“I never disagreed with anyone. I liked her but decided she was so intent on being in my space that I’d rather keep my enemy close.”
“Do they know anything else?”
“Nothing. We’re back to waiting.”
“Got it.”
Cameron stands to leave. “Oh, before I forget, in that pile of paper on your desk is a copy of the notes from the interviews of the hackers that was sent over by Cybercrimes. They want us to look through it and see if we recognize anything.”
“I’ll do it. Thanks.”
“Welcome back.”
I spend the afternoon immersed in my work, trying to catch up between what feels like a thousand interruptions. When they finally stop, I look up and see only a few people are left in the office. It’s dark outside. Where did the day go?
I had put aside the Cybercrimes report earlier, but now I can start to go through it. It’s a stack of paper about an inch thick. The beginning describes the location where they grabbed everyone. From there, it leads into each of the thirty-five people—twenty-three men and twelve women—who were arrested and their interviews.
As I read through, I notice the hackers come from all walks of life; a few are immigrants, but many grew up here in the States. There is an overall theme of hate of the 1 percent.
As I’m making my way through the specifics of each interview, one of the names looks familiar to me. I can’t help but wonder if I’ve met this person before. Thomas Van der Wolfe. It stops me because it’s a three-name last name, and I don’t see that often. I do a query in our system where we track all our contacts. He doesn’t show up, but there’s a thread in the back of my brain that I can’t quite unravel. I finish going through the report, but nothing else sticks out to me.
How do I know Thomas Van der Wolfe?
When I close up, it’s after eleven. I put in almost twelve hours at the office, and I’m exhausted. I call up my car service and let them know I’ll be ready in ten minutes, then tuck the Cybercrimes report in my bag. Maybe it’ll come to me.
Chapter seventeen
CeCe
I arrive at the office right on time. Evelyn leaves me a message that she’s running behind and suggests we meet for drinks after work at the Fairmont. That’s fine. She’s the one I’m least worried about. Christy gives me a few minutes to get situated and then joins me in my office, bringing in two coffees and a bear claw.
“You know me too well.”
She smiles. “I know life is stressful right now.”
“I like to bury my stress in sugar and carbs. Who doesn’t?”
We walk through my schedule for this week and the next. “I may end up heading to New York,” I tell her. “I’ll keep you posted.”
“Tim Carpenter from Cosmetics, Inc., wanted to meet you the next time you were in New York. Would you like me to tentatively set that up?”
Not a chance. Plus, I’m more afraid he’ll look at my negative P&L and not want Metro. I’d rather live with the notion that he wants Metro than learn that this speed bump is his idea of a stop sign. “That was before this mess started. I have a feeling we need to be a little stronger financially.”
“He knows you’re a diamond. Don’t let this mess convince you otherwise.”
“I’m considering launching the line we developed with a few changes.”
“You know the business. Just let me know if I can help in any way.”
Her quick answers and unwavering support prove to me that she’s not involved. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“You probably have a better social life since I push everyone away.” She winks at me and smiles.
“You do exactly as I ask. You know I keep my circle small.”
“I know things are slow with Mason, so maybe a side date with someone else will get him moving.”
“Cora said that yesterday. I’m really okay with slow.”
“I want to plan a wedding before I retire.”
“You know the R-word is a bad word around here,” I warn.
“It’s on the horizon. Not super close, but Fred is talking about buying a Winnebago and driving all over the US and Canada.”
Fred is Christy’s husband. They met when they were a little older. He had kids from a previous marriage, so they didn’t have any of their own, but they have several four-legged furry ones that go almost everywhere with them. “You can take the summer off. I’m good with that.”
She smiles. “You have a meeting with Becca in a few. Can I get you anything?”
“No, I’ll return a few emails. Just send her in when she arrives unless I’m on the phone.”
“Let me know if you need anything.”
I write a quick note to Cora and let her know the change with Evelyn, but all is on track.
It seems like time passes quickly, and then Becca walks in. I don’t even realize she’s in my office until she’s sitting across from me. “Hello,” she says enthusiastically.
