Infamous (16 page)

“It might matter.” She needed a timeframe for fixing this. If it took groveling to Andrea Mitchell, which went against every instinct, she was going to suck it up and do it.

Maybe it wouldn’t come to that. Maybe she could dig up some dirt on Andrea and apply a little discreet pressure. Maybe she could come up with the type of normal, everyday solution other moms had to devise to deal with these problems. Maybe.

“It’s the Saturday before school starts. Everyone will be talking about it at school. This year is going to suck.”

Jessica visualized the calendar. That wasn’t much time and she already had her plate full. She was pushing an editorial deadline for her book, the auction had almost become a second job with e-mails, phone calls, and committee meetings, and she still needed to set aside time to take Kinsey shopping for new school clothes.

Bingo.
What was the best revenge when you weren’t invited someplace cool? Be someplace better. It was even better than throwing her own party--not so obvious.

“Oh,” she said. “It’s a good thing you aren’t invited. You couldn’t go that weekend anyway.”

“What? Why not?”

“Well, my dear,
you
are going to be in New York City that weekend shopping for school clothes.”

“Oh.” Kinsey brightened a little. “I’ve never been to New York.”

“Really? Your dad never took you?” It seemed impossible.

Kinsey shook her head. “That’s really nice, Jessica. I’m sure we’ll have a great time.”

It was clear that Kinsey was intrigued, but not sold. She was trying to be polite, but no shopping trip could make up for missing
the
party of the summer.

“Of course,” Jessica improvised, “we don’t have to spend
all
our time shopping. We’ll have plenty of time in the evening to take in some shows. I’ll call Kit Masterson. His new show is sold out, but I bet he can get us tickets. What do you say?”

“Oh. My. God. Are you serious? You know Kit Masterson?”

“Absolutely. No promises, but maybe he can even get us backstage to meet the cast after the show.” She silently vowed that she would pull in as many favors as needed to make that happen. The right type of name-dropping in her next book or an introduction to J.T. could open all kinds of doors.

“He’s so hot. I can’t believe you know him!” Kinsey bounced off the bed. “I have to call Rachel. She is going to be
so
jealous.”

“Um, you know Kit is gay, right?”

“
Bi
,” came the immediate retort.

“And at least fifteen years older than you?”

“So what, he’s still a hottie. No one’s going to believe this. I’m going to meet Kit Masterson!”

Kinsey threw her arms around Jessica. “You’re the best! I’ll see you later!” She whirled around twice in her computer chair before opening three new chat windows.

It was an obvious invitation to leave the room. Just as well, she had plenty to do anyway. Call Kit and beg for tickets to a sold-out show, for one. She was sure it wasn’t going to be a problem but now she wished she had confirmed the plans first.

She just hadn’t been able to stand seeing Kinsey cry. It probably wasn’t the best solution. She should have had a June and the Beaver type talk. She wasn’t going to be able to fix every problem Kinsey ever had. She owed Kinsey this one, though. She had caused this one.

She hadn’t done too badly on the spur of the moment. The plan was subtle enough that no one could prove she had concocted the trip just because Kinsey wasn’t invited to the party. Kinsey would save face and probably get a little popularity boost on the strength of meeting Kit. And of course, Kinsey
did
need school clothes and a shopping spree in New York would be a great way for them to spend some time together.

It would even be educational. Museums and art galleries. She gave herself a mental pat on the back.

Maybe she could convince Morgan to come with them. He didn’t do as much business on the east coast, but maybe they could make it a little family vacation.

Family
vacation. She hugged the concept to her. How many days should they plan to go? If Kinsey had never been to the city, they would want to visit some of the tourist sites while they were there. She hurried back to her office to start making plans.

• • •

Jessica was on the phone when Morgan tracked her down after finally escaping an excited Kinsey. She was sitting cross-legged in her desk chair. For some reason, that ratcheted up his annoyance. He had ordered her the latest in ergonomic office chairs. When you sat at a desk for long periods, it was important to maintain correct body posture. The sleek new chair was pushed to one side. Jessica was sitting in her old chair, swiveling back and forth while she leaned forward to tap at her keyboard with the hand not holding the phone.

