Flash (8 page)

“Thank you. I think. You know, I honestly don't believe that Sloan wants to sell or merge.” Olivia recalled the look of unwavering determination she had seen in Jasper's eyes. He was a man with a goal, and as far as she could tell, that goal was to make Glow work.

She understood goal-directed behavior. She would not go so far as to say that she therefore understood Jasper Sloan, but she thought she had a handle on him.
The two of them had a few things in common, she thought.

“There's another factor to take into consideration here,” she added slowly. “Glow was vitally important to Uncle Rollie. He wouldn't have taken a risk with its future. He would not have done business with a man he did not trust.”

Todd reflected briefly on that. “You've got a point.”

A good one, Olivia assured herself. Her natural optimism kicked in as she warmed to her own logic. “Uncle Rollie was obsessive about acquiring information before he acted. He would have researched Jasper Sloan very thoroughly before he did a deal with him.”

“I suppose so.”

“If Rollie trusted him, it's probably safe to say that we can trust him.”

She broke off to help herself to a handful of chips from a bowl that sat on a nearby counter. She suddenly realized she was ravenous. She loved good food. Mealtimes however had been hit-and-miss lately. She enjoyed cooking, but she had not been able to spend any time in her own kitchen for days.

She dunked the chips in the bowl of salsa, and put a large number of them into her mouth. Munching enthusiastically, she glanced through the window into the outer room. The campaign workers, mostly young and practically vibrating with eagerness, were still grouped around Eleanor.

Outside, the street was still lit with the long light of the late evening summer sun. The sidewalk teemed with a mix that included the young and the restless, the terminally trendy, and others who, like Olivia,
lived in the nearby condominiums and apartment buildings.

Some of those ambling along the street were on their way to the tiny fringe theaters that filled many of the nooks and crannies of Belltown. Others were headed toward the taverns and restaurants that were scattered liberally in the vicinity. The rest were engaged in stylish loitering, their only aim to see and be seen. Green hair and nose rings gleamed in the late light.

Sometime during the past three years downtown Seattle had come to feel like home, she thought. This was her neighborhood, and she thrived on its energy. She rarely even thought about the small, gloomy apartment she and Logan had shared for such a short time.

“I hope you're right about Sloan,” Todd said.

“Don't worry.” Olivia realized she was feeling more confident by the minute. “I'll keep an eye on him.”

Todd cocked a brow as he helped himself to the chips. “What good will that do?”

She smiled. “I realize, dear brother, that Jasper Sloan looks like Godzilla in this partnership. But I'm not exactly Winnie the Pooh. If I don't like the way he operates at Glow, I can make life a living hell for him.”

“Hmm.” Todd grinned, looking slightly abashed. “I probably shouldn't tell you this, but that's more or less what I told Eleanor.”

Olivia frowned. “What's Eleanor got to do with this?”

Todd shrugged. “Nothing. It's just that she knew that I was worried about what was going to happen at Glow. We talked. When I told her that if anyone in
the family could handle Sloan, it would be you, she laughed and said I was right. Eleanor has a lot of respect for your flair for business.”

Olivia chuckled, pleased in spite of herself. “Nice to know that the future governor of this state admires me. Speaking of which, how goes the campaign?”

“Brilliantly, if I do say so myself.” Todd's gaze lit with fervent enthusiasm. “Eleanor is right on message. She's got incredible energy. The response at the rally in Spokane yesterday was amazing. Donations poured in this morning. The phones never stopped ringing.”

“Great.”

“The Stryker campaign is starting to panic.” Todd broke off, his glance shifting to the outer room. “Here come Eleanor and Dixon. The staff meeting must be over.”

Olivia looked over her shoulder and watched Eleanor rise to her feet. The volunteers clustered around her for a few last words of encouragement.

Tall and statuesque, her jet-black hair pulled back in a sleek knot, Eleanor Lancaster was a commanding presence in any room. She had a strong, stunning profile that would have looked good on an ancient gold coin. She also had a way of focusing the attention of those around her.
Charisma
is the word you're looking for, Olivia told herself. Eleanor pulsed with it.

Olivia felt Todd's eyes on her. “What?”

“I know what you're thinking,” Todd said. “You still don't like the idea that Eleanor and I have a relationship, do you?”

“What do you want me to do, lie?” She turned her
head to look at him. “I just don't want you to make the same mistake I made. Don't get yourself into a classic marriage of convenience. You and Eleanor have a lot in common, but don't mistake your mutual interest in her career for something deeper.”

Todd's jaw tightened. “Damn it, Olivia, don't try to big-sister me. I'm not your little brother any more. I know what I'm doing.”

He was not her little brother these days, but he would always be her younger brother. She decided not to point out that fine distinction. Instead she summoned up a smile.

“You're absolutely right. I'll do my best to keep my mouth shut.” She paused. “It won't be easy, you know.”

Todd relaxed. He grinned briefly. “Yeah, I know.”

In the outer room, Dixon Haggard left his boss to the gaggle of volunteers and walked toward the inner office. He was in his shirtsleeves.

Olivia smiled at him through the window. She had met him several times since Todd had gone to work for the campaign. Haggard was a narrow-faced, highstrung man in his mid-thirties. His light brown hair was thinning rapidly. The skull that was in the process of being revealed was as narrow as the rest of him. He carried his tension in his shoulders, and he was always tense.

He opened the door, nodded at Olivia, and headed straight for the coffee machine in the corner. He consumed coffee the same way she did these days, Olivia noticed. By the gallon.