“Hey.” I stop composing an email and give her one hundred percent of my attention. “How are things going with Jeremy and his team at Accuracy Communications?”
“It’s slow right now, but we see the light at the end of the tunnel. Some people will never be convinced that we don’t test on animals. They’ve read about it on the internet and seen some horrible pictures, so it must be true.”
I sigh. “I’ve been dealing with those people almost my entire life. A gossip rag reported I married the actual Devil—I could never convince them otherwise. I’m having a secret love affair with my brother—besides the ick factor, they still believe it. I’ve been matched with Mick Jagger. I’ve been matched with most A-list actors—both married and single—because I talked to them at a party. No one ever believes that I’m not nearly as exciting as the press makes me out to be. I get it.”
She giggles. “I guess it could be worse. You were matched with Lucas Dreams.”
“That’s true. After it came out, he did ask me out. But he was a dud. Despite being one of the most handsome men in film, he was short and incredibly vain. He didn’t like me wearing heels because it made me taller than him. One of my worst dates ever.”
“I bet his publicist set that up so he could use it as an excuse to call you.”
“That’s what I thought he had done, too, but I politely went on our only date and left him at the table when some woman sat in his lap.” I’m getting off track in my avoidance of bringing up my sticky subject. “Anyway, so I don’t throw off your calendar, what else do you have to do?”
“I think we’re almost done. Right now, Accurate is throwing most of the work my way. We’ll have some stragglers, but I think we’re almost done.”
“Great. I’ve been thinking, when I look at the P&L, it’s pretty ugly. Honestly, we’re negative over six million dollars on this.” I can see her getting nervous. “I think I want to relaunch the line.”
She isn’t a good poker player. Her face contorts in a puzzled look, and she’s trying to make sure she’s heard me right. “What do you mean?”
“Well, I think we launch the same color palette. We can change the names, but all the packaging and merchandising are ready to go. As you pointed out, our clients are loyal to us and will buy our authentic product knowing there’s a fake out there,” I say with much more confidence than I feel.
“Are you sure? Accurate seems to be thinking otherwise.”
“I have to do something. The six million in red on our P&L is devastating, and if we don’t do something, we’re going to shut our doors for good.”
“Oh… okay… yeah….”
I can tell she thinks I’m ready to step in a big pile of sticky poo, which I would be if I were actually going to do this. Bringing out my best acting skills, I continue. “You’ve already done all the public relations for this. I’m not expecting that it would take anything else planning-wise from you. We’ll figure out a way to make it work.”
“I understand. I guess we should launch so we can s
ave all the jobs associated with this.”
“Exactly.” I must be able to sell ice to an Eskimo.
We wrap up our meeting, and after she leaves, I shake my head. I can’t believe I just lied to her. I could see the disappointment on her face when I told her what the plan was. She knows better than anyone that this is a bad idea. The PR blowback is only going to get the animal rights people more inflamed. This only confirms why the idea that it’s anyone on my team is wrong. I hope this is a good plan.
I’m immersed in some spreadsheets when Christy buzzes me. “Jordan is here.”
“Perfect. Send her in.”
Jordan enters, giving me a run for my money when it comes to clothes. She’s got a good benefactor, but so do many women here in San Francisco with all the tech billionaires. “Hello. Does this time still work for you?”
“Yes.” I put my computer to sleep and give her my undivided attention. “How are things going now that the fall line isn’t as heavy on your plate?”
She fidgets in her seat. “I wish I could say that I had so much work I was overwhelmed, but I don’t, so for job security’s sake, I’d love more to do.”
“Good. I may have that for you.”
She sits back, and what seemed like anxiousness was probably just nervousness. “I’ve been wrapping things up on the line we’re launching for women of color.”
“How is that progressing?”
“I should have ad slicks for you in a few days.”
“We didn’t use the same fall colors, right?”
“No. We used two that overlapped, a blue-black and a black-black, but the rest were more vibrant for olive and darker skin colors.”
“Great. I signed the contracts for the models. Quite the coup to get Anna Martinez and Beyond to represent our line. Did they have any problems after the animal rights issue?”
