The Publicist Book One and Two (14 page)

Chapter Thirty-One

“We’re reporting from New York tonight, where Piper Maru is making an appearance at an author event. Many of you may not have heard of Janet Easter, but Piper seems to be a big fan and has come out in support of her favorite author.”

Edward could hardly believe his ears. How the hell did this happen? The reporter from
Entertainment Tonight
continued to speak as Edward sat in his lavish apartment hoping like hell that the contract termination letter hadn’t been sent to Janet yet.

…

The crowds were unreal, and people of all ages snaked around the corner, braving the winter weather and waiting for a glimpse of Piper and Janet. Well, mostly Piper, but that didn’t matter to Kate. The crowd had arrived, as had just about every entertainment reporter in the free world. She was glad that she’d pushed to increase the bookstore order from 100 to 500. Readers often bought more than one, and with Piper there, she was certain they would need every single copy.

Flashes went off all around her. They’d sectioned off an area for the media, and Kate had staged a warm and glowing welcome photo shoot between the two women. Piper was being an incredibly good sport about this, hugging Janet, smiling, and, at one point, asked her to read from her latest book to the crowd. Janet, being a savvy marketer, realized quickly that she wasn’t the draw and asked Piper to read instead. The crowd went wild. Kate smiled at Janet’s brilliance and willingness to go with the flow. The cameras clicked endlessly as Piper read from Janet’s latest book. Kate had also invited Lulu, who sat in the front row glowing. She owned every Piper album and Janet Easter book.

“How did you get her here?” Janet whispered, as the crowd remained enraptured with Piper’s every word.

“She’s a fan, my dear.”

Janet wrapped a loving arm around Kate. “I’m sure she’s not, but I love that you did this for me, Katie. You are one hell of a publicist.”

Kate realized that these were the moments that made her so proud to do what she did. A loving and appreciative author and a triumphant book signing.
If only they could all be like this
, she thought. But, the odds didn’t favor that. Enjoy the good ones, someone once told her, because they are a rare breed.

Janet needed to get busy signing books, and Piper had graciously agreed to cosign them with her. Kate was certain that many of Janet’s books would end up showing up on eBay, but she didn’t care.

“I think we’ll end up selling out tonight,” the store manager said behind her.

Kate turned and smiled. “I’m betting we will.” The manager nodded and left. From out of the corner of her eye, Kate saw a man, tall and handsome, leaning against a bookcase, smiling broadly. She walked over to him.

“What are you doing here, Mac?” she asked.

“Watching perfection in action. You really trumped Edward this time, didn’t you?” A sexy smile pulled at the corner of his lips.

“What do you mean?” Kate tried her best to play dumb, but there was no fooling Mac.

“You found out about Janet’s contract. Didn’t you?”

Kate shrugged.

“I bet Eddie’s frantically trying to call someone in contracts tonight to make sure they haven’t sent her cancelation notice,” Mac laughed.

“Janet is a quality author; MD should have more like her.”

“They should, but they won’t. We’ve started to whore ourselves, Katie. Publishing is falling apart, and we’re just rearranging the deck chairs at this point.”

Kate watched as the happy fans weaved through the bookstore line to meet Janet and Piper. Still mostly Piper, but that was okay. This would save Janet’s career with MD.

For now, at least.

“Publishing will never go away. It will just morph into something else.”

“True, but I’m not sure that MD is ready to morph with it. Edward is stuck in the past. But then, that’s corporate publishing in general.”

“What are you saying, Mac?”

He smiled, “Nothing, really. Nothing that everyone else isn’t saying. But we need to watch our backs, Kate. The day may come when both of us are irrelevant.”

“You’ll never be irrelevant, Mac.”

He smiled down at her, “Why, Katie, was that a compliment?”

A laugh escaped her lips, “Nice ego, Mac. I meant in publishing.”

“Right,” Mac said, not convinced. “When this is over, let’s grab a bite.”

Kate thought he’d never ask. She wondered if it would be another weekend like last weekend. She hoped. Mac shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other.

“I have to go to Connecticut in the morning. The boys are coming home for Christmas break, and I want to be there when they do.”

Kate’s heart stopped. She tried to focus on Janet and Piper, but all she could hear was “have to go to Connecticut…” Not, “I have to be with my family and my wife.

