Cindy is singing “Don’t Stop Believin’” into her karaoke machine at the reception desk when I arrive at Sentinal. She pauses the music as soon as she sees me, but it’s not because she’s embarrassed to be caught singing. She’s staring at my storage box and looking very concerned.
“Hi,” she says. “Are you leaving us?”
“Yeah. Don’t stop singing, though. You sounded great.”
She completely disregards my compliment. “Oh no—Maddie. Why?”
“Oh, you know. This job just isn’t a good fit for me.”
“Did he fire you?”
“No. It was my idea.”
“Oh. Did things get…complicated?”
I look around to see if anyone is within earshot.
“No one else is here,” she assures me. “Otherwise I wouldn’t be singing… Did things get weird after McSorley’s?”
“No, not at all!” I did not mean to yell that. “It’s just time for me to move on.”
She twists her lips to one side. “After two months?”
I look away because there isn’t much else that I can say.
“Well, I won’t keep you, but I’ll miss you. Stay in touch, okay?”
“I will, definitely.”
As I’m walking away, she says, “You know, he went through seven other assistants here before he hired you.”
“I’m well aware of that, yeah. He’s pretty demanding.”
“Yeah, but I mean…you’re the only one he actually made stay late with him.”
“I am?”
“He’d always send the others home early because it was easier for him to do everything himself, he said.”
“Oh.” I stare down at the empty box in my hands. “I didn’t know that.”
Fuck you, nose tingles.
“I didn’t even know the poor guy could smile until two months ago.”
Not now, tear ducts!
“Yeah, well…hopefully his next assistant will be even better for him,” I manage to say through the lump in my throat. “Oh, and Cindy… Don’t tell him I told you this, but Declan was your Secret Santa.”
Her eyes widen, her lower lip quivers, and now there are three women in Manhattan that I know of who are all teary-eyed over that asshole.
When I’m almost done packing up my personal items, I get a call on my cell phone. It’s my former boss, Artie. Maybe he’s finally going to do me a solid and come out of retirement so I can work for him again. “Hello? Artie?”
“Happy holidays, honey.”
It warms my heart to hear his voice. “Happy holidays! Is everything okay?”
“Well, that’s what I was calling to ask you, Maddie. I just got off the phone with a recruiter. She was confirming that she could use my recommendation letter for you. Don’t tell me you’re leaving Declan already.”
I clear my throat and try to sound as chipper as possible. “Just needed something new for the New Year,” I say totally unconvincingly.
He sighs. “You don’t have to tell me. I’ll support you, no matter what.” We’re both silent for a long beat before he continues. “I just wanted to tell you something. Something that I had forgotten until recently. Since you won’t be working for him anymore…”
I blow out a laugh. “You finally going to warn me about Declan Cannavale’s moods? You’re a little late.”
“I told you, I don’t know anything about that,” he says jovially. “You remember that time I had lunch with him? When you were still working for me, and he was still at the law firm? He’d asked me to consult on something, and I forgot to bring some papers with me. You swung by the restaurant to drop them off.”
“I do remember that.” That was back when Declan and I used to chat on the phone whenever he’d call for Artie, and I thought it was odd that he’d started making those calls himself.
“I met you outside, but I guess Declan could see you from inside the restaurant. He was always telling me over the phone that I was lucky to have an assistant who was so on the ball. But when I went back inside and sat down, he told me to let him know as soon as I was planning to retire because he wanted to hire you. This would have been a year before you ended up working for him.”
“Oh” is all I can say as I stroke the petals of an orchid bloom and stare at the empty desk through the glass wall opposite me.
“I think he was living with someone back then. But he seemed a little distracted for the rest of lunch. I think he’s had a thing for you for quite some time.”
I snort-laugh at that. “I don’t think so.”
“Well, I don’t know the story, but speaking as a former boss who had a crush on his assistant…”
I cringe for a terrible second.
“Not you, honey—my wife! Did I not tell you that she was my assistant before we married? Things were a little less complicated back then, of course. But it’s never easy to navigate that kind of situation. I’m not saying you should keep working for him. Maybe it’s best if you don’t. It’s none of my business, but you’ve always been like a daughter to me. I’m just saying, in case things got complicated between the two of you… Maybe see what it’s like when you aren’t working together. After all those other boyfriends I’ve seen you with over the years—you deserve a guy like him.”
“Wow. He seems to have developed himself quite a fanbase outside of his former assistants.”
“I’m saying this because I’m a fan of you, Maddie. I know we lawyers aren’t the easiest people to work with or live with. But some people are better suited to working and living with us than others.” He chuckles. I always loved it when he’d chuckle like that. Like Santa Claus. “Like it or not, you’re one of the people who can actually handle us. Doesn’t mean you have to deal with a lawyer personally and professionally. But if you are looking for something new for next year, maybe you and Declan can both start over with a clean slate… Said my piece. And as I told the recruiter, I’ll sing your praises to whoever will
