The Silver Thread (27 page)

“Are you still living in New York, or do you live here now? You never struck me as a west coast kind of guy.”

James tossed his tousled hair and glanced at Jerry’s blond friend suspiciously, not bothering to stand up.

“I inherited an American Foursquare in Laurelhurst, and the property taxes are half the rent I was paying in the city, so it wasn’t a tough decision,” he said acting bored.

“That sounds really great. I’m happy for you,” Jerry replied. There was an awkward silence until James decided to be courteous and ask Jerry what he was up to.

“We’re doing a photo shoot down the street,” Jerry replied. “And the last time we sent Lars on a coffee run, he screwed up my latte. So I snuck out to make sure he got it right this time.” He gave his friend a playful jab in the ribs. The blond just rolled his eyes a little.

“Memorizing the way you like your latte is
not
part of my job description,” he said. “My job is to make you look good, you pompous ass.”

“That
is
a nice suit,” James said, still looking at Lars curiously.

“Isn’t it?” Jerry said, exuding an almost unbearable confidence. “Lars is a fabulous stylist. He’s the one you should be complimenting. All I do is roll out of bed in the morning and brush my teeth. He does the rest. Just look at these cufflinks he found!”

Jerry thrust his wrist under James’s nose, revealing a pale pink French cuff and a beautiful pink pearl cufflink.

“Nice work, Lars,” Annika said with an approving smile. “I especially love the pink pinstripes. Very snazzy, yet subtle.”

“Aren’t they great?” Lars beamed. “You should see the other guys. We’re doing a whole series on bringing color back into the office. We’ve got a two page spread in—”

“Look who’s the pompous ass now? They’ll see the magazine soon enough,” Jerry interrupted. “Aren’t we already running behind schedule?”

“Yeah, but you and your finicky almond milk skinny latte drinking—”

“Do you still have my number?” Jerry interrupted again, looking at James this time.

“I must have lost it in the move,” he said coolly while he brought his frappe to his lips, but the model was unfazed by his tone of voice.

“Are you still working in the art scene? Do you have an extra card in that marvelous crocodile bag of yours? Oh wow, is that a Hermes?” he asked, taking a closer look. James seemed a little surprised, like he’d been ready to say ‘no’ until receiving the compliment on his beloved bag. He took his time locating a card and surprised Jerry by handing it to Lars, who grinned and slipped it into his back pocket.

“It was really great to run into you, James,” Jerry said over his shoulder as they both turned to walk away. “I’ll call you.”

“I won’t hold my breath,” James sang facetiously under it. Annika noticed that his hand was trembling a little as he put another cigarette in his mouth and lit it.

“James! I can’t believe that just happened!” she squeaked when the men disappeared around the corner.

“I can’t believe he said he would call. He’s got some nerve, that bitch,” James said, taking a drag.

“He’s really a piece of work, isn’t he?” she agreed. She would have liked to call him something worse, but James seemed irritated enough as it was.

“A fucking Renoir,” he muttered. He had lost all interest in his chocolate cheesecake. “I’m getting a box for this. I seem to have lost my appetite.” He got up and left her alone with his things tucked underneath the table. She took another bite of pie when her phone started ringing.

“Hi Danny, how’s it going?” she asked.

“Good, good. Hey, Ani, I was curious if you were feeling any better since the last time we talked. I’ve been wondering about ya,” he said affectionately.

“I’ve been fine,” she assured him. “Great, actually. I haven’t gotten sick since right before I saw you. It turns out that my body can’t handle meat anymore.”

“Oh, I know better than that,” he laughed over the phone.

“Danny!”

“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help it,” he said, sounding upbeat. “But I won’t tell Finnish. Legally, I can’t. You and I have doctor-patient confidentiality.”

“Very cute,” she said, trying to make her disapproval clear over the phone, but the smile on her face made it impossible.

“So I was wondering if you would be interested in coming back to the hospital for a few more tests. I figured since this is a sort of personal side project, I’d take care of the bills.”

“Well, that depends on how much you need to poke and prod me,” came her playful reply.

“Is this the part where I make another dick joke and you yell at me? Because I feel like you’re setting me up for one.”

