by Amy Brent
“Fine,” I said quietly, knowing that he was right. “Tell me again what she said on the phone.”
“I’ve told you ten times already,” he huffed.
“Tell me again.”
“Fine. I told her that I wanted to talk to her about the EP position on your show and asked if she would like to fly out for an interview.”
“But you did not tell her that I would be here.”
“No.”
“Did she ask?”
“Yes.”
“And you said no.”
“I said that you were not normally involved in the initial interviews, nor would you be part of this one.”
“And she still agreed to come.”
“Obviously.”
“Did you tell her you were interviewing other candidates?” I asked. “So, she wouldn’t expect anything?”
“I told her she was just one of a dozen candidates that were being interviewed for the job. She initially said she wasn’t interested, but when I asked what she had to lose just by interviewing, she said what the hell.” He swept his hands around the office. “And here we are. Waiting for her to arrive.”
The intercom on the desk buzzed. “Mr. Prescott? Miss Rhodes is here.”
“Okay, get out of here and let me do my job,” Harry said, getting to his feet and straightening his tie. He glanced at the platinum Rolex on his wrist. “You’re due onset. Go out my private exit. I’ll call you as soon as my meeting with her is over.”
“Okay, fine,” I said, heading for the door. I opened the door and paused. “Harry, I really appreciate this.”
“It’s not a problem,” he said forward to open the door for me. “Can I ask you one question, Cole?”
“Sure.”
“Why go to all this trouble just to make up with her? Why not just show up at her door with a dozen roses and a giant apology?”
“I don’t think I have anything to apologize for,” I said seriously.
“Maybe not,” he said, slapping me on the back as he ushered me out the door. “But that’s really not the point now, is it.”
Chapter 18: Lucy
I was reluctant at first to even accept the offer to interview for the EP spot on Cole’s show. I mean, come on, I knew I wasn’t being asked to interview because of my experience or skills. I had produced live newscasts for years, but producing a recorded, one-hour talk show would be a whole different ballgame. Not to mention that I would be working with Cole again, a man I hadn’t heard from in almost two months.
“I can assure you, Miss Rhodes, if you were not qualified to handle the job you and I would not be talking,” Harry Prescott said in a tone that told me he wasn’t bullshitting. He did not impress me as a bullshitter, or the kind of guy who would acquiesce to a request just to keep his talent happy, unlike me who had hired Bryant’s niece as an assistant just to get him off my back.
He continued on, “Cole Walker is the talent, but Kingston Television owns the show. We would never hire someone based solely on a personal recommendation or a past relationship. So, the question is, do you want to fly to Los Angeles on Monday to chat with me in person or not?”
It took me less than two seconds to say yes, not just because I was interested in the job, but because I might see Cole again, even though Prescott made it clear that Cole would not be in the interview. I had cried myself to sleep many nights over the way things ended. At the very least, maybe this trip would give us the chance to just shake hands and put our relationship behind us once and for all.
Harry Prescott was tall and lanky and impeccably dressed in a tailored blue pinstripe suit and bright yellow tie. He was sitting behind a large mahogany desk in an office that made mine look like a broom closet. He came around the desk and warmly shook my hand, and directed me to sit in a red leather chair across the desk from him. As we settled in, the assistant who had escorted me back appeared again to set a silver tray on the desk that held two china cups and a silver coffee service and fixings. She poured two cups of coffee while Harry sat smiling at me, then she left the room.
“So, how was your flight?” he asked as he slid one cup toward me and picked up his own. “And how was the hotel?”
“The flight was fine and the Four Seasons is amazing, thank you,” I said, picking up the coffee to drink it black. “I appreciate the gesture.”
“The gesture?” he asked, his manicured gray eyebrows arching.
“I doubt you fly every candidate first class and put them up at the Four Seasons,” I said. “That’s all.”
“Ah, you think that you are getting special treatment because you and Dr. Walker are old friends.”
“Am I not?” I asked the question with an expectant smile. “Oh well, it was nice to feel special for a while.”
“So, let’s talk about your job at WNN,” he said, setting the cup aside without ever drinking from it. He steepled his fingers and rested his chin on them. “Are you happy there?”
I took a careful sip of the steaming coffee and shrugged. “Happy enough, I suppose.”
“If you were happy there, you wouldn’t be here,” he said, holding out his hands, smiling. “Unless you are here just out of curiosity, of course.”
“Let’s assume it’s a little of both,” I said. I glanced around the room. “Is Cole going to join us?”
“No, as I said over the phone, he is not involved in initial interviews,” he said, picking up the cup again. He brought it to his lips and took a careful sip. “Can I be frank with you, Miss Rhodes?”
“Of course.”
“You’re here because Dr. Walker said you were an amazing EP and worthy of a conversation. However, the ultimate decision as to who is hired rests solely on me. So, let’s just forget your relationship with Dr. Walker and conduct ourselves like two professionals who do not have him as a mutual acquaintance, because I assure you, I would never hire anyone simply because the talent suggested I do so. Are we clear?”
I smiled at him. I liked this guy. He reminded me of a tall, skinny Ed. I said, “Clear as a bell, Mr. Prescott. I would love to forget that I know Cole Walker, I mean, for the sake of this interview.”
