It was Written in the Stars Ch. 03

I turned and looked directly into his eyes. "If you want to keep that hand, remove it immediately," I said as menacingly as I could. I guess he didn't want to test me because he let go.

"Steve, wait; I'm sorry, we just got talking," she said, I guess trying to apologize. I didn't say anything else; I just turned and walked out to my car...this dating crap was really bullshit, I thought while driving home.

Sunday morning I was still fuming. Instead of driving the eight blocks to Denny's for breakfast I decided the walk would help me calm down. I was hoping to see Karen but her shift hadn't started yet. From there I had to go back into the studio. I didn't have anything scheduled to shoot but since going out both Friday and Saturday nights, I had a ton of editing to do. As I walked into the office I saw the light on my phone flashing telling me I had a message; guess who...

Steve, I'm so sorry for last night. Before you picked me up I called Wally to let him know we were going out. I was trying to make him jealous, but instead he just told me what a great guy you were and said to have fun. I was so mad at him; that's what prompted all that ranting and raving at dinner. Then I was so embarrassed over what I said that when Tom showed up it was a relief in a way, I just had to get away from you for a few minutes. Tom's actually a big jerk and I had fully intended on rejoining you after that last dance. I guess I waited one dance too many, huh? Tom doesn't know where I live and I wanted to keep it that way, so after you left I took a cab home. I feel so bad over the way I treated you, please accept my apologies. I guess I'll understand if you don't call me for anymore dates. Goodbye Steve.

I was glad she understood because I had no intention of asking her out again. She was more messed up after her divorce than I was. I thought about what Karen said, 'I have enough emotional problems of my own without taking on yours too.' Now I knew exactly what she was talking about.

Once again, for the next month I threw myself into my work. It was the only part of my life that was going well. I was looking over the books one night but couldn't keep my eyes open; I awoke the next morning with my head lying on the desk. That's when I seriously started thinking about hiring an assistant. I had been avoiding that ever since I started the business. With all the taxes, insurance, rules, and regulations that were involved it was just such a hassle for a small business like mine, but I could easily afford it and I needed some help. I was composing an ad for the newspaper when my phone rang.

"Steven Haynes Photography," I answered.

"Hi, Steve, it's Gail."

"Hi, doll, what's shaking," I asked in an upbeat manner. Usually when she called it was with an invitation to something or other.

"Steve, did you know Barbara Sheffield; was she the one who had the astrology club?"

I wondered why Gail was asking me about Barbara, they'd only met a couple of times, then it dawned on me, she said, 'did you know?'

"Yeah, Gail, why did something happen to her?"

"She died of a stroke; I'm sorry, I know you liked her in spite of everything. Her obituary is in today's paper. She had the stroke last Friday but wasn't discovered in her apartment until Saturday. They got her to the hospital but she never regained consciousness and died on Sunday."

I had to take a minute; damn, she was only in her middle fifties, way too young to die like that. "Yeah, she was really a nice person," I said. "She was actually the only person from Cora's group of friends that I still talked to. Does it say where she'll be laid out?" I asked.

"Yeah, at Schuster's," she said. "But you know if you go to the wake you'll probably run into Cora," Gail warned.

"Yeah, it doesn't matter, Barbara was actually a good friend; even though Cora had known her much longer than I had, she was honest with me and was actually the one to let me know about Cora cheating on me. After I filed for divorce she called me and said how sorry she was. I think she felt guilty and was somehow blaming herself for telling me; I told her how much I appreciated what she did and that I knew how hard it must have been for her. After that we kept in touch once in a while; she was always careful not to mention Cora to me; I always appreciated that. I've got to go pay my respects," I said.

I figured the best way to avoid the others was to be there on the first day of the viewing as soon as the doors open. It worked, at least for a few minutes. When I first walked in I saw no one I recognized; I'd assumed they were family.

I walked up to the casket and looked down; it was hard to recognize her, but isn't that always the way? I really felt regret for never talking to her again after our luncheon that time. I knew it was too late, but I leaned down a little and softly thanked her for being a true friend.

