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Authors: Stacey Kennedy
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the skyline again.
“Yes?” Neil’s cheery voice fills the room.
“Contact Darius Bennett and set up a meeting as soon as possible.”
When the intercom turns off, a loud clearing of a throat has me glancing over my shoulder.
Anderson’s scowling at me. “You better know what you’re doing.”
He wouldn’t be Anderson if he didn’t call me out on this. He’s not my COO by chance. Anderson has worked with me at Holt from day one, because he didn’t feed me bullshit back then and he won’t now.
I nod, it being the only answer I’m prepared to offer.
Truth be told, I don’t have a clue what I’m doing. For the first time, I’m charging forward without a plan.
“The look on your face right now isn’t convincing,” Anderson comments, shutting the door, with him inside. “If you ask me, it seems that all you know is what you want, and
she
is a floor beneath us.”
“Keep Allie out of this conversation,” I give him a gently warning.
“She’s in it,” he fires back at me, crossing his arms over his chest. “Tell me you’re thinking straight about this. Your personal decision affects Holt. Richardson is not pocket change. We put in millions of dollars to buy the company, for the sole purpose of dismantling it. And you better be damn sure this woman is worth the risk.”
I keep my mouth shut, not feeling the need to defend myself.
Anderson curses, shaking his head. “You made a bad decision. Your team is watching you make that bad decision. Trust is made and kept by not making bad decisions.” He presses both hands against the back of the chair in front of him, knuckles white. “So, tell me that you’re not making a bad decision.”
Before I can reply, Neil’s voice breaks through the thick tension in the air. “I’m afraid that Mr. Bennett is away on business right now, but he can meet you at Holt on Saturday morning after he returns from traveling. Shall I confirm?”
“Please do,” I reply.
Anderson waits until the intercom beeps, ending Neil’s access to our conversation, before he addresses me again, “I’ll back you a hundred percent on this, but give me your word that if at any time the decision becomes detrimental to Holt, you’ll break the promise you made to Allie.”
The thought makes my skin crawl. But I owe Anderson this promise for his loyalty to Holt and to me. I want to save Richardson for all the reasons Allie wanted me to, but not at the expense of my relationship with Anderson. “You have my word.”
Allie
The pictures of the houses on my monitor are beginning to blur. One hour of searching the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for new listings and then scanning through Holt’s private database of new houses coming onto the market, and I’m still finding nothing better than what I showed Jenny this morning. Apparently the houses I found were only good houses in my eyes, not hers.
It’s too small, the layout is weird, the paint colors are horrible;
Jenny complained about it all, and I had to force myself not to roll my eyes at her.
First-world problems, indeed.
I rub the ache out of my eyes; I can’t keep looking at this screen hoping the perfect house pops out at me. Frustrated at being back at square one with the Lowes, I rise from my desk, desperately needing some fresh air, and remember the patio Liv told me about earlier.
The floor is dead quiet as I move slowly down the hallway. There are a couple other offices with lights on, telling me I’m not the only insane person here tonight. I make it up the stairs in no time, hurrying outside, letting the door shut loudly behind me.
A lovely garden, with grass and shrubs, surrounds me, looking more like a small park than a rooftop of a high-rise. I follow the cobblestone pathway with the solar lights lining the sides, heading straight for the balcony.
The night is dark and clouds are covering much of the sky, hiding the stars and moon, but I inhale a long breath anyway, staring out at the skyline, pretty
“Yes?” Neil’s cheery voice fills the room.
“Contact Darius Bennett and set up a meeting as soon as possible.”
When the intercom turns off, a loud clearing of a throat has me glancing over my shoulder.
Anderson’s scowling at me. “You better know what you’re doing.”
He wouldn’t be Anderson if he didn’t call me out on this. He’s not my COO by chance. Anderson has worked with me at Holt from day one, because he didn’t feed me bullshit back then and he won’t now.
I nod, it being the only answer I’m prepared to offer.
Truth be told, I don’t have a clue what I’m doing. For the first time, I’m charging forward without a plan.
“The look on your face right now isn’t convincing,” Anderson comments, shutting the door, with him inside. “If you ask me, it seems that all you know is what you want, and
she
is a floor beneath us.”
“Keep Allie out of this conversation,” I give him a gently warning.
“She’s in it,” he fires back at me, crossing his arms over his chest. “Tell me you’re thinking straight about this. Your personal decision affects Holt. Richardson is not pocket change. We put in millions of dollars to buy the company, for the sole purpose of dismantling it. And you better be damn sure this woman is worth the risk.”
I keep my mouth shut, not feeling the need to defend myself.
Anderson curses, shaking his head. “You made a bad decision. Your team is watching you make that bad decision. Trust is made and kept by not making bad decisions.” He presses both hands against the back of the chair in front of him, knuckles white. “So, tell me that you’re not making a bad decision.”
Before I can reply, Neil’s voice breaks through the thick tension in the air. “I’m afraid that Mr. Bennett is away on business right now, but he can meet you at Holt on Saturday morning after he returns from traveling. Shall I confirm?”
“Please do,” I reply.
Anderson waits until the intercom beeps, ending Neil’s access to our conversation, before he addresses me again, “I’ll back you a hundred percent on this, but give me your word that if at any time the decision becomes detrimental to Holt, you’ll break the promise you made to Allie.”
The thought makes my skin crawl. But I owe Anderson this promise for his loyalty to Holt and to me. I want to save Richardson for all the reasons Allie wanted me to, but not at the expense of my relationship with Anderson. “You have my word.”
Allie
The pictures of the houses on my monitor are beginning to blur. One hour of searching the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) for new listings and then scanning through Holt’s private database of new houses coming onto the market, and I’m still finding nothing better than what I showed Jenny this morning. Apparently the houses I found were only good houses in my eyes, not hers.
It’s too small, the layout is weird, the paint colors are horrible;
Jenny complained about it all, and I had to force myself not to roll my eyes at her.
First-world problems, indeed.
I rub the ache out of my eyes; I can’t keep looking at this screen hoping the perfect house pops out at me. Frustrated at being back at square one with the Lowes, I rise from my desk, desperately needing some fresh air, and remember the patio Liv told me about earlier.
The floor is dead quiet as I move slowly down the hallway. There are a couple other offices with lights on, telling me I’m not the only insane person here tonight. I make it up the stairs in no time, hurrying outside, letting the door shut loudly behind me.
A lovely garden, with grass and shrubs, surrounds me, looking more like a small park than a rooftop of a high-rise. I follow the cobblestone pathway with the solar lights lining the sides, heading straight for the balcony.
The night is dark and clouds are covering much of the sky, hiding the stars and moon, but I inhale a long breath anyway, staring out at the skyline, pretty
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