Playing Favorites

“Which tie do you like?”

Jonah stood with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist and a tie in each hand.

It was Saturday night and we were getting ready to go out to dinner with Adam and Kadie. The four of us would always go out on double dates, but since Adam became partner of his law firm, Kadie started her own PR company, and Jonah became the new host of the Late Night show, we couldn't really find the time. That is until Kadie forced an outing in hopes to get things with her and Adam back on track.

“The checkered one. It makes your eyes pop.” I stood leaning my head out of the bathroom. I was in the middle of doing my makeup when he called for my attention.

“Really?” Jonah examined the tie. He shrugged his shoulder and put the argyle tie back into his closet.

I layered my eyelashes with one last coat of mascara and threw my makeup into my bag. By the time I walked back into Jonah's room he was already wearing a pair of black skinny slacks with an untucked button up shirt. He stood staring down at himself as he tied his tie.

“Do you need help?” I laughed at how childish he looked.

“No” He bit his lip as he looped his tie around. “I almost...” He pulled at it until it formed into a perfect knot “...got it!” He held out his hands and smiled as if he'd done a magic trick.

I rolled my eyes and smiled. “Hurry up Harvard, we're gonna be late!” I picked up his sweater and threw it at him as he tucked his shirt into his slacks.

The sun had just set over the Hudson river when we made it to dinner. Jonah and I waited in the restaurant's lobby since Adam and Kadie hadn't made it yet.

“See” Jonah whispered to me, “I told you we wouldn't be late.”

Just then Kadie and Adam came walking in.

“Sorry to keep y'all waiting” Kadie said as she leaned in to hug me then Jonah. “Adam's been busy with a case all day today.”

“No worries” I smiled. “We just barely got here.”

The hostess took us around to a more intimate part of the restaurant and sat us down.

“I'm so sorry to bother you, but I'm such a huge fan!” Our hostess, who managed to keep her cool the entire time, finally cracked. “Your even more handsome in person!”

“Oh!” Kadie smiled and nudged Jonah as she dusted her napkin onto her lap.

Jonah blushed. “Thank you.” He paused for a second. “Are you liking the show?”

“Like it? I love it!” She cupped her hand around her fist excitedly. The grin on her face was from ear to ear. “You're doing a great job! You're so funny!”

“You're not gonna need a restraining order, are you Jonah?” Kadie laughed as she audibly whispered to Jonah.

He gave her disapprovingly look.

“I'm sorry, I shouldn't have...” The girl felt flustered. She pushed her hair behind her ear and began walking away.

“Wait” Jonah stopped her. “What's your name?”

“Stephanie” she fiddled with her fingers as she spoke.

Jonah stood up from his chair. “It was nice meeting you, Stephanie.” He held out his hand for her to shake. She looked up at him and her eyes filled with excitement once again.

She took his hand and pulled out her phone with the other. “Can I take a selfie?”

“Sure, bud!” Jonah crouched down until they were at the same height and she snapped a picture. She thanked him profusely before she turned around and disappeared.

Jonah came back to our table and sat down. His smile vanished as he spoke to Kadie “That wasn't nice.”

“Oh, come on” She laughed. “It was hardly a joke.”

“She's just a kid. You didn't need to be so harsh.” Jonah said without looking at her.

Kadie put her menu down and looked at me like Jonah was crazy. “A kid? She looks well over 18!”

“Kadie!” Adam's voice cut across the table. “What's gotten into you?”

Normally, I wouldn't have said anything. It wasn't a big enough issue to cause problems over, but I knew things between Adam and Kadie had been a bit rocky lately, so I tried to defend her. I didn't want them to have more reasons to argue.

“It was just a joke. Let's try to move past it.”

“Thank you!” Kadie huffed as she picked her menu back up.

After a few seconds of silent menu reading Adam and Jonah started having their own conversation.

I leaned over to Kadie and quietly asked her how things were going between her and Adam.

“It's fine, I guess” She shrugged her shoulders as she whispered. “He said trust is something that needs to be built back up when it's torn down. So, that's where we're at...” She leaned her chin on her hand.

Most of the night was spent talking over one another until Adam and I decided to switch seats, so he and Jonah could talk while Kadie and I talked. It wasn't exactly what either one of us had planned, but the boys seemed to have enjoyed their time together.

The night was cut short when Adam had gotten a call from one of his clients.

Jonah and I headed home in hopes to spend the rest of the night in bed with a Netflix movie.

I sat on Jonah's bed as I took my heels off. Jonah stood in the doorway tugging his sweater off over his head. “Jon, you really didn't need to be so rough with Kadie tonight.”

He pulled his sweater off and looked at me with disbelief. “You're kidding right?”

“No, Jonah, I'm not. She's going through something major right now. You should have just let it slide” I stood up and gestured for Jonah to unzip my dress.

He stood behind me as he slowly pulled the zipper down. “Lynn, she acted rude in front of someone who supports me. Regardless if it was a joke she hurt someone's feelings for no apparent reason. And what she's going through is solely her doing.”

“What?” Jonah wasn't done unzipping my dress before I turned around and looked at him. I hadn't completely filled him in on the situation between Kadie and Adam, so I was surprised when I heard him taking sides. “Yes, what she did was wrong, but she's trying to make it right. What has Adam been telling you?”

“Nothing!” Jonah ignored the question. He tried to step behind me to finish unzipping my dress, but I turned around and faced him again. “I mean, she's pretty much getting her way isn't she? She has no respect for others.”

“What is that suppose to mean?” I folded my arms.

