2 - Know Now Then
It had not been a very busy morning in the office for Marty. A few emails here, a couple of phone calls there but nothing that really required his immediate attention. The only reason he'd come in to work this early was to make some final preparations for the new head of legal's arrival, and even that only took about twenty to thirty minutes.
He frowned at the thought of the mysterious new head of legal, whom Marty had yet to meet. It had been almost a year since old Alan Smith had announced his retirement, only agreeing to stay on with the firm until Alan found himself a suitable replacement. Whoever he had chosen though must have impressed him because Alan was notoriously difficult to please. So difficult in fact that Alan had already refused three brilliant potential candidates for his position, all for various seemingly innocuous reasons.
"Mr. Harrison?"
His train of thought suddenly derailed, Marty glanced up at his administrative assistant, who was now patiently waiting in the doorway of his office. "Yes, Laura?"
"I'm sorry to disturb you, sir," she apologized. "But you wanted me to remind you about meeting with Miss Jacobs at noon."
"Oh, right," he nodded, grateful for the reminder. During his meandering thoughts, he'd lost track of time. "Thank you, Laura. What would I do without you?"
"Hire another assistant, I imagine," the bookish young woman deadpanned.
"I doubt they'd be as thorough as you with keeping my appointments in check," joked Marty while rising from his chair.
"No one is as thorough as I am, sir," Laura agreed. "It's why your wife insisted you hire me, remember?"
"That's true," he acknowledged with a nod.
"Speaking of your wife," his assistant segued while delicately adjusting the glasses perched on her nose to more comfortable position. "Someone mentioned they saw her enter the lobby this morning, only to turn around and head back into the street."
"Really? That's weird," Marty noted. "I'm pretty sure the only thing she had to do in the city today is meet the headmaster at Chilton. I wonder if it has anything to do with that?"
"Would you like me to text you if she shows up again, sir?" Laura inquired.
"No, that'll be fine," he shook his head. "If it was really important then Rory would've come up. I'll just ask her when I get home."
"Anything else, sir?"
"No, that's it. If I need anything though, I'll call to let you know, Laura. Thanks."
Without another word his assistant departed, an action which Marty soon imitated a moment after. On his way to the elevator his thoughts once again returned to the coming luncheon with Miss Jacobs, who was his soon-to-be new head of legal. Other than her first two initials and last name, not to mention the several recommendations from their newest branch in Seattle, the woman was almost a total mystery. Marty was pretty much Jon Snow in this situation, he knew nothing.
That's about change though, he mused to himself, the elevator doors opening for him to exit. I wonder who this Miss Jacobs is? And why did she insist on meeting at a restaurant of all places?
It wasn't that far of a walk from his office to the restaurant where Marty was supposed to meet with his enigmatic head of legal, though to be fair he hadn't tried all that hard to get information on this Miss Jacobs. Marty trusted Alan on finding his own replacement as the old fox had proven himself to be an impeccable judge of character. Still, all this secrecy was highly unusual.
"Hmm, not bad," Marty complimented the decor of the restaurant. It wasn't one of those overpriced places he expected a lawyer would want to meet, nor was it one of those generic chain locations that caused his wife's stepfather to roll his eyes derision. It was just the right mix of fancy and comfortable. Rory and Winn would probably love it here. Of course, that would also depend on the quality of their food though.
"Good afternoon, sir," greeted the blonde hostess upon seeing Marty standing there in the entry way. "How are you doing today?"
"I'm fine, thanks," he politely returned.
"That's great to hear, sir," she smiled, seemingly genuine in her response. "Do you have a reservation?"
"Actually, I'm supposed to meet someone here," answered Marty.
"Ah, yes, now that you mention it, you fit the description one of our patrons gave us," the hostess nodded after eyeing him up and down for a moment. "If you'd follow me, sir. Your dining partner is already here, and awaiting your arrival."
Okay, this is weird, a wary Marty noted before doing what the hostess asked. She led him towards one of the beautifully lit booths beyond the tables, which had high ceilings and were separated by gorgeous wood cross panels that gave each booth a feeling of seclusion. If Marty wasn't happily married, he would've suspected that one of his friends had set him up on a blind date.
"And here we are," the hostess declared upon reaching the furthest booth, where an attractive woman who appeared to be in her late twenties or early thirties was seated alone. "Please be seated. Your server will be here shortly to take your order."
