Another Mazzy Monday

by Savannah Young

  I take one more look at her and when she gives me the slightest of smiles it tugs at my heartstrings. I’m completely entranced again.

  Unfortunately a group of Young Republicans turns up behind me and I know she needs to serve them so I’ve got to move on.

  Three

  Mazzy

  “I’m exhausted.” I flop down on my bed still in my bartending uniform. I’m not even sure I can get changed my arms are so tired.

  “Me, too.” Suzie flops down on her bed, still in her uniform. “How many creepy old guys tried to pick you up?”

  “A few too many,” I admit. “And they all looked the same. Dark blue suits, red power ties, perfect haircuts. Is there some kind of factory somewhere where they mass produce guys like that?”

  My sister laughs. “As if any of those guys have interest in us outside of a quickie in their hotel room. And most of them were wearing wedding bands. They weren’t even shy about what they wanted.”

  I remove Drew Graham’s card from my pocket and stare at it for a moment. I don’t remember seeing a wedding ring on his finger, but he really didn’t seem all that interested in hooking up. He seemed sincere about offering me some kind of job.

  “Are you really going to call him?” Suzie asks.

  “It doesn’t hurt to see what he wants,” I reply.

  “Just remember you’ve got a twin sister who will have a very hard time surviving without you.”

  “How could I forget? We shared a uterus and we’ve been sharing everything else ever since.”

  “Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. We got a call from Harley Davis this morning while you were in the shower.”

  “Don’t tell me…she’s pregnant.”

  “Baby shower time!”

  Harley Davis is married to Jake Wilde, one of the four Wilde brothers who own Haymakers. She manages the place with her husband. Thinking about Haymakers reminds me of the young guy at the convention who asked if there were any bars in town. There was something different about him, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Even though he looked like all of the other guys at the convention with his dark suit and red power tie, he didn’t seem to quite fit it. And he was the only person who ordered more than two drinks. A lot more than two. I think I served him double that.

  “What are you thinking about?” Suzie is eyeing me curiously. She can tell when I’m deep in my own thoughts.

  “Nothing,” I say dismissively.

  She frowns. “That’s not a nothing look. That’s definitely a something look.”

  “Just a guy from the convention. Nothing important. It’s not like I’m ever going to see him again.”

  “Was he hot?”

  I shrug. “I don’t know if I’d call him hot. But it’s hard to say because he was dressed in one of those conservative suits that every guy at the convention was wearing.”

  “And every woman too,” Suzie adds.

  “They all looked like they were just leaving a corporate board meeting and were on their way to a funeral.”

  “And lucky us we get to deal with them again tomorrow.”

  “At least they’re decent tippers,” I add.

  “I’ve been trying to save some of my tips. Putting them in a jar.”

  I raise an eyebrow. “How much have you saved so far?”

  “Not much. A few hundred bucks. Maybe someday we’ll have enough for that breakfast restaurant. The more I think about it, the more I want it.”

  I laugh. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, but at that rate we’ll be ready to retire before we have enough saved to open a restaurant.”

  She heaves a wistful sigh. “Maybe we’d better get some sleep.”

  I know I should be more supportive. I don’t mean to always burst my sister’s bubbles.

  “I’m sorry,” I whisper as she turns the lights out.

  “Let’s just get some sleep.”

  ***

  When I phone the number on Drew Graham’s business card it doesn’t even have a chance to ring before a male voice answers. “George Salva.”

  I’m not sure I have the right number. “Drew Graham asked me to phone. I’m Mazzy Olsen.”

  “Miss Olsen. I’ve been expecting your call. Mr. Graham said to make your appointment a priority on his calendar. Can you come in first thing tomorrow morning?”

  “What do you consider first thing?”

  He gives a fake-sounding laugh. “What do you consider first thing?”

  “Nine, I guess.”

  “Then nine it is. Do you need directions?”

  “Okay.” I have no idea where Drew’s office is located. His business card has a phone number and website address. And I never bothered to check out the website.

  George recites directions like he’s said them a million times and I do my best to scribble down what he’s saying on a little sticky note I have on the desk that Suzie and I share.

  “So we’ll see you tomorrow at nine,” George confirms.

  “See you then.”

  I poke my head into the bathroom where my sister is taking a bath. “I’ve got an interview tomorrow with Drew Graham.”

  “Did you at least find out what kind of job you’re interviewing for?”

  I shake my head. “It’s still a mystery. But his assistant seemed to know exactly why I was calling. He even said he was expecting my call.”

  “Just don’t forget to tell him you have a twin sister. She could use a job too.”

  “I won’t forget,” I assure her.

  ***

  “Wow.” That’s about all I can say when I see the size of Drew Graham’s office building. Living in rural Old Town we never see high rise buildings this tall. The tallest structure in Old Town, one of the two sets of apartments in town, is only three stories. Drew’s building looks like it’s ten stories or more.

  When I enter I walk up to the reception area. “I’m here to see Mr. Drew Graham.”

  The big, muscular guy behind the desk looks me up and down. “Do you have an appointment?”

  I nod.

  “Top floor.”

