“Quiet?” Maxi’s brow raised in surprise.
Ace grinned. “No other incidents to report.”
“Well, look who finally decided to show up,” a voice that sounded familiar shouted behind them. Billy recognized it as the manager that had left several outraged messages on Maxi’s voicemail.
They turned to see a man that looked to be in his late fifties walking towards them. His thinning hair was styled so that not a strand was out of place. He was wearing tailored clothes, Italian leather shoes, and a high-end watch that probably cost more than most people’s vehicles, and a smug expression that Billy wanted to knock off his pompous face.
“Alan, I’m so sorry that I couldn’t be here—”
The man lifted his hand. “Save it. I don’t give a shit about your apologies. I’d fire your ass myself, but Ricco requested he see you.” Motioning to the door directly behind Ace, Alan asked, “He still in there?”
Ace nodded once and although his demeanor remained professional it was clear to Billy that he didn’t like the douchebag manager any more than Billy did.
When the familiar strands of Guns N’ Roses “Welcome to the Jungle” began playing, Alan pulled a phone from his jacket pocket.
“Stay here,” he instructed Maxi before moving down the hall that they’d just come from and answering his call.
“Oh good, you’re here!” An attractive woman holding a phone in one hand and an iPad in the other exclaimed excitedly as she rushed up to Maxi.
“I am. Cora, this is Billy Marshall,” Maxi made the introductions. “Billy, this is Cora, she heads my social media division. She is the Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat queen.”
“What about Facebook?” Billy asked.
Both Maxi and Cora looked at him like he had just sprouted another head.
“Facebook is not really Ricco’s demographic,” Maxi explained diplomatically. “He trends younger.”
Billy suddenly felt every one of his twenty-nine years. “So, what, is Facebook for old people, or something?”
“Or something.” Maxi’s eyes sparkled as she repeated the same answer he’d given her when she’d asked if he was going into the priesthood. And just like that the rest of the world slipped away. One look, one inside joke, one touch was all it took to transport him to a space and time in which only the two of them existed.
Maxi blinked, looking dazed, before shaking her head slightly. “And I’m sure you’ve met A—”
“Ace, yes, we’ve met.” The young blonde blushed as she spoke.
Billy sliced a glance to Ace who seemed not to notice the reaction he’d caused. His smile was friendly, but there was no undercurrent to it. Nothing to give this girl even a sliver of hope that he’d been as happy to meet her as she was to meet him. He was either oblivious to her interest or just not interested himself. Billy couldn’t tell which one.
The girl looked equally confused and disappointed, but she recovered quickly and returned her attention to Maxi.
There was a panic in Cora’s voice as she whispered. “Has Alan seen you?”
Maxi replied calmly, “Yes. I just spoke to him.”
“Oh, okay.” Her eyes bulged so much Billy was surprised they were still in their sockets. “Did he…are you…are we?”
“Fired?” Maxi finished what she thought the girl was trying to get at.
“Yes.”
“Technically, no. But I think that’s just because Ricco would like the pleasure of doing the honors.” Maxi smiled, but Billy saw the sadness behind it.
She was trying to be strong for her team and he admired the hell out of her for that.
“Let me call Jessie, I don’t want you going in there alone,” Cora insisted.
“I’ll be fine,” Maxi shook her head no.
“She’s not going in alone,” Billy spoke at the same time.
Maxi’s head spun towards him, and the light scent of fruit and flowers wafted through the air. After spending the last two days at Casa Rizzo he now knew that the delicious aroma came from a combination of her shampoo and some stuff she sprays on her hair to “add shine.” Another secret he’d managed to uncover was that she sang in the shower. Off key and always eighties music. This morning it had been “Kokomo” by the Beach Boys from the Tom Cruise classic Cocktail.
“Yes, I am,” she spoke through a clenched smile.
He didn’t argue with her, but there was no way she was going into that room alone with anyone. Ricco Kingsley might be the biggest star in the world, but until this entire fiasco was resolved, he wouldn’t be getting any one on one time with Maxi.
