her.
Now he just had to figure out a way to have Chloe in his life, without jeopardizing her job.
12
AIDEN SPENT MOST of the night tossing and turning, but by the time he arrived at work the following morning, he’d come up with a possible solution to his situation. It was a risky proposition, and it all depended on how lenient Perry was willing to be with Aiden’s suggestion, but if his boss didn’t agree, Aiden was ready and willing to walk out the door before he’d ever allow Chloe to lose her job.
Aiden was just reaching for the phone on his desk to call and request a meeting with Perry, when his intercom buzzed and Perry’s personal secretary, Lena, spoke first. “Aiden, Mr. Perry would like to see you in his office immediately.”
Lena rarely used the word immediately, which put an urgent spin to the request. Whatever was on Perry’s mind, the other man wanted to address it posthaste, and that could either mean good news, or bad.
Aiden was prepared for either.
“I’ll be right there,” he said, and within a few minutes he was sitting across from Perry, who appeared calm, composed and very unreadable. Aiden had no idea what to expect.
Perry leaned forward in his chair and clasped his hands together on his desk, all business. “I just got off the phone with Edward Luca, and there’s been a change in the campaign and what he wants.”
“Okay,” Aiden said hesitantly, wondering if Luca had instead decided on Chloe’s flash mob concept, or worse, had elected to go with the Metro Ad Agency. A contract hadn’t been signed, so the other man wasn’t committed to any firm yet and could easily opt to go with a different idea or company.
“Now that he’s had time to really think about your concept, and Chloe’s, he’s decided that he would like to incorporate elements of Chloe’s presentation into the campaign, as well,” Perry said, his expression remaining serious even though he was imparting some very exciting news. “It seems he likes the idea of using a flash mob as a viral marketing tool, with the focus being on the island matchmaker. He wants to mesh both concepts, and I agree that it could be a very effective campaign.”
“That’s fantastic,” Aiden said, meaning it.
“I’m honestly glad you feel that way, because I wasn’t sure you’d be okay sharing the account with Chloe. It would mean splitting the bonus with her, and working closely together for the next few months,” Perry said pointedly. “And after what happened in my office yesterday between the two of you, I have to wonder if that’s going to be possible. Care to tell me what, exactly, happened on the island between yourself and Chloe?”
Perry’s direct gaze met Aiden’s, waiting for him to answer the question. Perry wasn’t a stupid man, and probably had a good idea what had transpired on the island. Not just the misunderstanding of her pitching his presentation, but on a more personal level. And Aiden wasn’t going to lie about it. This is where he intended to fight for Chloe, and prayed that it all worked out in the end.
He exhaled a deep breath. “Chloe and I broke the no dating policy,” he admitted, trying to be as diplomatic as possible with his reply. “And I plan to continue seeing her outside of the office, if she’ll accept my apology after yesterday’s misunderstanding.”
Perry’s brows furrowed into a deep frown. “I figured something like that happened between you two, and now we have a situation where the tension has the potential to affect and hurt each of your efforts on the campaign.” Perry’s lips pursed, and anger flashed in his gaze. “This is exactly why the no dating policy exists. You do understand that this is grounds for termination, don’t you? Not just for you, but Chloe, as well? I’m now in the position where I have to fire two of my best executives.”
Aiden knew there was a firm stance on the no dating rule, because an intimate relationship with a colleague did tend to affect their working relationship. He’d seen it happen before, in other firms and even this office, and knew that there would be no exception for him and Chloe. One of them would have to leave, and Aiden planned for that person to be him.
“I have a compromise I’d like to offer,” he said, because he cared for Chloe, loved her and wanted every aspect of a relationship with her to work.