Playing with Power - Book 5: New Adult Office Romance (15 page)

They were happy and ignorant to the maelstrom swirling around them. A huge part of Lauren wished she was the same. She understood that it was just one consequence of the choices she’d made.
If I want to be in control of my future, I have to accept all of it, not just the good.

By 9:30 a.m. she and Faith began sharing worried glances across the office. She sent her a message via Hipchat, fingers shaking as she typed.

Hey Faith, I see we have a meeting at 10. Any news if Parker is going to make it in today?

...

I believe so. Let me try his cell, I’ll let you know :)

Lauren watched as she called Parker, watched as she set the phone down without speaking. Faith shook her head, the worry creases in her forehead growing deeper yet.

She pulled out her burner phone and texted Landon.

I know you’re on your way, but try to get here a couple minutes late. Parker still isn’t in...

...

Shit, okay. See you soon.

Moments after she’d received Landon’s response, the door swung open and Parker strolled in. “Good morning, everyone. Lauren, give me five and I’ll meet you in the conference room. I’d like to chat before our meeting begins.” His green eyes seemed to have a fire behind them but his face remained unreadable.

“Of course,” Lauren manged to say in a tight voice.

“Faith, coffee,” he demanded as he walked away, sparing not even a glance at her. Lauren was afraid the poor girl was going to crumble on the spot. Even from a distance, she could see her eyes well with tears but before they could fall, she blinked them away. With a quick nod to herself, as if affirming her intent, she followed.

Lauren watched the minutes tick away, her heart pounding harder and faster in her chest with each passing second. With only a few minutes before Landon was due to arrive, she stood on shaky legs and made her way to the conference room. She reminded herself of the litany of things Parker had put her through, the selfish disregard he had for his employees, all the abuse and mistreatment. She steeled herself for the conversation ahead, her anger tightly sealed just below the surface. As she put her hand on the conference room door, she thought,
One way or another, I’ll leave this room with a resolution.

She felt calm as she entered, meeting Parker’s steady gaze with a smile. “Good morning.”

“Uh huh. Sit down.” He’d chosen the seat at the head of the table and gestured to the one on his right, facing the door. She smelled his overpowering aftershave as she passed behind him. “What the fuck happened to you? Nick decide to put you in your place, huh?” He laughed at his own joke.

“Oh, you remember his name now? Amazing,” she snapped.
Great. First thing you say to him is antagonizing, good job.
“I had a bit of an accident,” she added in a softer voice.

Parker pinned her down with a sharp look and then shook his head. “See? You girls teeter around on these heels all the time and something’s bound to happen. I’m not complaining, mind you. I love they way they make your asses—”

“Did you want to talk about something before the meeting began?” Lauren cut in. Plan or not, she couldn’t stand to hear one more misogynistic sentence pour from his mouth.

He sucked on his lower lip and regarded her for a moment before nodding. “I think we’re in the home stretch. My sources tell me Morowitz is going to announce their desire to invest today. Seems this meeting with DeWitt is something of a formality. Seeing that he flew all this way to talk to us, we might as well sit down with him.”

“That’s fantastic news,” said Lauren. “What a relief!”
Thanks to Sahra...she’s like the Old Faithful of gossip.

“It’s better to have two in the pocket, so just make sure you tell him whatever it is he wants to hear. I want this to all be finalized by Thanksgiving so we can all have a merry fucking Christmas, you with me?”

“Whatever you say. I’ll just follow your lead.”

Parker arched his eyebrow and leaned back in his chair. “Gotta say, subservience is quite sexy on you. You should wear it more.”

Before Lauren had time to even think of a retort she’d regret saying, Faith knocked on the conference room door. Her heartbeat sped as she made eye contact with Landon behind her.
Here we go...
“Mr. DeWitt is here to see you.”

Landon entered confidently, barely giving Lauren a second glance. He was dressed business casual, jeans and sweater, the only oddity was his right arm hanging loosely in front of his chest. It’d been his idea to hide the digital recorder in a sling as a back up.

