by Hadley Quinn
Neil nodded but didn’t speak for quite a while. “No, I’m not upset. Like you said, it went to a good cause. But was it also to shed some of your prominence?”
Max barely had to think about that. “Yes, you could say that. Don’t get me wrong, I do love what money can do. I love cars, being able to do whatever I want like traveling or other hobbies. But I’m a simple guy. I don’t need fancy clothing or accessories.”
“They look good on you though.”
It was almost as if his grandpa was laughing at his own shallowness, so Max smiled. “Of course it does. Because this is a family of fine lookin’ fellas.”
“Yes,” Neil bobbed his head. “Yes, it is. And smart ones, too. I’m most proud of that. As for your father, I’m not going to get in the middle of that. You two have some talking to do.”
“Talking,” Max scoffed. “Him talking, you mean.”
“Ha, yes, just like him and me. I talk, he listens. What I say goes. It seems as if you younger generations like to challenge that more often. Or maybe it’s always been that way. I don’t know.”
He sat in contemplation for a bit, but when he didn’t say anything further, Max asked, “What about Clint? What’s going to happen with him?”
“Well,” Grandpa sighed, “He’s going to be staying here with me. All the alcohol will be locked away, he’ll have close monitoring by a personal assistant, and he has to attend counseling. He seems to be of sound mind right now, but if he relapses again… I just don’t know. I’d like to put him to work again.”
That was surprising to Max, but what his uncle did was none of his business. Hopefully Kellie, Jay, and Tyse could get on neutral ground with their father.
“You know your dad suffered the most when Clint rebelled a little too much.” Neil paused to make sure he had Max’s attention. “Your dad made his own mistakes, but he listened to me enough that they were redeemable. Clint…not so much. And your father probably tried harder than I did to get his brother to stop destroying himself. Every time Clint got in trouble another time, your dad got hit with it too. He had to deal with his peers and their opinions; he had to fight his way out of the bad reputation his brother left him shadowed with. Yes, Craig was gifted and worked hard, and he has a lot to show for it. But he feels like he failed the one thing he wanted to accomplish the most…and that was to protect his brother from ruining his own life.”
Max let those words sink in. He knew he and his dad had a hard time understanding one another. In the past, Max had done what he was told. Then he really did test the waters a little more. He could see how his father might have compared him to Clint.
And when it came to family dealings, Max just didn’t know what had been handled right or wrong. There was too much gray area to maneuver through. Maybe his father did the best he knew how in the situation he was put it.
Who really knew.
He slapped his hands on his thighs as he stood. “Well he doesn’t have to worry because I’m not Clint. But I need to run. And…thanks. For the insight, I guess.”
“I’m not far away, you know.”
Max nodded. “Yeah, I know. I’m busy, you’re busy, everyone’s busy.”
“I’m never too busy for you. And please… Bring Chase by sometime?”
“Yeah, I’ll do that.”
“I wanted to talk to you about that. Next time, when you have a chance. And Anna Evans? Is this a real thing?”
He could have been upset over the accusation, but in this family, it wasn’t entirely foreign. The McCallans had used women several times to make a statement.
“I’m not purposely trying to piss off my father, if that’s what you mean.”
“No, it is not what I mean. I believe you’re truly interested in her. What I meant was…how serious are you about her?”
Max set his empty glass on the wet bar but didn’t even have to consider it. As he left he answered, “Pretty sure she’d be hard to top.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
It was only a matter of time before Craig came crashing back into the picture. Max was relieved that his father had been busy with other things and hadn’t stuck his nose where it shouldn’t. Granted, he had ignored a few of his texts and phone calls the last two days, so it was no surprise his dad was beyond pissed when they ran into each other at McC Studios.
“What in the hell are you doing?” Craig exclaimed, stopping in the doorway of the main office.
It was the posh office with a conference table and plush leather chairs; where most of the negotiations and production details were dealt with; where high priority actors and directors came in to discuss business or do initial read-throughs of scripts.
“I’m grabbing a few of my own things and heading out,” Max replied. He hadn’t been back to the mansion either, so this run-in with his dad was going to be interesting. “I told you I’m walking away. It wasn’t a joke, it wasn’t a bluff, and it’s definitely not a phase. I’m done.”
“The hell you are,” Craig growled as he stormed across the room. He smacked the box out of Max’s hand and it went crashing to the floor. There wasn’t anything too significant in it, but enough for a reaction to occur.
“You really think you’re going to bully me until I change my mind?” Max growled. He knelt down and scooped up everything, dropping it all back into the box. He stood and then headed for the door.
“And you really think you’re going to do this to my name and get away with it?”
“Get away with what? I don’t fucking want to work for you! Do you get that? I don’t want to work for you or with you or even work with anyone who works with you!”
“So you’re going to break contract on this deal with Keplin? Do you realize you will be black balling yourself in this industry? Acting, directing, producing… All of it! He signed with us for you to direct!”
“Then it’s on you for letting that happen when I specifically said no from the very beginning. And I never signed on, so there is no contract to even break. Whatever promises you made to other people are on you not me. And as for that other project—the High Society series?—that’s on you too. To insinuate that I’d be taking that role was ludicrous.”
