Scandalizing the CEO

If she got an interview with him in her magazine she’d have landed a real coup. Something that her bosses wouldn’t overlook. And it wasn’t lost on Ainsley that meeting Steven that day in the Everest Mega Store had been fortuitous.

She showered and dressed, keeping her mind firmly on her meetings for the day, but before she left her hotel she knew she wanted to return Steven’s e-mail. She just had no idea what to say to him. Somehow Me, too didn’t seem like the right response. Yet more than that might be making promises that she wasn’t sure she could keep. When she was with Steven, it was easy to forget herself. Forget her fears and the fact that she wasn’t who he thought she was.

But apart from him she could count the obstacles between them. She had too little experience and he had too much. She was a small-town girl and he was the son of a billionaire and a world-renowned scientist.

But none of that mattered when they were together. Nothing mattered except the way his hands felt on her. The way his taste lingered on her lips after he’d kissed her. The way the scent of his cologne lingered after he left.

He was just so much more than she thought he would be. And there were still so many questions she had about him. So many answers that she wasn’t sure she’d ever get.

Yet she wasn’t going to give up. When she’d decided to change her life and lose weight, she’d made a promise to herself to stop hiding. And she had done a good job of it until now.

Steven was the kind of man she should be going after. But first she had to figure out what to say.

She hit the Reply key on the e-mail and sat down at the chair, trying to be more comfortable.

Dear Steven

No, that sounded too businesslike.

You’ve haunted my dreams.

She hit Send before she could change her mind.

Six

Steven decided at the last minute to go to New York himself instead of sending Dinah and he was glad that he had. The Everest Mega Store in Times Square was a major asset, and as he walked the floor with the VP of the North American unit, Hobbs Colby, he realized that Hobbs had some great ideas on ways to capitalize on the store’s potential.

“Let’s go back to the office and figure out how to make the most of this store,” Steven said.

Steven followed Hobbs into the conference room on the third floor. There was a radio broadcast studio built right into the store so they could do live broadcasts and this conference room overlooked the selling floor.

“I think this property is an asset we aren’t exploiting to its fullest. I want to set up live broadcasts from here for all Everest recording artists,” Steven said. “Let’s make this place into the go-to spot for live music promotions. I want release parties and signings.”

“That won’t be a problem on our end. Typically I’ve had trouble getting Everest Records to return my calls. I know I’m new, but I worked for a concert promoter for years so I have the experience to do those kinds of events.”

“Let me make a few calls. Give me a minute—I’ll call right now,” Steven said.

Hobbs nodded and left, and Steven got Henry on the line. Though it was about ten at night in London, he knew that Henry would still be up.

“Devonshire,” Henry said.

“It’s Steven. I’m in New York and I wanted to go over something with you. Can you talk?”

“Certainly. I’m in a club. Give me a minute to find someplace quiet.”

Steven held the line.

“Okay, what’s up?”

“I’m not sure how familiar you are with our retail stores, but some of them were set up to do live remote broadcasts for radio. This store in Times Square has the facilities not only for that but for live performances as well. My U.S. VP, Hobbs Colby, has been trying to get some artists to come here and perform.”

“I haven’t had a chance to call him back yet. What are you thinking?” Henry asked.

“That we use this place for exclusive North American releases of our CDs. Maybe one week early? Not sure how you feel about that. Then we need to book the groups into this store. I think this will help both of our business units.”

“I agree. Let me talk to the artists and I’ll get back to you.”

“Thanks, Henry.”

Steven spent the rest of the afternoon in meetings and on the phone working on getting the ball rolling. “What other stores do we have with these kinds of facilities?”

“Miami, LA, Vancouver, Toronto, Chicago and Orlando. We can update other facilities if you think that it would be worth our while.”

Steven shook his head. “Not yet. Let’s do a pilot program at these locations first. I don’t want to have the same groups everywhere. I think we should brand each of the locations with a genre. Build up a strong local following. I think New York and LA would be great for any group, but in Miami we should book our Latin groups.”