“Thought we'd never get finished with that meeting,”
Dixon said as he poured himself a cup of the thick, dark brew. “You know how Eleanor is, Todd. Hard to stop when she's got an agenda.”

Todd's eyes glinted with satisfaction. “One of the things that makes her a born winner.”

“True.” Dixon gulped coffee. “How's it going, Olivia? I hear you've got some problems at Glow.”

“I don't know where you got that impression.” Olivia shot Todd a warning glance. “Things are under control. The transition is going very smoothly.”

She knew Dixon was only displaying friendly interest in her affairs, but her instincts toward Glow, Inc., were rooted in years of lectures from Rollie. Glow was a family business. Its problems were to be discussed only within the family.

There was one glaring exception to that rule now, she reflected. Jasper Sloan.

She gave Dixon her best I'm-in-charge-and-everything-is-under-control smile. He seemed to accept it, perhaps because he'd had a lot of experience with being on the receiving end of the same sort of smile from his boss. Eleanor was very good at giving the impression that she was in command. A natural leader.

Todd had told Olivia that Dixon Haggard had been Eleanor's campaign manager from the start of her career. Six years ago he had helped orchestrate her first run for the state legislature. He had been with her ever since.

Dixon was devoted to Eleanor Lancaster. There was something fervent in his voice whenever he said her name. Olivia sometimes wondered just how deep
his feelings for her went. Occasionally she thought she caught a glimpse of resentment in his eyes when he looked at Todd.

She nudged the bowl of chips and salsa toward Dixon. “I just dropped in to say hi to Todd. He tells me that everything's going well with the campaign.”

“Nothing can stop her now.” Dixon gulped more coffee. “The money is starting to really roll in. Everyone wants to back a winner.”

“That doesn't surprise me.”

“Patricia Stryker is our only real competition, and in a month she'll be a distant second. By the way, Olivia, I've got a couple of things to discuss with you concerning the fund-raiser. I want to get a better idea of how the lighted flag concept will work.”

“It's going to be fabulous,” Olivia assured him.

In the other room, Eleanor dismissed her volunteers and started toward the small office. Dixon reached for the coffeepot.

“She'll want another cup,” he said.

His proprietary air was not lost on Todd. Olivia saw her brother's jaw tighten, but he said nothing.

She glanced back at Eleanor, who had paused to speak to one lingering campaign worker. The young volunteer's eyes glowed with excitement.

“People can't help responding to her,” Todd said softly. “Eleanor represents the future, not only of this state but of the country. They're going to be talking about her as a candidate for the oval office in a couple of years.”

Olivia thought that he watched Eleanor with an expression that was closer to heroine worship than
love. But what did she know? she asked herself silently. She had never been very good at love.

Eleanor eventually made her way into the small office. It was Dixon who pulled out her chair.

“Hello, Olivia. Nice to see you again.”

Olivia smiled. “Hello, Eleanor.”
Wow
. She was on a first-name basis with the woman who would very likely be the next governor of the state, she thought. A first-name basis with the woman who might well become president. “I was just about to leave. I know you folks are busy. I only stopped by to talk to Todd for a few minutes.”

Eleanor smiled her easy, charming smile as she took her seat. “Todd tells me your new business partner finally arrived in town this afternoon. I understand he's very big-time and low-profile. That's usually a dangerous combination. What's the verdict?”

Olivia mentally crossed her fingers behind her back. “No sweat. I can handle him.”

“What the hell do you think you're doing, Jasper Sloan?” Olivia slammed the door of Glow's executive suite and whirled to face him. “How dare you fire Melwood Gill? He's run the Glow accounting department for longer than I can remember.”

Slowly, deliberately, Jasper put down the marketing report he had been examining. He set it aside. It was the only document on his otherwise pristine desk.

It had been three days since he had met Olivia at the Light Fantastic studio. Nothing had changed, he decided. If anything, the impact she made on his long-dormant libido this time around was stronger than it had been the last time.

Maybe it was the temper, he thought, trying to be analytical. It did things to her hazel-green eyes, made them even more vivid. It affected her cheeks, too. They were flushed. She glowed brighter than the new generation of experimental electroluminescent devices he had examined that morning in the new R&D lab.

The overhead lights danced on the red in her auburn hair. She wore another pair of flowing menswear trousers, gleaming oxfords with chunky stacked heels, and a rakish pinstripe jacket. She looked as though she had just stepped out of a 1930s gangster film. Fortunately he could tell from the fit of her jacket that she was not wearing a concealed shoulder holster.

Energy crackled in the air. He wondered again if Olivia was oblivious, or if she was just very good at concealing her reactions.

“I did not fire Gill,” Jasper said. “I transferred him to a different position within the department.”

“But he's always been the head of accounting and the chief financial officer. Transferring him to a lower-level position is the same as firing him.”

“No, it's not the same thing. He'll know he's fired if he finds himself on the street looking for another job.”

She gave him a fulminating glare. “He'd never find one at his age. You know how much discrimination there is against older workers.”

“Relax. I'm not letting him go. Not yet, at any rate. But I want someone else running that department.”

She came to a halt in front of the desk and crossed her arms beneath her high breasts. “Why? What's wrong with Melwood?”

“Sit down, Olivia.”

She made no move to take the chair he indicated. “Rollie used to say that no one knew Glow the way Melwood did.”

“That may have been true at one time. But things change.” Jasper opened a drawer and removed one of the financial printouts he had ordered from the accounting department. “From the looks of these, I'd say they started changing around here about three or four months ago.”