“You’re a fool for turning it down. Did you know that book series has made millions? Do you know how much that project is worth to put on the big screen?”
“I’m not doing it. I never discussed a role with a single person, so I have no ties to it whatsoever.”
“And you’re willing to face all the scrutiny and public bashing that’s for sure going to happen? I’m not going out on a limb for you after this, you understand that? Daddy is not going to fix this for you when you come crawling back to your fucking senses!”
“I don’t want you to fix anything. I don’t want your hand in anything I’m doing right now, okay?”
“There will be ramifications, Maxwell. I will not have my name under the bus this time.”
“Then that’s on you. No one did that but you. That’s what happens when you don’t want to listen to anyone but your own agenda.”
“You ungrateful little bastard,” Craig murmured under his breath.
Max shook his head, but it was with a mix of frustration and humility because he was recalling the conversation he had with his grandpa the other day.
“No, that’s where you’re wrong. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, Dad. You’ve helped me navigate an industry I would have drowned in years ago. I thank you for that. But what has been happening the last few years is not okay. And instead of letting me branch out on my own with a pair of wings you’ve helped me grow, you want to yank me back and clip them. Do you realize how much you’re inhibiting the family name this time? You preach growth and reputation…legacy. A good name for generations to come. Well guess what? It’s never going to be the way you envision it because it’s not possible to have a perfect image.”
“If you kids would have done what you were—”
“No. Don’t even put it on
us. Me, Teague, Jay…Kellie. We are responsible for our own actions, but not yours. You and your brother already made your own mistakes twenty and thirty years ago. You with your women and Clint with his hookers and cocaine. That was all on you two! We came with our own fuckups too, and hell, I don’t even know where to begin when it comes to Grandpa’s earlier years. Do you see what I mean? We’re all fucking human! None of us has led the perfect life and none of us will redeem the McCallan name all on our own. You have got to stop using me to make up for the past fifty years! I’m not going to go down the road your brother did, okay? You seriously don’t have to worry about that.”
For another rare moment, Craig was speechless. Max could see the anger on his face, but the man didn’t respond. Instead, he walked across the room and stopped at the window that looked out across the city. From the 42nd floor, it was quite the view.
Finally he muttered, “You really want to fight this fight?”
Max exhaled. “Go ahead, Dad. Sue me for not wanting to leave my father’s company. See if you can shit rainbows to distract from how utterly ridiculous that sounds. Just about as stupid as Grandpa threatening to sue Tyse over recording rights.”
“Oh Jesus Christ!” Craig bellowed as he turned around. “That was an entirely different situation! It was a power play; a pecking order sort of thing. An empty threat. And I am not going to sue you over anything. All I want is for you to understand where I’m coming from.”
“And all I want is the same.” Max paused for a response, but didn’t get one. “Can’t we just agree that we want different things? Can we just support each other in our separate endeavors?”
Still Craig didn’t reply.
Max went back and grabbed another item from the bookshelf—a framed photo of himself with Chase—and placed it in the box. “I had lunch with Mom yesterday. She said to tell you hi.”
Craig scoffed like he didn’t care, but Max knew that he did. He knew they still cared about each other, even with the weight of the past between them.
“She’ll be here for the rest of the month,” Max added. “I think you should see her.” He headed for the door but stopped. “One more thing, Dad… I’ll be fighting a custody battle with Kate pretty soon. I’ll admit I wasn’t going to tell you because of this current split between you and I but…this is a family situation, not business. I really hope I can have your support.”
He wasn’t sure what that would consist of, but he knew deep in his heart his father had some good qualities that had only been tainted along the way, just like himself.
Maybe Craig just needed some help in remembering that.
***
A couple of weeks later, it finally came to a point where Max had to announce to a trusted and well-respected news reporter that he did indeed have another avenue he was venturing down. He gave a brief description of the film script he’d written and would be producing, but didn’t go into too many details, and he also made it known that he wasn’t going to be working on his father’s project as suggested. His father hadn’t spoken to him in all of that time, and he also hadn’t recanted his previous implication that Max would be starring in said project, so it was necessary to put a stop to the rumors sailing all over Hollywood.
The result of the announcement came as expected: a rumored controversial battle between royal father and son. As usual, the majority of reports were highly false; little facts were present, if any, and a lot of speculation made up the bulk of each story. One thing was for certain, and that was that there was somewhat of a feud between the two. Teague’s name was also brought into it, and it was even rumored that Teague and Max were conspiring together to take over their father’s company.
“Why the fuck would I want anything to do with that,” Teague scowled as he tossed a newspaper on the coffee table. “Sure would be nice if people had their own fucking lives and stopped feeding this nonsense.”
“Couldn’t agree more,” Max sighed.
They’d been sitting in Teague’s front room for almost an hour now. Max had stopped by at his brother’s request to discuss the latest with their dad but hadn’t gotten far.
“It’s kind of an interesting subject, though,” Teague said, staring down at the carpet. “Us working together again?”
