CHAPTER THREE
The first day of rehearsals for a new play was always hectic. Most of the people he already knew but there had been a few new faces. One blonde actress who was playing a small part had stared at him for most of the day, making him wonder if she was planning to seduce him or stalk him. He was becoming rather cynical when it came to females but then he had good reason.
“Here’s your mobile, boss. You have a message from Nate Mason.”
So he wouldn’t be disturbed, Max’s assistant Gemma had been holding his phone for him while they were doing the table read. Constantly at his elbow and anticipating his needs, she was one of the better assistants he’d had. Most didn’t last long in the position. The long hours, bountiful travel, and lack of personal life took a toll and the average span of employment was about six months.
Quiet and efficient, Gemma had lasted seven and appeared to be happy in her job although Max had been fooled before. He remembered one named Candace who had written her resignation on the Do Not Disturb sign that he’d hung on the hotel room door. He’d gone to sleep employing an assistant and woke up without one. She’d called him an asshole. She was probably right.
“Thank you. I’ll give him a call back.” He accepted the bottle of water she held out. “I think we’re done for the day. I’m heading home and you should too.”
“Should I order you some dinner and have it delivered? Also, what should I pick you up for breakfast tomorrow? The usual?”
He’d been thinking about that. Her day had consisted of watching him work and fetching him water bottles. There were more important tasks that needed to be done.
“Actually, I’m glad you mentioned tomorrow. The new furnishings for the house are going to be delivered in the morning about ten. I’d like you there to meet them and the designer. She’ll show up about nine-thirty. She said she’d be there most of the day so you should plan to be also. I’ll stop by after rehearsals and see the progress. I’m hoping to move back next week.”
The walls had been painted, the floors scrubbed, and the decor ordered. All that was left was to put it all into place. It was amazing what money and fame could buy him. What would have taken anyone else months had only taken him a week, as long as he wasn’t too fussy about the decor. Luckily his favorite color was blue and that made designing around it easy.
Gemma tapped a note onto her tablet, her thick glasses sliding down her snub nose. “Sure, absolutely. I’m on it. Anything else?”
“That will be all. Have a good evening.”
The assistant nodded, still glued to the screen. Max shrugged into his coat and headed out into the chilly rain. When he was in London he tried to keep a low profile and live as ordinary a life as possible. That meant there was no private car to whisk him out of the dreary weather and back to the hotel. He had to hoof it to the nearest Tube station just like everyone else. He always marveled at how he blended into the crowd when he wasn’t dressed in a tuxedo. Nobody expected him to be wearing faded denims and a t-shirt but just in case, he wore his hat low so half of his face was obscured. Waiting for his train, he checked his phone and found Nate’s cryptic message.
Call me when you can.
Max waited until he was back inside the hotel room, shedding his outer warmth and dialing the number at the same time. Nate answered on the second ring.
“How was the first day?”
Max settled onto the settee and stretched out his long legs, propping them on the coffee table. “Good. Long. Like they always are. I want a hot shower, room service, and bed. How’s Los Angeles?”
Nate was starring in a new movie and his bride Paige had traveled with him. They’d be out of the country for at least two months, maybe more.
“Sunny and dry.”
“How’s married life?”
“Fucking fantastic. I highly recommend it, mate.”
Max was just getting out of a marriage and wasn’t looking to dive back in any time soon.
“Good for you. So, did you call just to hear about my first day?”
“Hardly,” Nate chuckled. “I called to ask you to check on Carrie for us. Invite her out to dinner or something. Take her to a movie and get her out of the house. When Paige talks to her she says she’s fine but she doesn’t sound it. My beautiful wife is beginning to get concerned that Carrie isn’t happy in London. You know I offered to buy her a flat so she and Paige can work closely together but if she misses Florida that entire plan isn’t going to work.”
It was hard to keep secrets from his best friend. Max was well aware of why Carrie sounded out of sorts but she’d made it clear she wasn’t going to ruin the first few weeks of her friend’s married life by telling them her fiancé had run off with another woman.
“I’m sure she’s fine. She’s only been here a week. It takes time to make the transition.”
“You were on a plane with her for eleven hours. How did she act? Did she seem sad or upset?”
He didn’t know Carrie well but she seemed like the type who didn’t wear her heart on her sleeve. Except for the night before the wedding. She’d been crying and upset then but she hadn’t expected Max to find her out there. She’d been quite mortified at being found but her reaction to her faithless fiancé had been natural. He still was of the opinion she should let her brother beat on him until he learned his lesson.
“She was quiet. She read and slept mostly. So did I,” Max replied. “We were both knackered after all the wedding festivities. We had lunch together when we got to London and she seemed fine. She even talked to her brother.”
Max could hear Nate talking to Paige in the background. “You had lunch with her? That’s great. So you wouldn’t mind taking her out again? It would put Paige’s mind at ease.”
He wasn’t going to get out of this. Nate and Paige were his best friends and this was what friends did for each other.
“Of course I will. I’ll call her today and set something up.”
“We owe you one. Paige says to tell you that she really appreciates this. She just wants to make sure that Carrie sees how great London can be.”
For Carrie, the best thing about London probably was that her ex wasn’t here.
“I’ll do my best to sell its charms and report back.”
He and Nate chatted a few more minutes before hanging up. Max scrolled through the contacts until he found the one he was looking for. Might as well get this over and done. Spending the evening with a woman who was privy to his greatest failure – and then turned him down when he’d proposed a business relationship – wasn’t an activity he was anxious to do but he’d promised.
He’d take her to a movie. They wouldn’t have to talk.