9. Maxwell
CHAPTER 9
Maxwell
“I’m sorry… You don’t want to work with her anymore? I don’t understand why,” Brandon says, clearly confused by my unexpected announcement.
I hesitated, not sure I could explain how I felt to Brandon, who was acting as my boss now and not as my friend. I was here when he and his now wife were going through their issues, but I wasn’t normally one to air my dirty laundry. I loathed being seen as weak or vulnerable, and now that’s exactly what I needed to do.
“Working with Kamaya is starting to become a conflict of interest, and I don’t know if it’s smart for us to continue working together.” I rushed out the words with a deep exhale. This wouldn’t make me look good, but I was beginning to get at my wits end after the kiss. Having to pretend things were normal was killing me.
Brandon leans back in his seat and steeples his fingers. “I’m sorry to hear that. Here I thought the two of you would be expertly paired. Not to mention Bree and Westin are occupied. It would make a bit of a mess to try and rearrange things now. “
“I know, but I think Kam is okay on her own as long as she stays in office for the rest of the assignment.”
At Brandon’s raised brows, I explain that while working on finding Franco, we encountered an idling town car that made me apprehensive. I told him that since then, I’d stuck by Kamaya’s side, staying at her apartment each night since going to Franco’s old, abandoned building.
I didn’t feel good about this decision, but something had to be done.
“Well, this is too bad, Maxwell. I wasn’t expecting you to come to me about less responsibility just when I was thinking of offering you a more senior role.”
I lean back in the chair at Brandon’s proclamation. “I can handle it. I know it. It’s just…Kamaya and I may need to not work so closely right now.”
Brandon smirks. “Oh, I get it now. I know exactly what’s going on.”
I stare back blankly at him. His smirk lets me know I won’t like whatever he is about to say next.
“It’s obvious how you really feel about Kamaya. I think you’re just afraid of your feelings.”
I scoff at Brandon’s accusation. Apparently, he could sense before I did how I felt about Kam, but he’d never said anything before. “You of all people want to give me advice on feelings ?” I ask. “You’ve been married all of two weeks and now you’re an expert?”
“Hardly. In fact, you and I are more alike than you think, which is how I recognize what you’re going through. You can’t handle your feelings for Kamaya and now you’re running.”
This was rich coming from him. Before he and Ava got their shit together, he came into this very office like a sad sap for days on end until she came around.
“That’s not it at all. Besides, she’s interested in…someone else. Kamaya and I will remain friends. It’s just not easy spending so much time together while working together and temporarily living together too. That’s why I’m coming to you now.”
Brandon shakes his head and runs a hand through his hair. “This is unfortunate timing because I was actually going to talk to you about taking over here in New York, at least for the next several months.”
Taking over? Was Brandon planning on leaving? He was the boss and the rock of this place and the person who took a chance on me in this field a number of years ago. I couldn’t imagine working here without him. This was not how I expected our conversation to go.
“What exactly is going on?” I ask.
“Well, Ava and her brand have gained popularity, and she’s been invited to guest judge on a reality show shooting in London at the end of summer, possibly early fall. We’ve discussed it, and we’ll be moving there for a few months while she’s filming.”
“Wow, that’s an incredible opportunity for you both. I take it you don’t plan on coming back and forth between New York and London?” I ask.
“Actually, this opportunity for my wife has provided an opening for me, since I’ve always wanted to start up a security firm in London. Now, this will be my chance to do so.”
“Yeah, that will be great,” I say. I was happy for my friend, but London was a long way away, and I’d obviously see a lot less of him. Too many changes were happening at once.
“What this means,” Brandon continues, “is I would need someone trustworthy to run the stateside office. As of a few minutes ago, I thought it was you who’d take on that role.”
I don’t know what to think at first. It was an honor that Brandon picked me over Bree or Westin to run TSS. This was his baby, essentially, for the past decade. Trusting someone else to hold down the fort was a huge ask. A few weeks prior to working on the Financial Journal case, I would have eagerly grabbed at the opportunity. Now I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea.
“As honored as I am that you’d choose me, I still think it would be a conflict of interest. A big one.”
“Conflict of interest because of Kamaya?”
I roll up my shirt sleeves, suddenly feeling warmer. “Well, if I’m in charge, that would certainly be a conflict of interest. That would make me Kamaya’s boss. I don’t know how that dynamic would work.”
Brandon laughs. “Max, this entire office is a big conflict of interest. Bree and Westin are married, which normally could be a taboo, but they were two of the best, so I hired them anyway. Hell, my now wife was a protectee in my custody when our relationship transitioned into a more romantic one. You and Kam fit right in in terms of all the conflicts of interest going on around here.”
Brandon was right , I thought. Everyone around Kamaya and I were able to make things work no matter how forbidden or typically taboo it was. Could Kamaya and I do the same?
What am I thinking? We shared a drunken kiss and couldn’t even talk about it.
“I guess you have a point there,” I say. “It’s still going to be extremely uncomfortable.”
“Does that mean you’re saying yes?” Brandon asks.
“It means I’ll consider it,” I say. It was a great opportunity that I knew I could handle. At least work wise.
“You think about it, but not for too long. Soon I will be searching to hire a replacement so we can remain a team of five. I know a great protection agent looking for a transfer, and she would be a great addition. Assuming someone else hasn’t snatched her up already.”
“Oh, you’re serious about this move if you’re already scouting for a new team member. How long will this arrangement last?” I ask.