No one would.
Maxi’s baby blues narrowed at him, but instead of pressing the point she turned back and spoke to Cora. “Thank you so much for holding things together today. I know you went above and beyond.”
“Of course, it was my pleasure!” Cora enthused. “How is everything? We heard you were at the police station.”
“Everything is fine. There was just something I needed to take care of.”
Cora’s iPad lit up and she glanced down. “I have to go, I’m live tweeting the after party, which would be a lot more exciting if Ricco was actually at it. That’s why I came back here, to get an ETA on him.”
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Maxi shrugged apologetically.
After giving Maxi a quick hug, Cora waved at the trio, her eyes lingering on Ace for a beat longer than anyone else before rushing back down the hall.
Alan appeared seconds later with a satisfied grin on his face. “He’ll see you now.”
“Great.” Maxi plastered on a huge smile and took a step towards the door.
Billy followed.
When she noticed that he was directly behind her she turned and placed her hand on his chest. He could feel her touch through the thin cotton fabric of his shirt and the jolt of pleasure that it caused stopped him short.
If she felt it too, she didn’t let it show. Under her breath, she whispered, “I’m going in alone.”
“No. You’re not.” Billy hadn’t had any time to case this building. For all he knew this door wasn’t the only one that led in and out of the back room. He wasn’t sending her in blind.
“It’s Ricco Kingsley,” she hissed.
As if it was the most natural thing in the world, his hand slid to her hip and his fingers gripped, just like he had before her date. Leaning down he spoke low, so only she could hear him. “I don’t care if it’s the fucking Pope, you are not leaving my sight.”
Just like the first time he’d done it, her body trembled beneath his touch.
“Ricco’s waiting!” Alan shouted from behind them.
Without another word, she spun back around and opened the door. Billy followed her and tried not to think about how responsive she was to his touch, to his voice.
* * *
Maxi knew what she was walking into and the last person, besides her father, that she would ever want to witness what was about to happen was right behind her. There was nothing she could do about her unwanted audience, so she held her head high, determined to handle the situation with class and grace.
Ricco was seated on his couch engrossed in his phone. He was sandwiched by two girls, one on each side, who were both wearing little more than what a bikini would cover.
Alan stepped into the room and snapped his fingers. “Okay girls, time’s up.”
Disappointment fell over both of their faces as they stood and shuffled out of the room. Maxi was no stranger to groupies. Growing up around fighters she’d known more than her fair share of ring bunnies. She’d never judged them or their actions. But, when she was a teenager she had tried to find out what was in it for them. Some of the girls had explained that the fighters were basically like notches on their belts. That it felt good to be wanted by them. Others had hoped that it would lead to more, like a relationship. That answer had confused her because she’d never seen that happen.
It still didn’t make sense to her today, as she watche
d the two girls leave the room silently. Had they gotten what they’d wanted before Alan had come in and told them to leave? She doubted it.
Alan slammed the door shut behind the girls, but remained inside.
“You can both go, too.” Ricco spoke without looking up from his phone.
Maxi assumed that he was talking to her and started to leave. She wasn’t looking forward to being fired by Alan, but honestly at this point it was probably the lesser of the two evils.
“Not you. You stay.” Ricco lifted his arm and motioned towards Alan and Billy. “Them.”
Oh shit. Maxi knew there was no way Billy was going to leave and she just wanted this whole thing over with. Who would want to drag out their termination?
“Sure,” Alan agreed amicably, but Maxi could see the irritation bubbling just below the surface. Then to Billy he said, “Let’s go.”
Billy didn’t even acknowledge that Alan had spoken. He stared straight at Ricco. “She stays. I stay.”
A thrill raced down her spine. This wasn’t the time to be turned on but she just couldn’t help herself. There was something so hot about Billy not caring who Ricco was and insisting that he stay. With her.
Of course, she doubted that Ricco would appreciate that. Which should be a concern, since he was her client. But since she’d been summoned to this room for the sole purpose of being let go, it didn’t concern her one bit.