He realized I didn't need his help any longer and continued on with undressing himself. “Let's see....” He unbuttoned his shirt with every point he made. “She disrespected Poppy by using her, which I know doesn't matter, she disrespected Adam by going behind his back and against his wishes, she disrespected you by not listening to her “best friend”” He said, using air quotations. “...and then tonight. She does this to everyone and then she apologizes so she can continue on saying outrageous things without having any consequences.”

“I can't believe you think that of her.” I shook my head. I instinctually felt angry that someone was talking about my best friend. But, more upset that it was Jonah.  “Sure she's made a few mistakes, but she's a good person, Jonah. She's my friend since childhood. We're practically the same person.”

“Ha!” Jonah laughed out loud as he stripped down to his boxers. He walked into his closet to grab a t-shirt and pulled it on over his head. “I would think twice before comparing myself to her if I were you, Lynn.”

Dinner For Two

“Daniel! What are you doing here?”

It was Friday morning and I had the day off. It was slowly becoming my “spend the day with Jonah at work” day.

Jonah had gotten a phone call so I stepped out of his office to give him some privacy. To my surprise Daniel was standing in the busy hallways of Jonah's studio.

“Hey, Lynn” Daniel waved as he walked towards me. He was dressed down in his Ray-Ban eyeglasses and an old t-shirt over dark skinny jeans. His hair was in more a fluff rather than it's iconic quiff. I almost didn't recognize him. He gave me a hug and continued to talk. “We have a meeting with the talent agent for the show.” He pointed behind him where the rest of his band mates were.

“I'm sorry that took forever” Jonah said aloud as he walked out of his office. He hadn't noticed that I wasn't the only one standing in the hall until he looked up from his iPhone. “Oh” He stopped abruptly.

“Jonah, this is Daniel, the leader singer from The Kicks. Daniel, this is my boyfriend Jonah.” I introduced the two.

“Nice to finally meet you, mate.” Daniel said in his South London accent as he held out his hand.

Jonah pointed his finger at Daniel, as if to remember something. “So you're the guy my girl left me for.” He was referring to the picture of me and Daniel that was taken at Kadie's launch party.

“No, no, that wasn't -” Daniel tried to explain himself but Jonah cut him off.

“I'm just fucking with you!” He laughed and winked to show his playfulness. “It's nice to finally meet you.” He shook Daniel's hand. “Are you here to meet with Marci?” He patted Daniel on the shoulder and walked with him down the hall.

It was a little after noon when Kadie called me.

“Hey, K, what's up?” I answered.

“Hey Lynn, I need your help.” She sounded worried.

“What's wrong?” I spoke slowly. “Is everything okay?'

“Yeah, yeah, everything's fine.” It sounded like she was covering her mouth as she talked. “Adam and I never really talked about the whole Poppy thing since it happened. I can tell he's still pretty upset. I wanted to make a gesture to apologize, but I needed your help to figure what I should do?”

We tried brain storming a few ideas until we decided an intimate dinner at home would be the best bet.

Since Kadie was prepping the apartment for her date, I did her a favor by stopping by the market to pick up some salmon and steaks.

It was almost past three when I finally got to her place.

“What took you so long?” She flung the door open and particularly dragged me inside.

“The market was packed with Friday traffic. It took forever to put my order in.” I shouted as Kadie had already disappeared into her room.

She came rushing out with a red dress in one hand and a royal blue in the other. “Which one do you think is a better apology dress?”

“Red always looks good on you.” Kadie nodded and began walking away. “But that blue one is a little more figure fitting.”

She stopped and turned back around again. “Blue or red? BLUE OR RED?” she panicked.

“Blue, definitely blue.” I confirmed to calm her down. “Whats come over you Kadie?”

She was already back in her room. She responded just loud enough for me and everyone else in the complex to hear. “I just feel bad, you know?'

“As you should” I said. I pulled the salmon out of the wrapping paper and placed them onto a dish. I dug around in Kadie's pantry to try and find some seasoning rubs.

Kadie came rushing out of her room wearing the blue dress. She grabbed an apron and wrapped it around herself. “I didn't think it was a big deal, honestly.”

“So than why the sudden change in heart?” I stepped back and watched Kadie as she ran around the kitchen

“Because” She finally slowed down and looked over at me. “I realized what I'd be losing if I didn't apologize.”

I stared at her for a second before I turned a slow gradual clap into an applause. “Wow, it took you long enough!”

Kadie tossed a potato at me. “Oh, whatever! Just hurry up and cut up these up. Adam's gonna be home soon!”

We scrambled around the kitchen as we both made dinner. I cooked the potatoes and green beans while Kadie made the salmon and steak.

Just as Kadie was plating the food there was a shuffling of keys at the door.

“Hide!” Kadie whispered loudly.

“What?” I looked confused.

“It'll kill the mood if you're here! Duck!” She whispered out loud again.

Just then the door swung open. I quickly crouched down into the corner of the kitchen hoping that if I held my shoulders in close enough he wouldn't be able to see me.

In between cooking Kadie managed to step up the dinner table with candles and flowers. Adam walked by and admired it.

“What's all this for?” He asked, placing his keys on the counter just above my head. I sucked in a sharp breath.

Kadie walked out of the kitchen and in front of Adam hoping he wouldn't walk in to find me.

“This is my attempt at an apology.” Kadie's voice sounded a little rehearsed. I couldn't blame her, she'd only gone through the conversation a million times before Adam had gotten home. “We didn't really talk about the whole Poppy thing after it happened.”

“Kadie” Adam tried inferring.

