Loving Montie (Breathless 4)

“Thank you,” I said, pressing the button for my line and answering a call I welcomed. “Montie Brown speaking.”

“Hello Montie, Mr. Bromage here. I’m calling to see how things are going with my software. My new computers came in today and have been installed. Once your tech people get your piece hooked up, I can have my office manager set up start dates for our admin people. We’re eager to open for business and want to get some sort of a timeline.”

“I understand your urgency, Mr. Bromage. I have a meeting tomorrow morning with a partner company I've contracted to help meet your deadline. I’ll be able to give you a better estimate of go-live time after that meeting, for sure,” I said.

“We need it within the next week, sooner if you can get it done this week,” he said, as if coding software specific to his company’s culture and guidelines was something he could pull up to the drive-thru window and order. Ah no.

“Hey, I understand your readiness to get your hands on the software, but, like we discussed last week when you signed your contract, it will take at least two weeks to get a test environment ready to review. It will be another week after that is approved for us to work out any kinks. That’s provided those revisions are minimal.”

“I can’t wait three weeks to get started,” he said an octave higher in tone.

I wasn’t surprised by Mr. Bromage rushing me. My customers thought I was a magic maker, and for the most part, I delivered on that reputation. The last business working on his project didn’t complete it in a timely fashion. He’d only called me last week with this difficult, detailed software order that he wanted created from ground zero. I had zero chill for being rushed.

“Mr. Bromage, I work as hard and fast as I can for all of my clients. That’s my company’s promise. My portfolio is filled with lucrative deals that, as you know, were not thrown together. For perfection, you will have to give us time—at least a month total,” I said.

He let out an irritated sigh and murmured something under his breath that I didn’t catch. I had a team of lawyers on standby for situations like this. Our contract stated everything I’d just spoken to him.

“Well, work as fast as you can,” he said in a demanding tone.

“Rest assured that you’re in the best hands you'll be able to find in this area, if not the entire industry.” And that’s a fact.

“I’ll follow up tomorrow,” he said, hanging up the phone before I had the chance to let him know that calling everyday would not speed up the process.

I dialed Shalonda’s extension.

“Yes sir.”

“When Mr. Bromage calls from now on, take a message. I’ll return his calls when I have time, okay?”

“Okay,” she said and her voice was so light that I knew she was grinning. I rarely put a client on my no-talk list, but I couldn’t let Mr. Bromage worry the dickens out of me for two weeks. I was doing everything in my power to get his work done in half the time as it was.

"Is my meeting still set with Lissa McDaniels from Naytek tomorrow?" I asked Shalonda.

"Yes sir, she will be here at 10 a.m."

“Good,” I hung up and sat back in my chair. I pulled up Lissa’s website once again. Naytek had an impressive client list to include Emory University and University of Alabama at Birmingham. Their designs were sleek and touted as user friendly. I picked up my phone and called Lissa personally, just to see if there was anything I could do ahead of our meeting to make it more productive.

“Hello,” a melodic voice answered on the second ring.

“Hi, is this Mrs. McDaniels?”

“This is she.”

“This is Montie Brown of True Colors Technology. We have a meeting tomorrow.”

“Hi Mr. Brown, yes I’m looking forward to our meeting.”

I smiled at the sound of her delicately sweet voice. “I am too because we have a lot to get hashed out. The reason I’m calling is to see if there is anything specific you need from me ahead of tomorrow’s meeting. I just want to be prepared for you.”

“Wow, really? It’s rare that anyone calls to see what I need beforehand. I appreciate you doing that; however, I can’t think of anything right now. Shalonda has been a huge help when I called for more information about the software you need.”

Shalonda was worth her weight in gold. She took great notes at my client meetings, was knowledgeable in codes and could easily stand in for me if I were not available.

“That’s good to hear. Well, I’m excited about our meeting. Mr. Bromage at Holistic Medical is eager to get the final product in his hands. In fact, he called me today about it,” I said.

“I’m confident you both will be satisfied with what we come up with. So, I’ll see you tomorrow at ten?” she confirmed.

“See you then.” I hung up the phone with a subconscious smile all over. Lissa McDaniel’s confidence left me feeling accomplished after chasing her down to and securing a meeting with her. I couldn’t wait to dive back into work with the best creatives in Atlanta.