He moved into her field of vision. She waved a hand at him and continued her conversation.

“That sounds great, Mace, I’ll call you with more details when I get them. This is going to be a blast!”

That just about topped off his mood — she was talking to Mason again, making plans to see him. She looked happy and animated — apparently at the prospect of whatever she would be doing with Knight. She hung up the phone and swiveled the chair around to face him.

“Why aren’t you using the new chair?”

“Oh.” A little of the animation faded from her face at his tone. “It’s an awesome chair, Morgan, but I can’t write in it.”

“Why not? I have one just like it. It’s very good for your back.”

“Well, this is my writing chair — I guess it’s kind of a lucky chair. I wrote my entire first book sitting in it. The new one has the curvy seat with the bump in it. I can’t sit cross-legged on the bump.”

“That can’t be good for your back.”

“I’m a little stiff sometimes, but I have to sit cross-legged to plot.”

Morgan clenched his teeth to keep from telling her what he thought of that. It wasn’t what he had come in here for anyway. He walked across the room and shut the door. He didn’t want Kinsey to wander down the hall and overhear them.

“What the hell is this about you taking Kinsey to New York?”

Her hand flew to her mouth and she gave a little bounce in her chair. “Kinsey told you! I was going to call you, but I wanted to get a few details straight first and I totally forgot!”

A few details she had to discuss with Knight?

“Did it occur to you,” he said, “that you might want to discuss the details with
me
before you made any promises to Kinsey?”

“I don’t see why you’re so upset. I know it’s a bit spur-of-the-minute, but it’s not like we just hopped on a plane and left without telling you.”

“Thank God you have that much sense, at least. I realize you don’t think anything of jetting off to wherever strikes your fancy, but I would appreciate having some say in
where you take my daughter
.” He realized he was shouting and hoped Kinsey was still in her room with the radio on.

“Good grief, it’s just a shopping trip. It will be fun. What’s the big deal?”

“What’s wrong with the shops here?”

Jessica didn’t look at him. What was she thinking? This wasn’t about new clothes.

“Kinsey said she’s never been to New York,” she countered.

“Lots of thirteen-year-old girls have never been to New York.”

She gnawed on her lower lip and shot him a look from under her lashes. “I sort of hoped you might be free to join us. There are some great exhibits at the Met and the MoMA. We could take Kinsey together.”

Morgan blinked. What the hell? She would hardly invite him along if she was planning a trip away with Knight. The idea of spending a weekend wandering through museums with Jessica and Kinsey was seductive. Then he remembered the date and his blood began to boil.

“You know I can’t go that weekend, I’m already committed to speak at a conference in Seattle.” She had known he would be out of the way that weekend. Apparently she just couldn’t think of a way to ditch Kinsey, too. Or maybe it hadn’t even occurred to her that taking Kinsey along would be inappropriate.

“I don’t want you taking Kinsey to New York.” It was all he could think of to say. He hoped it didn’t sound as desperate to her as it did to him.

Jessica just stared at him.

He struggled for a rational argument.

“Normal teenage girls do
not
fly to New York for school clothes.”

“I did. Sometimes to Paris, too, when I was with my mom.”

“You see my point, then.”

She gave him a hurt look. “Morgan, I know you want what is best for Kinsey, but you’re trying to bring her up like an average, middle-class kid.”

“What’s wrong with that? It’s the way
I
was raised.”

“It’s what you
were
. Kinsey’s not. She is a very wealthy little girl. In a few years she’s going to be eighteen. She’s going to go away to college. She’s going to move out. You won’t be able to keep her hidden away in suburbia forever.”

“All the more reason to do so while I can; I’ve seen what happens to kids who grow up with too much money. They have a very warped perspective of what’s important in life.”

Jessica was shaking her head.

“You won’t be doing her a favor by letting her think she’s just like every other kid in America. People are going to treat her differently because of who she is. If you don’t start preparing her for that now, she’s going to be taken advantage of later. She’s going to get hurt if she doesn’t know what’s expected of her and how to take care of herself.”