“No, Adam, listen...” She cut him off. “I didn't quiet understand the caliber of disrespect on my part until we'd gone to your mom's place the other night. Being there and feeling a distance between us made me realize how I never want to feel that way again. It put things into perspective for me.”

I felt my body shaking. I was holding in my shoulders for so long my muscles were starting to give out. I released the tension and accidentally knocked my elbow on the cabinet behind me.

There was a silence in the room.

“What was that?' I could sense Adam's eyes wandering into the kitchen. I went back to squeezing my body close against the cabinets.

“Oh” Kadie tried to distract him. “Probably some dishes just shifting around. Anyway, as I was saying, I'm sorry I went behind your back with the Poppy situation. I guess you were right, I just wanted to have my company hit big as fast as possible and didn't really care how I got there.”

“I can't believe you went out of your way to do all this for me.” Adam said.

I hit the cabinet again, this time on purpose.

“Look, I'm sorry I was so harsh with you. I just didn't know how else to get through to you.”

“Let's just try to put it behind us” Kadie said followed by the sound of a kiss. “Alright” Her voice grew loud. “Hurry up and go freshen up so we can eat.”

I heard Adam walk into the room when Kadie came tip toeing around into the kitchen. “Quick!” She gestured for me to get up, but at this point I had been squatting for so long I could barely feel my legs. I tried to move as fast as possible but ended up wobbling out of her apartment instead.

“Good luck!” I whispered as I left.

“Thanks Lynn” Kadie whispered back. “For everything”

Classic Move

“Lynn, why don't you grab those charts and meet me in the exam room.”

Something about Connor's uncomfortable face told me he wasn't expecting Danielle. Or maybe he wasn't expecting me to run into her so soon in the day.

After shaking my hand Danielle stood back up and watched the awkward exchange between Connor and I. He stood still as I gathered the charts sitting on his desk.

“Oh, uh, okay...” I looked up at him, then her, then back at his desk. "I'll just, uh, get going.”

What should have taken me a couple of seconds to do seemed more like minutes. Every time I looked up they were both just staring at me. Danielle, in a sympathetic way, and Connor in a, “hurry the fuck up” kind of way.

“It was nice meeting you!” Danielle smiled as she held onto her Starbucks coffee cup.

I smiled back at her before I walked out of the room. As I was shutting Connor's office door I could have sworn I heard him releasing a heavy breath of relief.

I stood in the empty hallway and leaned my back against the wall. My head rolled up and my eyes were looking at the ceiling. Oh my God, I whispered to myself.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and walked into the first exam room.

There was a little girl, 8 years old according to her chart, that sat on the patient bed. Her mother sat on a stool next to her.

“Hi, my name is Lynn.” I stuck out my hand for the girl's mother to shake. “I'm interning with Dr. Cassidy. He'll be here in just a moment, but before he does I'd like to update some of your daughter's information if you don't mind.”

She agreed and we went through her recent history. We were shortly interrupted when the little girl shouted, “Dr. Cassidy!”

Connor entered the room with a wide grin and open arms, ready to be embraced by the little girl. He squatted down to her level and asked, “What's wrong, princess?”

Without thinking I responded, “She's presented with a red itchy rash that is proceeding....” I looked over her chart as I spoke.

“Lynn” Connor turned his head back and stopped me. “I was talking to Alexi.”

The girl's mother silently giggled. I felt my face burning. I clenched my lips and took a step back. Usually when Connor asked what was wrong, that was my cue to fill him in. But, today I was so flustered I hadn't even realized he was addressing the patient and not me.

You idiot! I thought to myself. Why would he call you princess?

I stood quietly as I watched Connor go through the remainder of the visit. When he was finally finished he reached into the pocket of his white coat and pulled out a dum-dum lollipop. Alexi excitedly took it from his hands and then said to me, “I like Dr. Cassidy because he gives me candy!”

I smiled at her and responded, “Oh yeah? Well I like Dr. Cassidy too” My eyes protruded out of their sockets. What was going on? Why wasn't I thinking today? I mumbled over my words and tried to fix my sentence. “...because he's a great doctor!” I was totally imagining face-palming myself.

Connor paused for a moment before he continued talking to Alexi's mother. Once he was done I opened the door to let them go out to the front desk. Connor stayed behind in the room to finish charting.

I stood in the doorway unsure of what to say. Was I suppose to acknowledge the awkward moment(s) or ignore them for both of our sakes?

“Hey” I walked back into the exam room. Connor turned around and I had a quick flash back to the last time Connor and I stood in this room. It was the night I confronted him, and we ended up making out on the patient bed.

I looked like Raven when I gasped and shook the vision from my head.

“Are you okay?” Connor asked. I wasn't sure if he meant in that moment, or the whole morning.

“Yeah, yeah...” I shook my head and began walking backwards out of the office. “I'm fine.”

Once I was out of the room I snapped myself around and ran right into Danielle and her coffee. It spilled everywhere, including the white chiffon top she was wearing.

She gasped as she looked down at herself. “Ohhhhh my gosh I'm sooooo sorry!” I covered my mouth in shock.

Connor had seen the whole thing and quickly came to Danielle's side. “Are you okay?” He asked her as he grabbed a napkin and helped her clean up.

“I'm fine.” She said as she tried to pick up her coffee cup.

“Let me help you.” I bent down and grabbed it for her. We both knelt down at the same time causing our heads to bump.

“Ow!” we cried at the same time.

Danielle laughed and I looked up at Connor. Either she was a very very chill girl, or laughing was her way of calming down.