Max raised his eyebrows, but when Teague looked up at him, he quickly hid his surprise. “You stunt doubling for me again? That would be cool if I ever get back into acting. What about you? How’s your shoulder?”
Teague had finally received a much needed shoulder surgery a month ago and had been off the job since. Max knew it was killing him to be so below par.
“It’s healing okay, I guess. I’ve already started therapy with Tyse, and it hurts like a motherfucker, but I’m so ready to be done with this bullshit. I couldn’t keep wondering when it was gonna pop out of the socket again. And if it happened again, I think my reputation would suffer and I’d be labeled as unreliable. Washed up. An old fucker.”
Max laughed. “You’re what, twenty-six now? Yeah, too young to go into retirement.”
Teague laughed too, but shook his head. “It’s kinda sad though, if you think about it. Eight years in this career—a couple of concussions, one broken bone, the shoulder, and multiple contusions and such—but hell, I love it. I can’t see myself stopping so soon. Maybe another few years, and then I’ll move on to stunt coordinating instead.”
“Why wait? You’re out for how long? –Another few months until you’re given the nod? So why not come on my set for the time being?”
Teague leaned his good arm onto his knee and gave Max a side-glance. “What set, for the script you wrote?”
“Yeah. And it’s not just any script… It’s Tate’s story, man. It’s from his experiences, his journal. He gave me the go-ahead to pen it into a movie.”
“Tate’s life?” Teague asked with surprise. “Really.”
Only Kellie and Tate knew what Max had been writing. He hadn’t even shared it with Anna yet. He wanted to wait until they started filming—when it was really happening and not just an idea.
“Wow, man,” Teague continued. “I knew you said you wanted to write but… I had no idea it was something like that. You mean his military experiences?”
“That, but more precisely his recovery and the aftermath of an experience like he went through. The physical and mental aspect of it, and the way it has impacted his life and others in it.”
Teague nodded knowingly. “So there’s gonna be a ‘Kellie’ in this story, huh?”
Max agreed with a nod. “And in the story, as he’s dealing with all of these new hardships and changes and dealing with flashbacks, he’ll be reflecting on two different parts of his past—not just the trauma he experienced overseas, but it will interchange with parts of his past a bit further back. Bits of his high school baseball and football days, who he was then and… It all kind of evolves into this…beautiful ‘how and why’ sort of unfolding.”
Teague blew out a breath of air. “Wow.” He paused for several seconds. “Wow. I mean…I can totally visualize it.”
“You’ve been on sets for your whole life. You know how to ‘see’ an idea.”
He shrugged. “Maybe. But really…this was the story you’ve been sitting on this year?”
Max nodded. “Didn’t quite know what my storyline was going to be until Tate set his life in my hands. His journals.”
Teague raised his eyebrows and exhaled again. He paused for several beats before bobbing his head in agreement. “I think you’ve really gone the right direction on this. And I don’t mean because it’s opposing Dad,” he added with a chuckle.
Max laughed too. At least they did have that in common.
“I just mean I can really see this for you,” Teague added.
“Thanks. I mean…I hope it works out how it works out in my head. I’ve spent countless hours piecing all of this production together so we’re set to film on time next week. Thank God Anna is the perfect mix of independent and pushy. She does h
er own thing while I’m working, but sometimes she’ll force me to take a break and we’ll go for a hike somewhere or…” He smiled with implication and Teague laughed.
“Gotcha. Much needed distraction, stress reliever, and fun.”
“Exactly.”
Max thought he’d heard a car pull in, and when the sound of the garage door was obvious, Teague said, “Girls are back. Really quick, though… Have you seen Chase in the past month?”
Max shook his head, but he wished they had more time to talk about that privately. “Nope. Asked Kate two different times if I could see him, once even just for the day. She didn’t answer the one time, and the other time told me they had plans.”
He still hadn’t told Teague about the legal battle that was about to take place, which is why he’d come by in the first place. He hadn’t quite gotten to that news yet.
Camryn entered the house with C.J. in her arms, and Melanie was right behind her holding Cade’s hand, toddling along. All the blonde beauty was breathtaking. Max wondered what Anna would look like tugging along a little one—
Something soft hit him in the face. A bit of giggling and random comments brought his attention back to the present as he picked up a stuffed dog toy that had been thrown at him.
“Is that a yes?” Melanie smiled as she bent down to take off Cade’s sweatshirt and shoes.
“A yes for what?” Max answered.
“I think his lack of attention nominates him automatically,” Camryn teased. “Congratulations, you get our dogs while we’re gone to the mountains this weekend.”
As much as Max wanted to object, he wasn’t quite sure if they were messing with him or not. He’d never been asked to watch anyone’s pets while they were away. Normally that was Kellie’s job.
“Nah, man, don’t even consider it,” Teague shook his head at him. “Tucker and Tank in the same house. Together? Just think about you and me at…oh…say, age seventeen-ish.”
“Oh my God,” Max replied instantly, envisioning as many instances of teenage rebellion and reckless behavior as he could within the five-second span.
