“You thought I was full of shit.”
“Yeah!”
We both laughed, releasing a fraction of the tension, animosity, and everything else between us.
Alec said, “Well, if the meeting is at their headquarters, I’ll be there. Denver is my home base now. If you meet with Rebekah herself, I’ll be in the meeting. I sit in on all of them.”
“It will be!”
“Then I’ll see you there.”
We smiled at each other. Moments ago, it would’ve been awkward, but it wasn’t. He looked over my shoulder and said, “Oh, here he comes.”
“I would really like to have a grown-up conversation with you, man. For real.”
I knew the face he gave well, that fear of being the slightest bit late. “I’m not gonna be able to have the kinda talk you wanna have at this conference, man. But I’ll call you.”
“No, you won’t.”
“No, I won’t.” He chuckled.
“Maybe we can grab a drink after the CompComm pitch if you’re there?”
His smile faded, but not as much as it could have. “I don’t know. I keep private and professional well divided these days.” He stared at me for a beat. “We’ll see how things go. You might not be in the mood for something heavy after sparring with Rebekah.”
“I’d want to talk to you while my plane was crashing, Alec,” I said, containing my excitement at the mere possibility of having a discussion with him.
He laughed hard and smiled at me. “I’ve really got to go,” he looked over my shoulder and waved, “He’s waiting for me now.” One last glance before he walked away. “It was good to see you again.” He patted my shoulder like he was talking to no more than a former associate. “Take care, Mason,” he said and walked away.
“Hey,” I said, forcing him to turn around. “You were right last year. Rebekah wants to win. But not against anyone or anything. She wants CompComm to enter the consumer market. That’s her plan, and how I scored the meeting.”
He knew. Of course he did. His smile from ear to ear proved it. How he didn’t respond proved it more.
I had never been more excited to give a pitch in my life.
Chapter Sixteen
When my Jr. Rep. gets nervous, he chatters endlessly. Movies, proposing to his girlfriend, the best soda to mix with grain alcohol—anything. That morning was silent. Nerves so bad they shut Deven up only made mine worse. Though, his were focused on the pitch we were about to give. My angst centered on seeing an old colleague, mentor, and friend at the table.
There was no communication between Alec and me in the weeks after the conference. I knew only part of that was apprehension about speaking to me. The rest was professionalism. Our former working relationship and his new position meant there was a conflict of interest.
That didn’t occur to me until we got home from the conference. I tried my best to find Alec again while still there, but didn’t. None of us did. Lisa said she canceled their lunch, but also let slip he had to move his flight to the morning before they met.
Rebekah’s entourage, including Alec, were the last to arrive. I couldn’t sit, and Deven couldn’t stand. Alec looked better than he did at the conference. It filled me with butterflies and dried my mouth.
“Good to see you,” Alec said, shaking my hand. I returned the greeting and formally introduced him to Deven.
Rebekah was very attractive, but no one who had ever met her would think to mention her looks. The wit and humor she’d shown in our brief elevator encounter was a drop in the ocean of charm and intelligence she possessed.
“Mason Blackwood, right,” she said with a firm handshake. It wasn’t a question.
“Yes, we’ve met once before. Last year—”
“Oh, I remember.” She chuckled as she sat. “And even if I didn’t, Alec reminded me.” She laughed. “I liked you guys. Took chutzpah to ambush me like that, but it’ll take a bit more today.” Her smile was wide, but her eyes were sharp. “Alec says you know your stuff. You wouldn’t have gotten this meeting without his recommendation. So, please don’t disappoint.”
That wasn’t the typical start of a sales pitch. It felt more like I was presenting to professors who held my future in their hands. If seeing Alec didn’t already throw me, that did.
But also—what the fuck did she mean I wouldn’t be there without his recommendation? My heart skipped a beat, and my mouth dried further. If that were true, he knew about it well before I told him. Not only knew, but secretly worked on my behalf. And if he was out there back-channeling to help me, that meant…
