it is. He’s changed because of you. And you seem so much happier.”

  I flushed at the words. I’d always thought I was happy with Josh, that things were perfect. But maybe I’d just had such fucked up expectations that I’d dismissed his behavior too easily. I’d thought he was perfect when really he just wasn’t quite as douchey as the guys I was used to. Until he was.

  “It’s kind of a relief to say it out loud. And to not have to hide it anymore. I didn’t like lying.”

  “I know what you mean,” Lark said seriously. “It only gets easier from here.”

  I held up my hand. “Fingers crossed.”

  “Let’s get dinner after your meeting. Or coffee!”

  “Do you need more coffee?” I asked, gesturing to her desk.

  “What kind of question is that? Everyone needs more coffee.”

  I shook my head. “All right. Coffee Grounds after!”

  I smiled at my friend and then headed back into the main office space. Leslie’s office was at the very end of the hall. I’d met her there when I came out to interview for the position. We’d mostly communicated through email about Court’s progress since then. For some reason, it felt even more daunting, walking toward her office now than it had before.

  I knocked twice and heard someone inside say, “Come in.”

  I turned the knob and entered. Leslie was seated at a large desk. It was immaculate in comparison to Lark’s mayhem. This was her second office, but I knew her main office at City Hall was equally perfect.

  “Ah, Anna. Good. Right on time,” Leslie said. “Shut the door and take a seat.”

  I shut the door behind me, closing me in with Court’s mother. I hadn’t felt this anxious about a meeting in a long time. But this wasn’t a normal meet-the-parents endeavor. And I didn’t know how it was going to go.

  I knew that Leslie Kensington was volatile with her sons. I’d seen it firsthand. But I also knew that she loved them and prized them even if she was a total hard-ass. I still didn’t know how she’d react when she found out about me and Court.

  Still, I took a deep breath and sat.

  Leslie finished typing out what appeared to be an email and then turned to face me again. “So, I just had a call from your PR firm. Apparently, you quit?”

  “Yes,” I said softly. Then, I cleared my throat and reached for my publicist vote. “Yes. I received some disturbing news about the firm and made the decision to sever ties.”

  “Care to share the news? Margery made it seem like…” Leslie waved her hand about. “Well, that you weren’t entirely with it.”

  I gritted my teeth. So, it had begun. The slander against my good name.

  “Well, I found out from my ex-husband that she’d convinced him to sleep with his costar to help promote the movie. And instead of telling me or talking to me about it, she went behind my back. I just found out about it, and when she finally admitted to it, I decided I didn’t need
that kind of person in my life. Let alone as a role model.”

  Leslie steepled her fingers in front of her mouth. “Hmm.”

  “I understand that I probably should have come to talk to you about it right away. I know that it impacts our contract. That we had two weeks left before the election. But things have been tumultuous, and that is my fault. I take responsibility.”

  Leslie was silent a minute. She looked me over, assessing me. As if she could see straight through me. Then, she nodded. “Well, no matter.”

  I nearly choked. “What?”

  “I don’t care who you work for. I agreed to terminate the contract with Poise under the circumstances,” Leslie said evenly. “It will be much easier to work with you directly.”

  “I don’t understand,” I said softly. “I thought you would be upset.”

  “Upset? Why? When I hired you, Lark said you were the best in the business. That proved true. It’s all the better that I can bring you in-house and not have to share you with a company in LA,” Leslie said like the strategic businesswoman she was.

  “Oh,” I gasped. “You want to hire me in-house?”

  “Yes, of course. You’re an excellent publicist, Anna. Or do you prefer English? I’ve heard others call you that.”

  “Yes, English,” I muttered, still in a state of shock.

  “So, we can discuss salary. I was thinking the same as what we’d agreed on with Poise, but of course, they’re no longer taking a cut. You’d be making more. But I’m willing to negotiate before someone else snaps you up.”

  I was reeling. To work for Leslie full-time. I wouldn’t have to start my own company. I could just work under her umbrella. I could deal with the things she needed and make even more money than I had been making. Enough to sustain the life I’d grown accustomed to living.

  But also, she would be expecting me to work for Court. To keep working with Court. He’d be my client and responsibility again. Just as we were beginning to become something.

  “I appreciate the opportunity,” I said carefully. “But I’m going to have to decline.”

  Leslie raised her eyebrows. “Really? Do you want to move back to LA? Has another firm already reached out to you?”

  “No,” I said. “But… I can’t work for Court anymore.”

  Leslie sighed heavily. As if she had heard this so many other times before. “What did he do this time?”

  I laughed softly and shook my head. “Nothing. He’s actually… wonderful. And I know that you won’t approve, but I would rather pursue a relationship with him than take this job.”

  Leslie’s mouth dropped open. “Well, I can still be surprised.”

  “This isn’t how I wanted to tell you,” I said quickly. “It’s brand-new and…”

  Then, she leaned back and held her hand up. “You don’t have to explain. I’m glad that you’re staying in Court’s life. He’s better for it.”

  “Oh,” I whispered. My cheeks heated. “Really? I thought you’d be mad. Since you didn’t want to hire someone like me because you were worried I’d fall under his spell… and then I did.”

  Leslie shook her head. “No. He fell under your spell. And that’s a different story.”

