by Nana Malone
Evan spoke up then. “I know we have discussed this, but I really do need access to your database.”
Ariel smiled at him. “We have discussed this, and I’ve already said no.”
Evan didn’t let it go, though.
“It helps us do our jobs better if we can at least mine the users, find out who they are. Advertise to them.”
“Well, I can’t tell you who they are. I have a strict data policy. I don’t share with anyone. I find it disappointing that we need to keep having this conversation again. Before I signed the contract, I made it clear you could not have my database. Are we on the same page, or aren’t we?”
Rick chimed in then. “Yes, of course. Ms. Scott, your database is yours. I’m sure Evan only wants to make the marketing plan the best that it can be. If you can provide us the general information about your customers, the region they live in, what they do, what they like to do for fun, we can tailor our marketing.”
Ariel nodded. “Fine, I can do that.”
Evan looked like he’d swallowed a bag of rocks. He was livid, and I didn’t know why. I didn’t know why he needed specific access to that database, and that scared me. What did he want to do with it?
I glanced around and tried to divert everyone back to the main topic, but I made a mental note to ask Ariel and Roone what in the world Evan could want with that database.
Jessa
After the meeting was over, I headed straight for my office. Chloe had another meeting so that left me alone with Ariel, who immediately called Roone.
Roone was on the phone, and Ariel tried to calm me down. “It’s okay. Everything is fine.”
“Why is Evan acting that way?”
Roone’s voice was deep and sharp once he hung up. “What did he do?”
Ariel tried to explain. “He was just very aggressive about Meet Cute. Maybe we’re burned, maybe not. At the end of the day, I’m not sure what to do with that angle. Since you’re off the account, I’ll have to insist on working with Jessa directly.”
Roone was silent for a beat. “That could work.”
Ariel ran her hands through her hair. “Well, this is the time for a bit of advice. I’m pretty sure I don’t have much time before he barges in here, because he’s insisting on accompanying Jessa to London Lords.”
“You guys. Give me a plan here. If I’m here, trying to be bait, I need to act like everything is normal. Which means I need this job. I’d rather Evan didn’t drive me crazy while I do it.”
Ariel rolled her eyes. “Evan’s just got a hair up his ass. And he’s angry. I’m not sure what set him off, maybe it was Jessa leaving for a week, but he’s in a mood.”
Roone rubbed his jaw. “Okay, I hear you. Jessa, relax. Go to the meeting as usual. I have an ace in the hole I can play, okay?”
“What? I mean, I still have to do my job. What ace could we possibly play? He showed up at my house this morning.”
Ariel touched my hand. “It’s okay. We’re going to make some arrangements, for a more secure place.”
“But that’s my home.”
One that you could leave at a moment’s notice.
I don’t know why I was being stubborn. I was the girl who moved at the drop of a hat. My whole life, all it took was a, ‘Jessa, get a move on,’ and I would strap my backpack on and be out the door, never looking back.
But somehow this felt more intrusive, and I didn’t want to do it.
Roone’s voice was soft. “Look, him with a burr up his arse is problematic, yes. But let’s not do anything drastic. I don’t want to disrupt Jessa’s life any more than we have to.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you. What are we going to do?”
“Relax, like I said, we’ll go to the meeting as usual, and then we’ll keep things from going off the rails.”
Ariel pursed her lips. “We won’t have enough protection in that room with Evan insisting on going.”
Roone lifted his chin. “Don’t worry. I have her. She’ll have enough protection.”
“You guys, he’s my boss. Do we have anything to go on? Any evidence we can use against him?”
Ariel shook her head. “No, but, I’m still working an angle. Thanks to Willow, I’ve located a couple of other past girlfriends. I’m hoping one of them will be willing to give us information on how he acted, what he did. I’m also digging up some old police reports. I don’t think he’s had any official charges filed against him, but reports were still filed. I’m looking for those, anything to show a pattern of behavior. And then I’m going to stick surveillance on him. Actually, I’ve already got that going. Any activities that are untoward, we’ll know about. If need be, we’ll arrest him.”
