“I just talked to Phillip White,” he said casually, and she nodded.
“I talked to him this morning,” Hailey told him. “He was upset about his on-sale date and his position on the list, and some problems with the publicity department. I called them after I talked to him. They apologized for bringing the book out a week or two too soon, but there’s nothing they can do about it now. It’s too late to change.”
“He mentioned that to me.” Bob nodded. “Actually, this is about something else. I got a call from James Stewart, the head of sales. They want Phillip to do a book tour. I know he hates them and tries to avoid them, but they really think it would give his sales a huge boost. Seven cities in two weeks, the usual dog and pony show. TV, radio, interviews, not out in the sticks. Washington, Boston, Chicago, Denver, L.A., Dallas, Atlanta. It’s a big push, but two weeks isn’t too bad,” Bob said. Hailey looked worried.
“He’ll never do it,” she said. She knew Phillip and his boundaries well. They’d discussed it before, and he always refused to do book tours.
“They’re promising to do it in a really first-rate way, first class all the way. I just talked to him, and he said he’d do it.” Hailey looked stunned as she stared at her boss. “On one condition,” Bob continued.
“And what’s that?”
“That you go with him. He said you’re the only one who could make it tolerable. He knows you’d organize everything for him and protect him. And I think he’s right. The tour could be really important for him, and it will be stressful and exhausting. I know you can handle it. As a personal favor to me, would you do it, Hailey?” He looked at her so earnestly that she couldn’t refuse, but she had no idea what to do with her kids for two weeks. That was a lot of babysitters to corral and schedule, not to mention a fortune to pay them, but this was her job, and she couldn’t turn down her boss or their most important client. She wanted to cry, thinking about it, but he had really put her on the spot. Her future promotions were on the line here. And the book tour depended on whether or not she’d do it.
“When is it?” she asked without committing.
“You’d leave in a week. They want to put it together pretty quickly, to give a final boost to his new book that just came out. It’s either that or wait a year for the next one, and they don’t want to do that. They think they can kick him into the number one slot, even at this late date. Since he never does them, the book tour would have a big impact. It would start a week from today.” She nodded, thinking, and decided to do it to keep her boss happy. She’d figure it out somehow.
“I’ll do it,” she said quietly. “But only because it’s Phillip. I really can’t start doing tours on a regular basis. It would be a hardship for me to organize.”
“I understand. I won’t ask you again. It means a lot to me that you agreed this time.” He stood up then, smiled at her, and left her office a minute later. Mission accomplished, for him and Phillip. For Hailey, it was just the beginning of utter panic and chaos, trying to find people to stay with her kids, and she knew they would be upset about all the things she’d be missing while she was gone. But her career was important to her too, and it was what kept them eating, paid their rent, and provided what they needed. But how did you explain that to a six-year-old who wanted his mother at home? He’d have to make the sacrifice this time, they all would.
When Allie left the office that afternoon a little earlier than usual, no one questioned it. She came and went as she needed to. All the agents did. They had meetings offsite all day long, went to visit their clients on the sets of movies being made or series being taped. The literary agents were more stationary, and spent their days on the phone, then read manuscripts at night. They usually only left at lunchtime, for fancy lunches with publishers or clients.
Allie bought a bottle of Cristal and a big bouquet of red roses, and arranged them in a vase when she got home. She had sent Eric a text and confirmed that she’d be waiting for him after he went to the gym. She ordered caviar and had it delivered to her apartment, took a bath, and dressed carefully in a filmy white dress you could see through. She wore a white lace thong under it and nothing else; you could see her breasts clearly but she didn’t mind, she knew he’d like that.
She put the stereo on and lit candles a few minutes before he was due to arrive. The champagne and caviar were in the fridge so he didn’t see them as soon as he walked in.
All he did see was Allie, glowing when she opened the door, her long blonde hair cascading past her shoulders. The moment Eric saw her, he grinned, stepped into the apartment, swept her off her feet, and spun her around and then kissed her.
“Good God, you look gorgeous! Sweet Home Alabama!” He still couldn’t believe how lucky he was that she was having a relationship with him. She was the head of dramatic at the agency and a big deal, and a magnificent-looking woman. “What’s the occasion? What are we celebrating? It’s not my birthday. Is it yours?” he suddenly wondered but couldn’t guess. He wanted to take her gauzy dress off but loved the effect in the meantime.
Allie smiled up at him for a minute and kissed him. He was wearing gym clothes, but had showered before he came over. She could see every inch of his gorgeous body.
“I got a call today . . . I have good news for you.” She was beaming and he was puzzled. “You got the part, Eric. You got the series. The leading role. This is going to make you a big, big star. You could win an Emmy or a Golden Globe, and I know you can do it. You’re in! Congratulations!” He pulled her into his arms and kissed her hard. She could feel him shaking with excitement and she was happy for him. His legs felt so wobbly, he had to sit down on the couch, and he pulled her down next to him and kissed her again.
“I can’t believe it. I was sure they’d forgotten about me.”
She laughed.
“No one could forget you, baby. I’m so proud of you!”
“I’m proud of me too,” he admitted, laughing. “This is thanks to you, Allie. You made me audition for it when I didn’t want to. And you pushed them. Oh my God, I can’t believe it.”
“I can.” She went to get the champagne and the caviar then, and brought it out to him as he lay on the couch, grinning, thinking of the good times that were ahead. He opened the bottle of champagne, poured them each a glass, and toasted her. Then he set his glass down, kissed her, and gently took off her dress, and she lay next to him on the couch, her perfect body exposed, with the lace thong.
“I have to be the luckiest man alive,” he said, and pulled off his gym clothes. They were two exquisite people with perfect bodies, and it looked like ballet in slow motion as they began making love. Life had never been sweeter, and all he wanted to do now was share it with her. It never dawned on him for a minute that she was seventeen years older than he was, and he wouldn’t have cared. He figured she was maybe three or four years older, but that was the last thing on his mind as he entered her with a gasp and a hard thrust as she arched her back, and the dance began in earnest. It was a victory dance for both of them. For Allie and Eric it was a perfect night, and it didn’t get better than this.