  I’m wearing the only pair of heels I own and my shoes are clacking on the marble floor as I make my way to the elevator. I push the button for the top floor and smooth out my flowered sundress as I wait. I realize it’s not the most professional clothing, but it’s the only dress I have that’s not super short and tight.

  Once the elevator stops on the top floor I take a deep breath as the door slides open. The entire floor looks like one giant office suite. Everything about it, from the dark wood furniture to the antiques and artwork scattered about, scream old money.

  A wiry man wearing a tan suit and thick, black glasses looks up at me. “Mazzy?”

  I nod.

  “I’m George Salva.”

  I’m not sure what I’m supposed to do so I just smile.

  “I’ll let Mr. Graham know you’re here.” He points to a small waiting area with a couch and several overstuffed chairs. The furniture is a million times nicer than what I have in my living room. It’s even nicer than the furniture in my dad’s house.

  I take a seat in one of the big chairs and I’m a little disappointed that it’s not as comfortable as it looks.

  I glance at the magazines that are scattered about the coffee table, but I’m too distracted to read. Not that I have much interest in business magazines. My heart is beginning to pound in my chest. I’ve never had an actual professional interview in my life. Suzie and I worked at a pizza place all through high school. Our interview for that job consisted of the manager asking us if we minded working on both Friday and Saturday nights. Once we graduated we got jobs working at Haymakers. Jake’s idea of an interview was asking us how soon we could start. The interview to work at the Tawnee Mountain Resort wasn’t much different. Penny LaPage had been a regular at Haymakers for years and was already familiar with our work. A start date was about all that was required.

  “Sorry I’m late,” Drew says as he hurries over to w
here I’m seated. “My phone conference lasted a little longer than I expected.”

  I swallow hard in an attempt to rid my throat of the gigantic lump that has formed in it. “It’s okay,” I barely mutter.

  “Follow me to my office.”

  As I rise I realize my legs have turned to jelly. Am I really this nervous? I can barely walk. Calm down, I tell myself, but it’s no use. I’m scared shitless.

  Drew’s office is enormous. It’s much bigger than the living room/dining room/kitchen of our crappy apartment. With all of the heavy, dark wood furniture the office exudes an air of power and sophistication that is almost overwhelming.

  When Drew indicates a chair on the other side of his huge desk I realize I’ve been standing in the middle of his office gawking at everything.

  I take a seat and Drew sits behind his desk. Despite its enormous size there’s little on it. Just a laptop and a diamond ring in a small velvet box. The room’s bright light is reflecting off of the large diamond.

  “You’re probably wondering why I’ve asked you here today.”

  I nod, but it’s difficult to take my eyes off of the ring. Why is it sitting in the center of his desk?

  “I have an important job I’d like you to consider. And I’m willing to compensate you well because I know I’ll be asking a lot of you. I’ve already completed a full background check and was very pleased that you’ve got no skeletons lurking in any closets. You don’t even have a Facebook or Twitter account.”

  I shrug. “I don’t really have time for social media. I work a lot.”

  “I like that. A solid work ethic is the foundation upon which our great country was built.”

  I can’t help but laugh.

  Drew frowns. “Why is that funny?”

  “You don’t have to be constantly campaigning. I’m not even registered to vote.”

  “That’s something we’ll have to fix. I’ll want photos of you at the voting booth, casting your ballot.”

  Now I’m the one who is frowning. “Why would you want photos of me?”

  When he looks into my eyes all of the humor is gone. He’s stone cold serious. “Now it’s time for the job offer. I’ve accepted my party’s nomination for governor. It’s an election I want to win and right now it’s an extremely tight race. My father ran for governor twice and never won despite being a popular congressman. He’s anxious for me to be elected. Unfortunately, polls are showing that voters are hesitant to vote for a governor who’s single. They equate being a bachelor with instability, and quite frankly it’s not something they trust. That’s where you come in. I need a fiancée in order to have a chance at winning the election. The candidate I’ll be running against, Robert Crandall, has a lovely blonde wife and two beautiful blonde children, one boy and one girl. They’re the picture perfect family and voters seem to love them. I need an edge. I want to hire you to be my fiancée while I run for governor. Once I’m elected we can have some kind of breakup and you’ll be free to do whatever you’d like.”

  My eyes grow wide and I can feel my head spinning with all sorts of questions. I thought I was going to be a bartender or waitress for special political events. Or maybe even do some catering. Never in my wildest imagination did I think Drew Graham would ask me to be a fake fiancée.

  “Is this going to be an issue for you?” He points to the ring.

  I’m not sure how to respond. I’m still trying to digest it all.

  “It’s two months until the election. I’m willing to pay you one hundred thousand dollars plus all your living expenses.”

  My eyes grow wide again. With a hundred thousand dollars Suzie and I really could think about starting our own business.

  “Okay,” I say quickly before I have time to chicken out.

  “Okay?” Drew sounds surprised that I agreed so quickly. I doubt he has any idea what it’s like not to have money.

  “You’ll need to move in with me. It will make it easier to coordinate our schedules and I can prep you before all of the functions we’ll be attending.”

  Suzie. She’s going to be devastated. I promised I’d recommend her for a job, but it’s not like Drew can have two fiancées.