Forgoing a genuine greeting, Parker took one look at the injured arm and laughed. “My god, looks like we have Tweedle-dumb and Tweedle-dumber. How’d
you
managed to hurt yourself? This one tipped over in her Jimmy Choos. Don’t tell me you swing that way.”

“Got into a bit of a bar fight, if you believe it,” Landon replied with a thin smile.

“Hope she was worth it.” Parker clapped him on the shoulder. “Though they never are. More trouble than they’re worth, if you ask me.”

Faith winced as he looked at her. She took a step backwards, glancing at the main office as if she wanted to retreat. Landon put a gentle hand on her arm and continued speaking.

“Yes, well. Given my condition, I’m unable to take any notes. I’ve asked Ms. Bragg if she’d be able to help me out.”

For a moment, it looked like Parker was about to protest. Lauren held her breath. Although they’d made sure that no one moment could produce a hangup, she wanted Faith in the room. It seemed fitting. “Yeah, why the fuck not,” he shrugged and gestured to a few empty chairs. “I’m sure you remember Lauren.” Parker leered at them as they said hello.

“Of course I do. Good morning, Ms. Kemp. I’m sorry to hear about your accident.”

“Thank you. It was actually more of an attack than an accident,” she said shaking his hand. She kept her eyes locked on his, afraid if she glanced at Parker’s smug face she might hit it.

“An attack! That’s horrible. Did they catch the guy who did it?”

“Unfortunately, I know exactly who did it. I’m pretty sure she won’t be coming near me again.” Lauren felt cheesy delivering the scripted line, but this meeting wasn’t just about giving Parker one last chance. It was also about watching him squirm.

“It’s so scary, isn’t it? Happened just after we’d had drinks the other—”

Parker held up his hand. “Yeah, great story. So scary. Apparently Mayor Bloomberg hasn’t scrubbed the streets as well as he claims. Can we get on with this? I don’t know about you, but I’ve got shit to do.”

“Of course,” Landon said flatly.

Faith thumbed through the yellow legal pad and fumbled with the cap on her pen, her nerves getting the better of her. Parker gave another exasperated sigh. “Why don’t you just use your phone to record the fucking meeting?” He leaned over to Landon and spoke behind his hand. “She can be a bit of a blonde sometimes, if you know what I mean.”

Faith looked at Landon wide-eyed. Even though they didn’t need it, Parker had just given them permission to record. He gave her a curt nod, as if letting her know the recording would be acceptable.

“Apparently those phones are pretty good quality, too. Can pick up all sorts of stuff.” His heavy-lidded gaze was a challenge directed at Lauren but she didn’t take the bait.

Crossing her legs under the table, she turned to Landon and began the meeting. “Let’s cut right to it then. You’re interested in investing with StyleSpur.”

“I am.”

“Fuckin’ too right, you are. Let’s get this finalized.” Parker extended his hand across the table. Landon gave it a passive glance yet didn’t move.

“I just have a few questions before I fully commit. I’m sure you understand.”

Left hanging, Parker yanked his hand back and tucked it under his armpit. He looked away, clicking his tongue against his teeth.
If this wasn’t fake, I’m pretty sure his behavior would kill me from embarrassment right now,
Lauren thought. He recovered quickly, folding his hands on top of the table. He seemed willing to swallow just about any level of insult if there was money involved.

“Of course. We’d be happy to answer any questions you might have.” She opened her laptop as she spoke. “Please, go ahead.”

“Well, I actually sent you an email with my concerns before I arrived. I figured it’d be easier to go through the questions that way.”

“That’s a great idea, let me just load that up.”

“Jesus, listen to you two...” Parker muttered.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that. Did you say something?” Landon asked.

Parker cleared his throat and said loudly, “I’m impressed with how organized you both are. I think this is the making of a wonderful partnership.”

Lauren shifted in her chair, pretending to focus on the screen of her computer. She wasn’t half the actor Landon was. He gave Parker a warm smile in response, nodding like he was oblivious to the insinuation. “I think so, too. Congratulations on your recent promotion. I’m looking forward to working so closely together.” Parker snickered quietly but Landon spoke over him. “That is, assuming we’ll be able to deal with these last little issues.”

