Page 18 of A Christmas Negotiation

Isabel strode inside to investigate, but there was a sizable line of seemingly upset guests at the front desk. “What’s going on?” she asked a woman who was waiting for the elevator.

“The fire department has ordered the hotel to replace the alarm system. They start the work on Friday. Everyone has to be out by then.” The elevator dinged. “It doesn’t affect me, so I’m not too worried about it.”

Isabel decided she wasn’t going to wait with the angry mob in the lobby and instead took the elevator up with the woman. “Did they happen to say if they’re sending guests to another hotel?”

“It’s Christmas in Manhattan. There are no other hotel rooms. That’s why everyone is so mad.”

Isabel wasn’t sure how things could get much worse. She’d just have to move in with Sam and Mindy for a few days until she could find something more permanent. If nothing else, she needed to get back to looking for an apartment in earnest.

The woman got off on her floor and Isabel rode up another two to her own. She’d hardly keyed her way into her room when her phone rang. It was Jeremy.

“Hello?” she asked, plopping down on the bed.

“Did I catch you at a bad time?”

Isabel disliked the way her body reacted to his voice, like a puppy that’s just been told it’s time for a treat. “No. It’s fine. What’s up?”

“We got the authentication of the note. I just wanted to tell you as soon as I knew.”

Isabel reclined back on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. This was not surprising news, but it was certainly not what they wanted. “Okay, then. I’ll notify my client. And I guess we need to get together to hammer out these negotiations.”

“Yeah. About that. I talked to Mr. Summers and in light of the authentication, he has changed his terms. He wants an even billion or the store. By January 1.”

She shot straight up in bed, her heart hammering. She could hardly believe what he had just said. “It’s Christmas. Is he really that cold and heartless? I’m sorry, but your client is behaving like Ebenezer Scrooge.”

“From where I’m sitting, he has an ironclad case.”

Isabel fought the grumble in her throat. She also tamped back her natural urge to launch into her side of the argument. There was no point in that right now. Isabel had seen the letters. She’d known that this was coming. Victoria Eden and Bradley Summers had absolutely had an affair. And by all accounts, it had been a doozy. Her heart sank at the thought of the call she had to make, to break this news to Mindy and Sam, then let them break it to Sophie and Emma. It would take the wind out of their sails, for sure, but Isabel would not let this be the end of the story. It would not be the final chapter of Eden’s Department Store. Somehow, they would pull this off. She would. “I’ll talk to my clients and see what we can do.”

“You’ll get back to me?”

“I don’t see that I have a choice.”

SEVEN

Since the moment the promissory note had been authenticated, Isabel had been doing nothing but playing cat and mouse with Jeremy. His client was refusing to budge. Mr. Summers wouldn’t give an inch. Jeremy was holding fast. She knew from experience that she’d never be able to exercise any influence over him unless they could meet in person, but he was insisting on phone calls, much to her dismay. He was avoiding her, and it was starting to feel personal.

By Friday, things were becoming dire. Sam and Mindy had spent the entire week moving assets, trying to sell properties, but they were finding the task more difficult the closer they got to the holidays. It would be nearly impossible to liquidate anything between Christmas and New Year’s. There were simply too many people who weren’t working. With Christmas six days away, time was running out.

As if life couldn’t possibly get more complicated, Isabel had to vacate the Bacharach by noon that day. She’d originally planned to stay with Sam and Mindy, but they’d both been working so hard that they’d managed to come down with a dreadful cold. Isabel’s back-up plan was to fly to DC and stay with a friend for the weekend. This close to Christmas, there wasn’t a spare hotel room anywhere in the city.

Before she left for the airport, Isabel was set to meet with Sophie and Emma at Eden’s and if all went okay, Sam or Mindy would call in. Isabel arrived at Eden’s first thing that morning. Eight o’clock to be exact, right when the offices were first open. A burly but friendly security officer named Duane met her at one of the main entrances.

“Sophie and Emma are already here,” he said, walking her through the cosmetics department and back to the executive elevators.

“Thank you. Have they been here long?”

“Most of the night.”

Isabel had been afraid of that. Coming up with a cool billion to get Benjamin Summers to go away was no small job and they were all going to extraordinary measures to attempt the impossible.

The store was eerily quiet, with only a handful of lights on. It would open early at 9:00 a.m. for holiday shopping hours, but there was still a sense that she was taking part in a death march. Just like the entire Eden family, she desperately didn’t want the store to slip into Mr. Summers’s hands. There were no guarantees that he’d continue to run the store at all. Isabel could imagine him taking a wrecking ball to the whole thing out of spite. What would happen to the employees? Or the history contained in this beautiful old building? And what would happen to the Eden sisters if they lost their birthright, this very permanent fixture of this city, emblazoned with their name?

Duane pressed the elevator button for her. “Do you know your way upstairs? Lizzie, the receptionist, should be here soon, but not yet. She just texted me to say her train was delayed.”

“Eden’s really is like a family, isn’t it?” Isabel asked. Where else did the receptionist check in with the security guard when she was running late?

“Yes, ma’am. Lizzie is like a little sister to me. She tells me everything.” His eyebrows bounced and he smiled. “Even about her new beau.”