  “What’s wrong?” Drew asks. He’s obviously a very perceptive person, because I’ve been told that I don’t give away my emotions very much.

  “I’ve never been away from my sister for that long,” I admit.

  “Never?” He sounds incredulous.

  I shake my head. “Never. Not since the day we were born. My sister and I have always lived together. And we’ve never lived anywhere but Old Town.”

  He fingers his chin thoughtfully. “I can pay her too. Compensation for rent and utilities while you’re not living there. And we’ll stay at my family’s lake house. It’s not too far from Old Town. That way your sister can visit whenever she wants to.”

  I nod. I still don’t think she’ll be thrilled, but we both knew the time would eventually come when we’d have to be apart.

  “I’ll have George cut you both checks. I’m giving you twenty-five percent of the payment upfront and then twenty-five percent at the end of every month until the election. I’ll give your sister half now and half after the election. Do you think twenty thousand will be enough to cover the expenses while you’re gone?”

  My eyes grow wide again. Drew is probably thinking that I have some kind of strange eye deformity or something, but I’m just shocked at the large amounts of money he seems to be willing to throw around without a second thought. “That should cover her expenses.”

  “George also has some paperwork for you to sign. A contract and non-disclosure agreement.”

  “Okay,” I agree.

  “Don’t forget the ring.” Drew points to the ring box on his desk.

  I always imagined what it would be like when a man asked me to marry him. I had visions of rose petals and fragrant candles completely filling our bedroom. He’d get down on one knee and tell me that I’m the only woman he’d ever want. The only woman he’d ever need. He’d ask me to marry him then wait hopefully for my response. And when I tell him that I accept his proposal he’d slip the ring on my finger and tell me how much he loves me. Then he’d kiss me. A deep, passionate kiss. And he’d whisper in my ear how much he loves me and always will.

  As I take the ring box from the desk I can’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment. I’m going to be engaged to a man I barely know and he didn’t even ask me to marry him.

  There’s absolutely nothing romantic about his deal.

  It’s a business arrangement, I remind myself. And it’s not like I have to marry him. We’re just going pretend to be engaged for two months until he can win the election. How hard can that be?

  I place the ring on my finger and slip the velvet box into my bag.

  “George will help you with all of the details. I’ll tell him that we’ll be staying at the lake house until the election. Let him know if you need help packing. He’ll send a car to get you whenever you’re ready to move in.”

  “Thanks.” I still feel a little dizzy and I don’t think the enormity of the agreement I’ve just made has sunk in yet.

  ***

  “You’re going to do what?” Suzie practically screams at me.

  While I was at the interview she spent the entire morning baking cinnamon sugar cookies and two cherry pies. There’s little doubt she’s been “testing” the cookies because she’s on a major sugar high.

  “Please sit down so we can have a rational discussion about this.”

  She throws her hands up in the air instead. “There is absolutely nothing rational about pretending to be Drew Graham’s fiancée.”

  When she finally notices the diamond ring on my finger she grabs my hand and pulls it closer to her face so she can inspect the ring. “I guess this means you’ve already said yes.”

  Suzie looks like she may start to cry. “We won’t be working together anymore. You’ll probably have to do all kinds of political events, f
und raisers and stuff, and I’ll be alone.”

  When she snivels I feel like she’s just stabbed me in the heart. I knew this part would be hard, but I didn’t realize how hard. I remind myself that the sacrifice will be for the greater good. The money will help us build our dream.

  I remove the two checks from my bag and hand her the one made out to her. Her jaw drops so far I think it might hit the floor. “What is this ten thousand dollar check for?”

  “Here’s the thing. In order for the whole fiancée thing to seem real I’m going to have to live with Drew until the election. So this payment is for rent and utilities while I’m staying with him. And it’s only the first half. You’ll get another ten thousand after the election.”

  Her eyes are still planted firmly on the check. Then she looks up and notices I have one too. “How much are you getting paid?”

  “Enough for us to think about our own business. A hundred thousand dollars.”

  “Oh my God!” she shouts. “When do you have to leave? I’ll help you pack.”

  I guess she’s not as upset about me leaving now that she knows how much it’s worth.

  “Do you think Penny will be willing to give me a leave of absence? I don’t want to lose my job quite yet.”

  She shrugs. “It doesn’t hurt to ask. I’m sure we could get jobs at Haymakers again if we really needed to.”

  “While I’m gone maybe you can meet with Jake and Harley Wilde. They know a lot about business and maybe they can advise us about starting our breakfast place. And they could give us a better idea about how much it will cost.”

  “I’m on it.” My sister takes my hand and looks at the ring again. “I really am going to miss you. But a hundred thousand dollars? That’s impossible to pass up.”

  “A hundred and twenty thousand,” I correct. “I think we should put everything into a savings account and just use what we need for expenses. The rest we’ll save for the restaurant.”

  “Now we really have to decide on a name for the place.”

  ***

  Penny does not look happy when Suzie and I approach. Of course she rarely looks happy, but she seems a little grumpier than usual.

  “Twins?” She seems genuinely surprised to see us. “You’re not on the schedule until tomorrow.”