“Well then, let’s get dealing. Lauren, can you please read out these concerns so we can put his mind to ease?”

They had written the email together, pooling their knowledge to create a masterpiece of manipulation. As the conversation continued, Lauren eased into it. Parker was buying into everything, dancing as if tied to the strings they pulled. She could see the others relax, even Landon who appeared comfortable from the start. Now that she knew who and what she was dealing with, Parker seemed easy to handle.

They’d designed Landon’s concerns to be easy to ask but difficult to answer, complex solutions to simple problems. Giving credit where it’s due, Parker maneuvered through the gauntlet well. Towards the end, he was beginning to show outward signs of stress. His underarms were darkening with sweat, a slight sheen spreading across his brow. His answers were becoming clipped, tinted with irritation.

If the meeting were a duel, Landon’s words would be a rapier. Rather than bludgeon Parker to death with accusations, he deftly swooped in and nicked the skin. Over and over, these little wounds added up and Parker was starting to lose his cool. Then, like a thin blade slipped between the ribs, Landon gave the fatal blow. He’d insisted on adding this last point.

“There’s one last problem,” Landon said casually. Lauren watched Parker intently, the entire half hour building to this moment. The CEO was tipped back in his chair as far as it could go, cheek resting on his fist, looking amused and bored. He grunted so Landon continued. “Yeah, the biggest hurdle I see with investing with StyleSpur is having to deal with you in any capacity. Even for all the money in the world, could I bring myself to work with such a self-centered, slimy, idiot.” The perfect, deadpan delivery caught Parker’s attention.

With a growing smirk, he rocked forward, suddenly perking up. He regarded Landon with lidded eyes then met Lauren’s. “Took you fucking long enough. At first I wasn’t sure if this was legit but erring on the side of caution, I thought, why not? Maybe I can actually get some money out of them before crushing their fledgling business. Maybe I could get an in with the infamous Damon Kael.”

“Anything for a dollar, right?” she said bitterly. The entire mood in the room shifted. They all knew, their cards were open on the table.

“I thought you were supposed to be clever. Where the fuck is that set of balls you like to pretend to have? Gotta bring your pretty boy body guard to do the heavy lifting, huh? Wasn’t around to fight for you the other night, apparently,” he said with a nodded to her forehead.

“You literally have no shame, do you? All of this...what were you trying to prove? What the hell was the point?”

“The point?” he scoffed. “I give you every opportunity, mentor you, take you under my wing. I let you take the lead at Agitate and you turn it into some feminist movement. I give you the chance to network and connect out in Silicon Valley and what do you do? You fuck this asshole and start scheming behind my back. So the point? To knock you down a few pegs, to show you that you aren’t that fucking special. You certainly aren’t anything without me.”

“Jesus, you really are delusional, aren’t you?” Landon muttered.

“You’re the delusional one if you don’t think she’ll just do the same to you. At least she’s fucking you. Almost three years and I never got so much as a handy from her.”

“Parker!” Faith cried.

“Whatever. Those photos were a pleasant surprise,” he continued as he leered at Lauren. “I owe you a thanks for that. I’ve got plenty of material in the old spank bank now.”

The meeting room erupted, both Landon and Faith shouting at the same time. Parker sat with a calm smile on his face, looking from one to the other in amusement.

“Since you don’t seem capable,” Landon growled, “I’m gonna have to shut your fucking mouth for you.”

Faith was on her feet shouting, tears streaming down her eyes. “You asshole! I spent so many years with you and all that time you really were just screwing around behind my back. I believed you!”

The shouting had attracted the attention of everyone in the main office. Lauren looked through the glass to see shocked eyes on them.
This plan just isn’t going to work this way
, she realized. Parker had gone on the offensive and while she’d seen this side of him plenty of times before, Landon and Faith weren’t prepared. Just as Faith ripped the diamond ring from her hand and threw it across the room, Lauren stood.