“Whatever,” Ricco shrugged his left shoulder, looking back down at his phone.
Both Maxi and Alan’s jaw dropped, but they both remained silent. Actually, everyone did, including Ricco. No one spoke and the silence seemed to stretch on and on.
Finally, Ricco set his phone down. When he looked up and saw Alan he yelled, “What the hell are you still doing here? I told you to get the fuck out!”
Alan lifted his hands in surrender and backed up. As he turned, she heard him whisper “asshole” under his breath. For a second, she almost felt sorry for the man, being spoken to like that by a kid that could be his son. But then she remembered that he’d been in Forbes two years ago as one of the highest paid managers thanks to his A-list clientele and her sympathy evaporated.
When the door shut, Maxi stepped forward. “I’d like to apologize for my absence. I’m not going to make excus—”
Ricco’s head fell back as he laughed out loud. It wasn’t a little chuckle and not a full-blown belly laugh. It was somewhere in the middle. Unsure of what had caused the outburst, Maxi looked over her shoulder to see if Billy had some idea of what was happening. From the bemused look on his face, he didn’t.
“Ahhh, you crack me up.” Ricco sighed as he finally composed himself. “Do you actually think that by coming in here apologizing and not making excuses you’re going to be able to make up for not doing your job? Because if that’s what you think, you’re smoking crack, bitch.”
Maxi could feel Billy’s energy shift behind her. The last thing she wanted was for this to escalate. Her only hope was to diffuse the situation.
Speaking as fast as she could get the words out of her mouth, she said, “I understand your frustration. Thank you for the opportunity. Is there anyone you’d like me to forward your itinerary to before I—”
“My itinerary?” Ricco stood. “I don’t give a fuck about my itinerary! Who do you think you are?!” With each declaration he made his voice raised higher and he took a step closer to her. “You fly out to LA, promise me that I’ll be your top priority and then you fail to show up to two events! Do you know who I am, bitch?!”
He was standing right in front of her now. She kept reminding herself to remain professional. He might be an arrogant little shit, but he was also her client and had every right to be upset. She’d promised him things that she hadn’t been able to follow through on.
“Do you?” His shoulder lightly bumped against her as he turned back towards the couch.
That was the line. He could yell, he could call her names, but there was no way she would allow him to get physical, even if it was a light tap. But, before she had a chance to respond, Billy had shifted her so that she was now behind him, just like he had when the dogs had come out of the elevator.
“That’s enough.” Billy’s tone was even and quiet, but she could feel anger radiating off of him.
As much as she appreciated his alpha-tendencies, this was her job, she was more than capable of handling herself and it without him interfering. Even if his intentions were good. After she diffused this situation she and Billy were going to have a long talk about boundaries.
“You don’t say when it’s enough!” Ricco yelled. “Who the fuck do you think you—”
His voice trailed off and Maxi stepped out from behind Billy expecting to see Ricco in a sleeper hold or dropped to the ground, instead she found him staring up in disbelief.
“Holy shit! The Big Bad Wolf! You’re Billy Marshall!” His face lit up with genuine excitement and for the first time since she’d met Ricco, he didn’t look like he was putting on a performance. He looked like a real person instead of a Saturday Night Live parody. “When I was twelve, I saved up all my paper route money to see you fight Sheldon. You won in the fourth round by knockout. I’ll never forget that night! I waited for you outside and you signed my hat.”
Ricco rushed to a large case that was sitting in the corner and pulled out a tattered baseball cap that had Billy’s signature on it. He stared down at it. “You asked if I was getting good grades in school and I told you that I ditched a lot. You asked me why and I told you that some kids made fun of me because I wanted to be a singer.” His eyes were watering as he looked up, “Do you remember what you told me?”
Maxi’s eyes shot to Billy. Did he?
“I said fuck ’em,” Billy answered confidently. “They’re probably only acting like that because they have small dicks.”