“Lynn” Connor sighed. “I think we should call it a day.”

I stood back up. “But, we've only seen one patient.” He gave me a look and I knew I wasn't kidding anyone. I was relieved he asked me to take the rest of the day off. It was getting worse by the minute and I couldn't risk seeing how it ended.

“Okay” I nodded my head and walked into his office to grab my bag.

It was still early in the morning so I decided to swing by Jonah's office. There was some sort of writer's meeting going on as they all sat around a large squared table.

“Hey babe” Jonah said as he stood up from his chair. “We're just finishing up. Help yourself to some breakfast.” I looked over to the side where there was two tables filled with bagels from H&H and other breakfast goodies.

I grabbed a bagel and lathered it with shmear as I waited. Jonah reviewed over some notes and called an end to the meeting. The room filled up as everyone stood and walked around.

Jonah weaved through the crowd and came over to where I was standing by the food table. He gave me a quick kiss on the cheek. “What's wrong? Aren't you suppose to be working today?” He grabbed my wrist and brought it up to his mouth so he could take a bite of the bagel that was in my hand.

“Yeah, I was suppose to be until Connor made me take the day off.” I said in a dramatic whisper.

Jonah looked around wondering why I was being quiet since the room was almost emptied now.

“Did you two get into it again?” He asked before taking another bite.

“No” I shook my head. “It was weird because he was actually being nice this morning.” I looked at Jonah's hand that was still holding onto my wrist as he ate. “Why are you eating my bagel? There's a million more on the table.”

“But this one's so good.” He said with another bite.

“Even though I was a couple of minutes late he was still being sweet and then all of the sudden this, like, bombshell comes walking into the office. I mean, I hate to admit it but the girl was flawless. So she walks in and gives him a kiss.” Jonah's eyes widened. “Like, I'm talking about a messy wet kiss. If I wasn't there I'm sure something else would have happened...”

Jonah laughed. “That's so awkward. She didn't even acknowledge you were in the room?”

“Well, I'm sure the two of them aren't suppose to be together because after Connor told her I was there they stood a good distance away from each other. The whole situation was awkward Jonah! I had to stand there and gather files as they both watched me. They obviously wanted to bang each other but couldn't cause I was there.”

“So he sent you home?' Jonah asked confused.

“No, he sent me home because I kept fumbling in front of a patient and when I tried to escape out of the room I ran right into Connor's new lady friend and spilled coffee all over her.”

Jonah's gasped and a few seconds later bellowed over laughing. “Oh my God, that is such a classic Lynn move!”

“Jonah this isn't funny.”

He took a few seconds to catch his breath. “It's okay, Lynn.” He stopped himself from laughing again, “take it as a good sign. If he's with someone else at least it means he's over you.”

“I guess, but it doesn't make it any less...Wait a second...” I looked at Jonah, who was just about to take another bite. “Does that mean you were over me when you went out with Kylie?”

“Huh?” Jonah looked around and forced a bigger bite of the bagel into his mouth. He started mumbling and pointing to his mouth as if he couldn't talk and walked out the room like he was in a hurry to get somewhere.

I rolled my eyes and laughed.

New in Town

“You've proven to me that you can't handle running your own company!” Adam's voice boomed through Kadie's office.

Jebrone and I sat outside in the waiting room giving Kadie and Adam some privacy. We both sat crouching forward with our elbows on our knees and our hands holding up our face, cringing every time Adam's voice got too loud.

It was only moments ago Kadie convinced Poppy to come down to her office. She told her that her contract was ready to be signed. Adam, who came up with the plan, came bursting in and caused a scene in front of Poppy, refusing for Kadie to sign her. Kadie played along and went back and forth with Adam until finally he kicked Poppy out of the office. He insisted on having the situation play out this way to make sure Poppy knew it was him who didn't want to sign her and not that Kadie was just using her. He knew if Poppy ever found out the truth Kadie would be chopped liver.

After Poppy stormed out of the office Adam asked the two of us to step out of Kadie's office so they could talk. Of course Jebrone and I being the nosy people we are left her office door cracked open.

“I'm taking over the company.” Adam said in a more relaxed tone.

Jebrone and I shot a look towards each other. There was no way Kadie was going to be okay with that.

“What?” She growled back at him. “We're in this 50/50, Adam.”

“Kadie, I've spent my entire life working with my father and my grandfather building empires. I have experience with this shit. The way you're running things is going to make your company crash and burn, and I'm sorry, but I didn't come this far to have my name attached to a failed business.”

The growling sound from Kadie grew louder.

“Don't worry princess" I raised my eyebrows and looked at Jebrone. I'd never heard such a condescending tone dripping from Adam's voice. "you'll still be the face of the company, but everything needs to be approved by me.”

“Adam!” Kadie finally snapped.

“No, Kadie.” He cut her off. “I want to see you become successful, I really do. You're not focused on your vision. I'm going to teach you the same way my father taught me.”

There was radio silence coming from the room. Jebrone turned around to check if the door was still cracked open.

Adam came briskly walking out. He clicked the button for the elevator and went on his way. A few seconds later Kadie came mopping out of her office.

“Fuck Poppy Leroux” She calmly said as she sat next to Jebrone. “That bitch messes things up without even trying.”

-_-_-_-___________-_-_-_-

It was Monday morning and I was debating whether I should actually get out of bed to go to Connor's office or not. I mean it's not like he would've minded that I didn't show.

I forced myself up and into the shower, changed into a decent outfit, and headed on my way.

“You're late” I flinched as I heard Connor's voice behind me.

