by Ali Parker
“Uh-oh,” she said, walking in. “That look, I don’t know if I like that look.”
“What look?” I smiled.
“Like you just figured out a way to take over the world, and you want me to be your secret weapon,” she said.
“Something like that.” I chuckled. “Do you have a ton going on here today?”
“Not until we get the word from you to continue with the project,” she said. “The rest is little stuff assigned to the team. Why? And please don’t say anything along the lines of it’s top secret or I’ll need a gas mask.”
“Who do you think I am?” I laughed. “I know Bruce Wayne owned an empire, but I am nowhere near Batman status.”
“That’s what Bruce would have said.” She chuckled.
“No, I just wanted to see if you’d like to go to the presentation with me today,” I said. “We are, after all, running this project together. We can tag team it like we did with Cartier.”
“You’re afraid of this man, and you want me to give it to him straight,” she said, shaking her head.”
“Yep.” I laughed. “You got me.”
“All right,” she said. “When do we leave?”
“Right now.” I smiled, closing the file and handing it to her.
She groaned and followed after me, smirking as she walked past Dalton. We headed out of the office and down to the car, climbing inside before heading out. She opened the file and went over the details.
“Come on,” I said, patting her thigh. “You know your stuff. There’s no reason to study hard for this thing.”
“Yeah, but if I screw it up, it falls on me,” she said, kicking me in the leg. “And all because you’re afraid of some jewelry store owner. What is it with this guy? I read online he’s a real scrooge too.”
“You might not want to make that part of your speech.” I smiled.
She shook her head. “You know, you’re going to owe me for this.”
“What? It’s your job,” I laughed.
“No, it has always been your job. It became my job when you got in a war with your board,” she said. “Now it’s my job to save you.”
“You’re fiery today,” I said.
“I’m fiery every day.” She smiled big. “Welcome to my world.”
“Glad to be in it,” I replied. “So, I was thinking about this party on Saturday.”
“What party?” she asked, still reading.
“Uh, your son’s birthday party,” I said.
“Oh, that party. Yeah, it’s gonna be a rager.” She chuckled.
“Well, I can’t come to the party without something,” I said. “But I’ve never met him, and if he’s anything like you, I’m assuming he’ll be hard to please.”
“Very funny,” she said, chuckling. “He’s the kindest little boy on the planet.”
“Okay, noted, not anything like you,” I said with a smirk.
“How dare you?” she said, feigning shock and laughing.
“Anyway, I don’t know what to bring him, like what kind of present to get him,” I said. “What does he like?”
“Bubble baths, long walks on the beach, a manicure,” she said, looking at the file. “No, wait, that’s me. Seriously, though, it’s a small party just to have a good time. You don’t have to get him anything.”
“Not get him anything? He’s turning eleven. Not getting something is a crime punishable by death,” I said.
“I don’t know.” She laughed. “He’s a kid obsessed with animals. He loves zoology and science and stuff like that. I never am able to come up with gifts for him. Seriously, you don’t have to get anything.”
The car pulled up outside of the Seventh Street complex and I smiled, looking at the new placements in the window. We could definitely do better than whoever made those advertisements. Maybe this was going to be easier than I thought.
“Okay, kids,” I said. “We will pick up this discussion later. We have arrived.”
“Great,” she groaned, climbing out of the car and straightening her skirt. “If he starts to crucify me, you better step in.”
“I take the side of the stronger man or woman,” I said with a smile, opening up the door.
“Great,” she said, shaking her head and walking inside.
I wasn’t nervous until we walked into his office and watched as he chewed someone out on the phone for a bad delivery. That was when my palms started to shake, and Amanda’s face dropped. She leaned toward me and whispered.
“Okay, now I’m afraid of him.”
“Suck it up, soldier,” I whispered back.
“This is not the Army, and if it was, I would nuke the place and leave,” she whispered, standing up straight and smiling as he hung up the phone.
I started the meeting off by introducing Amanda and letting her give him the quick rundown of what was going on. She looked nervous, especially since this guy really had no facial expressions whatsoever. I was just happy she kept going because I didn’t know if I could have made it through like her.
“Where are all the graphics?” he grumbled.
“These are the preliminaries,” I said, speaking up. “Just as you asked for and in a considerably shorter amount of time than my team normally puts them together. The graphics won’t fully be put in until next week, sometime before Friday. We wanted you to get the true and honest representation of our process at Truitt Marketing. From the ground up.”
“Yes,” he said, rubbing his chin. “I like that. I like to see a progress even when it isn’t the prettiest. It will help me appreciate the final job that much more. Your transparency is unheard of in this world today, Elon, I appreciate it. I also appreciate you involving the lower ranks of your management to show me the real faces working on the projects.”
“Well, Mr. Truitt is as much of a part of the team as me, if not more.” Amanda smiled. “He is the fearless leader of the group.”
“Is this true?”
“Yes, sir,” I said, nodding my head. “I don’t know about the leader part or the fearless, but I work with the team, brainstorming, creating, doing everything I can to be part of the process.”
