Ava #2
“I just got a call from a reporter at the New York Post wanting to know if there’s any truth to the rumor that my mother-in-law, the first lady of New York, left my father-in-law, the governor, for the tennis pro at their golf club.”
“Oh shit. How’d they get your number?”
“I have no idea, but I’m freaking out. I can’t reach Rob, and I have no idea what to do.”
“What did you say to the reporter?”
“I hung up on him, but he’s been calling me once every minute.”
“Take the call and tell him you’re not authorized to comment on the Tilden family or anything having to do with the governor. All inquiries will need to be directed to the governor’s office. Don’t say anything but that.”
“Say it again. I want to write it down in case I brain-freeze.”
I go through it again, slower this time so she can get it all down. “It’s really important that you don’t let him trick you into saying anything else.”
“Okay.”
“You can do this, Camille. Take some deep breaths.”
“He’s calling again.”
“Take the call, tell him what I said, then hang up and block him.” That won’t stop him from calling on a different phone, but it’ll eliminate the one he’s calling on now. “Call me back after.”
“Okay.”
The line goes dead, and I put down my phone, wishing I could handle the call for her.
“Miles and Alex don’t approve of us taking personal calls on company time.” I look up to find Catty Caitlyn standing in my doorway. Her arms are crossed over her substantial breasts, and her mouth is pursed in a mean little sneer.
“That was a client in need of emergency media advice, not that it’s any of your business.”
“What client do you have who needs emergency advice? You just started.”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“I’m sure Miles would like to know.”
“I’ll be happy to tell him that I represent members of the Tilden family in their dealings with the media, but if you want to tell him first, be my guest.”
Her mouth falls open and just as quickly snaps shut before she turns and stalks off. Round one most definitely goes to me, but I have a feeling it’ll be the first of many rounds with Catty Caitlyn.
My phone rings, and I pounce on the call from Camille. “Did you do it?”
“All set. My hands are still shaking, though.”
“You need to find Rob and let him know about this ASAP. If one reporter knows, others do, too, and they need to be ready.”
“I’m going to call him again right now. Thank you for your help.”
“No problem. You helped me win a round of passive aggression with the resident bitch in my office.”
“Didn’t take long to get entrenched in office politics, huh?”
“In my defense, she started it.”
Camille laughs.
“How was your day?”
“Much less eventful than yours, until the Post called.”
“Let’s catch up later. Go call Rob.”
“I’m going.”
I put down my phone and finish typing the report I promised Miles by the end of the day.
So far, I’ve booked him and Dawkins on the Today show, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning and Morning Joe.
I have emails into thirty other top media outlets and will be adding them to the schedule as I hear back from the various producers who book guests.
I send the email to Miles, copying Trevor, and then gather my belongings. On the way out, I stop at Trevor’s open door to let him know I’m leaving.
“Hope you had a good first day,” he says.
“I’m now on a first-name basis with a producer at the Today show. I think you could call it a good day.”
“Excellent. Does this mean you’ll be back tomorrow?”
“I’ll be back.”
“See you then.”
I step out of the office into pouring rain and decide to splurge on a cab. On the ride home, I dash off a text to Jessica, updating her on the project at work and asking her opinion.
She responds by calling me.
“Hi there.”
“Hey, I got your text and I’m on the run, so I figured I’d call. Can you talk for a minute?”
“Yes, I’m in a cab.”
“Funny! Me, too. So tell me more about the project they’ve put you on.”
I tell her about Miles, the fiancée he lost in the attack and the management of publicity requests for the family group since the lawsuit was filed.
“Did you know one of the partners had suffered a loss on the ship when you took the job?”
“I did. I told my direct supervisor, Trevor, that the guy I was involved with at the time of the attack was deployed that day and I haven’t heard from him since.
He offered to let me off the hook on the project with Miles, but I told him I didn’t want that.
I didn’t want special treatment, especially on my first day. ”
“I can understand that, but are you sure this project is healthy for you when you’ve begun to make such positive steps forward?”
“In a way, it sort of feels like I’m contributing to the cause by helping out the family group, even in a small way. Does that make sense?”
“It does.”
“But I don’t want a setback at this point. Like you said, I’ve begun to feel better and… things with Eric have moved forward rather significantly.”
“Is that right?”
“I told him about John, and he was so understanding and sweet. We slept together over the weekend, and it was great.”
“I’m happy for you, Ava. These are all very positive steps in the right direction.”
“It feels good to be optimistic again.”
“I’ll bet it does.”
“So you don’t think I’ll be screwing things up by taking on a project that strikes a little too close to home?”
“Only you can decide that for certain. I would give it a few weeks to be sure it’s not going to make anything worse for you. Your boss, Trevor, gave you an out. If you need it, don’t hesitate to take it.”
“I won’t. I so appreciate your input.”
“Happy to help any time. Are we still on for Thursday?”
“I’ll be there. Thanks again.”
After we end the call, I check my texts and see one from Eric. Leaving the office. What’s your status?
Almost home.
Meet you at your place?
Sounds good.
See you in fifteen.
I take the elevator to my apartment and head straight for the bathroom to brush my hair and teeth before he arrives. I’m rubbing scented lotion into my hands and arms when the doorman calls to let me know he’s arrived. Buzzing with excitement, I wait for him in the doorway.