I had just walked into his office and it was barely three minutes past the hour.

“Oh, come on” I shook my head. “Three minutes doesn't even qualify as being late. You're always suppose to round down.”

His eyes scanned through a file that had been left on his desk. “You're always suppose to round up, but okay.” He said as he did something I hadn't seen him do in a long, long, time. He smiled and, for a split second, laughed.

I did one of those dramatic double takes that I'm sure made me look like a cartoon. Did he really just smile and laugh? Did he really just smile and laugh at something I said?

“Look at this...” He continued to stare at the file as he gestured for me to come over. He pointed to the patient history. “Read this. You're going to need to know this before we go see the patient.”

He handed me the file and walked over to the opposite side of the room. I left it on his desk as I hoovered over to finish reading.

As I was closing the folder I noticed a photograph that laid under it. I looked up to see what Connor was doing. His attention seemed to be on finding something in his filing cabinet. He wasn't looking so I tugged at the picture.

It was a picture of a young Asian boy holding a baby, just barely smaller than him, in his arms.

“That's Kolab.” Connor startled me again. I looked up when I heard his voice. He walked around his desk to the side I was standing on. “And that's his sister Mailai” He picked up the picture and smiled at it. Okay seriously, what's gotten into him?

“Is he...” I looked around, not knowing what to asked. “A kid your sponsoring? Adopting?”

“No” He put the photograph back down and proceeded on with perusing through his filing cabinet. “His sister had a flesh eating disease. She was one of the orphans I was treating while I was in Cambodia. Luckily the medication I gave her worked. So, Kolab sent a letter, with the picture, updating me on his sister's condition.”

“That's amazing.”I folded my arms and leaned my hip on his desk.

“Isn't it?” He smiled again as he finally pulled out what he was looking for. “It's a rewarding job. That's why I love it.”

I couldn't help but think. This was the first time in, I couldn't even remember how long, Connor and I were able to have a conversation without wanting to rip each others heads off. Hearing him talk about his trip to Asia and helping those orphans kind of made me feel like I should put everything we'd been through in our past.

There was a knock at the door.

“Come in” Connor shouted.

“Good morning, Honey!” A tall, blonde, bombshell came walking into his office. I felt my jaw drop ever so slightly. She was the female equivalence of Connor. She was gorgeous with her flowy hair that looked like she'd just gotten a blow-out, but there was no way possible she could have because it was so early in the morning.

“Good morning!” Connor smiled back. She walked up to him and gave him a kiss. His hands were placed just on the small of her back, and I'm sure if I weren't there it would have been placed even lower.

“Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't know someone else was here.” She took a step back and looked at me waiting for an explanation.

“Right” Connor pointed to me. “This is the student I'm mentoring, Lynn.”

“Oh, right, right.” She nodded. They obviously talked about me. But not in enough details judging by his response.

She held out her hand for me to shake. “Lynn Lee” something in me urged to correct Connor even though I hadn't gone by Lynn Lee since leaving Texas.

“Nice to meet you, Lynn Lee. I'm Danielle.” She smiled, showing off her unnaturally pearly white teeth.

“Dr. Fitzgerald will be completing her residency here at my office.”

Damage Control

“Why is Poppy fucking Leroux photographed coming out of your office?” Adam threw down Page Six in front of Kadie.

She was sitting at the tufted winged back chair behind her desk. Jebrone sat opposite of her while I was relaxing on the couch on the other side of her office.

It was a weekday and I had just gotten out of class. Usually I'd stay afterward to study with Sarah and Henry, but they had a thing and when Kadie mentioned she was hungry I volunteered to grab food and stop by.

It hadn't even been a full five minutes of me being there before Adam came rushing in, brooding face and all.

Kadie continued to slurp her noodles as she looked at Adam. He stood in silence waiting for her response. She patted her mouth with a napkin. She was obviously trying to stall.

His patience was running out. “Why the fuck is Poppy Leroux photographed outside your office?” He shouted so loud it startled the three of us. Kadie's eyes widened, Jebrone stood up and I sat upright holding onto the edge of my seat.

“Jesus Christ, calm down Adam!” Kadie said as she stood up hoovering over her desk to look at the article. “I was going to tell you before it was printed. How did you get a copy of tomorrow’s paper?”

“You were going to tell me what before it was printed?” Adam's spoke through his teeth.

“How did you get tomorrow's paper today, Adam?” Kadie folded her arms across her chest, hoping to turn the conversation around.

“You should know that I know everyone in this God damn business. Did you honestly think you could scheme behind my back and I wouldn't find out?” He leaned his knuckles onto the glass table top, shifting his weight forward.

Kadie stood in silence for a moment as her gaze went down in embarrassment. “I was going to tell you, tonight, before it got printed. We weren't going to sign her, Adam. We were just making her come in and out of the office so the paparazzi could capture it. That way the article would mention that she's been making visits here and people would just assume she's signed with us.”

“We? Us?” Adam leaned off the table and turned around to look at Jebrone. “Don't tell me you're in on this, bro.”

Jebrone shrugged his shoulder. “There's already been a few local gossip bloggers reporting Poppy's association with us and so far Kadie's clients have gotten a 15% increase in interest.”

Adam didn't care what facts and figures Jebrone had come up with. “You mean her clients that just happened to be signed with you.” He huffed as he clenched onto his forehead. “I can't believe you would run with this. I'm so disappointed in you two.”

“Adam, it wasn't Jebrone's doing. It was all me. Don't be upset with him.” Kadie walked around her desk trying to approach him.

