Problem Child (Jane Doe #2) - Victoria Helen Stone Page 0,42
a blessed day, now.”
She can’t quite reconcile my sugary tone with my words, and the deep lines are back between her brows, but she tries a cheerful “You too, ma’am!”
Ma’am. Yeesh. That’s getting old. My kingdom for a smart young bartender who knows to call me miss. Maybe I’ll find one later tonight, but the ma’ams are hot and heavy around here. I probably won’t escape them until I fly back north.
Oh well. Onward and upward.
My phone rings as I’m getting back into my car. It’s the office again. I have a brief thought that maybe I’m getting promoted, so I decide to answer it after all. “This is Jane,” I say, adding a subtle quaver of vulnerability to my voice. This isn’t a good time but I’m still answering the call.
“Jane,” he says, and I swing the phone away from my face to glare at it. Are you kidding me?
“Rob?” I snap back. “What do you want?”
“Hey, sorry,” he’s saying when I slide the phone back to my ear. “I know this isn’t a good time, but I need to talk to you about North Unlimited. Shouldn’t take a minute.”
“I’m busy. Whatever it is, you’ll need to do it yourself this time, Robert.”
“I just need to grab a couple of details from the numbers you threw out to the client. There’s something wrong with the Google Doc.”
“You want my details?” I ask. “Surely you have your own notes. You worked so hard on that presentation, after all.”
“Jane, this isn’t about me. It’s about the client.”
“Your client.”
“Yeah, um . . .” Rob clears his throat. “I have some good news. They really liked interacting with you.”
“Is that right?”
“Yes. Absolutely. So Jeremy and I talked it over, and we both want you to take the lead in negotiations when you get back.”
Well, well, well. This is quite the news drop. And I have all the power now. No more kid gloves for Rob. “So you came up with the idea that I should take over negotiations for your client. Is that what you’re saying, Robert?”
“I, uh . . .”
“You need my help,” I suggest.
“Yes.”
“You’re asking for my help.”
“Yes.”
“So ask. And I suggest you ask nicely.”
“Jesus,” I hear him mutter before he takes a deep breath. “North Unlimited has requested that I work with you on this, and I’d really love to have you on board.”
“How nice. What did Jeremy say?”
“He, uh . . . he said you should take the lead on negotiations when you get back.”
“This is so strange, Robert, but I still didn’t hear you ask me a question, so I’m not sure how I’m supposed to give an answer.”
“Would you please work with me on this deal and take over negotiations when you’re back in the office?”
“I’m not sure,” I say. “You have a tendency to take credit even when you haven’t done the work. This setup seems rather fraught with risk for me, don’t you think?”
“I . . .” I hear him swallow. “If I’ve taken credit in the past for your work, I apologize.”
“If? That doesn’t indicate to me that you’ve learned anything from your latest missteps, and I don’t think I can trust you enough to work on this project for me. I’ll get in touch with Jeremy and let him know.” I hang up and buckle my seat belt. Before it even clicks in, my phone is ringing again.
I wait a few seconds before answering. “Yes?”
“Jane, I’m sorry. You’re right. I’ve taken advantage of your knowledge and leaned on you over the past year. I’ve really appreciated all your hard work, and I promise it won’t happen again.”
“I’m dealing with a family tragedy here, Robert.”
“I know. I know. I just . . . I really screwed up that presentation to North Unlimited, and they’re pretty insistent that I work with you on this. I’m begging you.”
Begging me? Well, I do like that. I raise my eyebrows and settle back into the seat of my car. “Begging me for what?”
“I know you’re concentrating on your niece, and that’s what you should be doing. So I’ll do the work. I’ll get everything together, write up the proposals, all of that. If you could just send me your notes. Then, when you return, you’re lead negotiator. But please don’t freeze me out on this.”
Wow. I purposefully made myself look good and Rob look terrible, but I got distracted by the excitement of hunting for Kayla, and I didn’t push through to claim my place. I assumed one