As I turned around and headed for the door I saw two members of the astrology club coming in.

"Steve," said Margaret sounding surprised.

"Steve," echoed Blackie holding out his hand.

"Hi, guys," I replied shaking Blackie's hand and giving Margaret a quick kiss on the cheek. "I was so surprised to hear about Barbara, had she been sick or given any indication something was wrong?"

"Not a thing," replied Blackie. "We were all at the club meeting the night before it happened and she seemed fine."

I shook my head in disbelief. "Has anyone seen Cora yet, they were so close, it must be really hard on her," I said.

They looked at each other. "Well, Cora was kind of excluded from the club after we all found out about her and Mark," Margaret reported. "We didn't really throw them out or anything; they both started coming back to the meetings but no one would really talk to them so they stopped coming."

I didn't say anything but it did my heart good to hear that; Cora absolutely loved that club and the people in it; it must have killed her when they turned against her.

"Well," I said wanting to get out of there before running into anymore from the club, "I'm sorry to have to run but I have a shoot I couldn't reschedule so I have to get going."

I don't think they believed me but they were gracious enough to act like they did.

"Listen, Steve; don't be such a stranger. Everyone's asked about you from time to time. Let us know how you're doing once in an a while," Margaret said returning my kiss on the cheek.

"Will do," I said getting antsy. I really didn't want to run into Cora if I could avoid it. I shook Blackie's hand again and made a bee-line for the door. I was just pulling out of the lot when I saw Cora pulling in. I was a little surprised to see she was alone. Where's your asshole perfect match boyfriend, I caught myself thinking. I saw her eyes widen when she saw me and it looked like she wanted me to stop so I punched it and got the hell out of there.

On the way back to the studio I thought about what Karen, the waitress at Denny's said about all those feelings still swirling around inside of me. She was right; even after more than a year, seeing Cora again brought all the hurt and anger right back to the surface. I chastised myself for allowing that to happen; living a good life is the best revenge, I told myself; I've got to work on that.

Of course after I was back in the studio it became my life once again. Another month had gone by and I found myself at two in the morning editing the day's shoot, yet again. Damn, I told myself, I was going to get an assistant and forgot all about it; tomorrow I write an ad and post it; I need help!

That's just what I did; I posted it in the paper and on line; the very next day I had six interviews already lined up. After interviewing the first four I was almost ready to give up. I didn't expect them to know much about my work, I could train them, but they still had to be trainable. Half of the people who came in couldn't even fill out the job application.

I had just walked the last applicant out the front door and was headed back to my office grumbling something about half the day being shot, when I heard the door open. I turned and saw Megan standing there looking kind of scared. I had to admit, she sure looked fine.

"Megan, what a pleasant surprise; I'm glad you're here, I want to apologize..."

"Mr. Haynes, please; I'm the one that should be apologizing. I'm so sorry."

"Sorry, for what?" I asked.

"Because I...well I um...is there somewhere I can sit down; ah, I...I'm a little nervous."

"Sure, follow me," I said guiding her through the studio and into my office. "Here," I said pulling up a chair for her, "have a seat. Would you like a cup of coffee? I just made it."

"Yes, please." She sat and took a sip of brew before talking again. "Mr. Haynes..."

"I thought we settled that," I said interrupting her again. "The name is Steve, remember?"

"Alright, Steve," she replied with a smile. "Now, please stop interrupting me or I'll never get to say what I came here to say."

"Shoot," I said sitting across from her.

"Mr. H...ah, Steve; when I first saw your photography work years ago I thought you were very talented. Through the years you have shot some of the best stuff I've seen, and I'm not the only one who thinks so."

I was about to say something humble but she gave me a look that told me I'd better not cut her off again. I just smiled modestly and sat back.

"I also heard some of the people you've worked with say what a terrific guy you are. I've wanted to meet you for years but never got the chance. I knew you were married and I was engaged so I had no romantic expectations; I just thought...well, maybe I did have a few romantic notions, but I knew they were just fantasies."

I thought I saw my opportunity as she took another sip of coffee. "Megan, I..."