Just the word: Connecticut.

Suddenly, the entire state represented the fact that they had no future.

“Why not go tonight?” Kate said, almost too quietly for him to hear.

Mac knew where this was headed and pulled her in between the book cases so they’d have more privacy.

“Kate, I’m sorry. But I’d rather tell you now than in the morning.”

“You assume I’d be seeing you in the morning.” Kate felt angry. But why? She knew the rules. Except that right now the rules sucked.

Mac brushed her face. “Katie, I’m sorry. I wish I didn’t. It’s hard, I know. Believe it or not, it’s not easy for me, either.”

“It should be,” Kate said, almost regretting it once it was out of her mouth.

Mac sighed, “Yes, you’re right. It should be, but it’s not. Not with you. I’ll give you everything I can. I promise you that. But these are my limitations. I love my boys. For years, they were all I had.”

Suddenly, Kate felt stupid. It wasn’t about Mac’s wife. She knew that in her heart. It was about his sons.

“I’m sorry, Mac. I, just—”

“Don’t say it. I know.” Mac took a deep breath. “I know because I feel the same way.”

Kate sat with that comment for a moment, wondering what Mac meant. “Felt the same way”—which way was that? Kate wasn’t even sure she knew. Mac never let things get complicated, she was certain of that. So, anything other than a deep, caring bond wouldn’t be acceptable to him.

Finally, Kate said, “Dinner sounds great,” and turned to head back to watch her star author revel in her moment of glory.

Chapter Thirty-Two

The signing was a huge success, better than Kate could have even hoped for, and the buzz that was created from having Piper at the event was tremendous. Kate wouldn’t be surprised if Janet’s latest book hit the list—all of them for that matter.

The crowd had dwindled, finally. The event took five hours total and Kate could see how exhausted Janet was. Exhausted, but elated.

“Kate, I am so grateful,” Janet came over, her eyes welling up with tears. “So many books, so many new readers, and all because of you. You are the most amazing publicist in the world.”

“I wholeheartedly agree,” Mac smiled behind them.

Janet looked over Kate’s shoulder, smiling at Mac. “It’s nice to see you MacDermott. How are you?”

“Trying to survive in publishing is never easy, but I wanted to come by and see our big superstar. Congratulations on a fantastic event.” Mac reached out to shake her hand. In true Janet fashion, she hugged him instead. Mac knew instantly why Kate was so fond of her.

“I should be going,” Janet sighed, clearly not wanting the day to end. “Piper said she was sending a whole bunch of her CDs to my grandkids. They just aren’t going to believe this.”

Kate put an arm around Janet. “You did great. There’s a car waiting for you to take you to your hotel.”

“Thanks again, Kate.” Janet grasped her hand and then left the bookstore, which was still recovering from the event. Some media were still there, lingering and interviewing fans, and Kate could hear the phones still ringing off the hook. Piper Maru left a lot of activity in her wake.

“Come on. Let’s go have dinner.”

Mac rested a hand on the small of her back, gently pushing her forward. The gesture left her breathless.
God help me
, she thought as they left the store.

…

They dined at Cafe Mogador in the East Village, which Mac knew was one of Kate’s favorites. They were seated at a small table near the window. The light snow that started when they left the store turned heavier now.

“They say we might get six inches tonight,” Mac observed after they ordered.

Kate sipped her wine. “It might be tough to get out of the city tomorrow. You sure you want to wait?”

Mac brushed her hand, avoiding a solid touch.

“I’ll take my chances. If I’m late, the boys will be late, too.” He paused for a moment and held her eyes. “I really am looking forward to seeing them. It always seems like it’s too long between visits.”

“I can imagine. I haven’t seen my parents in almost a year, and with our diet diva and Isla’s book release coming up, I just can’t make it back this year.”

Kate’s reference to their big holiday release reminded Mac of the big title he and Kate had coming up. He had been talked into taking this book against his better judgment.

“I’ll be back on Tuesday, just in time for all of the excitement.” Mac rolled his eyes. They had a big author coming in that week who had, at one point, been somewhat of a celebrity. Mac’s author was nicknamed Skinny Saundra because her email alias was skinnysaundra, which Mac decided was hideously ridiculous.

