"We all respect the tradition of giving, but this is just crazy. Give it all away and then what happens? We're just as poor as the people we're trying to help. That's no good to anybody."
"Every donation is tax deductible. Charity is good for business." Jason said, refusing to give an inch.
"Don't patronize us Jay." Zach said. "We all know that, but 10% of Demovic in just six months? It's financial suicide. Speculation in the media that something is wrong at the heart of Demovic Inc is rife and sooner or later it's going to affect business."
Jason held up his hands and the group went silent, waiting for him to speak as he looked each of them in the eye, slowly, one by one.
"I'm acting CEO of Demovic Corporation." He said. "Now unless there's something else to discuss, I have somewhere I need to be."
He stood up to go.
"Sit down Jay." Zach said. The tension in the air was near unbearable. The Demovic family was not accustomed to internal strife in business matters since the passing of Mr. Demovic senior. Normally they spoke as one voice, guided by Jason's acknowledged razor sharp business sense.
That guidance had been accepted without resentment or question until his seemingly endless spree of philanthropy threatened to bankrupt the corporation.
Jason gave Zach a long, cold look before he sat down. Like all of them, he was used to giving orders, not taking them.
"This better be good." he with quiet intensity.
Their mother spoke quickly, hoping to defuse the situation.
"It is good Jason. Good for everyone. We have come together today simply to discuss how much money Demovic Inc. should give away in philanthropic contributions in any given financial quarter, that's all."
"I've already decided how much that should be." Jason said.
"Jason Demovic does not equal Demovic Inc," Harrison said with evident irritation, "no matter what you think."
Jason looked at him, his expression giving nothing away.
"Of course I don't think that, but this specific decision is mine and mine alone, just as our father said it should be and as the board, including everyone here agreed upon. Now if you'll excuse me--"
"If you won't discuss this with us then we will have no choice but to ask you to stand down as CEO." Zach said. Jason was motionless for a moment. The two brothers had fought many times as children but never as grown men. They had always been equally matched and neither feared the other.
The room held its breath as Jason looked to Ernst Pitchford, the family lawyer. He didn't need to say a word to the tough old legal shark.
"It can be done." Ernst assured him.
Jason looked around the room again. If Ernst said it was true then it was true. No one in the world knew the Demovic family legal affairs like Ernst Pitchford. He had been defending the family's interests since the brothers were in diapers.
Jason took a long deep breath and then looked at Zach.
"Give me a proposal and I'll think it over. Now if you all will please excuse me--"
"There's one more thing." Zach said.
Jason waited, his face still betraying no emotion but his family knew him well; he was surely enraged at this challenge to his authority.
"Well?" he said.
As confident and strong willed as Zach was, the words stuck in his throat. It fell to their mother and her 49% interest in the Demovic Corporation as a whole, to save the moment. Her voice was frail but her power in the corporation was formidable.
"We'd like you to consider getting some help son." She said softly.
"I already have all the help I need. My team is excellent, the best in the world."
"That's not the kind of help we mean."
Even the human barracuda Ernst held his breath in anticipation.
"Exactly what kind of help are you talking about mother?"
She reached into a small pocket in her pleated skirt and put a card on the table.
"This person comes highly recommended."
Jason Demovic read the details from where he sat. He didn't deign to pick the card up. It was the name and contact details of a psychological counselor in Manhattan.
He looked back into the eyes of his family and then to Ernst who returned his gaze with all the steel he could muster. The lawyer was capable of staring down a high court judge without flinching an eyebrow but his heart skipped a beat as he nodded his head to assure Jason Demovic Jnr. of the binding nature of what his family was 'suggesting' to him.
Jason stared defiantly around the room again. The board of directors held its breath…
Chapter Two
One Month Later
"Mr. Demovic will be about ten minutes late." The smooth, feminine voice informed Dr. Melissa Price. "Please wait for him." She started to thank the caller but the line went dead.
She sat back in her leather bound chair, realizing that she now had twenty minutes of free time to kill. She decided to call her little sister. She liked to check in with her frequently, even if only for the briefest of exchanges.
"Hey Suzy, how are you feeling today?"
"I'm doing great." Her sister tried to sound enthusiastic, but her voice was listless. "Just a little tired. You know how it is. Sometimes the dialysis is like that. I'll be better in a few hours."
Melissa knew that the treatments had been taking more out of her sister each time. She needed to get that kidney donation fast but they had been waiting for years. Melissa would have donated herself but her blood type was incompatible.