  I opened and closed my mouth. “But…”

  “You got him to work for the company. You got him to stop drinking excessively. Not only is he showing up to campaign events, but he’s also sober and giving speeches. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him sober at a campaign event,” she said crisply. “I wanted someone who could handle him. Someone who wasn’t so pretty that they’d fall all over themselves over him. I didn’t realize that it could even happen in reverse. And I’m grateful. Whatever the circumstances.”

  I really had no idea what to say to that. I never thought that I’d put Court under my spell. But the way she described it, it felt so certain. I’d seen it as my job to make him a better person. I hadn’t realized that us falling for each other was what would help him all along.

  “What does that mean for us for the future?” I finally sputtered out.

  Leslie smiled. “I suppose we can find someone else for Court, if you think it’s necessary.” She tilted her head. “I’m starting to expect that it won’t be though.”

  * * *

  I left Leslie’s office in a daze. I’d been expecting to be put through the wringer, and instead, I’d found that she didn’t even mind that I was dating her son. That was not the Leslie Kensington I had been expecting. Even Lark was shocked. After how Leslie had reacted to Penn dating Natalie, she’d sworn that Leslie would freak out. Though we were both glad she hadn’t.

  I skipped going to my apartment to change and went straight to Court’s penthouse instead. He had just come out of the shower when I entered his place and changed into running pants and T-shirt.

  Court startled when he saw me. “English, I didn’t know you were coming over.”

  “I just talked to your mom.”

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “Margery called her about me quitting. She offered me a job to work as your publicist for the company.”

  “That’s great,” he said evenly.

  Not the answer I’d been expecting.

  “Well, I turned her down,” I said giddily. “I mean, since we’re you know… something. Together.”

  “You turned her down?”

  “Yeah. Conflict of interest.”

  He looked so far away in that moment. As if he couldn’t fathom it.

  “Unless… I shouldn’t have done that? I mean, I was already looking at starting my own business. But we both agreed that with the transformation you’ve made, you probably don’t even need a full-time publicist anymore.”

  “Oh, good. No more babysitter for me.”

  I frowned at his comment as he went to the wet bar and poured himself some whiskey.

  “Everything okay at work today?” I asked.

  He took a long sip of his drink. “It was fine. Just… draining.”

  “Oh, okay. I thought you’d be more excited.”

  He downed the rest of the whiskey in one long shot and then set it down heavily. Something shifted in his shoulders. Something eased as if the tension had never been there. And then when he turned back around to face me, it was gone. As if a phantom had passed through his body and out the other side.

  “I am excited,” he said with that smile again. “This means you’re all mine, right?”

  I bit my lip and nodded. “I suppose that I am.”

  He strode back toward me, wrapped an arm tight around my waist, and kissed the breath out of me. It was a needy kiss. As if he were trying to suck my soul right out of my body.

  I came away breathless. “That was some kiss.”

  His hands traveled over my ass and hoisted me up with my legs around his waist. “You’d better get used to it.”

  30

  English

  “Just come out of the bedroom and show me your damn costume already,” Court all but growled from the living room.

  I’d been teasing him all week about the Halloween costume I’d gotten for Katherine’s party. She’d insisted that, this year, we have a group costume, and so all my careful planning had been thrown out the window. I knew the group idea would be better, especially for pictures.

  “Katherine is going to be here any minute. I need more than a few minutes with this costume,” he called again.

  I giggled a little at his impatience. Yes, I’d been a big cocktease about it, but it was more fun that way. I was just glad that whatever had come over him last week hadn’t returned. He’d been back to being his regular Court self.

  Then, with a bit of theatrics, I opened the bedroom door and stepped out to face Court. But it was his costume that made me stop. He was dressed as Don Draper just as I’d thought in the St. Regis all those weeks ago. He wore a sexy gray suit with a little white pocket square, shiny black oxfords, and a fedora.

  “Wow,” I swooned.

  Court’s eyes rounded. “Wow i
s right. Holy fuck, English. I don’t think I can let you leave in that.”

  I put a hand on my hip. “And who says you control where I go and where I don’t, Draper?”

  He laughed. “No one. But I’m considering keeping you inside and fucking you all night if that’s any consolation.”

  “Well, achievement unlocked,” I said with a wink.

  He twirled his finger in place to ask me to spin, and so I did for him. I let him get a good look at the way my legs looked forever long in my mile-high, strappy black Jimmy Choos. His eyes traveled up to the cheeky black lace underwear with the matching garter and fully blinged-out black push-up bra. My hair was blown out, and I rocked a smoky eye like it was my job. But the best part of the entire thing… was the black fallen angel wings at my back. Alone, I just looked like a dark angel, but when I met up with my girls, we’d look like a collection of Victoria’s Secret Angels preparing for the runway.

  He whistled low. “The teasing was worth it. Can we stay home now?”

  I giggled and shook my head. “This party is important to Katherine.”

  “I might get handsy,” he warned me in advance.

  “I’d find this acceptable,” I said mischievously.

  Court circled my waist and drew me in for a sensual kiss that made me reconsider his offer.

  “Okay, okay,” I said breathlessly. “You might actually win if we don’t stop now.”

  “Then, don’t stop.”

  I hastily stepped around him and went back for the small clutch that went with my outfit. I checked my phone and saw I had a missed call from Taylor. It was from a couple of minutes ago, but she hadn’t left a message. If it was important, she’d have left a message. I stuffed the phone into my clutch and followed Court downstairs to meet the Percy limo.

  Thankfully, it was already waiting for us, so I could just skitter across the sidewalk and get inside without needing my jacket, which I had no intention of carrying around tonight.