There's Something About Her, A Manhattan Love Story (25 page)

Okay, that sounded dirty.
 

Monroe seems choked up. “But how?”
 

“You accepted my bid.”

“You’re Live Light Productions?”

He shrugs arrogantly.
 

“You have twenty million lying around?”

“And more.”
 

Monroe has turned red. I’ve never seen her erupt, but it appears as if she’s on the verge of doing just that. Watching them is like following a Ping-Pong match.
 

A strange feeling comes over me. I look across the middle of the room and gasp. My heart rate increases. Vincent points toward the staircase.
 

“I’ll be back,” I whisper, choked up.

Monroe glances at me. “You don’t even know a damn thing about films!” she shrieks at Charlie.
 

“I went to film school,” Charlie says.

“Is it because I screwed you too good? Now you’re trying to screw me?”

I don’t hear Charlie’s response. I tune them out as I rise. I don’t feel my feet touching the ground, but I’m moving forward.
 

I make it to the top of the staircase. Vincent stands at the bottom, waiting for me. I walk down, keeping in rhythm with the soulful, sexy beat. Vincent shamelessly undresses me with his eyes. I arrive at the bottom, and he pushes me against the banister. He grabs the front of my neck, and his soft, warm tongue swirls around mine. The kiss is deep and passionate but not satiating enough. I want what his solid hard-on wants. I want him deep inside of me. I want skin on skin.
 

He breaks eye contact. “Maggie, don’t stop believing in us,” he whispers breathlessly in my ear.

So many eyes are watching us. They’re probably wondering how far we’re going to take this. That kiss was more than just a kiss. His hand grabs my ass as he sucks on my collarbone. Then his mouth journeys up my neck, and his tongue slips into my ear.

“I want to make love to you,” he says over the music. “But I made a promise. We’ll pick up where this left off soon.”

I’m lost for words. Vincent gives me one last consuming kiss. He squeezes one of my breasts and one of my ass cheeks with his hand under my skirt. He turns away and strides quickly across the floor. Curious eyes follow him; most of them belong to women. I’m still unable to move when Charlie bumps my shoulder.

“Your friend is wacked out!” he shouts and kisses my cheek. “Talk to you later!” Charlie takes the same path out that Vincent took.

I’m still a little dizzied by Vincent’s ravaging as I walk up the stairs and take my seat.
 

“What happened?” I ask Monroe.

“Where the hell were you?” She’s angry.

“I went for a walk to give you two privacy.”

“I needed you,” she whines.
 

“But what happened?”

She shakes her head neurotically. “I have to get out of that contract.” She shoots to her feet. “Let’s go. I can’t stay here any longer. Chuck ruined my night.”

***

Vincent Adams

On Tuesday morning, Vincent Adams was awakened by a phone call. Jack Lord was calling early enough to make the day less torturous. It had been a struggle to keep his word and stay away from Maggie. At least she flew back to New York on Friday. He could resist the urge to fly out and be with her. He didn’t want to be too far from Jack when he received the call he’d been waiting for.

“Jack?” he said.
 

“How soon can you get here?” Jack asked.

“In fifteen.”

That was the end of the call.
 

Maggie Conroy was the one. Vincent couldn’t deny it. When he closed his eyes, he saw her face. Her laughter, breathing, and exclamations while watching
Chinatown
had stayed with him. Traces of her kiss lingered on his lips. He could still taste the softness and saltiness of her skin.
 

Vincent threw on whatever he got his hands on the quickest, which turned out to be a pair of navy blue sweatpants and a white T-shirt. He stuffed his feet into navy suede sneakers, grabbed his keys, and hurried out the door.
 

Jack’s beach house was a ten-minute walk from his own. Vincent jogged the entire way and arrived in five minutes. The bottoms of his feet stung and he was winded when he reached the gate. His shoes weren’t made for running. He bent over to catch his breath and noticed a man leaning against a black car, smoking a cigarette. James was one of the drivers for their company’s fleet. James lifted a hand when he saw him, and Vincent did the same.
 

Vincent guessed that Robert was inside. That was a good sign. Jack wanted to deal. Vincent was desperate enough to accept any proposal that got him far away from Peter and Gabrielle Rossetto.

