"The Most Eligible Bachelor"
Summary: Summer and Seth are leading separate lives now, but what happens when Summer's story for a leading magazine forces them together?
Disclaimer: I'd like to stake a claim on Adam Brody's dimples, but really, I don't own any of the O.C. characters or story lines.
Chapter Nine: Inter-Office Meddling
When Summer returned to the hotel, she worked fast to strip down from her swim suit and cover-up to take a shower. Upon exiting from the shower she blew her hair dry and ran some product through it, letting it settle naturally down her back.
While still in her robe, she placed a call to Charley. It was 3 o'clock in New York, so she called the switchboard at Cosmo and was quickly put through to her anxious editor.
"Summer, love, how IS California treating you?" she asked giddily, clearly searching for some page three gossip.
"It's pretty great. I enjoyed a nice evening with Seth last night, and I laid out on the water all day today," Summer said with a smile in her voice. "I really miss this place sometimes, Charley."
"I imagine so. Especially at this time of year, when the only heat we have outside comes from the exhaust of cars." She let out a small sigh. "So, anyway, we're still working on a new lead for the story. We might just turn it into a profile on some of the most successful young men on the west coast, which would basically be the same thing it just wouldn't be so reliant on marital status."
"That might work," Summer said, with some apprehension in her voice.
"What is it, Summer, baby? You don't sound so sure?"
"Charley, where do I have to draw the line as far as conflict of interest goes? I mean, Seth and I had a great night last night. A lot of old feelings are beginning to resurface, or are coming out from wherever they've been hiding over the past six years. I don't want my writing this story to conflict with the code of ethics that I agreed to when I signed my contract."
"Summer, I'm your editor. If you violate any codes of ethics, I have to answer for you. I won't let you do it. If things continue to progress, we can just allow another reporter to use your notes to write the story, or if need be, someone entirely new can interview Mr. Cohen. Don't stress about this. Just have fun with it."
"Thanks, Charley. You're the best at keeping my morale up," Summer sighed. "So what is my schedule going to be like?"
"Well, I've rescheduled another interview for you with Atwood, although from the sounds of things, you'd probably be able to be seen any time in his office. We're still working on two more prospects for the story, so that we can use it as a full five page spread."
"How long will I have the hotel room?" Summer queried, afraid that her boss would want her home soon after her interview with Zach.
"Right now, it's reserved through next Friday, so that gives you a week and 3 days to complete all of your interviews and write the story. I'll give you the name of the editor in our LA offices, so you can submit your story through there."
"Why wouldn't I just bring it back with me to New York with me?"
"Funny you should ask. The other editors and I thought it might be appropriate for you to take at least a week of that 2 months of vacation you have saved up over the past few years. Did you need us to book you a hotel for that, too, or do you think you could work that out for yourself?" Charley said in a mischievous tone.
"You mean to tell me that you guys are FORCING me to take a vacation?" Summer asked, although internally relieved at the prospect of having time off.
"Oh, Summer. You make us sound like we're your enemies. We just think that someone your age should take advantage of the traveling time to see the world. Or in your case to revisit the place you grew up."
Summer chuckled at her boss' obvious meddling in her social life. "Well, since you put it like that, I think I can arrange something. I'm sure Marissa would be thrilled to have me stay with her," she replied, leading her boss away from the idea of furthering her relationship with Seth.
Summer knew what she wanted, she just hated the idea of everyone around her pressuring her into it. "You know, Charley, go ahead and schedule me for two weeks vacation. I know that it's almost time for the designers to reveal their summer lines, seeing that it's the beginning of March, so maybe I could hit up a few fashion shows and churn out another piece while I'm here."
"Oh, my little star reporter, the working never stops for you. Just make sure that you take plenty of time to yourself hitting the spas and maybe even Mr. Dimples, while you're at it," the older woman said in a sexy tone.
"Charley! Oh my gosh! You did not just say that to me! And his name is Seth!" Summer was blushing so bad, it was as though her editor could hear it through the phone. She continued to laugh. "Anyway, moving away from my sex life, I almost forgot about my dog. Would you do me a HUGE favor, Charley?"
"Summer, I may love you to pieces, and I may even attempt to live vicariously through your sex life, but honey, I am no dog sitter," she replied, before even knowing Summer's favor.
"Well, I'm glad, because I would never let little Blanche become corrupted by staying with you," Summer joked. "I was actually hoping that you would talk to Jen in Finance, who is watching her for me, to see if you could have her sent out on a flight tomorrow. We've never been on vacation together. In fact, she's never even seen where I grew up. It would really mean a lot.," Summer said, pleading with her boss in her sweetest tone.