"If you need anything at all, just call me."
"I'm fine, now come on, leave me alone, you've got work to do."
"Actually I'm free for--" The call ended without even a goodbye. "--the next twenty minutes." Her voice trailed off. The shortness bothered her but she knew that even a phone call could be exhausting to Suzy on some days so she held her peace and put the phone down. Her eyes wandered to the degrees and certificates on her office wall. Her graduate degree was from Harvard and her doctorate from Stanford. She had attended both colleges on scholarships and graduated in the 97th percentile. Although an outstanding student she had not been in practice long and was still trying to build up her business. From struggling to study and pay bills with evening work, now she finally had the letters after her name but less money than ever since you can't be a psychotherapist and a waitress at the same time.
This made her current situation with the ethics committee even more galling. One tiny mistake, one human error after years of study.
It didn’t seem fair. It was a beginners mistake and she prayed they would see it like that too.
Just hang in there. She kept telling herself. We've been through worse times than this, the light is there at the end of the tunnel. Just a little longer now. We can beat this.
If her little sister was stoical about her illness, Melissa herself always put on a brave face about the medical bills, but in reality she was almost to the point of paying interest only on their accumulated medical debts. She never said a word of this to Suzy and never would as long as she could keep on paying the bills.
The ethics committee would have to clear her and the business would have to be a runaway success because there was no other option.
Just hang in there.
She took a small mirror out of her bag to check her appearance. Her auburn hair was pulled back tightly into a neat, if not particularly attractive bun, but it made her look older and more professional which was the desired effect. Her spectacles were serious rather than fashionable and tended to make her look older; something else she needed with her youthful face. The glasses also made her face look thinner. Although petite she often thought she was a little too rounded. With college, work, looking after her sister and now setting up a psychotherapy practice as well, she had never had the time to worry about getting into better shape.
Needless to say dating had been out of the question since forever.
She heard the door in the reception area open and sat up straight. Her receptioni
st Sandy was behind schedule today so she would have to meet and greet by herself unless that was him arriving already. She had left the door open to allow her first client to come into the waiting area.
She stood up and went to her office door but it opened abruptly after a short, heavy knock before she could get to it. The man who entered the room was unbelievably good-looking, even to Melissa; with all her worries and pre-occupations it took a lot for her to notice attractiveness in the opposite sex.
"Where's Dr. Price?" The well dressed man said gruffly.
Someone needs manners. She thought.
"I'm here to see Dr. Price." He added.
"Mr. Demovic?" She asked.
"Jason." He said, softening slightly. "Look, I'm already late. Are you Dr. Price?"
Melissa held out her hand.
"Dr. Melissa Price. It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Demovic. Won't you take a seat?"
"Pleasure." He said, and took her hand, sending a sharp jolt of electricity crackling through Melissa's body. She jerked her hand away and a hint of a smile came to his face.
"You need to get that carpet changed. Too much static." He said. To her complete surprise a vivid image of herself making love on the carpet to the mouth watering man in front of her flashed through Melissa's mind.
Come on Melissa. She berated herself. You’re a trained psychotherapist, not a schoolgirl.
She smiled and indicated her analysis area to him to one side of her office, where there was a coffee table an armchair and a couch.
"Mr. Demovic, would you like to take a seat?"
He nodded and began to cross the room. Melissa followed behind him, watching his tall, muscular frame move in front of her. She couldn't help but notice that he was superbly healthy, radiating strength and athleticism. The suit he wore looked like a thin veneer of civilization on a man who was obviously a primal and instinctual being. Most of her few clients were older, or had the appearance of age. They were fatigued, anxious, worn down by their troubles, but not this tall, straight and self-assured man. He was downright hot and Melissa was feeling the heat.
He sat down on the couch and she took a seat next to him in the armchair.
"Make yourself comfortable." She said. "This is your hour, so I suggest we get started before anymore time is wasted."
"I'm all for that." He said. "I don’t want to waste any time at all with you Dr. Price."
What did that mean?
Before we fuck. The words crossed Melissa's mind like a voice from a stranger in her head. She sat up straight in the armchair, taken off guard by her own reactions. She had been attracted to clients before but never quite like this. If she had felt things before it was after a period of getting to know the person, gaining insight into who they were and building a relationship of sympathy and trust. No one had ever walked into her office before and made her just want to...
A feeling of foreboding crossed over her. This client was bad news.
End of Sample
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His Strict Requirement: Billionaire Secrets - Book Five Page 10