“Jesus Christ, we are talking about having my boss arrested. How is this my life?”
On the phone, Roone’s voice was low. “One step at a time. Ariel is going to get surveillance going, and we’re going to go to the meeting. I’ll be with you every step of the way.”
Ariel rolled her eyes. “Oh my God, you guys. Can’t you stop with the voice fucking? Roone, your voice is going all low and sexy. Focus people.”
There was a sharp rap at the door, and Ariel somehow went from looking relaxed to looking like she was having an intense conversation with me about the product. “I really like this model over here.” She pointed at something non-existent on my computer and then glanced up when the door opened and Evan walked in. He frowned when he saw her there. “You’re still here?”
Ariel’s smile was sweet, but I could hear the undertones. “Yes. Jessa and I took the opportunity to look through some models.”
He nodded. “Jessa, the car is here. Let’s go to London Lords.”
I nodded. “Yup, on my way. Ariel, we’ll pick this up later?”
“Of course. Have a good meeting. Evan, pleasure as always. I’ll see you later.”
He scowled at her. But she walked out with a flounce. When she passed by the massive window in my office that looked out into the cubes, she flipped him off, but he didn’t see that. I had to work hard to school my smile and turned my attention to Evan.
Forcing a smile, I said, “Ready when you are.”
16
Roone
To say it was tense was an understatement. I could tell Jessa’s nerves were raw. She was edgy, her shoulders stiff, her lips pressed into a firm line. I’d spoken to Ben before they headed over, and he’d been more than happy to accommodate. He kept asking if helping me out would earn him a double 0 badge. Sometimes he was a pain in the ass.
But a pain in the ass that’s going to help you.
We took our seats, and Ben smirked at me. The bloody eejit was enjoying himself. Note to self, don’t ask Ben for any more favors.
Ben grinned as he shook hands with Evan then Jessa. “I’m glad you’re here.”
Evan took the lead and wouldn’t even let Jessa speak. “Thank you. I’m actually stepping in as lead again. Evans PR wants to provide you with the best we have to —”
Ben put his hand up and interrupted smoothly. “Actually, I need you to stop there. There will be changes. First, as Miss McLean is so vital to our operation, I’ll need her on the account indefinitely. She’ll still work for Evans of course, but we are to be her only client. With all the new hotel openings we have scheduled, I’d like to keep everything in one set of hands.”
Evan blinked rapidly. “I don’t understand.”
“Okay, let me be crystal clear. I need Roone and Jessa exclusively. Will that be a problem?”
Evan pushed to his feet. “You will have the team I assign! And you can’t have her.”
My cousin stepped back and eased into his chair. “Why don’t you have a seat Evan? And let me remind you about all the business that the London Lords properties have brought you. I’m sure that you can overlook any personal issues and how I handle my team.”
I probably should have avoided smirking, but I didn’t give a shit. The only thing I cared about was how stiff Jessa was. I hate
d that she was caught in the middle. I wanted to fix it for her.
Ben turned his attention to Jessa. “Now, Ms. McLean, why don’t you go ahead and run us through the marketing? Actually, you know what? Let’s first start with the restaurant. The chef is good, and I want to make sure that he gets the kind of showcase he deserves.”
“Of course,” Jessa adjusted the folders she was holding and opened one. This was a situation where she was prepared, relaxed. She knew what to do. Anything else was distraction. As she spoke, Evan watched her intently, as if the sun and the moon hung on every word she uttered.
So basically, how you’re looking at her.
I was not looking at her like that.
Dick: I can look at her if you prefer.
Okay, fine. But the difference was she actually liked me. I had molded my lips to hers. Evan, not so much.
At one point, Jessa looked up at me. “Roone, you were suggesting something in terms of the restaurant and the juxtaposition between how we can make it work with the hotels.”