"Please, Steve, let me get through this." I shut up and she continued. "I've known Gail for years; we work out at the gym together all the time. She knew about my fiancée leaving and invited me to her New Year's Eve party. I declined at first but then she started telling me about this great, newly divorced guy who was going to be there; when she said your name I almost died. I couldn't believe it. I told her how long I've wanted to meet you and accepted the invitation immediately; then I got nervous. By the time I got to the party I was a basket case; a couple of Brad's vodka stone sours help calm me down and by the time you got there I was already pretty mellow."

She sipped more coffee then proceeded. "Anyway, when we started talking I was still pretty nervous but the conversation was going okay until there was a slight lull...remember? That's when I asked about your sign."

I remembered only too well; I guess it showed on my face.

"Steve, I had no idea what happened between you and your wife. I know nothing about astrology; absolutely nothing. I said that because guys are always asking me what my sign is and it was the first thing that popped into my mind. Hell, I don't even know my sign; I say I'm a Virgo because they're supposed to be well organized people; at least that's what I'm told. I knew when you left like that I had said something wrong but I had no idea what. I started crying, that's when Gail came over, took me upstairs, and put me to bed in the guest room. It wasn't until the next day when she and Brad told me what happened between you and your wife that I knew what I said must have hurt you terribly. I've wanted to apologize but I was embarrassed, and maybe a little afraid. It wasn't until I saw the ad in yesterday's paper that I got up the courage to come over."

"Ad?" I asked, "You mean about the job?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah, I want to apply but I couldn't without saying I was sorry first."

I was dumbfounded into silence for a minute. "First of all it is me who should apologize to you..." She started to say something but I held up my hand. "Now it's my turn to talk. As I was saying, I'm terribly sorry for leaving you at the party like that; it was incredibly rude of me. You had no idea what happened between Cora and me and I should have never reacted like that. Again, I'm sincerely sorry."

"Secondly, I would love to have someone with your qualifications working here but I'm afraid there's no way I could pay you what you're making at Allen's."

I saw a slight smirk on her face.

"What do you think a designer at Allen's makes...no, wait," she said quickly, "Maybe I should find out what you're paying before I tell you."

"Ah, well to tell you the truth, I wasn't planning on paying more than minimum wage, but I also wasn't expecting to get anyone with your knowledge of the business either."

When I ran the ad I thought about the maximum I could pay if I really found someone I thought I could rely on; there was no sense negotiating, I would gladly pay her the max; it would actually be worth it just to have her around to look at, I thought.

"Megan, I wish I could pay more but I'm afraid the best I can do is five-hundred a week; of course that comes with..."

"I'll take it," she blurted out.

"Really?" I said sounding more like an excited school kid than a savvy business man.

"Yes," she said. "But I do have to give Allen's a couple weeks' notice, would that be okay?"

"Yes, of course. Well," I said standing up and reaching out my hand, "welcome to Steven Haynes Photography."

I showed her around the studio. I could tell she was going to be a real asset just by the way she paid attention and by the questions she asked; they were all the right ones.

Just for my records I had her fill out an application as well as insurance forms. Just as she was leaving a client was walking in; she got a big smile on her face when I introduced her as my new assistant.

The next day I got a call from her.

"Hi, Stev...ah, is it still okay to call you Steve or should I go back to Mr. Haynes since you're my boss now?"

"Hello, Megan, and if I catch you calling me Mr. Haynes I can dock your pay now," I joked.

She giggled. "Okay, Steve, just checking. I was calling to let you know Allen's is going to make me work the two weeks. I was kind of hoping they'd let me go when I gave them notice but no such luck."

"Oh I didn't figure they'd let you go, Megan; I expected them to keep you there as long as they could. I wouldn't be surprise if they offer you a raise to entice you to stay," I told her suddenly feeling apprehensive. I hadn't really thought of that until I just said it. Damn, I wondered if they would lure her back.

"They already did," she replied, "I told them no thanks."

A couple times over the next couple of weeks Megan came by the studio in the evening to give me a hand. I couldn't believe how lucky I was to get someone like her. On her first day she came in ready to work; by the time noon rolled around we had accomplished more in a few hours than I would have all day by myself.