"Sorry that I'm late, Miss Jacobs," he apologized once they were alone. "But it took a little longer to walk here from the office than I expected."
"That's quite alright, Martin," his dining companion waved him off with a friendly smile. "I don't mind. It's not every day you meet up with an old friend."
"Excuse me?" Marty frowned.
"You don't recognize me, do you?" Her smile widened at his obvious confusion, turning from friendly to mischievous. "I'd be hurt if I hadn't been expecting it, so I'll let you off the hook this time, Martin. After all, it has been about sixteen years since the last time we saw each other."
"You do look vaguely familiar, now that you mention it," he admitted after careful consideration. Hmm, sixteen years? That would be about the time I was just leaving Chicago with Rory...wait a second!
"Oh, I see that you've finally connected the dots," the once tall gangly teenager grinned, genuinely pleased. "Mom says 'hi' by the way."
"And how is Kelsey these days? Doing well, I hope," he inquired.
"As well as she can be, considering the circumstances," she answered while taking a sip from her wine glass. "Her and Dad live over in Boston now, but you knew that already, right?"
"Yes, I did."
"You should visit them sometime soon. I know Dad would love it," the lawyer stated, a brief hint of sorrow in her pale blue eyes.
"Look, Riese, about your dad," a suddenly guilt filled Marty began at the mention of his former mentor, whom he hadn't seen in more than a decade.
"Let's not talk about that," she cut in with a shake of her head. "It's depressing and this is supposed to be a happy reunion, right?"
"Alright then," he agreed, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. "So...Jacobs?"
"Wow, you're really bad at this happy reunion stuff, ain't ya?" Riese quirked an eyebrow at him. Before he could apologize however, the lawyer grinned at him. "I'm only teasing you, Martin. It's my ex's last name."
That surprised Marty. "You got married?"
"Yup," she nodded. "Didn't last though. After about six months or so, I caught him banging his secretary, so that was the end of it. Kept his last name though. People who deal with our firm seem to take me more seriously when they don't know who my dad is, so I'm counting it as a win."
"Fair enough," conceded Marty.
"So what's good here?" Riese asked, her gaze now on the open menu in her grasp.
"I have no idea," he admitted in complete honesty. After all, it was his first time being in this particular restaurant.
The lawyer glanced up to meet his gaze, which quickly resulted in both of them to burst out laughing.
After their meal was finished Marty returned to the firm's offices with his new head of legal, where he introduced Riese to the other various department heads and their staff. When that was done he led Riese to where her new office had been set up.
"Sweet digs," the lawyer whistled upon entering the room. "Kind of sparse though."
"Yeah, it's a bit spartan," he began to apologize. "But-"
"It's fine, Martin," she cut in with a soft chuckle. "I can always hire a decorator or do it myself later. No biggie."
"I'll see if I can get the firm to pay for it," he offered. "Or, at least, split the cost."
"That's really very sweet of you, Martin, but also completely unnecessary," answered Riese with a genuinely appreciative smile. "Although it's great to see that you haven't changed a bit. So thoughtful. I always admired that about you."
"Um, thanks," Marty shrugged, not at all use to receiving compliments. Especially on things that just felt natural to him.
"Still not comfortable at being complimented, I see," his former mentor's daughter observed aloud, clearly amused.
"I should probably head back to my own office now," he changed the subject. If this conversation went any further, Riese would most likely start teasing him. And if memory served Marty right, she would be relentless in doing so. She may be a practicing lawyer now but he could tell in the short time they'd spent together today that Riese was still, more or less, the same mischievous teenager who used to pester him back in Chicago. "If you need anything else, I'm just down the hall to the left."
"Good to know," she nodded, that all too familiar mocking smirk still plastered upon her lips. "See you around, Martin."
"See you around, Riese," he waved before heading out the door towards his own office.
The rest of the work day was fairly uneventful for Marty since most of his work had already been finished earlier in the day, so he spent that time reviewing various proposals and reports that had been previously looked over a dozen times. All in the unlikely case that something had been missed. He was so immersed in the process that when there was a knock at his office door, Marty couldn't help but jolt in surprise.
"Sorry about just showing up out of nowhere like this, Dad," his daughter apologized upon entering. "But Laura is already gone and I didn't feel like waiting out there by myself."
"You never need to apologize for showing up unannounced, Winn," he smiled. "How was school?"
