Blame

Chapter 23 (Her)

        Max was fuming. Martin had no right to treat her like that, she was livid. And honestly she was kind of embarrassed in front of Joey because he was in no way thrilled to have her working for him.

        "Hey, you alright?" Kyle nudged her and she looked up at three pairs of worried eyes.

        "Yes, yeah... I'm, I'll be fine." She looked down and picked at the food in front of her.

        "Don't let him get to you." Woody said reassuringly.

        "I know...and it's not like I haven't worked with him before, but god he can be such a dick." Max replied with anger.

        There was a loud ringing from Dan's direction and he grabbed his phone.

        "Yup. We'll be there." Dan said quickly and motioned for everyone to wrap up.

        "That's Martin. He needs us." He said, taking a last bite of his burger. Everyone began finishing up and after paying, they all got up and packed up into the car.

        "Hey, don't worry about it, alright?" Dan stopped Max outside before they went into the car and she said, "Easy for you to say...," Dan's eyes furrowed and he gave her a sarcastic chuckle.

        "Actually no, it's not. We've all worked with him for a lot longer than you have and we know all of his dick moves. Don't let him see it getting to you, and you'll be fine." Dan put a reassuing hand on her shoulder and climbed into the car. Max exhaled and closed the door behind them.

        Soon, they were back in the studio and it wasn't until several hours later that Max saw Martin. He didn't look at her and she didn't talk to him. If he wanted to pretend that nothing happened, she was fine with it.

        Max finished her entry into the website and updated all of the blogs and soon after looking at the time, it was after eight in the evening. The time change still didn't situate with her and she yawned.

        "Hey now, we'll have none of that!" Kyle said, kicking her playfully. The boys were finishing up for the evening and he was sprawled on a sofa in front of her, playing on his phone.

        "I have an excuse...jet lag." Max stifled another yawn.

        "We're going to the pub, so you better chipper up." Kyle winked and she groaned.

        "I can't do pubs, you know that." Max said.

        "Oh come on, don't be a pussy." He said with a chuckle, just when the other boys joined the room as well. Dan's eyes shot up as he heard the last of that conversation and Max and Kyle burst out laughing.

        "Miss Priss doesn't want to come to the pub." Kyle said and Dan smiled, knowing how Max did at pubs: not well.

        "Can you blame me?" She said shutting off her laptop and putting it into her bag. Before anything else was said, Joey walked into the room and Max's smile vanished.

        "Ello everyone. Max, do you mind to chat for a minute?" He motioned for her to follow him into the hallway and she felt anxious, for no reason. Kyle gave her a thumbs up as she left the room.

        "Alright so firstly I would like to apologize for how I handled the situation. Martin has a tendency to drop information like bombs." Joey paused and chuckled.

        "Anyways, I want you to know I want you on my team and I'm willing to work together if you are." He smiled warmly at her and she stood staring dumb-founded.

        "Uhh, I...,"

        "You don't have to decide now." Joey shook his head.

        "Take a day, think about it. No pressure, I talked to Martin about how he treated the whole situation, so don't worry about that. Just another thought though, if you agree to work with me, you won't have to work under Martin." Joey gave her one more knowing smile and then walked off, leaving her to mull over his words. 

        "See you at the pub!" He yelled out as he rounded the corner.

        Shit, now she had to go to the pub.

*        *        *

        "God, how I hate living with girls." Max heard Kyle groan behind the closed door and she rolled her eyes. When she looked into the reflection, she wasn't sure if she liked what she saw.

        The only suitable thing she could find was a black dress that wasn't super tight and it stopped right at her knees, making her comfortable enough. It was strapless though and she tugged at it uncertaintly. With her hair around her shoulders, it provided little coverage.

        "I'm coming!" She said with exasperation and opened the door. Dan and Kyle were both seated on the sofa, staring at her.

        "Will this do?" She asked with her arms stretched in front of her.

        "Uhh, what do you think Dan, will it do?" Kyle asked with a sly smile. Dan didn't say anything but just nodded.

        "I don't know, I don't think there's enough clevage and the dress is too long." Kyle said trying to stifle a laugh.

        "Fuck you." Max flipped him off and began putting on her wedges. Soon, all three climbed into a cab and were on their way. 

        She was feeling somewhat nervous for tonight's outing and she had no earthly idea why. For some reason having Joey there made her all the more anxious, since he was going to be her boss. And yes, she had decided to work with him as soon as he said she wouldn't have to work with Martin, she said yes.