In the Market for Love - By Nina Blake Page 0,4
to manage. And she would not be defeated. Not by any man. Not again.
At twenty-nine years of age, she had eight years experience in public relations and marketing, two years of which she’d spent as marketing manager at Omega Pharmaceuticals. She had the skills and determination to manage both a new advertising campaign and Jake Austin.
“Why don’t you sit next to me,” she said to Samantha.
She then motioned Jake and Marcus to the other side of the boardroom table. Smiling brightly as she did so, it was impossible for the two advertising men to take offence at her suggestion.
“I’ve ordered coffee, ladies,” Jake said. “It won’t be long. Oh, and here it is.”
It struck Rachel that this was a man who was used to giving orders and, furthermore, having them obeyed.
A young, red-haired woman brought in freshly brewed coffee and florentines, filling the air with a heady mix of coffee and chocolate. Jake took the tray from her.
“This is my personal assistant, Emma Johnson.” He paused to place the tray on the boardroom table. “Emma’s only been here a year but she’s indispensable. We couldn’t function without her.”
“I’ll do that, Jake,” Emma said as he picked up the stainless steel coffee plunger.
He shook his head. “Don’t be silly. I can manage.”
“I guess you don’t need me here any more.” She brushed her hand against his shoulder in a friendly gesture before closing the boardroom door behind her.
Jake poured four cups of aromatic coffee and offered around the florentines, though Rachel declined.
His relationship with his personal assistant seemed friendly and relaxed, not at all how she expected it to be. In the car park she’d thought him arrogant and his initial behaviour in the foyer only seemed to confirm that. Yet now he was prepared to perform menial tasks himself. She wondered what the real Jake Austin was like.
Rachel took control of the meeting and explained the role of Omega Pharmaceuticals and the company’s highly effective new sun screen on which the proposed Skin Plus campaign was to be based.
“As you know, Sydney has hot summers and a large number of sunny days year round,” she said.
“Yes, we know where we live,” Jake said dryly.
She was thrown by his sudden abruptness. He might even be resentful that she was going to request the agency to take on the campaign as a pro bono project. But surely he hadn’t already made up his mind about that.
She sucked in a deep breath. “We also have high rates of skin cancer and the new sun screen we’ve developed can reduce this.” That was the point she’d been trying to make before he interrupted.
She knew the project inside out and had spent two years convincing the company CEO that marketing the sun screen would benefit the community and bring in profits for further pharmaceutical research. She was not going to let one man ruin two years of work.
“Who’s your target market again?” Marcus asked.
“Families,” she said. “This is an inexpensive product for families and also for the wider community.”
“So you’re not aiming at people like me who are too young to be married.” Marcus sniggered. “I’m only thirty-one.”
“We do want to include men, fathers in particular.”
“There are a few ways to get dads interested.” Marcus seemed to be thinking out loud. “And an attractive girl in a bikini never fails. We could use that new soap actress. What’s her name? The one that looks like Pammie Anderson. Every married man in Australia would want her smearing sun screen all over them.”
Rachel glared at him. “I don’t think so!”
“I didn’t mean–“
“The idea of married men playing around. That’s outright offensive. There’s no excuse for it. Not ever. Marriage isn’t a joke. It’s not something to be taken lightly. Not when you live with someone and you have a family.”
“I just meant that’s one way we could sell the campaign,” Marcus said.
“That may be the case but it’s not the right way for us.”
Jake’s shoulders tensed as he gripped a pen with both hands. “Hang on. We’re jumping ahead of ourselves here. We haven’t agreed to take the campaign on. Although, Rachel, the way you described the campaign gives it much more of a hook than the way your CEO explained it to me yesterday.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “You’ve spoken to my boss?”
“Yes, but I confess he didn’t sell me on it as you have.”
She had no idea he’d spoken to her manager at length. She didn’t like surprises. She liked to be prepared.
“So why did you