Chapter 2
TWO
Do not murder your client.
Try your best not to murder your client.
Staring at Adam Rice across the table, I tried to calm my erratic heartbeat, repeating his words in my mind. His blue eyes were darting back and forth between mine and the script sitting in between us, the one I thought he’d happily scoop up, ready to jump headfirst into the next phase of his career.
But that was not what happened.
A break . My biggest client wanted to take a break.
Forget that he’d just become a household name, that his latest performance was garnering Oscar noise. No, none of that mattered to Adam. He wanted a break.
Fuck .
Maybe it wouldn’t be the worst thing. I was just settling into life in New York, and the ink was barely dry on my new contract. When Wallace and Associates started talking about setting up a New York satellite office, everyone was determined to be the one leading the charge. I was honestly surprised I was the one chosen when there were so many people vying for the job.
Not that I’d let anyone know that.
It had taken a couple of weeks to convince a few key agents to make the move with me, and then I was on a plane, bound for a new life in a new city. It seemed fortuitous that Adam also wanted a change from life in LA, enjoying the East Coast when he filmed his last picture in a small town upstate. I was under the assumption this would be the moment he’d make his mark and take his career from booming to legendary. How wrong I was.
“I need this, Theo,” Adam said from across the table, breaking me out of my thoughts. “I can’t keep jumping from project to project. I need some time to figure out my life away from the cameras, away from the press.”
Sinking back into the cool leather of my chair, I tried not to crush the ballpoint pen in my iron grip. It wasn’t like I didn’t have a heart, no matter what my ex-wife tried to suggest. As much as I cared about Adam’s career, I reminded myself that I cared about him as a person more.
I sighed, regretting the words before they even left my mouth. “How long are you thinking?”
“At least three months.”
My hand instinctively jumped to my chest, rubbing the knot of uncertainty that had settled there. As my biggest client, keeping Adam happy was one of my key responsibilities. With his latest movie in post-production, I was getting offers every single day. He’d put on a hell of a performance, and everyone wanted to work with him. But no matter how tempting the project was, Adam kept saying no, claiming that he was searching for the perfect role. I should have known something like this was coming.
We’d been working together for almost five years, and I knew Adam better than most of my friends. Truth be told, he was one of my closest friends. How fucking pathetic was that? I pulled myself away from that self-deprecating thought, forcing myself to focus on what mattered.
Adam’s career.
Adam smirked at me. “Who knows? Maybe I’ll sign up for one of those reality shows. Do you think I’d make a good suitor?”
The clear crystal pen snapped in my grip. “Shit,” I hissed as the blue ink hit my skin. Blue fucking ink. How did these get into my office?
“Don’t even joke about that,” I sighed, rubbing my hand down my face. I stood up, discarding the broken pen in the trash before turning to stare out the window. My eyes couldn’t focus on a single thing, my mind too wrapped up in problem-solving mode. I never thought I would say this, but I was sick of the gray weather already. Spring in New York was a crap shoot; there was no knowing if you’d have bright blue days or rain. Since the moment our plane touched down, it had been the latter.
I never thought I’d say it, but I missed our offices in LA. When they started to bring on more prominent clients, the owners bought a historic building with warm, Spanish-style accents that made it cozy without even trying.
But here, on the twenty-eighth floor of another glass-shrouded skyscraper? It was lifeless . The conference room was surrounded by glass-paneled walls, echoing the same elements as the rest of the office. A past tenant had doused the entire place in shades of gray. Would it have killed for my boss to spring for some color? Maybe a painting or two would make this place feel like less of a hospital waiting room. Shit, even those had mass produced paintings to give your eye something to look at .
“Theo,” Adam called out from the other side of the table. “Did you hear me?”
“Yeah, I heard you.” I ran my hand over my face, trying not to let my irritation show. “Are you sure this is the way you want to play it? Walking away from these offers could be career suicide.”
“I know,” Adam answered, his voice quiet but determined. “I’ve been thinking about this a lot. I just…” He trailed off, scrubbing his hand over his jaw. “I’ve been trying to get my passion for acting back, and nothing’s cutting it. I’m burnt out, man. Something needs to give, or I don’t know if I can do this anymore.”