“Interesting,” he said. “That doesn’t happen often in companies as big as yours.”
“It’s important that no matter how large we grow, Truitt keeps its roots,” I said with a dashing smile at Amanda who rolled her eyes.
“I would need this project in two weeks,” he said.
I glanced at Amanda and spoke up before she could. “Of course, sir. No problem.”
“I like what track you guys are on, especially with the one showing the Hollywood lights,” he said. “I think you guys have done an awesome job. I’d like you to proceed.”
“Wonderful,” I said with a smile. “When is the next milestone you would like to set up to see the progress?”
“No need,” he said, looking down at his books. “I’ve seen all I need to. I’ll be happy to see the final product when you’re finished.”
“Excellent, sir,” I said, shaking his hand. “Thank you for seeing us today.”
“Thank you for holding up your end of the bargain,” he said. “You may be worth your weight in gold, Elon. We will see when the final project is completed. And thank your young lady for that presentation.”
“Your welcome, sir,” Amanda said, packing up the boards and looking at me.
I helped her carry them out of his office and shut the door behind us. His secretary led us to the elevator, and we stood there silently until the doors had shut. I could feel my heart beating out of my chest. Amanda looked up at me with her eyebrows scrunched together.
“Lower ranks of the management?” she said.
I laughed loudly, letting out all the anxiety inside of me. We had done it. We had made the biggest client in Truitt history happy, at least for the first part. We definitely had our work cut out for us over the next two weeks.
“We did it,” I said, turning to Amanda and hugging her tightly. “We freaking did it.
”
“Whoa, cowboy,” she groaned as I set her down. “We may have passed the first of his twisted little tests, but we are really going to need to find a technical artist and fast. You agreed to one hell of a deadline again, and without that position, we’re looking at some serious dead time going into this thing.”
“I know,” I groaned as the elevator opened up to the lobby. “Do we have more people on the recruiter’s list?”
“A few,” she said, shrugging. “Nothing that I can promise will stick, though, and we definitely can’t be using interviewees to do this work. It’s too important.”
I walked up to the door and held it open as she walked out and to the trunk of the car. She lifted the lid and tossed the boards inside, shutting it and looking over at me. I stood there thinking, wondering what in the world I was going to do without a technical artist.
“We need a Marcus in there to do this project right,” she said. “Not some new graduate from art school.”
“I know. We need someone who can use their senses, someone with experience,” I said getting in the car after her. “I’ll put out my feelers, and you rough up the recruiters a bit more and see what they can produce. Drop my name if you have to.”
“And you are sure Marcus won’t come work for you?”
“Not unless there’s some serious money in it for him to leave where he’s at,” I said, looking out the window as we pulled off.
This was the most important client in the company’s history, and my possible ticket out of the doghouse with the board, I needed someone I could trust on this project. I wish I had the money to get Marcus on the team, but with the financials for the company the way they were, there was no way I could come up with that kind of number, much less get a full vote for it from the board. Clayton would have an aneurysm. I was just going to have to take my chances and try to find someone and sooner rather than later.
Chapter 37
Amanda
I reached up to the overhang in the kitchen and pressed the thumbtack into the wall. I climbed down from the ladder and stood back, looking at the Happy Birthday banner. It was slightly lopsided, but it would do. Mikey had been up since the crack of dawn running around the place overexcited about his friends coming over for his birthday. It might have also had something to do with the donuts Dalton had brought over for breakfast from Mikey’s favorite bakery down the street. It was his birthday, though, and I was going to let him do whatever he wanted, even if it ended in a sugar spiral.
“Is this straight?” Dalton asked, holding up the streamer.
“Yeah, right there,” I said, watching him pin it.
He got down from the ladder and brushed his hands together, looking at his handiwork. Somehow, he made streamers look like hundred-dollar decorations while I couldn’t even hang a birthday banner straight. That was why I kept him around, that and the fact that he could calm me down in about two seconds.
“Looks awesome,” Mikey said excitedly. “Thank you, guys.”
“You’re welcome, big man,” Dalton said ruffling his hair.
“Hey,” I said, bending down in front of Mikey. “Do me a favor and go wash the icing off your face before everyone gets here.”
He kissed me on the cheek and ran off, almost knocking me over. Dalton reached down and pulled me to my feet, putting his arm around me and popping a donut hole into his mouth. The place looked like it was ready for a party, but I wasn’t sure I was.
“Sooo,” Dalton said, giving me the side eye. “Is Elon coming to this little shindig?”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged, walking into the kitchen and grabbing a bottle of water. “I mean, I won’t lie, I invited him to it, but I’m not holding my breath that he shows up. It’s an eleven-year-old’s birthday party. I’m sure he would feel completely out of place. I can’t hold it against him if he doesn’t come, can I?”
“Yes,” he said. “You can, and you shall.”
“You just want the drama.” I laughed. “And the last thing Elon or I or the company needs is more drama inside those walls.”