"My schedule is quite busy, but I'll see what I can do," Charlotte responded, in a tone that assured Summer it would be done. "Anyway, you have your assignment, and you know what to do. I think this could be big for you, Ms. Roberts." Charlotte fell silent for a moment. "Summer, just promise me you won't stay forever. New York needs you, sugar!"
"I'll do my best, Charley," Summer said, attempting to comfort her boss. "Besides, I don't know if I could live without you and Tuesday night Happy Hours at Three Olives." Summer said, referring to the women's favorite martini bar.
"Oh, Summer, darling. Kisses and love. Ciao!"
"Bye, Charley," Summer signed off, feeling slightly sad to be away from her chaotic office and her crazy boss. As much as she loved being here and reuniting with her friends, family, and Seth, she was really accustomed to life in the city, after all, she had lived there for 6 years. Even though she grew up in California, she felt so out of her element in LA amidst the west coast lifestyle.
Pushing these thoughts out of her head, Summer started to get ready to go to Seth's. She called Maury, her driver, and told him that she would be ready in fifteen minutes. She quickly changed into some slim fit jeans and a pair of pink and black Puma sneakers she had bought years ago. They had reminded her of Seth's style. She sorted through her relaxed clothes and finally rested on a pink v-neck tank top.
Checking her appearance twice in mirror and spritzing herself with some Romance by Ralph Lauren, she threw her pajamas and work clothes into her LV overnight bag, grabbed her purse and briefcase and was out the door. When she reached the limo she went around to the passenger's side and got in next to Maury.
"Here's the address. Thanks again for driving me around while I'm here," she said sweetly, throwing a smile towards the driver.
"It's really no problem, Ms. Roberts. This is what I am paid to do," Maury responded, a sense of duty and kindness evident in his tone.
"I realize that, I just feel like it must be cooler for you when you get hired for big celebrities or rock stars than an asinine reporter for Cosmo," Summer said sarcastically.
"Oh, rubbish. I find that the people that aren't in the spotlight tend to be a lot kinder." The two rode the rest of the way in silence. When she arrived at Seth's, Summer told Maury that she wouldn't need a ride again until the following morning. The two said their goodbyes, and Summer entered into the building and took the elevator to the penthouse as Seth had instructed.
As the elevator doors opened, Summer gasped at the sight before her. Seth's penthouse set-up was pretty unbelievable. When you walked in the first thing that you noticed was the wall of windows that looked out over LA. There were partitions throughout the apartment, giving a feeling of seclusion in each space, but the window wall could be seen from every room.
Summer noted that Seth must have hired someone to decorate the place, because her Cohen could have never thought up these design schemes. It was definitely customized to fit his personality, however. The walls around the place were in all of his favorite colors: various shades of black, blue, and green. There were some of his favorite posters from high school framed on the walls in sleek black frames. The hallways were similarly decorated as the walls were lined with framed issues of Atomic County.
As she stood staring, she suddenly recognized Seth's voice shouting and a women's voice shouting back. Summer froze, unsure of what to do, and before she could make up her mind, she saw a very angry Seth storming towards where she stood with a screaming Anna at his heels. As Seth looked up, Summer felt like a deer caught in the headlights, but waved and mouthed a 'hi' in an attempt to relieve some of the awkwardness.
Seth's features visibly softened when he saw Summer. "Summer, hey, I'm sorry if I scared you. I was just escorted Anna to the door," he said, shooting a vicious glare in the blonde's direction.
"Don't worry, BITCH, I was just leaving. You can have Seth all to yourself for all of the mindfucking you need to perform," Anna seethed through clenched teeth before walking to the elevator and slamming her hand into the buttons.
"Is this a bad time, Cohen?" Summer asked, curiosity and bit of jealousy coming through her eyes.
Seth sighed and settled onto his black leather couch, patting the spot next to him. "No, Summer, it's not a bad time. I'm sorry you had to see that, but I'm relieved you came when you did," he said as Summer sat down to listen, intent on hearing what caused the scary fight that had just happened between Seth and Anna.
"So, some, let's call it, restructuring took place at O.S. today," he began.
A/N I know that many were hoping Anna would not come back, but I decided to use that last scene as a way for Seth to tell Summer about what happened. Don't worry, I don't plan on throwing her in there any more than I have to. Sorry about the lack of S.S. in this chapter. I wanted to do something that incorporated other people in Summer's life, particularly her editor (she's a fun gal, lol). In the next chapter, we'll get to see Summer's reaction to the firing of Anna and what will unfold when Summer keeps Seth company during his late night of rewrites. Review, please. Peace.