Adam took a step back causing Kadie to come to a stop. “I've already pulled the story from Page Six. All other major outlets have been warned to not run the article.”

Kadie shot a look at Jebrone. All their hard work had gone to waste.

“You're going to call Poppy over here and I'm going to do you one last favor and pretend like I didn't know you three were working together. I'm going to cause a scene and refuse for you to work with her. That way your ass gets out of this scotch free. I can handle her wrath, but I can't handle you in it.”

“Adam...” Kadie tried to speak

He held up his hands to stop her.“No Kadie, I don't want to hear it. Just for once do what I'm telling you, please.”

He turned to give Jebrone one last disapproving look and then proceeded to walk out of the office. A few seconds passed by before Kadie called out his name as she chased after him.

Jebrone turned around to look at me. “I forgot you were here.”

“With the look Adam gave you, I would forget I was here too.” I grabbed my bag, figuring now was a good time for me to leave. “Maybe next time you should...”

Jebrone cut me off, “Now's not the time for 'I told you so', Lynn.”

“You can't really say I didn't warn you.” I shrugged as I walked into the elevators.

Kadie was just coming out, she gave me one look and knew what I was going to say. “This isn't an appropriate time to say, 'I told you so'.” (Was I that obvious?) “My fiance fucking hates me right now.” She grunted as she held onto her head. “All because of some stupid editor at Page Six.”

“I don't think it's the editor at Page Six who made a dumb mistake, Kadie.”

“Seriously, Lynn, stop being a bitch and help me fix this.” Kadie paced back and forth from her desk.

I dropped my bag back onto the couch. “Stop trying to figure out your next 'game plan'. Just admit that what you did was wrong and apologize to Adam.” I looked over at Jebrone. “Both of you.”

Kadie plopped down in her chair and crossed her arms and legs, thinking about what I said.

“Adam would die for you Kadie, he's not going to be upset once you apologize. His plan to get you out of this is fairly decent. Just take the offer and wash your hands of Poppy.”

Jebrone sighed. “She's right.”

Kadie tapped her toe for a few beats before she agreed. “Hand me my phone.” Kadie pointed to the coffee table. I picked it up and walked it over to her. She scrolled through her phone until she found Poppy's name. She put the phone on speaker as we anticipated for her to pick up.

“Kadie!” Poppy's voice sang almost identical to Sarah's normal chirp. “Did you finally draw up the contract?”

“Hey Poppy!” Kadie reciprocated her enthusiasm. “I have some great news. Why don't you come by the office later today so we can talk.”

Word Vomit

“Is that why you've been so upset?”

Jonah held onto my arm as we stood behind the curtains, seconds away from his premier.

I just dropped the, “my ex-boyfriend, the guy who gave you a bloody nose, is now my mentor” bomb on him. Without a second thought I immediately threw my hands over my mouth. I felt like such an idiot. It was like word vomit. I was sick from holding it in, waiting for the right moment, that I just burst with the truth the minute he asked.

Why? I kept repeating in my head Why did you have to ruin the biggest moment of Jonah's life?

“7...6...” The stage manager continued to slowly count down.

I nodded my head as I, ironically, could no longer speak. Jonah laughed under his breath and let go of my arm.

I felt my body cringing from the inside. What had I done?

Because of me his show was going to be ruined. I saw it flash before my eyes: He would miss his entrance because he's so angry. His monologue wouldn't get any laughs because he wasn't delivering them in his normal charming way. The audience would hate him and his producer would be livid. He would get fired after the first day, and...and it would be all my fault! He would hate me forever!

“Oh my God, Lynn, are you okay?” Jonah whispered as he looked at my worried face.

I snapped back to reality, shaking off the horrible vision I just had. “Am I okay? Are YOU okay? You aren't upset are you?”

“5....4...” The stage manager shouted over us.

“Why would I be upset?” Jonah looked at me with a confused smile. “Unless he hurt you...then I would be upset.” His smile vanished as he spoke seriously.

“No, he didn-” Before I could finish a crew member yanked Jonah away.

“Seriously Jonah, take your mark! We're on in 3...2...” The dark shadowy backstage filled with a burst of light as the curtains were lifted. Jonah winked at me before he walked out. The curtains fell back down and the room once again filled with darkness.

I continued to stand where Jonah had left me. “What just happened?” I whispered to myself.

“You can go through those double doors and out the back hallway. It'll lead you to the side of the stage. Do not open the main doors to the studio until the recording light flashes off. You can watch through the window until then. Once you're in, Jonah's mom and sisters are sitting behind the camera men.” The crew member who pulled Jonah on stage directed me. I nodded my head and went on my way.

I watched Jonah's monologue from behind the closed doors. He spoke vividly, like he was catching up with an old friend after years of being separated. He engaged with his on screen “side-kick” and the house band. The audience seemed to be enjoying it. He was completely natural, like nothing was bothering him.

The red recording light turned off as the show strolled into commercials. A crowd of workers quickly surrounded Jonah. His hairstylist fixed his hair, a couple of makeup artists dabbed on more powder, while someone else fixed his tie.

I shuffled through the production crowd and sat in the private seating area with Jonah's family.

“Lynn, dear, how are you?” Jonah's mom stood up to give me a hug. “Where were you? You missed his monologue!”

“I'm fine. I was backstage with Jon.” I said as I leaned in to hug Casey then Mandy.

There was a cheer in the audience when I turned around to see Jonah walking towards us. He came straight over to his mom, “How was it?”

“It was so good!' She proclaimed. “Amazing! You did so well, Honey!” She started choking up the more she spoke. “I can't believe my baby's growing up so fast! Your dreams are coming true Joni!”