“Yes, I was thinking one of those things that we could do to really showcase what London Lords has to offer, especially at the flagship, is to do in-room dining with real finesse, not just with cold efficiency. The number one thing people complain about room service food is that no matter what, it’s never as good as if you sit in a restaurant. And the more hotels try to economize, the less gets left in the experience. It might be something you could do for premier clients. A premier in-room dining experience, so that everyone knows what it feels like to be treated like a king or queen while sampling the delights of Ian Talbot. If we paired the restaurant event with stays at the hotel, there might be an opportunity to customize the menus based on a set number of room options. Junior suites get certain meals. Presidential suites get another set of meals, etcetera.”
Ben sat forward. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea. And we could—"
Evan interrupted. “First of all, the logistics behind that are astronomical. You can’t expect my team to do the extra—"
Ben cleared his throat and sat back again, steepling his fingers. “Mr. Millston, correct me if I’m wrong, but London Lords is paying for this, right?”
Evan nodded. “Yes.”
“Well, then let us, the client, determine what’s within the scope of our budget and what’s not. If we want to add to the campaign, and we’re willing to pay to do it, what’s the problem?”
Asshole shut up then. He really had no leg to stand on. He was just posturing and being a dick. He was good at that.
Jessa took the idea and ran with it. “Yes, and London Lords has each type of room based on a real name, so we could make meals catered to what would have been that royal ‘spirit dish,’ you know, with a modern touch and flare, mixed with things on the new menu from the restaurant. And then, if it goes well at the opening, we’d incorporate some of those ideas into the new hotels in New York, Los Angeles and Paris.”
Ben nodded appreciatively. “Yeah, I think this plan might work.”
As we chatted for another few minutes, Evan just glowered at me through the rest of the meeting. Finally, at the close of the meeting, when Evan stood, Ben raised a hand. “There is one more thing. Given that things are about to spike up, and that once the restaurant opening is dealt with Jessa will need to transition on to the hotel openings, I’ll need her on-site.”
Evan sputtered. “Excuse me?”
Ben nodded slowly. “Yes. I’ll provide an office for Evans PR employees, but I am the only client she’s working with, right?”
Evan shook his head. “No, she’s on Meet Cute.”
Jessa saw the question for what it was. “Yes, I’m on Meet Cute, but as it is, I can take my meetings with Ariel here. London Lords, obviously, is a lot bigger than Ariel’s account. It only makes sense. And then I won’t have to shuffle back and forth.”
Evan just glowered at her. “I’m sorry, Mr. Covington, I don’t think that we can accommodate that.”
Ben wasn’t having it though. “Are you sure you don’t want to discuss this with Rick Evans first? It only makes sense. Unless there’s another reason you won’t allow Ms. McLean to work on-site? It’s not the first time we’ve asked for workers to stay on for the duration of a project. We did it for the original London Lords hotel opening.”
Evan opened his mouth and then closed it again. He was stuck. He knew it.
Finally, he mumbled. “I’ll discuss it with Rick.”
Ben smiled and then turned to Jessa. “Ms. McLean, I’m looking forward to having you on the premises. We’ll get so much work done that way.” And then as an extra dig, he added, “And you and Roone will be able to work side by side.”
I swear, the vein in Evan’s forehead looked like it was going to burst, and there was something oddly satisfying about that.
Jessa
“Oh my God, did you do that?”
Roone grinned. “Surprise.”
“Oh my God, Evan looked like he was going to explode.”
“Good. He’s got to stop. Right now, he’s unraveling. His behavior is not only uncalled for, but it’s concerning. Anyway, this bought you a reprieve.”
“Thank you. I don’t even know what to say.”
Roone shrugged. “Of course. And if we’re here and you want to jump my bones, we don’t have to pretend.”
I sputtered. “What? Roone!”