“What has that got to do with clothes?”

Jessica sighed. She got out of her chair and stood very close to him. She put her hands on either side of his face. He tried to ignore her perfume and the warm feel of her hands.

“Morgan, you’re a great dad. Kinsey is a well-grounded kid. She needs to start learning what it means to be your daughter.” She pulled his head down and kissed him softly on the mouth. “It’s just a week in the city and I already promised her the trip. Please, Morgan, don’t make me tell her we can’t go.”

Morgan looked down at Jessica. Her eyes were soft and pleading as she gazed up at him. As always when she was this close his body reacted, distracting him from his suspicions and anger. With an effort, he focused on what she was saying, not on what he wanted to do with her. He thought of Kinsey, in her room calling everyone she knew to gloat over the coming trip, and he knew he was going to lose this argument.

Was he being played? He didn’t know. The uncertainty churned in his gut, a cauldron of boiling emotional stew that made him even angrier. With an oath, he brought his mouth down on Jessica’s, plunging his tongue into her mouth. His hands tightened in her hair, pulling her head back to allow him better access. He was neither gentle, nor careful, but she wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

They were both breathing hard when he pushed her away.

“I want to see the travel arrangements before you finalize them.”

Then he was out the door, striding down the hall towards his office and the calm logic of cost projections and spreadsheets. Jessica loved Kinsey, he told himself. There was no evidence that the weekend was a ruse to spend time with Knight. Even if it was, she wouldn’t flaunt her lover in front of Kinsey.

He would have to believe that.

Jessica smiled up at the driver as she slipped into the backseat of the town car. She had managed to talk Morgan out of hiring a bodyguard to accompany his precious daughter to the east coast but he had stood firm on the car and driver. After two days of nonstop shopping and sightseeing with Kinsey, she was glad she had compromised. She must be getting old. Chaperoning one teenage girl around the city was turning out to be way more exhausting than her usual round of shopping, theatre, and parties followed by sleeping in and the occasional visit to the spa. The Four Seasons had a very nice spa, she remembered wistfully.

In the seat next to her, Kinsey was nearly vibrating with excitement. At least she was dressed appropriately. There had been an unexpected and unwelcome stumbling block on the shopping end of the trip. Kinsey — cute, sporty, barely-teen, Kinsey — had morphed into a mini Paris Hilton in the shops. She had insisted in trying on stacks of sheer tops, stretchy, clinging fabrics, and skirts so short they couldn’t possibly be decent. Jessica envisioned Morgan’s reaction to even one such outfit and shuddered. Nothing Kinsey wanted to try on could be classified as school clothes.

Had she worn clothes like that at thirteen? She counted back and cringed. Shit. No good had come of it either. No wonder J.T. had been so short-tempered in those years.

By halfway through their first day of shopping they had been at an impasse. She had been at her wits’ end. Finally, she had dragged Kinsey out of the larger stores and into the smaller boutiques. It had been love at first sight in the shop of a young British designer. The mini Kinsey was wearing now was short but still age-appropriate. Teemed with low-heeled ankle boots and a few accessories, Kinsey had achieved an upscale punk look that they were both happy with.

The play was a romantic comedy, and for the next few hours Jessica relaxed and enjoyed Broadway’s latest hit with Kinsey. Kit played the male lead. She had only ever seen him in films and he had never been very successful in them. By intermission, she conceded that the stage suited him.

After the show, a security guard appeared by their seats and ushered them backstage to Kit’s dressing room. Then Kit was pulling her into his arms. “Jessica, sweetie, it’s so good to see you. And you must be Kinsey,” he pulled a wide-eyed Kinsey in for a brief hug, too. “My goodness, Jessica has told me so much about you, I feel like I already know you.” He held her at arms’ length. “Let me get a good look at you.” He ran a knowledgeable eye over her outfit and nodded. “You must tell me who you’re wearing. My niece is your age and she is in a big fashion
don’t
stage right now.”

Kinsey glowed mutely at him. Amused, Jessica wondered if she had lost the ability to speak.