“You know me too well,” she sighed, and leaned back in her chair. “I don’t mind helping you save the world, but my schedule’s pretty busy with work and practice and recording.”

“Yeah, Charlie mentioned that you guys have been working really hard on the new album. I can’t wait to hear it when it’s done. Do I still get an autographed copy, since I know the band?”

“Of course you do,” she said, her voice cracking as a lump caught in her throat. She had forgotten what a sweetheart he could be.

“Alright, well, whenever you have time for me, I’ll be here,” he said hesitantly. “Bye, Ani.”

She ended the call and was about to check her calendar on her phone, when it rang again.

“Hey Patti Cake. What’s up?” she answered. There was an unusually long pause.

“How far away from home are you?” asked a man whose voice she didn’t recognize.

“Uh, we’re downtown having dessert,” she said, trying to figure out who she was talking to.

“And what are you having, besides
me
as soon as you get home?” asked the seductive voice through the receiver. Annika felt her heart flutter as she recognized it was Talvi. His voice had such a strange timbre to it, but then again, she’d never spoken to him on a phone before.

“Lemon meringue,” she giggled. “It’s really good too.”

“Mmm, I absolutely adore lemon meringue,” he sighed wistfully. “Bring me a slice, would you? I think I’ll have myself a little picnic when you come home.”

“You’re going to have a picnic by yourself?” she asked, not seeing where the conversation was going. “I don’t get it.”

“Oh, you most certainly
will
get it. You’re going to make a marvelous table for me to dine on. How soon will you be home?”

“Twenty minutes, give or take a few. I think James is finally sick of shopping,” she said, grinning.

“Well I’m sick of waiting. You’re neglecting your wifely duties.
Tsk tsk tsk
,” he chided. “I’ve been working so
very
hard while you’ve been away. I think it’s time for something more relaxing. When you come home, you can sit on my lap and tell me all about your day.” He stopped to laugh wickedly.

“You are terrible, do you know that?” she squealed into the phone.

“I don’t think ‘terrible’ is the word I would have chosen, but as long as the message is clear,” he crooned, and paused again. “Mmm…you really must come home
now
. Better bring an entire pie with you. I’m not certain if one slice will satisfy my appetite. I’ll likely want a second or third helping.”

“You’ve made your point; you don’t have to tell me twice. Here comes James. I’m going to tell him we need to leave right now, okay?”

“Hurry along then. Don’t keep me waiting any more than I already have been.”

She grinned and hung up her phone as James took his seat across from her and boxed up his cheesecake in silence, but before she could tell him they needed to leave, his phone rang. It was a number with an area code that he didn’t recognize, so he refused to answer. But something inside Annika’s head told her to answer it. Maybe it was that comment Talvi had made about things happening in threes, but either way, she grabbed the phone out of curiosity.

“Hello?” she answered, and James mouthed ‘who is it?’

“Oh, is this Annika?” said another male voice that she didn’t recognize.

“Yeah, who’s this?”

“It’s Jerry; we just met five minutes ago. I forgot my phone back at the photo shoot, but I told James I would call, so I’m using Lars’ phone,” he said cheerfully.

“Okay, well, I’ll let him know that you called, Jerry. He went to wash his hands,” she said, and James turned white as a ghost as he realized who she was talking to. His eyes nearly fell out of his head.

“Can you let him know that the reason I was calling is because I got to thinking how rude of me it was not to invite you both over here. We’re barely a block away. Are you interested in swinging by for a few minutes for a sneak preview?”

“Wow, Jerry, how nice of you to offer. Why don’t you see if James is interested? He just came back to the table,” she said, and handed him the phone. James was shaking his head and mouthing a very clear ‘NO!’, but she just set his phone down on his to go box and mouthed a very clear ‘grow a pair’, and went inside to buy that lemon meringue pie. It seemed fair payback for James’s rotten attitude earlier.

When Annika came back, he looked determined.

“We’re going to stop by the photo shoot just long enough for me to say something witty and mean, and then we can leave,” he informed her.

“So you don’t think it will take too long, do you?” asked Annika as they gathered their bags and started walking down the block. “I have a hot date waiting at home for me.”

James stiffened up a little.