What?! Maxi held her breath as she cut her gaze back to Ricco.
He was nodding his head as he wiped his hand beneath his watering eyes and sniffed. “Yeah. And I started my YouTube channel the next day ’cause I didn’t give a shit what some small-dicked assholes had to say. You’re the reason that I’m doing what I’m doing. Without you there wouldn’t be a Ricco Kingsley.”
Maxi couldn’t believe what she was witnessing.
“Why did you come here?” Ricco asked in awe, like Billy was the ghost of Christmas past.
“I’m here with Ms. Rizzo.”
Maxi knew what he meant, but that didn’t stop her from getting a thrill at hearing those words leave his mouth.
Ricco’s face went pale. “Oh shit. I’m so sorry. I didn’t want to fire you. Honestly, I didn’t even notice that you weren’t here. Everything’s been great. Anytime I need something, it’s here. But, Alan said you didn’t take me seriously and I needed to make an example out of you. He told me what to say, how to say it.”
That didn’t surprise Maxi at all.
“It’s fine. I totally understand and I’m so happy that my team has taken care of everything for you. I’ll make sure to let them know.” Since they were on better terms, Maxi figured she’d try again so she asked, “Is there someone you’d like me to send your itinerary to?”
She and her team had spent a lot of time making sure that for these next four days that Ricco was in Chicago there wouldn’t be a wasted minute. She really didn’t want all that planning to go up in flames just because Alan Turner wanted to “make an example out of her.”
“No. I want you to keep it. You’re not fired.”
Maxi was stunned.
When she didn’t respond, he added. “Please don’t quit.”
“No… of course not.” Maxi shook her head trying to recover from the professional whiplash she’d just experienced. “Well, if I’m still your publicist, then I need you to go to the meet and greet.”
“Great! Let’s go.” Ricco grabbed his phone and headed out the door like he had a new lease on life.
As they followed behind Ace who was directly behind Ricco
Maxi whispered to Billy, “I can’t believe you remembered what you said.”
He placed his hand on her back, the way he had on the way out of the police station and the same warmth spread through her. Leaning down he spoke quietly against her ear, “I didn’t. That’s what I always said to kids that were getting bullied. It seemed to help more than telling them it gets better.”
That was Billy in a nutshell. He didn’t ever do what was expected of him, but somehow it was always the right thing. Which was why he was here, taking care of her. It was the right thing to do. Nothing more, nothing less.
Her brain knew that, it was her heart and hormones that didn’t.
Chapter 12
The scream of the crowd was deafening as Ricco finished his last performance of the week and exited stage left. Billy watched as Maxi applauded while simultaneously speaking into her headset, most likely putting out a small fire before it turned into an uncontrollable blaze. She truly was the queen of multitasking.
It was Friday night and over the past four days the only time he’d seen her stop was the three or four hours sleep that she grabbed each night, which he thought it more accurate to describe them as naps. He was running on fumes just from trying to keep up with her.
Wednesday night they’d had a two-hour break when Ricco was visiting his family. Billy had assumed that she would use the time to rest or eat. But that hadn’t been on the agenda. Instead they’d paid a visit to Carter Simpson. Since they’d only been back at the condo for a few hours in the early morning, they hadn’t seen him since the police had questioned him. After talking to him it was painfully clear that the poor kid had been through the wringer, but Carter’s main concern was that Maxi knew he had nothing to do with anything that was going on. Maxi took her time assuring him she believed him. Billy knew they could’ve gotten out of there with an hour to spare, but instead of leaving Maxi had invited Carter out to pizza.
Paranoia had never been something that Billy had struggled with, but he was really starting to think that Maxi was avoiding any time alone with him. What had started after they left the police station on Monday continued throughout the week. If they were in the car, she was on the phone. If they were home, she always made an excuse to be in a separate room than him. If they ended up in an empty room together elsewhere, again, she was on the phone or furiously answering emails. It was odd to be with someone twenty-four hours a day and not actually be spending any time with them.
All He Wants Page 10