“Six months or so. I’m not anticipating all of this to take more than half of the year. I’ll come back periodically, but most of our meetings will be via Zoom, since I trust you’ll keep all of this in good hands. Now, I just need you to believe you can handle it.”
Before I could respond, a knock sounds on the door, followed by the slow creaking of the door hinges. “Zach, what are you doing up here? Come in. Max and I were just finishing up.”
Brandon is looking past my shoulder, and I turn in time to see Zach quietly shutting the door. “Perfect timing then. Kamaya let me in, and we were just speaking about how everything is unfurling. She mentioned Charles Dennis and Harrison.”
“As you know, Max here has been assisting. Based on the meeting we just had, everything seems to be developing well. And yes, I do need to speak with you further about Charles and Harrison.”
“That’s good to hear,” Zach says, angling towards me. “I’m sure Kamaya appreciates you as a mentor, Max.”
He was lucky Brandon was here because, first of all, I would have told him off for calling me Max like we’re longtime friends. Also, he didn’t know what Kam and I had. I was more than just some mentor.
I kissed her first. Ha!
“I’m more than just a mentor,” I say, standing up. I need to leave the office before I say something I’ll regret.
“Brandon, I will think about what we discussed and get back to you,” I say before leaving.
Brandon nods in answer and turns back to his friend. I head back over to my shared desk area with Kamaya, and she’s not currently sitting there. I’m relieved because I need a second after the past few moments.
Brandon was right. I could definitely handle taking over the business side of what we do. I was amiable enough and got along with everyone on the team. There was no real reason I should turn this opportunity down. It always went back to me fearing responsibility. Relationships and job opportunities all came with responsibilities and people depending on you, and that felt like a tight knot around my neck.
With too much on my mind, I wasn’t even interested in reading the file I had on my laptop about Franco. He was the needle in a haystack when it came to this case.
“How did it go with Brandon?” Kamaya asks, returning to her desk. We usually leaned away from the partition to see each other, but for once I was grateful to have the barrier between us. The eye contact was too intimate and made me think of the kiss each time.
I didn’t think it was my place to mention Brandon leaving before he made an announcement to everyone, so I kept my mouth shut about that.
“Everything’s fine. Did you get in contact with Bree about the organized crime?”
“Yes, she advised that she’s already reached out to a former friend who works in that division and said she’d let us know what they were able to find.”
“Great, I was thinking?—”
“Oh, Zach, you’re leaving?” I hear Kamaya ask from the other side. Zach’s lanky figure appears over the partition, looking down at Kamaya, who is seated.
“Yes, I have several meetings this afternoon. I just wanted to catch up with Brandon now that he’s back and catch up with you.”
There was nothing smooth or remotely interesting about this guy, but everyone loved Zach. Kamaya especially was falling for his bullshit. It’s my fault for agreeing to never bring the kiss up, and now Zach was moving in for the kill. If I had just let Kamaya know I would try changing for her so she could get rid of this loser.
Except, maybe that’s not true. I couldn’t even decide on a career opportunity that would help further me along. Maybe becoming an official partner with Brandon or eventually branching out on my own.
Kamaya responds with a giggle. She never giggles like that with me!
“So, do you want to go out this Friday?” I hear Zach ask.
Alarms are going off in my mind. I’m sure Zach doesn’t know about the kiss Kam and I shared, but this move of asking her in the office, a few feet away from where he knows I can hear everything, feels calculated. I think back to the night of the rehearsal dinner and whomever he was speaking to. Kamaya, of course, has never agreed from the beginning that Zach could be behind all this, but what if he was doing this to distract her?
No, no. I couldn’t think that way, right? Kamaya was a fantastic woman, and why shouldn’t Zach take an interest in her? Any man would be lucky to have Kam.
Extremely lucky.
“I would love to,” Kam says, sounding slightly flustered, though I’m sure she was mentally doing cartwheels.
“Perfect,” Zach said. “I’ll text you later about Friday night.”
Kamaya, sounding way too breathless for my liking, asks, “Don’t I get to know what we’re doing first?”
My efforts to appear like I’m hard at work on this side of the desk are probably fruitless, but I start typing to make it more believable. I’m not seeing anything on the screen, just moving the mouse around on the DiLaurentis file.
“No, I want to surprise you,” Zach says, stopping to glance down, presumably at his phone. “If I don’t get out of here, I’ll be late. I’ll talk to you later, Kamaya.”
“Okay,” Kamaya says.
“Bye, Max. See you around, man.” He chucks his chin in my direction with a barely there smirk before turning around to the exit.
As soon as the doors shut behind him, Kamaya slides her desk chair so quickly that the wheels nearly catch on the carpet.
“Oh, my God! Can you believe that? After two years, Zach finally asked me out!”
“Your awkward stammering didn’t put him off,” I jibe.
“Shut up, Max! Be happy for me. If this goes well, I can finally get my mother to stop forwarding those articles,” she says in a joking manner.
“Yeah, if you’re happy, then I’m happy,” I say, lying through my teeth and hoping I’m a convincing actor.
“That’s not weird for you, right? I mean, you and me are cool, right?”
I wave off her concern and lean back in my seat. “Of course, we’re cool. We’ll always be straight.”
Kamaya smiles, practically beaming ever since Zach left. “Good, now I just have to figure out what I’m going to wear.”
“Typical,” I say over the partition.
“I forget I’m talking to a man who could not care less!” she calls over.
I’m glad we’re back to our usual banter.