Read Online Love Be Mine (The Louisiana Ladies Series, Book 3) by Shirlee Busbee - Free Book Online
Authors: Shirlee Busbee
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desperate enough to make this offer, perhaps he should accept it... with one slight change....
His mind suddenly made up, Hugh said, "I will not sell part of my interest—you may buy all of it—provided my stepfather approves. It is possible that John will even sell you his shares." A cynical smile crossed his face. "Then you will be completely rid of us."
There was a stunned silence. "All of it?" Jean asked at last.
Hugh nodded. "Pending John Lancaster's approval."
Jean made a face. "It is generous of you, but we cannot. I will be honest with you—to buy only half of your shares will nearly bring us to the brink of bankruptcy. There is simply no way that we would be able to buy it all."
"Then I am afraid that we are at an impasse."
"You will not consider selling us half?"
Hugh shook his head. "You have been honest with me—I shall be so with you... I fear that if Galland, Lancaster and Dupree is left in your hands, in less than two years, there will be no business."
"I beg your pardon?" Jean said stiffly, his features congealing into an expression of offended anger.
Hugh sighed. So much for their moment of honesty with each other. "For the past twenty-two months we have taken severe losses, and during that time you have continued to authorize expenditures at the same rate you have in the past. We cannot keep dipping into our capital in this manner."
"I told Micaela that it was useless to try to talk to you," Jean snarled, springing to his feet.
"This was Micaela's idea?" Hugh asked, startled.
Jean nodded curtly. "She knew that her brother and I were upset with the situation, and she suggested that we try to buy a controlling interest. She was even willing to risk every cent of her own small fortune which came to her from her grand-pere." An unfriendly smile curved his mouth. "She agreed to do anything that would get rid of you! My niece is very loyal to her family—she is willing to do whatever is necessary for her family's sake."
"I see," Hugh replied, with an odd sensation of disappointment knifing through him. It was ridiculous of course. Micaela Dupree's opinion meant nothing to him.
Rising to his own feet, Hugh said softly, "It seems that we have nothing else to say to each other."
"You think so," Jean snapped. "You are mistaken, monsieur, if you think that we shall give in so easily."
Jean left in the same manner as François, right down to the slamming of the door. Shaking his head, Hugh sat down. Unwilling to dwell on the unpleasant scene which had just taken place, even less willing to examine his emotions concerning Micaela's part in it, he buried himself in work.
It was several hours later that he noticed something odd. Starting shortly after Christophe's death, there were, interspersed throughout, invoices that were different. Close examination convinced him that there was nothing on the paper to arouse his curiosity, everything was there that should be, there were no suspicious smudges or indecipherable writing, nothing appeared to be altered, but there was something. It wasn't until he was idly rubbing his thumb across one of pages that it dawned on him—the quality of the paper was just slightly different... crisper, smoother...
His interest piqued, he found the other invoices which had troubled him and discovered the same thing. Buried in the middle of each extensive invoice were, sometimes just one, upon occasion two or three, pages whose quality felt different from all the rest.
Leaning back in his chair, Hugh stared at the dozen or so invoices before him. There could be a logical explanation for the substitution of paper. But it was interesting, he decided grimly, that these odd pages started showing up about the time the company started losing money and that only very large invoices, consisting of several pages, had the different paper. Another thing—the questionable pages were always in the middle... almost as if someone had buried them there knowing that normally they would
His mind suddenly made up, Hugh said, "I will not sell part of my interest—you may buy all of it—provided my stepfather approves. It is possible that John will even sell you his shares." A cynical smile crossed his face. "Then you will be completely rid of us."
There was a stunned silence. "All of it?" Jean asked at last.
Hugh nodded. "Pending John Lancaster's approval."
Jean made a face. "It is generous of you, but we cannot. I will be honest with you—to buy only half of your shares will nearly bring us to the brink of bankruptcy. There is simply no way that we would be able to buy it all."
"Then I am afraid that we are at an impasse."
"You will not consider selling us half?"
Hugh shook his head. "You have been honest with me—I shall be so with you... I fear that if Galland, Lancaster and Dupree is left in your hands, in less than two years, there will be no business."
"I beg your pardon?" Jean said stiffly, his features congealing into an expression of offended anger.
Hugh sighed. So much for their moment of honesty with each other. "For the past twenty-two months we have taken severe losses, and during that time you have continued to authorize expenditures at the same rate you have in the past. We cannot keep dipping into our capital in this manner."
"I told Micaela that it was useless to try to talk to you," Jean snarled, springing to his feet.
"This was Micaela's idea?" Hugh asked, startled.
Jean nodded curtly. "She knew that her brother and I were upset with the situation, and she suggested that we try to buy a controlling interest. She was even willing to risk every cent of her own small fortune which came to her from her grand-pere." An unfriendly smile curved his mouth. "She agreed to do anything that would get rid of you! My niece is very loyal to her family—she is willing to do whatever is necessary for her family's sake."
"I see," Hugh replied, with an odd sensation of disappointment knifing through him. It was ridiculous of course. Micaela Dupree's opinion meant nothing to him.
Rising to his own feet, Hugh said softly, "It seems that we have nothing else to say to each other."
"You think so," Jean snapped. "You are mistaken, monsieur, if you think that we shall give in so easily."
Jean left in the same manner as François, right down to the slamming of the door. Shaking his head, Hugh sat down. Unwilling to dwell on the unpleasant scene which had just taken place, even less willing to examine his emotions concerning Micaela's part in it, he buried himself in work.
It was several hours later that he noticed something odd. Starting shortly after Christophe's death, there were, interspersed throughout, invoices that were different. Close examination convinced him that there was nothing on the paper to arouse his curiosity, everything was there that should be, there were no suspicious smudges or indecipherable writing, nothing appeared to be altered, but there was something. It wasn't until he was idly rubbing his thumb across one of pages that it dawned on him—the quality of the paper was just slightly different... crisper, smoother...
His interest piqued, he found the other invoices which had troubled him and discovered the same thing. Buried in the middle of each extensive invoice were, sometimes just one, upon occasion two or three, pages whose quality felt different from all the rest.
Leaning back in his chair, Hugh stared at the dozen or so invoices before him. There could be a logical explanation for the substitution of paper. But it was interesting, he decided grimly, that these odd pages started showing up about the time the company started losing money and that only very large invoices, consisting of several pages, had the different paper. Another thing—the questionable pages were always in the middle... almost as if someone had buried them there knowing that normally they would
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