My fists clenched. “Is this about Alex? You couldn’t have known?—”
I thought it was an easy decision to set Adam up with a contracted girlfriend last year. It seemed like a win-win situation after he was photographed with a local woman while he was filming. He’d get some positive press after a nasty break-up, and she would get enough money to get her out of her shitty job. It seemed ideal for both—at least until she fell for Adam’s best friend, Cole. As far as I knew, they were still dating. Cole had even moved to the middle of nowhere to be with her.
When it all unraveled, Adam insisted he was fine and that there were no real feelings between him and Alex, but he had changed, becoming more guarded and jaded. Adam said a resounding no to every project I’d brought him over the past few months.
“It’s not about her,” Adam snapped. “This is about me!” He stood, pacing the space between me and the table. “I’m so sick of all the bullshit, Theo. I never know what’s real and what’s for my image. I need a break to be myself , to figure out who I am away from all the cameras and noise. ”
I took in his sagging shoulders, the tension radiating off him. The frustrated man in front of me wasn’t the Adam I knew. Ever since we met at an industry party years ago, he’d taken fame in stride, grateful for every part he got to play. He never lamented the publicity or the cost of fame.
I clapped him on the shoulder, stopping his pacing. “Okay, Adam. I hear you.” His relief was palpable. “Let me see what I can figure out, and we’ll go from there.”
“Thank you, Theo,” he muttered, dropping back into his seat. He dragged his fingers through his shaggy blond hair.
“There's no need to thank me. It’s why you keep me around.”
When I finally unlocked the door to my new apartment, the world around me was dark. After dropping all my stuff by the door, I walked out to the balcony, opening the doors to let in the air, fresh after a quick rainstorm. The city lights sparkled around me, reminding me I wasn’t alone. There were millions of other people in buildings just like this one, trying to make their way in a city that was so effortlessly taxing.
In the daylight, New York felt almost cold and cruel. But at night, the lights made it something exceptional. After getting my fill, I meandered into the kitchen, pulling a glass from the cabinet. Opening the fridge, I found it almost empty, save for a large bottle of vodka and a couple boxes of Chinese take-out. I pulled out the first box, taking an apprehensive sniff. Nope, no way that was any fucking good. Tossing it into the trash, I grabbed the vodka and poured two fingers into the crystal glass .
Dangling it in my hand, I stepped back toward the window, peering out to the world below me. With the patio doors now closed, the apartment was quiet, way too damn quiet. My head ran through the numbers, calls I needed to return, projects I needed my clients to sign off on.
This stress was what you wanted, what you signed up for . I’d fought tooth and nail to prove that I was ready for this step, that the partners could trust me to lead this expansion. I’d been at Wallace and Associates for over ten years, starting in the mail room right while I finished law school. Being a talent agent was never my dream, but it seemed like the best career for a lawyer with no desire ever to enter a courtroom.
I’d worked my ass off for the last decade, hustling my way up the ladder. I’d taken on every client, no matter how demanding or challenging. I never backed down from a scandal, always trying to find the best situation for all involved.
But it wasn’t until Adam that people started to take me seriously. He was a relatively unknown actor when I first signed him. My gut hadn’t failed me before, and I knew he was worth the risk. I just had no idea how much it would pay off. Not only had he become a star, but he catapulted me into the big league, suddenly grabbing lunch and golfing with the heads of the company. Lately, there was a lot of talk of me becoming a named partner. It was everything I had imagined for years.
And now, I was one mistake from losing it all. My biggest client was taking a break from acting, and I was responsible for making sure this office was a success. Anything less, and I’d be shipped back to LA.
It felt like a cruel karmic joke. I’d worked so damn hard to get my fucking foot in the door, and now my fate felt so out of my control.
Tomorrow , my mind screamed, trying to force me to relax. Tomorrow you can stress about work.
I almost had to laugh at the thought. My work-life balance was non-existent. I was available to my clients at all hours of the day, and when I wasn’t working with them, I was working for them. Contracts needed to be written and emails needed to be drafted. There was a reason I turned the second bedroom into a home office.
