“Your proposal is impressive.” Tyler tapped the electronic tablet in front of him.
“Thank you.” So far, so good.
“I’ve also reviewed your firm’s website. The two seem to be in contradiction.”
“How so?” Iris gripped her ballpoint pen as she forced herself to hold Tyler’s penetrating gaze. She really wanted this account.
“You’re a one-person show. How can one person accomplish all the things you’ve promised in your proposal?”
“I understand your concern.” She’d heard it before from other executives. “However, I assure you I wouldn’t have made those commitments if I wasn’t confident I’d be able to meet them.”
“How?”
Iris glanced at the tablet trapped between the table and the long, elegant fingers of Tyler’s right hand. “As I explained in my proposal, this isn’t my first product launch. I know what’s involved. That experience will make me more efficient with your project.”
“You also mentioned other consultants you plan to work with.” Tyler leaned back on his seat.
“Their costs are included in the budget.”
“You, a designer, a printer and a media buyer. That’s a lot of people to depend on to meet deadlines.”
Iris put down her pen, then rested one hand on top of the other. “That’s a legitimate concern. But, Mr. Anderson—”
“Ty. Mr. Anderson is my father.”
“Ty.” Iris inclined her head with a smile. “Even if you worked with a larger company, you’d still need those various roles. The only difference between my firm and a larger company is that those responsibilities would be assigned to their staff. But you’d still have to depend on a lot of people meeting their deadlines.”
Tyler’s mind wandered as he watched Iris’s full, bow-shaped lips. It was only when her lips stopped moving that he realized he should have been listening.
He tamped down his embarrassment—and his urge to trace a finger over her lips. “That’s a lot of people to keep track of during the project. We don’t have a lot of time.”
“This launch does have an ambitious schedule. This is the second week of March and your release date is July tenth.”
“That’s just over four months.” Tyler scowled. Why haven’t I heard from Peter Kimball about his company’s proposal?
“Seventeen weeks and three days. It’s a tight schedule, but not impossible.” Iris spread her small, delicate hands. The movement briefly distracted Tyler.
“You’ve worked with tough deadlines before?”
Iris sat back and crossed her legs. “Many times and always successfully.”
Her voice was matter-of-fact, her manner confident. Her proposal was impressive in its detail and vision. Still, Tyler hesitated.
This was a big job. Iris Beharie had more than eight years of marketing and public relations experience. However, the results of his internet research indicated The Beharie Agency was only three months old. How could he entrust his launch of his company’s new computer game to what amounted to an untried agency?
How could he trust her with his future?
Tyler hardened his heart to her honey-brown skin although it looked as soft as silk. He pulled his gaze from warm, coffee eyes that threatened to brainwash him. Her subtle citrus fragrance would haunt his dreams tonight.
He picked up his tablet and stared blankly at her proposal. Just say no, thank her for coming and call Peter Kimball—for the fifth time. “Your proposal is good.”
“You read my website.” Her voice was strained. “You saw the list of other projects I’ve completed.”
“You were with another company when you did that work.” Tyler was snared by her gaze again.
“I don’t have a large company behind me, but I do have an experienced and talented network of professional associates with whom I’ve worked before.”
Tyler dragged his finger across the tablet’s screen to flip through Iris’s proposal again. He’d practically committed it to memory: pricing, tasks, goals, detailed launch schedule. Could she pull it off? There was too much at stake to take the risk.