Saundra Temple had once been grossly overweight. She rose to stardom after she dropped nearly two hundred pounds and became a fitness guru in the late ’80s. Saundra also became the queen of the infomercials, selling millions of dollars of diet products and fitness tapes. Saundra had ruled the diet market for four years, capturing the attention of every major talk show and even putting a few celebrities through the paces of her diet regime. Then, she disappeared quite suddenly. The infomercials were gone and the product dried up. Rumors circulated that her accountant had been embezzling all of her money, leaving her penniless. After a few years, photos of an obese Saundra started circulating. She was photographed leaving donut shops and Dairy Queens, looking painfully overweight. After the pictures surfaced, she started getting invitations to be on talk shows, to tell the world about her sorrow. Saundra refused all invitations except one.
The Dr. Paul
show flew her out to Los Angeles for an hour-long program on weight issues. Saundra cried nearly the entire show. She talked about her accountant who had since been imprisoned and her struggle to lose the weight.

This once public weight loss diva admitted on national TV to weighing three hundred and twenty-five pounds.

In a moment that was captured in millions of Twitter feeds, Paul Chapel put his arm around Saundra, asking her gently, “Do you want to change?” Saundra nodded.

“Are you ready for a challenge?”

She looked at Paul, not sure what was coming next.

“I want you to commit, on the air, just like you had millions of folks do years back, that you will lose the weight and get in shape. And we’re asking America to support you.”

Dr. Paul cheered on the audience, who all rose to their feet yelling, “Go Saundra!”

Saundra sat in her chair and cried.

“Will you do it, Saundra?” Dr. Paul had asked.

Saundra nodded.

Paul Chapel stood up. “There you have it, America, she’s committed to the change and we’re going to help her. Aren’t we?”

The entire audience screamed, “Yes!” as the show went to commercial.

…

“It should be interesting,” Kate smiled.

“Do you think Piper will be there?” Mac joked.

“I highly doubt it…” Kate’s voice trailed off as the waiter returned with their meal.

When the waiter left, Mac said, “I don’t share a room with her, you know.”

Kate’s fork froze in her salmon. She had wondered about whether Mac and Carolyn slept in the same room or did anything together, for that matter.

“I’m sorry, Mac. I really am. Your life could have been so different.”

He nodded and pushed a dab of hummus onto a pita.

“It could have been, Kate, but it wasn’t. I’ve long since given up the hope that anything will ever be different.”

Kate paused before she asked the next question.

“Mac, why do you stay?”

The question hit him like a cold blast of air and seemed to make him sit up straighter. Kate noticed his mouth tense and he set his fork down.

“Look,” she spoke up, “I am not asking for me. This isn’t one of ‘those’ conversations. I’m just wondering, as your friend. You drift from woman to woman your entire life, never staying long enough to create something really lasting. Your life could be so much different, and I wonder, why not? Is it money? I mean, forgive me, but that’s usually the reason.”

Mac had been asked this question before, but it was usually in a pleading conversation. There was often crying and desperation, and when this conversation happened, it was time to leave. But Kate’s question was different. She wasn’t pleading or desperate or demanding. She was just asking a pretty simple question.
Why did he stay?
The answer, the real answer, was not a powerful statement at all. In fact, the real answer was not something he had ever wanted to face. But now here he was, with this stunning woman who was making him question everything.

After a long pause that made Kate wonder if she should have just kept her mouth shut, Mac finally responded.

“I told myself for years that it was because of Carolyn’s faith and family, and that was true up to a point. I think that there was a time when a divorce would have devastated her beyond reason.”

“And now?” she asked.

“I spent so much time telling myself that that I finally believed it enough to stop looking for the real reason. I’ve lost faith, and probably also my courage. It takes guts to make a big change.”

“Guts or a strong desire,” she said softly.

“Mostly guts,” Mac said without smiling. “I think somewhere along the way it all just became easy. I could do this and live this dual life, it became manageable, and actually, in some odd sense, reasonable.”

“They say that people who have lost a limb never stop knowing it’s there. The phantom limb syndrome is what they call it, I think. I would imagine the same is true for your life. It’s gone, but you still know it’s there, or was there.”

“I miss it,” Mac admitted, his voice filled with emotion. “I miss it all.”

Kate stole some of Mac’s hummus and smiled, deciding it best to shift the conversation to something less emotional.

