Part 4 (1/2)
My jaw dropped. ”She doesn't like you because you're gay?”
He nodded.
I reached over and squeezed his hand. ”I'm sorry, Scotty.”
”Oh don't worry about me, my dear. I've got a thick hide. It's not worth getting upset over.”
I narrowed my eyes. ”Are you sure? I get upset when anyone doesn't like me.”
He laughed. ”Really, Waverly, it's not a big deal. She's probably going to be meaner to you than to me anyway-you have nicer skin than she does.”
Great.
a a a ”I think it's a brilliant idea. How did you come up with it?” Tad refilled my wine gla.s.s and set the bottle back in the ice bucket. It was a few evenings later, and we were on the roof deck of the posh building where Scotty and Tad, a sports agent, owned a s.p.a.cious loft. They lived right by Madison Square Park in the Flatiron District, home to the famous building of the same name.
I took a sip of my wine. ”I got the idea from a reader awhile back, actually. I could never quite figure out what to do with it for the column, but I thought it could be a fun segment for TV.”
”I love it for TV,” Scotty said as he sat down next to Tad. ”Our viewers will love it too. In fact, if I weren't producing Love, Wendy, I might be tempted to use it myself for the Today show.”
I pointed at him. ”Hey now, don't go stealing my ideas. You've already made me paranoid enough about these horrible TV people.”
He laughed. ”They're not all bad. It's just that some of their egos outsize their talent, and that can get a little irritating.”
I thought back to the days when I used to work in sports PR. At least there was no doubt that the prima donna athletes I had to deal with back then excelled at their chosen sport. I could only imagine how annoying it would have been to have to coddle them if they weren't even good.
My phone buzzed with a text message. ”Hey, Kristina's here. Can we let her in?”
Tad stood up and headed toward the stairwell. ”I'm on it.” Tad already knew Kristina because one of his coworkers represented her husband, the Knicks star Shane Kennedy. Shane was the face for the basketball shoes of a former client of mine from my days when I worked at a big marketing firm, but he was far from a prima donna. He had a degree from Duke, perfect grammar, and not a single tattoo. He and Jake had been roommates in college, and he had introduced us at a trade show. For that act alone, I would forever be grateful to him.
As soon as Tad was out of earshot, I leaned toward Scotty. ”I like him, Scotty. He's not at all what I expected, but I really like him.”
He leaned toward me. ”What did you expect?”
”I don't know exactly, but not that. I would hang on to that if I were you.”
He kissed my cheek. ”Look at you, giving me relations.h.i.+p advice. You're taking this Honey on Your Mind thing quite seriously.”
”Apparently I am. But I'm off the clock right now. That was a freebie, my friend, just for you.”
He laughed. ”Well in that case, let me pay you back by pouring you some more wine. He stood up to retrieve the bottle, and I admired the sprawling roof deck.
”I can't believe you live here, Scotty. This place is unbelievable.”
”I'm not complaining.”
As he refilled my gla.s.s, I looked up at the sky. ”You know, I have to say that I can't believe I'm wearing a tank top and shorts at seven thirty. Can we just take a moment to acknowledge how amazing that is?”
”It's the end of summer, Waverly. It's like this every night.”
”I know, but I'd totally be wearing a ski jacket in San Francisco right now, maybe even gloves and a hat.”
He held up his gla.s.s in a toast. ”This is New York, my princess. As I've learned myself, there's a reason people never leave. But just wait until the day comes when you're literally sweating off your skin. You might change your tune then.”
I jumped up when I saw Tad and Kristina walking toward us.
”Kristina! How are you? It's so great to see you.” I gave her a big hug and led her by the hand to the table. ”You know Scotty Ryan, right?”
She nodded. ”Yes, of course, it's nice to see you again.”
Scotty handed her a gla.s.s of wine. ”Most people call me Scott, but I'm sure you probably figured that, given that I'm in my forties.”
Kristina laughed. ”I did figure that. I've gotten used to Waverly's nicknames.”
I took a sip of my wine. ”Hey now, don't be hating on the nicknames.”
Kristina sat down next to me. ”So how are you? I can't believe you're living in New York now. This is so exciting.”
My eyes got big. ”I know, isn't it? I have a brand new life! It may be the wine talking, plus the fact that it's eighty degrees out, but I think I may grow to love this place as much as San Francisco.”
”Wait until winter,” Scotty said. ”Then we'll talk.”
Tad put his hand on Scotty's knee. ”You really need to get over the weather thing, babe.”
”I reserve the right to complain about the weather, you reserve the right to wear those awful skinny jeans,” Scotty said. ”That's the deal.”
Tad laughed and turned toward Kristina. ”Shane's in Boston and Minnesota this week, right? Word on the street is they've got a phenomenal squad this season.”
She sipped her wine and half-smiled. ”They say that every year, don't they?”
”Only the die-hard fans,” Tad said. ”And the ticket sales department at Madison Square Garden, of course.”
She laughed. ”Of course. Actually, Shane is optimistic about some of the younger guys they brought over in that big trade in the off-season. He doesn't want to retire until he gets his ring, but I just hope he's not forty-five by the time that happens.”
”Isn't it crazy how retiring at forty-five is considered incredibly late in professional sports, while it's unthinkable in pretty much everything else?” Tad said.
I raised my gla.s.s. ”Don't forget Internet gazillionaires. Some of those guys can retire before they're old enough to rent a car.”
”Ah, good point,” Tad said, laughing.
”And child actors. Can't forget them,” I added.
Kristina put her hand on my arm. ”So Waverly, tell me more about your new gig. I'm excited to watch you on TV.”
I leaned toward her but didn't lower my voice. ”I can't get into any details because my, um, boss is in the immediate vicinity, but I'm hoping you'll find it entertaining. My first segment is going to air next week.”
”Next week? Already?”
I nodded. ”We begin taping on Friday.”
”Wow, that was fast. Are you ready?”