23. Noah
23
NOAH
I t was day two of no Maddy.
She’d texted me to let me know that she wouldn’t be in today, and even though I didn’t have a problem with her absence in an official capacity, I was missing her. Every time I walked by her desk, I was reminded of how we’d left things the day before. She’d been upset, and not just because of what Beckett had said to her.
I sent her a text to check in on her and received a noncommittal reply. It was fine, though not typical Maddy. Her usual exuberance was missing. Had Beckett’s comment really rattled her that much? How important had the guy been to her, anyway? It still unsettled me that she’d kept it from me. I was still processing the fact that someone as repellant as Beckett had found his way into her bed.
Into her heart .
I needed to clear my mind. I pushed back from my desk and headed for the breakroom.
“Hey Noah,” Allison said as we passed in the hall. “Maddy’s sick, huh?”
I didn’t want to get into it with her. “She’s under the weather, yes.”
“When you talk to her tell her I said I hope she feels better,” she replied.
It struck me that the news of our relationship might be working through the office gossip channels. Did Allison know? Had Maddy told her? We’d decided to be discreet at the office, but we hadn’t actually discussed what to say if anyone asked directly. I knew firsthand that Maddy was a terrible liar. Had she let the truth slip around Allison? I wanted to think she would have told me if something like that had happened, but now I had a sinking feeling she might have kept it to herself. The news might be all over the office, for all I knew. I was angry at myself for letting things get out of hand. So unlike me. I controlled every aspect of PSM, yet here I was, embroiled in a scandal of my own making.
I hated messes, and I was in the middle of one.
The breakroom was as luxe as the rest of the office, more like a first-class airport lounge than an office space. People often congregated here, and some even held client meetings on the couches near the windows. I heard laughter rolling down the hall and braced myself for the immediate tonal shift that would happen the moment I walked in. I was reasonably confident that my staff liked me, but I was still the boss.
“It sounds like a cross between a cat and a banshee,” the voice said, getting a round of hearty laughs in response. “Dude, and it’s so loud.”
I turned the corner and spotted Beckett holding court with two other junior agents, Carson and Zack. Beckett locked eyes with me.
“Hey, boss man.”
Carson and Zack spun to face me wearing nervous expressions.
“Hello,” I replied coolly even though I was seething about what was going on. “May I ask what’s so funny?”
It was a dare, because I knew what he was referring to. Who he was referring to.
Beckett chuckled. “Oh, you know. Guy stuff. Locker room talk.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Is that a fact?”
He met my eyes with a confident stare. “I was talking about how some women are really, uh, vocal when they’re having a good time.” He winked at me. “You know what I’m talking about, right?”
My vision went blurry. My hands curled into fists. I wanted to storm across the room and pummel the smug, disgusting look off of his face.
He was taunting me, daring me to do… what? Make a mistake, that was what. So he could profit off my inability to keep a cool head. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction.
“That’s enough,” I said in a low voice.
“What?” he asked, his face innocent. “Boys will be boys, Noah. This is a sports agency, we screw around. You of all people have to know that.”
Carson and Zack peeled away and left the room while Beckett and I remained locked in a silent battle.
“You wanna fight me? For Maddy’s honor?” He scoffed.
The second he said her name I stomped two steps closer to him. I saw Beckett move back but then steel himself to stand his ground.
“This is feeling like harassment to me,” Beckett said in a whiny voice. “Intimidation. All I was doing was talking, Noah, and here you are, coming at me like you want to fight me. I’m taking this to HR. And while I’m there I might as well get into the fact that you’re fucking Maddy.”
It took every ounce of strength to keep from throwing him out the goddamn window.
“I have absolutely no problem with you going to HR,” I said in a steady voice. “If you would feel more comfortable, I would be happy to go with you. For moral support, of course.”
It was Beckett’s turn to stiffen, grimacing.
“And please, go ahead and let them know two of your colleagues are in a relationship. I’m sure they’ll pull out the employee manual and ask where it says that interoffice romances are forbidden. Because I don’t remember writing that part with legal.”
“You’re an asshole, you know that?” Beckett grumbled as he brushed past me.
“Maybe so, but the last time I looked, it was my name on the door. Not yours.”
Beckett stopped and glanced at me over his shoulder, glaring at me.
“And while I have your attention, leave Maddy alone, got it?”
