Read Online Romancing Tommy Gabrini by Mallory Monroe - Free Book Online

of Marketing,” Penny said.   “You know as well as I know that we . . . How can I put it?”
    “That
you steal ideas from other companies?” Jared suggested.
    “We borrow from other companies,” Penny
preferred.   “We borrow their marketing
strategies and then we put our own spin on it.   But it’s a messy, borderline illegal process.   And Jillian knows it!   But she wants to film that, too.   She’s out of her mind, Grace!”
    Grace
nodded.   “I’ll see what I can do,” she
said, to their delight.   They could
always count on Grace to at least voice their concerns to Jillian.
    And
then Jared added, as he always did:   “How
about dinner tonight?”
    “I
don’t date co-workers,” Grace replied, as she always did.
    “Like
hell!   You dated Cam and he supposedly
works here! That is, when he drags his ass out of some woman’s bed and bothers
to show up.”
    “Ever
dated someone that you later wondered what in the world were you thinking?”
Grace asked him.
    Jared
hesitated.   “Is this a trick question?”
    “Just
answer it.”
    “Yes,
I’ve dated many people who I later look back and wonder what in san hell was I
thinking.”
    “That’s
Cam and me,” Grace said as the elevator doors binged open.   “So using Cam Birch as an example will get
you nowhere with me, bud.”
    Jared
laughed.  
    “Let’s
get to work, guys,” Grace admonished as she stepped off of the elevator on the
top floor of the ten-floor office building, and headed for her office.   Her two managers stepped off too, thanked her
for agreeing to voice their concerns to Jillian, and then headed for theirs.
    But Grace
had barely rounded the reception desk before Jillian Birch came barreling out
of her office, her two assistants in tow, as she announced she had a family
emergency and Grace had to handle the meeting.
    “What
meeting?” Grace asked as she watched Jillian tear past her in that whirlwind
way she always carried herself.
    “With
the union rep.”
    “The
union rep?” Grace asked incredulously.   “But Jillian they’re threatening to strike.   Don’t you think you should be the one to
handle this meeting?”
    “I
have every confidence in your ability to do everything in your power to get him
to see reason.”
    “But
they might strike,” Grace said again with some urgency, in case her boss didn’t
fully understand.
    Jillian
stopped, turned around, and then walked back up to Grace.   “I have a family emergency,” she said.   “Didn’t you hear me?”
    “But
we’re talking about our truckers walking off the job.   This is vital.”
    “And
my son isn’t?   It’s Cameron.   He’s gotten himself into a bit of a mess, and
I’ve got to take care of it.”
    “He’s
a grown man, but yeah, okay.”
    Jillian
stared at Grace.   Contempt dripped from
her eyes.   “You think you have it all
figured out, don’t you?   You’re young and
smart and pretty as a picture and you figure you got it all together.   Well wait until you’re fifty, darling, and
not so pretty anymore.   Wait until men
start preferring twenty year olds to you.   You just wait.   Then the fact that
your son is grown, if you’re fortunate to even have one since at the rate
you’re going it’s doubtful, will mean nothing to you.   Making certain that he’s all right and well
cared for will be the very reason you get out of bed every morning, too.”   Then a coldness flashed across her eyes.   “Meet with the union rep.   Resolve his concerns.   Avert the strike.   You’re chief of staff around here, for
goodness sake.   Start acting like
it.”   Jillian said this and then headed,
once again, for the elevators.
    Grace
exhaled as she always did when Jillian left a room. It was as if an earthquake
had been shaking the building and scaring the life out of everybody and then,
just like that, the calm returned.   But
that feeling of being through a storm was still there.
    Grace
hesitated, flustered, and then