“Well, I don’t want to work with you,” she snapped and I nodded my head and flipped open the file in front of me.
“You mentioned that already, but in case you change your mind; I’m still open to the idea,” I said while reading the papers and not looking at her. She was still standing there and I could sense her fuming. The one skill I had developed in the corporate world was to keep my calm and allow the negotiation to take time. There was no rush. If anyone should have been in a hurry, it would have to be Beverley. But I knew her too, as much as she thought I didn’t, I knew that I need to give her time. She was in shock and I was aware that I shouldn’t be pressing her too much at that moment. So, I decided to be calm instead and give her time to think about what had just happened.
As much as I wanted to turn back to her, look at her, watch her body move…I didn’t. While she on the other hand; remained standing where she was and after some time turned around in a huff. I didn’t raise my head to look at her as she opened the door, but a smile lingered on my face. Beverley hadn’t changed at all.
Only when she had slammed the door shut behind her and I heard her heels clicking the marble floor outside as she walked away, did I look up. Her perfume was sti
ll lingering in the air in the room and I took in a deep breath of it.
Beverley still managed to recharge my batteries. I couldn’t stop smiling. As much as she pushed me away, I wanted her. Because deep down inside, I knew she wanted me too. Even in college, I caught her staring at me. She’d watch me silently from the bleachers when I played basketball and every time I looked at her, she would turn her face away.
All this while, she had simply assumed that I wasn’t interested in her. It was easy for her to confuse my true interests, because she wasn’t naive. She saw me with other girls. The stereotypical girls a guy like me should have been dating. And it was definitely my fault that I’d never made a move. But, Beverley was unreachable in college. She never gave me a chance to get to know her. Her one and only aim in college was to win and defeat me in the process. But now I finally had my chance.
I couldn’t stop thinking about the kiss as I gathered the file together and made my way out of the meeting room. Claire, my personal assistant found me as I shut the door behind me.
“How’d it go? Ms. Wade didn’t seem very pleased,” Claire said as I handed the file over to her.
“She’ll come around,” I told Claire with a smile as I walked away from her and towards my own office. In fact, I couldn’t stop smiling all day. Kissing Beverley had been the single best thing that had happened to me the whole week. A college fantasy had come true and now I knew what I had always suspected…that she was the only woman who could set me on fire. Nobody else even came close.
Chapter 7
Beverley
That kiss had overtaken my mind, and I hadn’t spent a single moment since then without thinking about it. In college, if I wasn’t studying; which was all the time, I was fantasizing about Grant. He was handsome, smart and smooth as velvet. He got all the girls and even now, after we were out in the real world, nothing had really changed. Grant Jennings had become one of the hottest guys in the country. Good looks, intelligent mind and money were all a winning combo. I knew exactly how other women felt about him, and I knew I didn’t stand a chance.
But why had he kissed me? I couldn’t deny the thought that he had kissed me just because he could. Because he was just another one of those entitled jocks who assumed he could have any woman he wanted. But a small part of me couldn’t help but wonder if he kissed me because he wanted to kiss me, and not just any woman.
Then there was also the business about selling my company. He was crazy to think that not only would I sell my company to him, but that I’d actually go and work with him too. Especially after this! After he’d kissed me! The best plan of action would be to simply ignore him. Move away from Silicon Valley and try and start a new life somewhere else!
I stood up from my chair with a jerk and paced the floor of my office. I had to be going mad to entertain the thought of running away from San Fransisco because of one kiss! One kiss that didn’t mean anything to him. But it meant a whole deal to me. I’d spent so long fantasizing about Grant, that this kiss was capable of completely breaking me.
A sudden knock on my office door snapped me out of my thoughts. Sasha stuck his head in.
“I’m gonna head out. It’s nearly eight,” he said and I nodded my head. He didn’t leave. He could see that I was working up over something. Without me inviting him in, Sasha stepped into my office and shut the door behind him. Sasha had been my first hire. Even though we weren’t exactly friends, I had known him for four years now and he was one of the handful of people I actually knew well in San Fransisco. Clearly, he believed we were friends because he walked up close to me and I stopped my pacing, in surprise.
“Bev,” he said in a soft kindly voice.
“Sasha?” I said, confused by his behavior.
“I can see you’re still thinking about Lonex’s offer,” he said, tipping his head to one side. I crossed my arms over my breasts and glared at him.
“Well, it’s my company. I built it up from scratch. I have to put some thought into it,” I told him. My brows were crossed. I was annoyed that he thought he could talk to me about it. I didn’t need his help. I didn’t need anybody’s help.
“Yeah, but it has to happen. You have to sell. And who better to sell than Lonex? Especially if they’re offering you that amount of money,” he said and I noticed the concerned look on his face. I took in a deep breath and nodded my head. There was no point taking my temper out on him. Sasha hadn’t done anything wrong, in fact if anything, he was the model employee. The least I could do was lend him an ear.
“I know what you’re saying, it’s just that…” I said, looking about me. I couldn’t find the right words to use to explain the situation to him.
“Do you have some kind of complicated history with Grant Jennings?” he asked and I couldn’t do anything but stare at him in surprise. How had he figured that out? Did I really make it so obvious?
“Well, kind of,” I said and licked my lips. I suddenly felt vulnerable. If Sasha had been able to figure it out, did Grant also know how I felt about him? Why I was being so resistant to sell to him?
“For your sake, Bev, I suggest that you just work it out with him or work it out by yourself. I don’t think you’ll come by an offer like this again,” Sasha said and placed a friendly hand on my shoulder. My arms remained crossed over my breasts and I looked at him with my eyes widened.
“Thanks for the advice Sasha, I’ll think about it,” I said and he nodded his head. I realized in that moment, that my employees…the three of them, were also confused. Me selling the company could mean anything. If the new buyers didn’t want to keep the original team intact, it could mean that they were going to lose their jobs.
“Sasha!” I called out to him as he began to walk away. “Will you please tell Susan and John that I’m going to figure it out? That I’ll do what is best for you guys,” I said, in a weaker voice. Sasha passed me a half smile and nodded, before leaving my office.
I was alone again, but I remained standing where I was. I knew I needed to figure things out soon. The longer I took, the deeper this web was going to get. I wasn’t magically going to be able to rescue my company out of a financial crisis. Sasha was right, Grant had given me the best offer I could ask for.