"Megan, it is the custom around here, for me to buy lunch for all my employees on their first day."

"All your employees; how many have you had?" asked a surprised Megan.

"You're the first, but all customs have to start somewhere," I chuckled.

I put an, 'out to lunch,' sign on the door, locked it up and took her to Denny's; well, it was my favorite place for lunch. We found a booth in Karen's section and sat down.

"Hi, Steve, you brought company today," she said. "You know that means a bigger tip, right?" she said with a smile.

"Hi, Karen; I'd like you to meet Megan; she just started today as my new assistant."

Karen seemed shocked for a moment. "Your assistant; really?" she asked looking at Megan.

Megan grinned and nodded her head. "Yup," she answered proudly.

"Well congratulations, Megan; maybe now Mr. Workaholic here won't have to come in at one in the morning anymore."

"Not if I can help it," Megan replied looking at me.

"Over lunch we had a great conversation. She told me she developed a love for photography in college and was really looking forward to going out on some shoots with me to see how I worked.

As we were just finishing, Megan excused herself for the lady's room as Karen was bringing me the check.

"Looks like I missed out, huh," she said as I dug for my cash.

"Missed out on what?"

"You; you asked me out and like an idiot I turned you down; sometimes I can be really stupid."

"Karen, I don't what you're talking about? You want to go out, the offer's still open?"

"Ah, don't be ridiculous; she wouldn't like that."

"Who wouldn't like it?"

"Megan, silly; that girl is in love with you; don't tell me you haven't figured that out yet."

"Karen, we don't even know each other, not really; besides she works for me, it would be a conflict of interests to get involved."

She just smiled. "We'll see," she said. The two girls crossed paths as Karen left; they said something to one another but I couldn't hear what it was; Megan was smiling when she got back to the table though.

That night was the first time in over a year that I locked up the studio and headed home before six in the evening. I didn't know what to do with myself when I got there.

By the end of the first month I was wondering how I ever got along without Megan. She was learning quick and already knew most of my lighting techniques; she was as good at editing my work as I was, and she was such a pleasure to have around. Several times I caught myself fantasizing about making love to her but now that she was my employee I figured that was out of the question. Like Erica had told me, it was a conflict of interest; if we got involved, then had a falling out I could lose her as my assistant; I couldn't take that chance.

"Steve, Jim Roper called a little while ago, he wants you to call him back as soon as you get in," Megan told me as I returned from running some errands. I got on the phone and called him back immediately. Jim was the man in charge of advertising for Chi-town candies, my biggest client.

"Hi, Jim, it's Steve; I just walked in and Megan said to call you right back."

"Yeah, by the way, who is Megan? Since when do you have an assistant?"

"Since a couple of months ago," I told him. "Things got so crazy around here I had to hire someone."

"Does she look as delicious as she sounds over the phone?"

Leave it up to a guy who works for a candy company to use a word like delicious when describing a woman. "Melts in your mouth," I replied using his vernacular. Megan was looking right at me when I said it but I was pretty sure she had no idea what I was talking about.

"You're going to bring her along to Peoria with you, aren't you?"

"Ah, I didn't know I was going to Peoria, Jim; when is this?"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. We're doing a follow up campaign from that ad you shot for us on the river walk down there, only this time we're doing it right. We're going to do a series of ads. We'll need three different models."

"Are we going to have time to do all that?" I asked. "If I remember right, the Riverfront association had us on a short leash last time."

"Steve, they got so much free publicity from our ads they are bending over backwards this time; the entire place is ours for as long as we need it. I'm thinking three days, four at the most. I need you to tell me when you can do it; I have to know as soon as possible so I can get everything arranged."

"Alright, Jim; let me check my schedule and get back to you later today. Do you have the models or do you want me to take care of that?"

"I have one," he responded. "I don't think you know her; her name is Jessica, she's from L.A. The boss saw her picture somewhere and had to have her for this. The other two I'll leave up to you."

"Okay, I said; let me do some maneuvering and get back to you before the end of the day," I told him before saying goodbye.