The gate was already open, so Vincent trotted up the steps and rang the doorbell. Daisy answered. He flinched at first. She wore a T-shirt-like dress that showed enough thigh to rouse appreciation, as well as a pair of red leg warmers. The woman was even more stunning than the first time he saw her.
 

He smiled. “No pregnant hot yoga this morning?”

Her chuckle was melodic. “I decided to stick to walks along the beach.”

“Smart woman.”
 

“It happens every now and then.” She winked. “I’ll show you to Belmont’s office.”

He followed her through a hallway to the rear of the property.
 

One look at his wife, and Jack popped out of his seat to give her a kiss. “Thanks, babe,” he said as Vincent and Robert locked eyes.

Robert didn’t look happy, but Vincent didn’t care. He wanted to say thank you to Daisy for escorting him, but Jack’s tongue and lips were still working on hers.
 

“I’ll see you when I’m done,” Jack said.
 

Daisy sighed. “Remember, I’m going to breakfast and then shopping with Angelina.”

“That’s right. Your sister’s coming over?”
 

Daisy gave Jack a grave look.
 

Jack put a hand on Vincent’s shoulder. “Take a seat. I’ll be back.” He closed the door to the office but remained in the hallway with Daisy.

Vincent sat in the empty chair beside Robert.

“What the fuck did you do?” Robert grumbled under his breath.

“I want out.”

“Out of A&Rt? You’re trying to sell us out to Jack Lord?”

“Out of being with Gabrielle. I love Maggie.”

Robert snarled. “Why didn’t you say something to me first? I’m your partner.”

Vincent felt a sour taste in his mouth as he shook his head. “Do you really have to ask why?”

They gave each other cold stares until Jack Lord came back. They ripped their eyes off each other only after he sat down across from them.
 

“I apologize for that,” Jack said. “Robert, as I said, Vince came to me last week. He wanted me to see what I could do about getting you out of your shitty contract with Pete Rossetto. I have an offer that will work to your benefit if you both are in agreement.”

“What is it?” Vincent asked, desperate to hear it.
 

“I can get Rossetto to sell to me.”

Robert twisted his mouth. “Like hell you can.”

Jack flipped open a folder and slammed a letter of intent to sell signed by Peter Rossetto in front of them.

Vincent read the letter fast and twice. “What did you do to make this happen?”

“Motivated him,” Jack replied as if that was his final answer. “The question still remains, are you willing to partner with me?”

“Yes,” Vincent said.
 

Robert lifted a hand. “Wait.”

Vincent’s glare crashed down on Robert. “Wait? What for? We can finally be free of that dirty bastard.”

“First you have to tell us what you have on him. How else can we trust you?”

Jack shook his head. “Can’t do it. I promised I wouldn’t disclose the details regarding our agreement. But I can say that it’s personal.”

Robert exhaled with trepidation. “I don’t know.”

“That’s fine,” Jack said nonchalantly. “We have option two. Rossetto will sell me eighty-two percent of his shares. Vince, that’ll free you from any obligations regarding Gabrielle. However, Rossetto will still be invested in your company. It only takes a small worm to ultimately infect the whole body. I say get out of business with him while you can.”

Vincent couldn’t comprehend Robert’s hesitation. They’d spent hours trying to figure out ways to oust Pete. It all led back to what Jack had already told them. They needed a big investor and Rossetto’s willingness to sell. Jack Lord was handing them freedom. Why in the hell wasn’t Robert eager to seize it?
 

Then the answer dawned on him. “It’s Maggie. This is about you wanting me to marry Gabrielle so you can get Maggie into bed.”

Jack’s expression changed from curious to furious. “I’ll kill you before I let that happen,” he said nonchalantly.
 

Vince and Robert studied him. They were waiting for an indication that he was joking, but it didn’t come.
 

“I like you for her, Vince,” Jack continued. “Take the deal, Robert. Both options are spectacular for me, but the first is best for all of us.”

After a long moment, Robert released a sigh of defeat. “Where do I sign?”
 

Chapter 18

The Call of the Island

It’s Thursday, and my life has been frantic ever since last Friday. Monroe has declared herself at war with Charlie. I informed them both that I’m Switzerland. I have too much on my plate as it is.
 