“Mom” Jonah laughed embarrassingly as he tried to quiet her down.

“Jonah, we need you at your desk. We'll be filming in 15 seconds...15 seconds...” A woman with a clipboard and headset shouted from the stage. Jonah ran back and got into place.

He was whisked away once again. We continued to watch the remainder of his show. There were a couple of funny bits proceeded by the interviews with his guests.

After the show was over the five of us headed downtown for dinner. There were a few interruptions along the way as people had slowly started to realize that the face plastered all over town was Jonah.

We ate and drank wine and chatted for a couple of hours. Most of the conversation revolved around Jonah and how proud we were of him. There was a moment of sadness when his mom brought up Jonah's dad. It was evident that each one of the kids was upset their father wasn't there to share this occasion with them.

After dinner Jonah's mom and Casey headed back to Long Island and Mandy back to Dartmouth. Jonah insisted that I stay the night at his place.

He sighed a huge sigh of relief as soon as we'd gotten inside. Within seconds Jonah had taken off his suit jacket and untucked his shirt. His body relaxed as he spread his legs across the couch.

“So, tell me again how this whole mentorship came about.” He asked as I handed him a bottle of water.

I told him the whole story from beginning to end. “Jonah, I'm sorry.” I dropped my head in shame. “I'm so sorry that I didn't tell you earlier. I didn't mean to freak you out, but when you asked, I just kinda froze and didn't know how much to say.” I shrugged.

“I don't want you feel like you can't tell me things Lynn. Especially things like this.” Jonah leaned off the couch to emphasis this tone. “I know you're used to him always getting angry with you, but I'm not like that Lynn. I'm not going to scold you for being human.”

“You're not mad that we're working together?” I peeked at him from the corner of my eyes.

“I'm upset that you're put in this position when I know you don't want to be. I'm not mad that it's him you're working with. I know you love me...through everything.” Jonah smiled.

“Through everything.” I repeated.

It's Show Time!

“She's gonna be here any minute! Did you call your sources?”

Kadie stood looking out of her office window down at the street below. Jebrone was pacing back and forth as he scrolled through his phone.

It was Friday morning and Kadie and Jebrone decided to put their plan into action. They were hoping to publicize Kadie's firm by having the paparazzi catch Poppy coming and leaving her office. It would benefit Jebrone as well since her firm represents a few of his clients, gaining them exposure as well.

“I think this is quiet possibly the dumbest thing you two have ever done.” I folded my arms and leaned back on the couch in Kadie's waiting room. “This is expected from Kadie, but not you Jebrone.”

Kadie snapped her head back from the window and gave me a stern look before shrugging in agreement.

“Lynn, this is how the business works. Everyone uses each other until they get what they want.” He looked up from his phone and out the window. “They're here. See, those cars over there? That's them.”

“Good, good, good, good, good!” Kadie rubbed her hands together and looked out the window the same way a lioness would look at it's prey.

“Jebrone, on a scale of 1 to 10 how hurt to do you think Adam would be when he sees the paparazzi pictures?” I swung my feet off the couch and sat upright.

Jebrone turned to Kadie. “You haven't told him yet?”

Kadie sighed, annoyed. “No, I'm planning on telling him as soon as Poppy leaves.”

“He's going to be so upset you didn't tell him and went behind his back.” I picked up my crossbody and slung it across my shoulder. “Well, I have to go and pick up my boyfriend from the airport.”

“Yeah, let's see how long it takes you to tell him about Connor!” Kadie shouted as I went into the elevator.

Jonah was finally done with his press tour and just one last weekend away from premiering his new show. From our last conversation on the phone I could tell it was starting to weigh heavy on him. His nerves were finally kicking it.

It wasn't until late that afternoon when he finally arrived.

“Heyyy Sunshine!” Jonah picked me up off my feet and embraced me into a hug.

“I bet you're happy to finally see a decent looking girl.”

“Oh” Jonah furrowed his brows. “Of course I am. The girls in LA are hideous!” The corner of his mouth curved up as he was trying to avoid smiling.

I laughed and pushed his shoulder. “Good answer!”

We took a cab back to Jonah's apartment. He was in the middle of a move before his trip to LA, so there were boxes all over the place.

Jonah threw his bags down and fell onto the couch.

“I bet you're starving. Let me make you something” I opened his fridge to see nothing but stacks of chocolate boxes, and bottles of wine given to Jonah as gifts. “Delivery it is then!”

“Sorry babe, I haven't had time to get any groceries. ” He peeked his head over the couch to look at me. “Besides a New Yorker like me going a week without pizza is a crime.”

I smiled and grabbed my phone. “Joe's?” I asked already knowing the answer.

“Joe's” He confirmed.

I sat beneath Jonah's legs as he sprawled himself across the couch. He told me all about his trip. How he got to meet the late night talk show hosts based in LA, and how the network had thrown a party in his honor where a bunch of celebrities had came that he'd never met before.

“It was so surreal.” He spoke animatedly “I mean, I've met some of these people from when I was a writer on the show. But to actually have them come to a party celebrating me, and know who I am? I still can't wrap my head around it.” He held onto his forehead.

The entire time Jonah was talking all I could think about was when I'd tell him about Connor. I wanted to tell him soon, partially to stick it to Kadie, but I couldn't find an appropriate moment.

“What's wrong?” Jonah asked. He could tell by the expression on my face that something was going on. I shook my head.

Just then there was a knock at the door. I lifted up Jonah's legs and wiggled out to get it.