“Oh, come on,” Dalton said. “You have got to give us all something to watch at work. Otherwise, it gets boring.”
“My personal life is not your television show.” I laughed. “And I think we have enough to keep us busy at work for a couple of weeks without some daytime soap making its way onto the set.”
“Honey, your personal life, no offense, is not daytime soap quality,” he said. “When it reaches that point, I will let you know. But these days, you have to have at least two murders, a crazy ex-lover back from the dead, and a maid named Rosa. You have none of those things, including any ex-lovers to jump out of the swamp.”
“I think that’s a good thing.” I laughed as the doorbell rang.
“Here we go,” Dalton said excitedly as Mikey sped to the door.
The party was going really well, with several of Mikey’s friends showing up and some people from work. He was off playing Halo in the other room while the adults talked and laughed about various things going on in the office rumor mill. Still, I couldn’t help keeping my eye on the front door every time it opened or shut, looking for Elon to walk through the door. After about an hour, I got up from the gab session and walked into the kitchen, standing over the chip bowl and staring off into space.
“Girl, you need to get back out there and entertain your guests instead of moping over the boss man,” Dalton said, walking around the counter and catching my eye. “He will show up. Stop stressing.”
“I’m not,” I said, holding up my hands. “Okay maybe a little, but it’s been an hour. I doubt he’s going to show up now. I told you he wouldn’t be interested in coming to some little kid’s birthday party. He’s a young, handsome, single millionaire with much better things to do than hang around us and all of our—
“Well, hello, boss man,” Dalton said, looking behind me.
I turned around and smiled when I saw Elon walking through the crowd, looking more handsome than normal in jeans and a T-shirt. He nodded his head at me as he walked up, looking over and shaking Dalton’s hand. I was speechless, and it took a nudge from Dalton to get me talking again.
“Hey,” he said with his charming smile. “Sorry, I’m late, we couldn’t find your address in the GPS from the other night, so we had to go by the office and break into the HR department.”
“You broke into your own Human Resources?”
“I told you I’d be here, and I figured you were too busy to worry about a text, so I just went there.” He laughed.
“That is romantic,” Dalton said, smiling as I shot him a nasty look.
“Thank you for coming,” I said, looking back at him. “Do you want something to drink?”
“Or maybe some chips before she eats them all?” Dalton said.
“No.” Elon laughed. “I’m good, just happy to be here. So where’s the birthday boy?”
“Oh, that’s an easy one,” I said, taking his hand. “Listen for the gunshots, and you will find him.”
I dragged him to Mikey’s room where the boys were all gathered around the Xbox, playing Halo and cheering loudly for Mikey. I leaned against the doorframe and watched them, happy that Mikey was having such a good time. Elon leaned against the other side and laughed.
“You weren’t kidding about the Halo,” he said.
“I never kid about Halo,” I replied. “Mikey would hold me in contempt as his mother.”
“Mom,” Mikey yelled out, running up to me. “This is the best party ever.”
“I’m glad you’re having fun.” I laughed. “I want you to meet someone. This is Mr. Truitt, my boss.”
“Nice to meet you,” he said, shaking his hand.
“Nice to meet you too,” Elon smiled, bending down to him. “I didn’t know what you liked, but your mom said you were really into animals, so I got you this.”
He handed him a piece of paper, and Mikey looked up at me before unfolding it. He took a minute to read the paper,
and I stared, wondering what it could be. Mikey’s eyes grew big, and he looked up at me and back at Elon.
“What is it?” I laughed. “A rocket?”
“Even better,” he said, handing me the paper. “A lifetime membership to the zoo for me and you, which means we can go whenever we want to.”
“That’s right,” Elon said. “When you go the first time, they’ll issue you laminated cards and you can eat there for free too.”
“Thank you so much,” Mikey said, launching himself at Elon before running off to tell Dalton.
We both stood up and watched as he told Dalton, both of them jumping up and down. Dalton looked over at Elon and gave him the thumbs-up, winking at me. My cheeks blushed, and I turned back to Elon.
“That is a really amazing gift,” I said. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“Oh, I got you something too,” he said pulling out a bar of homemade soap with a ribbon it. “Since you like baths.”
“Hey, Mr. Truitt,” Mikey yelled. “Come look at the cake Mom got me. It looks like the zoo.”
Elon looked at me and raised his eyebrows, smiling before he walked over and bent down, talking to Mikey. I watched the way he talked to him, feeling the bar of soap in my hands. I could tell that I was starting to have real feelings for this man, feelings that went far above infatuation or lust. My heart was doing flip-flops in my stomach just watching him with my son. He was more than I thought he was, more than I had given him credit for.
“That was a pretty hot gift,” Dalton said, walking up next to me.
“I don’t know about hot, but the zoo is definitely an awesome gift,” I said, still staring at them.
“Not the zoo, dummy,” he said. “The soap.”
“Oh,” I said, looking down at the soap. “I suppose it is.”
I gave Dalton a big smile and wiggled my eyebrows, tossing the bar into his hands and walking over to the cake.