It’s been full steam ahead for me. We’re already working on the marketing platforms for the first full season of Prime D TV. I have to assemble three strategic marketing teams for the L.A., New York, and London offices, which means I’ll be extremely busy for the next three months. On Monday, senior executives in the L.A. office voiced their preference to have me handle digital TV and film instead of publications, apps, and online. On Tuesday, it happened, which puts me in a great position to transfer to L.A. full time.
 

Vincent has been missing in action, and so has Robert, to Lena’s relief. She and I had lunch yesterday afternoon, and she divulged how awful being married to a man like Robert was. According to Lena, “he’ll fuck anyone with two legs and a vagina.” She bid him good riddance and pitied any woman stupid enough to take him seriously.
 

I just ended a conference call, and I’m studying the closed door to Vincent’s office.
 

Lena’s face blocks my line of sight. “Hey, Maggie, could you join me for this interview? I think I’ll need your input.”

I pause to inspect her wry smile. “Sure.” I follow her to her office, and I’m stunned by the sight of Patty Welch, the infamous Cruella La Bitch, sitting at Lena’s desk.
 

“I’d like for you to meet Maggie Conroy, Director of Strategic Marketing,” Lena says.

All the blood leaves Patty’s face. I scratch the back of my neck to do something while I implode.
 

“Um, what is she doing here?” I ask Lena.

“Patty Welch asked for a meeting to discuss joining one of the strategic marketing teams.”

My mind is already made up about Patty, but I sit down anyway. Valerie Beacon’s rule number three is “see a process all the way to the end, even one that’s sinking, because you never know what you could learn from it.”

“Maggie, I didn’t know you were the director.” Patty can’t even fake a smile. She should’ve tried.

“I am,” I reply dryly and cross my arms.

Lena says, “Patty has a very impressive resume, and she comes highly recommended. Since you’ve worked with her in the past and she’ll be working under you, I thought you should be the one to grant her an official interview, or not.”

Could karma be more of an ass-biter? I want to grill Patty on all the shit she never knew just to prove I was right about her. But who has time for that? Instead, I pick up her resume and scan it.
 

“The thing is,” I begin in my best Maggie La Bitch voice. Patty smirks as if she already knows what’s coming. I’m pretty sure she’s right. “From our experience
together
, I feel that you’re definitely suited for one of the assistant positions.”
 

She grunts with disdain.
 

“However, we don’t have any of those positions open at the moment. I’m sure we’ll hire one or two in six months or so. See…” I scoot to the edge of my seat to look her dead in the eyes. “Here in my department, we value our assistants. We use them in a manner that allows them to learn, grow, and excel. We want them to become a credit to our company or wherever they choose to spend the second and most important half of their careers.
 

“I don’t believe you would fit into our management team because I’m aware that you don’t subscribe to that philosophy.” I stand and smooth out my skirt. I look at Lena. “Thank you for bringing me in on this preliminary meet and greet. An official interview would’ve been a waste of all our time.” And frankly, I’m done with this silly meeting. I have a flight to catch to Martha’s Vineyard.
 

“Thank you for your input, Maggie.” Lena grins pleasantly at Patty. “I’ll be happy to put your resume in the assistant pool and—”

Patty snatches the resume out of Lena’s hands. “Fuck you.” She stomps out of the office.

Lena and I study the empty space she left behind.
 

“And that’s why we call her Cruella La Bitch,” I mutter.

“Rightfully so,” Lena says. She sounds shocked that Patty reacted in such a manner. I, on the other hand, am not shocked at all.
 

I’m two hours late for my flight, but Jack made sure his pilot stuck around. I arrive at Vineyard Haven Airport after six thirty p.m.

I love the Vineyard. I’m especially fond of the clear water and beaches. There are dozens of hiking trails to the beaches. Jack and Charlie always throw a bonfire for me whenever I visit them. I hope Jack will surprise me by throwing another one.
 

The real fun is having free rein of Jack’s estate. Jack has made sure the pool is heated for my arrival. He also had the refrigerator stocked, and the cook will show up for breakfast. Her name is Betty, and she makes the fluffiest blueberry pancakes. I veg out on movies when I’m at his house because his entertainment room is peerless. He has a seventy-two inch TV and a digital movie box that contains every single film ever made. The room has comfy couches so big I feel as if they’re swallowing my relaxed body whole. The bathroom upstairs is a spa.