“What? I’m just saying. Should you decide that you like me again, and you want my mouth on those pretty lips of yours,” he inclined his head and his gaze drifted down my body, “those lips, not the ones on your face,” he winked, “you just say the word, and we will have a little more privacy here.”
“Oh my God, I am not telling you that.”
“If you say so.”
“You are still an impossible asshole.”
“When you say arsehole, I say slightly annoying. But I’m delightful.”
“Oh my God, why is it that some things never change?”
He shrugged. “Well, it’s not supposed to change. And seriously, at least here you can do your job unencumbered from Evan. And I can do my job. The real one.”
It only now occurred to me how difficult it must have been to protect me when I didn’t know what was going on. “Wait, so for the last few months or so, you’ve been working and guarding me?”
He nodded slowly. “Yes.”
“But, that must have been impossible.”
He shrugged. “Well, there was me and Ariel, and we had a team of four, so we were able to get you covered outside of the building.”
“Were there other people I saw every day that were on your team?”
He nodded. “Thomas. The front desk security at Evans.”
I frowned as I thought back. I had assumed Thomas was Jamaican, with his dark onyx skin, and his lilting accent. I don’t know why it hadn’t occurred to me he could have been from anywhere else in the islands, but I suppose it made sense. Everything about him said soldier. His suit had been a little too filled out. He’d been a little too on alert.
“Oh my God, how much did I miss because I just wasn’t looking?”
He shrugged as he led me to my new office. Unlike my office back at Evans, this one had a full-length window, one that overlooked the West End. I could see blooming Westminster Abbey from here. “Wow!”
“Yeah, Ben is trying to impress you. Ignore my cousin.”
I whooped around. “I like your cousin. Wish I’d known earlier.”
He winced. “Yeah, sorry. That wasn’t exactly a lie. It was just that I never mentioned it.”
“Wait, how did you arrange for Ben to be one of our clients?”
Roone shook his head. “I didn’t. That first day when we came into the meeting with him required some fast talking. He didn’t answer when I called beforehand, so he was just as surprised as I was.”
“No wonder he looked like he’d swallowed worms. How oblivious was I?”
He shook his head. “You weren’t. People
don’t see what they don’t need to see. You didn’t need to see it. The Ben thing could have been a big problem, admittedly. But you shouldn’t have noticed. You shouldn’t have noticed your guard. You shouldn’t have noticed any of it. Once or twice you did though, which was unnerving to say the least.”
I frowned as my brain tried to run through it. “Shit, we’re going to have to rehash every single conversation we’ve ever had.”
“I know. We have time.”
“Wait, that day I was leaving the tattoo parlor… was that you?”
The lilt of his lips told me that my hunch was right. “You are surprisingly good at picking up a tail.”
“Oh my God, I thought I was losing my mind.”
Roone laughed. “Actually, I would love to hear how you did that.”
“No, no way I’m telling you. I need my secrets. But Jesus Christ, how hard was it to protect me?”
“Not easy.”
“I can imagine.”
“So, Ariel and Meet Cute… she made a dating app just so she could come in to protect me?”
“Well, Ariel is kind of a tech genius. I’m pretty sure if she wanted to, she could really put Meet Cute on the market.”
“Wait, what about Chloe? Her date seems real.”
“Yeah, it was real. After studying everyone’s profiles, Ariel did an online search on other dating apps to find people who would be good matches for everyone, with the exception of you, of course. And then she did some heavily targeted ads for her brand-new dating app. When they signed up, she put them in the algorithm and paired everyone up. So Chloe is, in fact, dating that guy. So is Evan. So is Rick. I don’t know what Evan was doing because that day he caught us at the amusement park, he wasn’t there on a Meet Cute date. So, that’s a whole other set of issues. But yeah, that little dating app could be a real product.”
“Jesus Christ, she’s brilliant.”
“Yeah, woe be us if she ever decides to use her powers for evil and not for good.”