He didn’t answer.
When I heard the elevator ding, I realized he was probably making good on his promise to go down to talk to Jennifer Wilcox.
Fine. I’d do damage control before the end of the day. It was time for me to come clean with them anyway. Maddy and I had nothing to hide, but it was best practices to keep them informed.
I fought off the twinge of a headache. I hated that Maddy was at the center of all this upheaval. This wasn’t the way I preferred to live my life. I aspired for order, not the soap opera nonsense that was going on.
I went back to my office and tried to stay focused on the contracts crossing my desk and calls coming through that Maddy wasn’t around to intercept. By the time I looked up, it was four thirty. It was my turn for a conversation with Jennifer.
I made my way to the elevator, but as usual stopped to speak with various agents along the way. I’d always been good at keeping my emotions under wraps, but today I feared I was transparent, and everyone I spoke with could tell my mind was elsewhere.
The only solution was HR. I took the stairs so I could have a few minutes of peace to compose my thoughts before heading into the conversation with Jennifer. Even though it was my company, Jennifer was invested in our corporate health. I liked that about her, right up until I was about to be on the receiving end of her disapproval.
Her back was to the door, but she stopped tapping on her computer the moment I walked into her office. “I was hoping you’d come down.”
“Yeah, seems we have quite a bit to discuss.”
Jennifer spun around and gave me a grim look. “Please close the door.”
I shut it and sat down across from her.
“Beckett Tate has a big mouth,” she said.
It felt like the first time I’d laughed in days. “You noticed.”
“How could I not? He stormed in here talking about intimidation and threats, then he, uh, moved on to more sensitive topics.”
I glanced down at my hands. “Beckett first. Do you consider any of his complaints credible?”
She shook her head vigorously. “Absolutely not. And we have security footage we can pull if he decides to make an issue of it.”
I’d sent an email to Jennifer the day before to outline what Beckett had said to Maddy during the meeting. Because she didn’t want to file a formal complaint, there wasn’t much we could do, but I had a different idea for how we might be able to dial down the tensions.
“As much as I’d like to fire Beckett, some of our newer clients really like working with him, and I’d hate to lose them to another agency. But I am going to add other agents to those accounts to start laying groundwork for someone else to take over in case Becket acts up again.”
She nodded.
“There’s also the potential for bad press if he starts making public allegations, even if they are unfounded,” I said. “I think it would be best to move Beckett to another floor. I don’t care which one, but I don’t want him anywhere near Maddy.”
Jennifer pursed her lips. “Speaking of Maddy…”
I leaned back and gestured that she had the floor.
“Obviously you know we don’t have a corporate policy against colleagues dating, but things get a little murkier with someone in your position.”
“Understood. The power imbalance presents an image problem.”
“Exactly. And if things ever go south between you and Maddy, that power imbalance will create an actual problem. Fast.”
I gritted my teeth. I knew she was right. But I didn’t want to think about what would happen if I lost Maddy. I couldn’t go there.
Jennifer cleared her throat. “Not that I want to hijack the magic of your brand-new relationship, but we need to be smart about this. You haven’t made an announcement, correct?”
“Nothing formal. We didn’t hide the fact that we were a couple during the yacht party. However, that was mainly clients. And honestly, they don’t care about anything that doesn’t impact them directly.”
Jennifer laughed. “Don’t I know it. Okay, so you haven’t gone public but if we want to nip this potential Beckett mess in the bud, we need to put together talking points and release them ourselves. I want to get Jamie and the rest of PR involved in this to formulate the right approach. I think we need to keep everything discreet for now until we have a plan put together.”
“Of course,” I agreed. “We’ll stay out of the public eye until we have a strategy.”
“Wonderful.” Jennifer grinned at me. “And I’ll find Beckett a new desk. Maybe somewhere near the accounting team.”
I smirked. “Oh, that’s perfect. He would hate that. They’re too straightlaced and boring for him.”
“I’m looking out for you, Noah,” Jennifer said gently. “But I’m looking out for Maddy too.
“That’s why I’m glad you’re on my team,” I answered as I stood to leave.
“Before you go…” Jennifer said. “Take care of yourself, Noah. You’re looking a little tired. You might be catching whatever Maddy has.”
I pretended she’d landed a punch to my chest. “Honest as ever. Thanks for that.”