“Good,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “Let’s start again…”
The interview lasted less than an hour. Prescott had a copy of my resume and he spent most of that time staring at it and asking me inane questions about my career. I got the feeling that it wasn’t really an interview at all. It was just Prescott going through the motions so he could report back to Cole that he had indeed interviewed me as promised, and could now mark me off the list.
I left feeling a little dazed and confused. I didn’t get to see Cole, nor did I have a clue if I really had a shot at the job. Hell, I didn’t even know if I wanted the job. Would I take it if it were offered to me? I honestly did not know.
I didn’t even bother going back to the Four Seasons to check out. I had a sneaking suspicion that things might turn out this way, so I had brought my bag with me.
I caught a cab to the airport and switched my ticket to an earlier flight. Ten hours later, I was back home. Life goes on.
Chapter 19: Lucy
A week passed without word from Harry Prescott regarding the EP job on the Dr. Cole Walker Show. I figured it was for the best anyway, and quickly dismissed thoughts of the job from my mind and focused on the job I already had.
I was a little pissed off, feeling like a pawn in a chess match between Prescott and Cole, but I was also a little curious as to why Cole didn’t just call and apologize. I mean, wasn’t that what the interview was really about? Getting me to L.A. so he could apologize for being a lying asshole and we could pick up where we left off?
Or was I being too presumptuous?
Maybe Cole wasn’t interested in me anymore.
Maybe the interview was meant as Cole’s parting gift to me for playing and losing his game. I fucked you over, but hey, at least I got you an interview. Asshole.
* * *
“Ok
ay, great show everybody,” I said, pressing the console button so everyone could hear my voice through their earpieces and headsets. “Have a great weekend.”
I took off the headset and mussed my hair as I watched the set go dark on the monitors and waited for everyone to turn off the controls and computers and exit the control room. I liked to be the last one to leave the room, just to make sure everything was switched off and put to bed. Plus, it kept me from having to make small talk in the hallway back to my office. I wasn’t trying to be antisocial, I just didn’t feel like talking. I glanced around at the blinking lights and switches, then shut off the overhead lights and went out the door.
I went down the stairs to my office to gather up my things. I was standing behind my desk shoving my laptop into the computer bag when I heard a tap on the door. I looked up to see someone holding a dozen roses in front of their face. When his blue eyes appeared from over the top of the bouquet, I felt my heart jump in my chest.
“Cole? What are you doing here?”
“Following a friend’s advice,” he said, coming into the room with the flowers at arm’s length, as if he were afraid to get too close too soon. “Can we talk, Lucy?”
“Sure,” I said, taking the flowers and holding them to my nose. They smelled wonderful. I blinked at him. “I don’t guess you’re here to tell me I got the job.”
“No, I’m afraid not,” he said with a sad face. He took off his overcoat and hung it on a rack by the door. “They chose Oprah’s former EP. Nice woman. Bit bossy, but that’s what it takes to keep me in line.”
“Wow, hard to compete with that,” I said. “So, why are you here?”
Cole took a deep breath and stared into my eyes. It was hard for me not to jump into his arms. He pressed his hands down on the back of the chair across the desk and worked up an apologetic smile.
“I wanted to apologize,” he said quietly. “And to let you know that I’ll be moving to Los Angeles next week.”
“Permanently?” The word tasted bitter on my tongue.
“Yeah,” he said, head shaking. “Permanently.”
“Oh.”
“And I was hoping you would come with me.”
I blinked at him for a moment, unsure that I’d heard the words correctly. I set the flowers on the credenza behind my desk and lowered myself into the chair. My head was suddenly swimming and my knees felt weak. This, I was not expecting, at all.
Chapter 20: Cole
The color drained from Lucy’s face and she sat down in the chair behind her desk. “Lucy, are you okay?” I asked, reaching out for her. “Do you need a water or anything?”
“Um, I need you to sit,” she said, waving a hand at the chair I was leaning on. “Then say all that again.”
I sat down on the edge of the chair and set my arms on the edge of the desk. “I said I was moving to L.A. and I want you to come with me.”
“Move to L.A. with you?” She spoke like she was drugged or something. “Are you crazy? I haven’t seen or heard from you in almost two months, and you show up today asking me to move across country with you? You’re nuts. I mean, you have to be absolute nuts.”
I smiled and held out my hands across the desk. “Yeah, I mean, I know this is all very sudden, but…”
“I haven’t heard that apology,” she said quietly. She leaned back in the chair and wrapped her arms around herself. “Before we even talk about moving to Los Angeles, I need to hear you say you’re sorry.”
Women. Go figure. I took a deep breath and granted her wish.
“I am sorry, Lucy. I should have told you about the syndication deal, but my agent ordered me not to. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust you, it was that they didn’t trust anyone. I mean, the deal was worth millions of dollars. But that’s no excuse. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you and I’m sorry your feelings got hurt. I’d never hurt you, Lucy, not on purpose. You know that.”
“Do I?”
“I hope so.”
“And I’m just supposed to forgive you? Just like that?”
I gave her my best smile. “Again, I hope so.”