We ate dinner, and like an old couple, lounged around eating boxed chocolates and drinking wine. Jonah came and sat next to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulder. “I missed you.” He leaned in to give me a quick kiss.

“I missed you too.” I smiled back. He leaned in again and this time kissed me longer. He grabbed the wine glass from my hands and set both of our glasses on the coffee table.

I was so lost in the moment I'd completely forgotten about the sexy lingerie I bought earlier that day until Jonah was trying to take my shirt off.

“Wait!” I tugged my shirt back on.

“What?” He leaned up on his elbows wondering what he did wrong. “Is everything okay?”

“Everything's fine.” I jumped off the sofa, grabbed my purse, and rushed into Jonah's room. “Just give me a minute. I'll be right back!”

He laid back down with his hands behind his head. “Okay”

I locked the door behind me and took the lingerie out of my purse. It was a silky nude color with cuts of black lace. It was definitely the sexiest thing I owned. I pulled at the tags and readjusted the strap before I put them on.

I didn't want to just spring it on him, so I practiced a few modeled poses in the mirror before I finally unlocked the door.

I stood with my back arching against the door frame. My head was tilted back and I was slightly looking up. A few seconds had passed without a word from Jonah. I did my most model-esque walk over to him. “What do you think?” Still nothing. I looked down at him and he was fast asleep. I sighed dropping my posture into a slump.

I grabbed a throw blanket off the couch and tucked him in. I went back to Jonah's room and changed out of my ridiculous get-up.

Jonah spent almost the entire weekend at his office. There were so many last minute preparations and changes going on that we'd barely gotten a chance to see each other. I stopped by a couple of times wanting to let him know about Connor, but the right moment never presented itself.

Finally it was Monday morning. The day I'd been dreading. I walked into Connor's office and his receptionist immediately recognized me. A streak of fear struck her face as she debated on whether to stand up or not. As if I were going to barge into the back office without her approval.

“I'll let Dr. Cassidy know you're here.” She spoke quietly.

“Thanks.” I nodded my head and took a seat in the waiting room.

A few minutes had passed when Connor finally walked in. He leaned against the door, propping it open, for me to walk through. “Starting next week come straight to my office in the back. Make sure you have your notes ready and be prompt. I start seeing patients precisely at 9am.”

“Good morning to you too.” I mumbled as I walked past him. He ignored me.

“I have a patient in room 3, he's a 54 year old Hispanic male presented with an irregular mole with the probability of it being melanoma.”

“How do you know?”

“Years of experience.” He grabbed a chart sitting outside of the exam room and quickly skimmed through it. “And we're doing a biopsy to confirm it.”

I scribbled down as much as my tiny little hands could handle.

We spent a good portion of the afternoon going from exam room to exam room. I never realized how many patients came to see Connor. My feet were exhausted from running around.

“Alright Ms. Barnes, you're done for the day.” Connor's eyes were glued on the papers he held in his hands.

“That's it?” I asked, surprised at how smoothly the day had gone.

“That's it.” He spoke without looking up.

I grabbed my things and quickly headed to Jonah's office. It was the big day. The premier of his show. The studio was scheduled to start recording at 5pm, so I shuffled my way through the streets to get there in time.

I rushed inside, or at least I tried to before security stopped me. I swear you'd think they'd know me by now. Once I was finally in the clear they allowed me to go up the elevators to Jonah's studio. I walked into his dressing room where a storm of people surrounded him.

Priyal stood off to the side, clip board under one arm while she clicked away on her phone. There were two different makeup artists touching up Jonah while a hairstylist made his hair. Three of Jonah's writes sat in the room on the couch throwing information at him. The producer of the show stood in the middle of the room yacking away on his phone.

“You made it!” Jonah tried looking over, but the hairstylist kept turning his face back to look at her.

“Of course, I couldn't miss it for the world” I smiled.

Jonah pushed the makeup artists and hairstylist away as he stood up. “Everyone, can I please get a minute?”

The room grew silent as everyone stopped whatever they were doing and looked at us. One by one they began to leave until it was just us two.

“Jonah, I just want to say there's no one who deserves this more than you. You're the kindest, sweetest, and funniest guy I know. I'm so proud of you.” We hugged for a long time in silence. I knew it was Jonah's way of calming himself down.

Priyal knocked at the door. “Jonah, we're on the 5 minute mark!”

We rushed out of the room as we headed for the curtains. Jonah had a death grip on my hand. He looked over at me once he was on his mark. “I love you”

“I love you, too.”

“Okay, keep talking, it'll calm me down.” He shook his head and rolled his shoulders. “Tell me what you did today.”

I froze. I realized that I still hadn't told Jonah about Connor. Things had been so busy the last couple of days I never got a chance to. I couldn't tell him now. Not when he was about to start his very first show. But, I couldn't lie either, that would be even worse.

Jonah caught my drift. He took a couple steps towards me. “What's wrong? You've been making that worried face all weekend. Is everything okay?”

“I...” I paused trying to stall. “I didn't have a chance to tell you before, and I don't think right now's a good time either.”

Those were definitely the wrong words to say. It only made Jonah grow more anxious. “Lynn, what's going on? Tell me right now...”

“Connor” I blurted. “I was assigned Connor as my mentor and I spent the day shadowing him at his office today.” By the expression on Jonah's face I could tell what I said hadn't made much sense to him.

“What?” He asked confused. “You were with Connor?”

Before I could respond a man dressed in all black with huge headphones pulled Jonah aside. “Take your make. We're filming in 10...9...8...”