I shifted to look at my new “home.” It was a basic lease. Six months, and then I could re-up, or someone else would take it over. There was nothing personal, no items that made it mine. A place to sleep and maybe fuck if I found the time. I glanced around, taking in the spacious living area. It reminded me of our office space, even made of the same cold, dark materials and chrome accents.
In my everyday attire, I tended to favor blacks and grays, but my home was a different story. I liked to have some life in my home, even if I wasn’t the one living it.
I set the empty drink down on the kitchen counter before strolling over to my briefcase. I looked over my notes from my meeting earlier, hating that my chicken scratch was so much harder to read than my assistant’s. Marie was my lifeline, the closest thing I had to a long-term relationship. Of course, she was happily married to a wonderful woman with two chubby-cheeked toddlers waiting for her at home, but to me, she was family. She was the one who’d tell me I needed to get out of the office more, kicking me out to enjoy the sunshine on beautiful days.
Fuck, I missed her.
The next few hours were a blur, and my mind turned off as I worked through my list. Half of it was bullshit tasks, things I usually paid people to do for me, but Allen, my boss, and I agreed that we would start the New York office with a skeleton crew. A couple of other agents were making the transition with me, but they were flying out later in the week. Until then, it was just me and the damn janitorial staff in chrome city.
As my eyes started to blur from exhaustion, my phone blared to life at my side. I glanced down at the caller ID, and I saw Adam’s name. Hopefully, that bastard had had a come-to-Jesus moment and realized he was risking everything for nothing. But as soon as I clicked on the call, I knew that was not the case.
“Before you ask—no, I haven’t reconsidered. I’m staying in New York, and I don’t want any scripts for at least six months.” Fucker. This morning, it was only three. “But I need a favor.”
“No.”
“You don’t even know what I’m going to say.”
“Considering I’m neck deep in your last fucking favor, I’m sticking with that answer.”
Adam sighed. “Look, it’s not really for me. It’s for Alex-”
“Not a chance in hell.” I didn’t have an issue with Alex, even going so far as to invest a large chunk of money to help her buy a hotel in her hometown. But I had a limited number of favors, and she already used up all of hers when I got her and Cole out of several messes when they were dating behind Adam’s back.
“Theo…” Adam sighed. “This could be good for you too. Would it kill you to hear me out?”
Great question.
“Fine.”
“Do you remember Alex’s friend, Calla?”
I might have spent a month in that lakeside town, but the only person I got to know was the take-out man from its lone Chinese food restaurant. The name rang a bell—I had a knack for remembering those, a necessary evil in my career. But I couldn’t place the girl’s face.
“Not exactly.”
“She just moved to New York, and she’s looking for work. You said you needed some help around the office…”
I groaned, leaning back to squeeze my brow with my fingers. This conversation was not going to end well. From the limited information I had on Calla, she seemed flighty and more suited for a nightclub than a professional office. But before I could say no, Adam continued, “Look, I know this isn’t something you’d normally do, but Calla, she’s a good person. She's just down on her luck. She needs a break.”
“If I do this, will you agree to read through the script I sent over?”
“Nope. I won’t,” Adam chuckled.
“Then I have zero motivation to help her.”
“C’mon, man. What do you have to lose? Do me a favor and at least meet with her.”
It was the last thing I wanted to do. I was already floundering, trying to navigate a role I barely knew how to play, and now, he wanted me to take on someone else who had no experience and potentially didn’t bring any skills to the table?
But Adam never asked for favors, at least not personal ones like this. As much as I wanted to say no, I couldn’t, not when he was the one reaching out. A thought tugged at the back of my mind, “Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why are you advocating for a girl you barely know?”
“Shit, Theo,” Adam chuckled. “Not everything has to have some sinister motive. Calla’s been dealt a shitty hand. I’m just trying to help her out, pay it forward or whatever you want to call it.” He exhaled slowly. “Put her in the mailroom, have her answer phones. There has to be something she can do to help. You know you need it.”
I groaned. “Tell her to be at my office at 9 am on Thursday.”
“Thanks, man. You’re not going to regret this. Who knows, you might love working with her.”
Not fucking likely.