Regardless, if Gus wants Don there, it means hisbig newshas a financial impact above my pay grade. My mind jumps to worst-case scenarios, anxious worry clawing at my rib cage all the way down to thirty-seven.
But when I walk into the conference room, Alex is there, and my vision goes to Portrait mode. The frame is focused only on him.
He’s holding a stack of pamphlets, distributing them in front of each seat, and when he spots me, his gaze sweeps up and down my person, a heated look breaking across his features that turns me into a puddle of liquid gold. His eyes are warm and soft and open and basically screamingCome here, immediately.
“Don!” Gus says. “Thanks for joining us today.”
“Happy to,” Don says, sounding a little shy of happy. “Something specific you pulled me in for?”
Gus places both of his palms on the tabletop, holding everyone’s attention as we settle into our seats. He usually spends these meetings typing furiously on his laptop, present in body but absent in mind. Not today, though. Today, Gus Moskowitz looks practically wolfish.
Reading his feverish expression—and then Alex’s when he matches it—I predict what Gus is going to say about two seconds before he starts talking.
“I’m sorry for the short timeline on this, but a bunch of lights turned green at once, and when it rains in this industry, it pours. I just received word from Tracy Garcia that in four weeks, we’re presenting a business proposal to the board to officially launchBite the Handas the first digital media company in Little Cooper’s portfolio.”
Beside me, Don freezes, a deer in headlights, his hesitation sweeping over me like something almost palpable. Saanvi and Amanda congratulate Gus, clap their hands, exchange exclamatory praise before immediately jumping into their thoughts on the presentation. To them, this is good news, exactly what they’ve all beenworking toward. But to me, and apparently to Don, too… the timing couldn’t be more suspicious.
Thanksgiving is next week, cutting down on our prep time, and the presentation is scheduled in between Hanukkah and Christmas. That is objectively ahorribletime of year to be making important business decisions.
Tracy’s not thoughtless. What are the odds she genuinely thinks this is a good plan?
What are the odds sheknowsit’s a bad one, but she’s out of time?
What if a shinyBite the Handbusiness proposal is her last-ditch attempt at convincing the board this company is worth saving?
When my eyes cut to Don, he’s watching me with a frown, and that’s when I realize we’re both in on the same secret. We might even be having the same thought: This presentation isn’t going to decide whether or not to launch a subsidiary. It’ll decide whether LC stays independent or gets sold for parts.
“You’re coming with me to Tracy’s office,” Don says on our way back up to ninety-eight. “I know you know. We need to talk about how to handle this with the others.”
I nod mutely, fully embodying a child who’s gotten in over her head.
I couldn’t even look Alex in the eye for the rest of the meeting. It felt like a betrayal not to celebrate this step forward with him, but an even bigger betrayal to act like I thought everything would work out the way he wants it to.
But hemustknow something is wrong with me.
“Short timeline?” I probe, repeating Gus’s words from earlier.
Don sighs. “The terms of the other company’s offer expire in two months. I have a feeling one plus one equals two here.”
Don looks…mad.I’ve never seen him like this. He’s usually sodocile, but as he storms toward Tracy’s office and barges in, I’m fully aware he’s about to go to bat for something he believes in.
“We need to talk,” he says, and Tracy’s mouth falls open before she hits theEND CALLbutton on her desk phone. “Whose idea was it to present a BTH launch plan infour weeks?”
“It was mine.” She reclines in her chair, perfectly at ease.
Don crosses his arms over his chest. “Does this mean what I think it means? Is the presentation supposed to be some sort of signal about LC’s ability to stay solvent?”
“To be perfectly honest,” Tracy says, “it’s less about whether BTH can make money and more about whether it’s exciting enough to rally the board to our side.”
Don rubs at his forehead. “If the entire company’s future is riding on the back of one team’s ability to deliver an exciting presentation, they should at least be allowed to know it.”
“No,” Tracy says.“Nobody tells anyone anything.”She looks right at me, like she knows I’m the weak link. “This is privileged. I mean it.”
I have no idea where my bravery comes from, but I match Don’s aggressive attitude and say, “On one condition.”
Tracy narrows her eyes. “I can’t believe I’m indulging this, but what condition?”
“Schedule that workshop with Fari. Did you know she got more than ten job offers? She chose LC because of you, and now she can barely afford to go home for Thanksgiving!”