“I think Piper might want to write a book. She mentioned something when she left. I told her to call you. Said you were the best editor in the business.”

Mac smiled, “You never miss an opportunity, do you?”

“Well, according to Janet, I am the world’s best publicist.”

Kate chewed on her salmon and smiled. Suddenly, Mac had the urge to kiss her, but waited. The waiting was often good. Though tonight he wished he didn’t have to.

…

When Kate woke the next morning in Mac’s apartment, outside it was still snowing. Mac wasn’t beside her. Sitting up, she looked for a note. Had he gone already? Just then, the door flew open and Mac walked in carrying a tray of food, a bouquet of flowers, and several papers.

“You made the front page of the Arts section.” He smiled, “You also made the front page of
The
Post
and Page Six, and the
Wall Street Journal
did a piece on Janet’s signing for their Weekend section.”

“Mac, you left in this weather. Why on earth—”

Mac cut her off. “I wanted to get you breakfast, some celebratory flowers, and every paper I could get my hands on. It’s a big day in your career, you know.” Mac set down a tray with coffee, juice, and warm croissants.

“Mac, I don’t know what to say.”

Mac’s eyes took her in. She had pulled the sheet up around her, but he could see her skin glow and her nipples press through the white sheet.

“Fame agrees with you.” He smiled, wanting her again. But he knew he couldn’t linger. In an hour, he had to be on his train.

“Fame is fleeting.” Kate bit into a croissant. “You’re so sweet to do this.”

“I have ulterior motives.” He winked.

Leaning in, he kissed her. Her lips were wet and warm; he slipped a finger under the sheet and tugged it down, revealing her body. He knew he couldn’t leave. Not yet. His need for her overtook him. Sliding the tray onto the floor, he plucked a rose from the bouquet and slipped a thorn-less stem into her hair. Then he kissed her and felt himself grow hard against her warm skin.

…

The apartment was empty. They’d made love, and Mac had left in a rush to catch his train.

“Stay as long as you want,” he had said over his shoulder as he threw open his front door and swept through it.

There was no reason to say. Mac was gone. A quick shower then she’d be on her way to her life while Mac sped off to his.

Connecticut.

Suddenly, she hated the entire state, which wasn’t fair to the state, she knew. But she didn’t care.

She pointed the showerhead at her body, thinking of Mac as he raced home. She hoped the shower would dull her memory of what had just happened, but even as she toweled off she could still feel him, kissing her, inside her. Loving her. Only, it wasn’t love. It was something else that masqueraded as love but came with an expiration date. Like Greek yogurt. So smooth and yummy. But if you didn’t finish it in a week, it would spoil. She hoped they had a little longer.

…

Kate needed to clear her head, but she also didn’t want to be alone. After locking up Mac’s apartment, she headed to see Grace, hoping her friend would be home.

“Let’s go Christmas shopping!” Kate smiled when Grace opened the door.

“You know, I think Christmas is just another excuse for commercialism to rule our lives.” Grace stepped back and let her friend walk past her. “You seem falsely optimistic, what’s up?”

There was no fooling Grace.

“I’m fine; I just thought it would be fun. Snow on the ground, Christmas music playing for the tourists. We could go to Macy’s and look at the windows.”

“It’ll be packed with people from Ohio.” Grace shut the door behind her friend.

“People from Ohio don’t visit this time of year. Besides what do you have against the Heartland?”

“They all vote Republican.”

“Gracie, come on. Let’s go.”

“I heard about Piper. Great move.”

“Thanks, now let’s go.”

Grace studied her friend for a moment.

“There’s something different about you. You’re happy in a way I haven’t seen in a long time. Also, you haven’t returned my calls in a week. Now you’re here. Fess up.”

Grace sat down on her couch, which was the only place to sit in her apartment other than two small chairs in her kitchen.

Kate sat down beside her.

“Work has been busy,” she said unconvincingly.

“You’re glowing. What’s that about?”

“Nothing. Now let’s go.”

“Mac?”

The word hung in the air, reaching out to her, teasing her for a response.

“What about him?”

“Is it Mac, Kate? Is that what’s going on?”

“No, of course it’s not about Mac,” she lied. “Well, he was at the signing yesterday, if that’s what you mean.”

Grace was certain something was up. She kept pushing.

“Are you sleeping with him?”

Kate didn’t respond.