"Better, now that I'm not seated by Milly in every single class we share," the teenager answered with a shrug. "Even though I still have to deal with her in the Franklin, it's gotten easier to deal with her snarkiness when she's not right beside me for the entire day."
"You two will get over this," Marty assured his only child. "It's not like this is the first time you've had a falling out with her."
"I don't know, Dad," Winn sighed. "She seemed pretty adamant on not wanting to have anything to do with me. At least, not outside of class." She ran a hand through her hair before sighing again. "I don't feel like talking about this anymore. Can we head home soon?"
"Yeah, just let me close these files and then we'll go," he stated.
As the father and daughter duo made their way down from his office, Marty could not help but feel bad for Winifred's current dilemma. It couldn't be easy being on the outs with a close friend, especially one who has known you for your entire life.
"Hey, weren't you supposed to meet your new head of legal today?" Winn asked all of a sudden.
"Yes, I did," he confirmed, grateful for the break in the oppressive silence that had been dominating their elevator ride to the lobby. "Turns out she's an old friend from when I worked in Chicago."
"Oh, really? That's pretty neat," his daughter smiled as the elevator doors opened. "Does Mom know her, too?"
"They met a couple of times," Marty nodded before gesturing to the person question, who was standing ahead of them in the lobby. "But if you don't believe me, why don't you ask her yourself?"
"Oh, you're still hanging around, I see," greeted Riese with a friendly smile. "Not that I should be surprised though. You always have been quite dedicated in your work." The lawyer then glanced at the teen standing beside him, her expression questioning. "And who is this beautiful young lady accompanying you, Martin?"
"Riese, this is my daughter, Winifred," he introduced with no shortage of pride in his voice. "Winn, this is Riese Jacobs, our new head of legal."
"Daughter? Wow, I didn't realize that you had children," a nonplussed Riese stated, looking completely taken off guard by the fact. "And how old are you, Winn? I mean, if you don't mind me asking, that is."
"I'll be sixteen at the end of November," the teen answered, curt and concise. "And I prefer Winifred, if you don't mind."
"Winifred it is then," the older woman nodded, seemingly impressed. "I must say, you look very much like your father."
"Funny, everyone tells me that I look more like my mom," Winn countered. "I believe you know her."
"I do?" Riese questioned, a delicate eyebrow raised.
"Yes, her name's Rory Gilmore," the teenager continued in that same concise, curt tone. "Sorry, I mean Rory Gilmore-Harrison, I should say."
"Yeah, I know your mother," the lawyer noted aloud, her cheeks now flushed for some reason. "Well, it was very nice to meet you, Winifred." She turned toward Marty, who'd been silent during the entire exchange. "I'm going to head home now. I still have a ton of unpacking to do, so I'll see you tomorrow, bright and early, Martin."
"Alright, see you later, Riese," he waved at the now retreating woman's back. When they were once again alone, Marty turned to reprimand his daughter for how rude she'd been to Riese. "Do you mind explaining to me what that was all about, young lady?"
"I don't like her," she stated, arms crossed over her chest in a petulant manner.
"What? You just met her," Marty pointed out, thrown for a loop by his usually friendly, if somewhat timid, daughter's statement. "Why?"
"Really, Dad? You really need me to spell it out for you?" Winn narrowed her azure eyes up to meet his own hazel coloured gaze.
"Spell what out? I'm not following what you're trying to say," he admitted in honesty.
"You know what? Forget it, let's just leave it at me not liking her and head home," the teen sighed, clearly uncomfortable now. "I am not discussing this any further."
"Winn, come on," Marty pleaded as his daughter began walking away.
"Seriously, Dad, I love you to bits," Winn stated over her shoulder upon reaching the exit doors. "And I think that you're one of the most brilliant people I've ever met, but Grams is right. You can be so incredibly dense sometimes."
With that said Winifred left her shocked father standing alone in the lobby of the Thompson Group, wondering what the hell had just happened.
Months would pass before Marty discovered the reason behind his daughter's immediate dislike of Riese Jacobs. By then though it would simply be one of the many things that were putting a strain on not only his relationship with Winifred but his family as a whole.
The minuscule cracks in Marty's life that he'd been blissfully unaware of were about to become gapping chasms, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
Sorry about the long hiatus, good readers. Thank you for your patience. If you could be so kind as to leave a review, that'd be great. Thanks!