“I’m not sure it’s that easy,” she said, leaning forward with her arms still wound tightly around her. “You have to prove to me that I can trust you again.”
“You can trust me, Lucy,” I said, giving her a playful frown. “I’m a doctor. And I play one on TV.”
“Shut up,” she said, giggling as the ice in her heart began to melt. “You can’t lie to me ever again, Calvin. I just can’t take being lied to. I’ve had my fill of it.”
“I will do whatever it takes to prove that you can trust me,” I said. I gave her a dreamy look and wiggled my fingers. “Now, can we talk about L.A.?”
“In a minute,” she said. She leaned back and started unbuttoning her blouse. “First, close and lock that fucking door.”
EPILOG: Lucy
How could I do this. Forgive a man who had costed me my job. Literally.
But that man was all that mattered to me.
And being with him was all I could care about.
Why was forgiving him so easy? Probably because I was so ready for it. I was waiting for him to just say it, and the moment he said it, I showed him how ready I was.
It was no wonder Los Angeles and New York were on opposite sides of the country because the two cities could not have been more different.
New York prided itself on being the city that never slept. It was also a city that could overwhelm and assault your senses in more ways than one. New York was home to the world’s finest restaurants, theaters, museums, art galleries, and cultural centers. It was also freakin’ loud and noisy and hectic and full of assholes and garbage and stank to high heaven.
Los Angeles, on the other hand, was much more spread out and less cramped, but it had terrible traffic at rush hour, more than its share of assholes, and sometimes you could literally see the air in front of your face. Still, Los Angeles was home now. I’d make the best of it. Which wasn’t hard to do living in a Bel Air mansion with the hottest new star on TV.
Cole’s show had been syndicated in a hundred markets and was a bonafide ratings hit. It quickly went to number one in its time slot in major markets and new affiliates were signing on every day. Entertainment Tonight called Cole the best thing to hit TV since Dr. Oz and Dr. Phil. Thankfully, Cole’s ego wasn’t so big that he bought into the hype. He knew how bright his star was and how quickly it was rising. He also knew how quickly stars could fall to the ground. Maybe that’s why he got nervous sometimes before the cameras rolled. I found it hilarious that a guy who could literally take out, repair, and replace a human heart got nervous being on TV. I also found it incredibly cute.
We had been in L.A. for just over a month and were still settling into the new house, which was provided as part of Cole’s contract with Kingston TV. I had landed a job with the local CBS station in L.A., producing the noon newscast Monday through Friday. I went to work at eight and came home at five. The salary was less than a third of what I’d been making at WNN, but the bullshit I had to put up with, and the stress it caused, was slashed by ninety-nine percent. Money wasn’t everything to me. Of course, that was easy to say when your significant other was a multimillionaire.
Funny, that term “significant other”.
Cole and I loved each other deeply and had said the “L” word, but we still didn’t know how to refer to each other out in public. Were we boyfriend and girlfriend? Significant others? Partners in crime? Was he my man and was I his lady? Or were we just two old flames that had reunited to cause one hell of a bonfire?
“Your drink, madam,” Cole said as he came through the French doors with a mimosa in each hand. The pool area behind our house was totally secluded, which was why we never bothered to wear bathing suits when we lounged around the pool. I was lying naked on a lounge chair, my body slathered in sunscreen and still turning the color of honey.
I got up on my elbows and watched as Cole approached. He was also naked, mu
scles all sweaty and deeply tanned. His long cock swung from side to side as he came toward me. I licked my lips in anticipation of the cold drink and the hot cock.
“Thanks,” I said, sitting up in the chair to take the drink. The sweat streamed down between my tits, sluicing toward my shaved cunt. I smiled when it slid over my clit, knowing that Cole loved the taste of a salty pussy.
I took a long sip and smacked my lips. “That’s so good.”
Cole sat down on the lounge chair next to me and sighed. I watched the muscles ripple through his body as he settled in. He was covered in a layer of oil and sweat. His skin glowed brown and red from the sun. His cock was draped over his thigh, moist with sweat, like a sausage sizzling on the grill.
“This is the life,” he said, setting the drink on the glass table between our chairs. He lay flat with his hands behind his head and his eyes closed. He sighed heavily after a moment, as if he were falling asleep. He didn’t open his eyes when he felt my fingers closing around his cock. He just sighed again and smiled.
“What are you doing?” he asked as his cock hardened in my hand, growing before my eyes. I slowly stroked his cock as the skin tightened around the shaft as it grew to full length and the head blossomed like a mushroom. I could feel the hot juices already pouring from my pussy, mixing with the sweat and sunscreen to lubricate my hole Cole’s entry.
“I’m reliving the night we popped each other’s cherries,” I said, getting up to straddle his cock without ever letting him go. “Do you remember that night?” I swirled the head of his cock around my hole and let it slip inside. “Your cock was so big I thought you were going to split me open.”
“I remember,” he said, bringing his hands to my hips to steady me as I lowered my pussy onto his thick cock. I could feel my pussy closing around him. “Your pussy was so tight I didn’t think I would get inside you. Just like now. God, you’re so fucking tight, Lucy…”
