I figured it might be a good opportunity to pick his brain. I’d been learning a lot in the relatively short time I’d been working for him, but I knew there was so much more to absorb.
We went to an Irish pub around the corner. There was nothing authentically Irish about it beyond the name and the décor. I was beginning to notice that everything in LA was fake: the tans, the hair, the boobs, and even the restaurants. All made for show. No substance. But this was the life I’d chosen and I would learn to fit in.
Kevin ordered a martini, and I had a glass of wine. In the time it took me to nurse my drink to the last drop, Kevin had finished the martini, moved on to a straight Beefeater on the rocks, and was almost done with a second one.
He was getting looser in his story-telling, and I sat in rapt attention listening to the gossip he had inside his head but had never even hinted at. Maybe he was beginning to really trust me as an employee, and maybe this meant I was being formally welcomed as a long-term member of his team.
Oh, what he had in store for the agency! Kevin was extremely ambitious, and when he spoke of where he wanted to see the agency in ten or fifteen years, I believed with every confident word he spoke that he would indeed succeed and see his dreams come to fruition.
I declined a second glass of wine when he asked if I’d like another.
“Come on,” he said, “you’re with the boss. I won’t care if you’re a little late tomorrow.”
“I really shouldn’t.”
He lifted his tumbler and threw back the rest of his gin. “You wouldn’t turn down a second glass from Max, would you?”
I just looked at him. Awkard.
He put his hand on my bare knee, and I suddenly wished like hell that I’d worn pants that day. “Let’s get out of here.” He squeezed a little and started to slide his hand up my thigh.
“Thanks for the drink,” I said, moving off my chair at the bar table. “Are you okay to drive home?”
Kevin stood and moved toward me. “Olivia, I’ve kept this out of the office but here…I can’t help myself.”
Ugh. Just what I wanted to hear from my boss. To think just minutes ago I was letting my imagination run wild with a bright future in the business and Kevin as my mentor. So much for that.
“I think you need to call a cab when you leave. Bye, Kevin.”
I got out of there quickly and as I got to my car he was jogging toward me. Shit.
“Wait,” he said. “I just thought…you know…”
“What?” And then it hit me. “Oh my God. You think because I’m sleeping with Max, I’ll sleep with anyone? Just to get noticed and work my way up? Well, you’re wrong. And no way will I do it to keep a job. I quit.”
“He’ll hurt you.”
I glared at him. “Maybe so, but at least he has some class.”
Kevin stood there shocked. He didn’t try to stop me, either with his voice or with physical force. Thank God. I didn’t know if I could handle another man being physical with me. I had pepper-spray in my purse, always easily accessible, and Kevin would have ended up lying on the parking lot, writhing around in the gravel, clutching his eyes.
The only eyes with tears in them were mine, though, as I tore out of there and headed for home.
My phone rang three times on the way home. All calls from Kevin. He left a voicemail each time, then sent a text: I’m sorry. I don’t know what got into me. Plz listen to my msgs.
I didn’t listen to them. I called my voicemail and deleted each one before I heard the first syllable out of his mouth. There was nothing he could say to reverse what had happened, and there was no way I was going to work for him anymore. I just couldn’t. There’d be no way to get past the weirdness. I had made my decision by the time I pulled up to my apartment complex. I’d told him I was going to quit, and I was going to stand by it.
Even though Kevin’s touching had been limited to my knee and my thigh, and it was only for a few seconds, I still felt the need to take a shower. I cried as I scrubbed that leg harder than I’d ever washed it before.
Krystal wasn’t home, so I had the place to myself, but I still locked myself in my bedroom. I lay in bed staring up at the ceiling wondering what I would do after quitting the job. Was it pathetic to think that Kevin would give me a recommendation? I was pretty sure I could get one from him. Hell, I was pretty sure I could get anything out of him with the threat of telling Max what had happened. Max could very well cut all business ties with Kevin and his agency, but that would mean hurting Jacqueline as well. She was innocent in all of this and considering she was under contract with Kevin, it wasn’t as though she could go off on her own and keep the role in Max’s film.
Damnit. My mind was swirling with confusion and too many side issues that I didn’t need to worry about at the time. What I needed to be thinking about was how to handle being unemployed, surviving in LA, telling my parents all of this or lying to them when they came to visit, and how to explain to Max why I was no longer working for Kevin.
Of course, I could fake forgiveness and go back to work there and make everything seem fine. Except I’d only be making it seem fine to everyone else. It wouldn’t be fine with me at all. And I was finished with the part of my life where my happiness, comfort and well-being took a backseat to anyone.
FIVE
I didn’t even bother contacting Kevin on Friday morning. No phone call, no text, no email, nothing. I just didn’t show up. I didn’t hear from him, either, which pretty much told me he knew I’d never be back.
I spent the day trying to figure out what I would do next in terms of work. No good ideas immediately came to mind, and I decided to put off the worrying for the weekend. Bright and early Monday morning, my new job would be finding a new job.
Max texted me around noon: House or boat this weekend?
Just reading it gave me a smile, even though I hadn’t yet told him about not working for Kevin anymore, and for all Max knew I was at the office.
Me: What? We can’t do both?;)
Max: We can do whatever you want.
Me: Okay, how about you dress up as a pirate and rescue me from danger and have your way with me on your boat?
Max: As long as I don’t have to talk in a pirate voice.
Me: Oh, then forget it. :(
We decided we would play it by ear—no firm plans, just do whatever we wanted hour by hour. It sounded like heaven to me.
But I knew I’d have to mention the whole Kevin thing to him. I just couldn’t decide whether to do it at the start of our weekend. I wanted to hold back until Sunday so our weekend wouldn’t be tainted by the unpleasantness of the story, but I also thought Max might want to know right away. I decided I would play that by ear also—if the time seemed right, I’d bring it up.