“Your hot date can wait. I might never have this opportunity again,” he said as they reached the building. They walked up the stairs and through the door, and found themselves in an empty office. It was the epitome of generic, between the cubicles and the water cooler, and even the coffee break room off to one side. There was a hubbub of activity towards the back, where the executive offices were located. A spectacular view met them in the corner office, and it wasn’t the Portland skyline. A group of men were joking with each other and the photographer had stopped for a smoke break.

“Hey, Max,” a man in red pants and a large pair of tinted sunglasses said disapprovingly to the photographer, “the sign said no smoking.”

“For what they charged you to rent this space, Robbie, they can kiss my black ass,” Max replied, taking a drag as he adjusted a lighting umbrella. All of them turned and looked at James and Annika as they peeked into the office.

“Hi guys,” Jerry said, and waved them over.

“Oh, I wasn’t ready for this,” Annika hissed to James, clutching her shopping bag a little tighter as she surveyed the fine specimens surrounding her.

“You’re telling
me
,” James hissed back.

“I’m impressed that you found us inside this maze of cubicles,” Lars said proudly. “Don’t the boys look great? We have this concept of pastels that you can wear year round, so we have the four men representing the four seasons. Jerry is pink for spring, and Heath is the one in green. He’s summer. Ricky’s rockin’ the yellow for autumn, and Chip makes a wonderful winter with those icy blue eyes,” he said as he proudly motioned towards the pale blond man in blue.

“I don’t know, Lars,” said Robbie, taking off his sunglasses with a dramatic flair. “The men look smashing, but it seems a smidge on the tame side. I hate to even say the word, but contrived is coming to mind.”

“How else are you going to splash up the office?” Lars said. His feelings didn’t seem harmed in the slightest. “I’ve worked a cube job before. The only fun thing about that kind of work is the office fling you’re eventually going to have.”

“An office fling? Now that sounds like the perfect antidote for this setting. You know what we really need at this sausage party is a taco stand, and there’s a taco standing right there,” Robbie said, looking straight at Annika. His eyes immediately went down to her feet, which were adorned by her infamous red-feathered Manolo’s. “What have you got in those bags, honey?”

“Huh?
Me
?” she asked in disbelief. “You can’t be serious.” She looked around, but she was the only woman in the room.

“Why not? You’re pretty enough,” argued Robbie. “What’s in the bags?”

“Just some stuff I picked up to wear at my band’s next gig,” Annika said as she pulled a black sundress and some odds and ends from the bags. “But I’m too short! I can’t do this. Don’t you have to be like, six feet tall to model?” she protested, trying to escape Robbie’s plan.

“Not if you’re a rock star doing a cameo for me. What’s the name of your band?” Annika told him and he shrugged. “Well, I’ve never heard of your group, so I guess you need to work on your publicity, don’t you?” he said, guiding her to sit down for a crash course in hair and makeup.

“Now, some of the best shoots are improv, but I’m not making any promises, sweetie,” he said with a dismissive wave of his hand as he grew more excited. “And that little black dress will be perfect. Lars! Get her a red tie! As soon as you’re ready, I’ll have you sit on the desk, like you’re the boss lady, and your naughty office boys have been up to some no good hijinks behind your back. No one will give a shit how short you are. They’ll be looking at the boys. And your gorgeous shoes.”

Annika looked at James, who just smiled and shrugged.

“You better call Talvi and let him know we’ll be late,” she said to him before ducking into a vacant cubicle to change clothes. “He was expecting me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, did you have an appointment?” Robbie asked.

“Well, an appointment with my husband, but I’m sure I can reschedule,” she grinned in excitement as she slipped into her new dress. When she came out she was rushed to a little chair and attacked by two men, one with hairspray and a comb, and one with a toolbox of makeup and brushes.

“How strange…your new husband seemed downright annoyed that you were blowing him off to be draped in next season’s finest,” James said as he walked over to where Annika was sitting. “If he wasn’t such a babe, I don’t think I’d tolerate his moody bullshit.”

“Yeah, but that’s the nice thing about being so moody; he’ll get over it,” she said in between applications of lip liner, gloss and eye shadow. “He always does…just wait and see.”

“Alright, you’re done,” the man with the soft brushes said, and released Annika. Robbie grabbed her hand and brought her over to the desk.