“As soon as we knew, I went to both their publicists. They knew it was a smear campaign. They’re an A-list actress and a singer, so they’ve experienced that before.”
“That’s very comforting.”
“Everything will wrap up in the next two weeks, so I’m anxious to get going on whatever my next project will be. I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“That makes two of us. You did a really outstanding job pulling the fall line together, getting all the focus groups ready and helping to procure names and advertising.”
She sits forward, and I can tell she’s upset. “I can’t tell you how pissed off I was with that stupid Chinese company. I helped to design and develop an amazing line with stunning colors, packaging, and advertising. I know everyone lost out, and I hate to whine, but I was the only person one hundred percent dedicated to this launch, and now they have something to show for it and I don’t.”
I can’t decide if she’s working me or if she truly feels this way. “You were a dynamo, and quite honestly, when I look at the P&L and the loss of six million dollars to our bottom line, I think it’s too much to waste. I’ve been talking to a lot of people, and the feeling is that we launch with new names and different packaging.”
She stops what she’s doing, sits up straight, and cocks her head to the side. “What do you mean?”
“We’re going to use the same palette that we developed and designed, but we’re going to give it a new name and new packaging. We don’t need to bring together any focus groups; we can just go with the second choice in both cases,” I tell her, laying it on pretty thick.
“Okay. I think I can pull some of that together.” I can see her mind going through what the second choices were. “We did a lot with the packaging, but the second choices were quite a bit down the list from the first choices.”
“I think that’ll be okay. At the very least, I think that’s probably a great place to start. Maybe we can meet in the next few days to go over everything. Look at my calendar and throw something on it. Just keep it between us right now, if you don’t mind.”
She nods vigorously. “I’ll have those for you in a few days.”
“Of course, we want to keep the circle really small on this, as we don’t want it to get back to the Chinese cosmetics company.”
“I totally understand.” She hesitates a minute. “You do realize there could be some major backlash with this.”
“Unfortunately, the other major backlash is if we don’t do this, we might as well close our doors and let everyone go.”
“I understand. Thank you, Caroline.”
As I watch her go, I’m not fully convinced she’s my mole, but I’m not unconvinced either.
I can’t talk to Scarlet, Evelyn’s assistant, until I’ve talked to Evelyn, so I’ll wait and grab her in the morning. As my day wraps up, Christy knocks on my door. “Do you need anything else?”
I smile at her. She’s always so accommodating. “No, I’m good. I’m heading out in ten minutes to meet with Evelyn. Did she ever make it in today?”
“No, but she was online, so she was working from home.”
A few minutes later, I head out of the office. Taking a rideshare across town, I think about the conversations today. I’m not sure that I did much to confirm where I stand with my team. After this, it’ll be up to Cora and her team. Before I realize it, the Fairmont’s doorman is opening the car door for me to step out.
I walk into the Tonga Room, which is a tiki bar. It’s a little cheesy to be in the middle of Union Square, where the best shopping in the city is steps away, but the bar’s décor is right out of a Disney set with tiki lanterns and bamboo furniture, and most drinks come with an umbrella—just what I need today.
I’m seated for barely a moment when I feel a tap on my shoulder. “Caroline! What are you doing here?”
I turn and see Janice standing in front of me. She’s dressed to the nines and looks really good. I can tell it’s an outfit from Jennifer. “Meeting a friend. What about you?”
Michael is eagerly standing with her. “When do I send wedding invitations out?”
My eyes must bulge out of my head. “Janice, Mason and I just started dating. I know we were friends for a very long time, but this is still a little new for us. I think Mason is still trying to get his feet underneath him after his illness.”
“Oh, nonsense.” She waves at an imaginary fly. “That man never knows what’s best for him, but I do, and you’re it.”
“That’s very sweet of you.” Evelyn crosses the room and takes a seat next to me at the round cocktail table. “Can I introduce you? This is Evelyn Stevens. She is my right hand and oversees all the operations at Metro Composition.” I turn to Evelyn and plead with my eyes to help us move on without the intrusion. “Evelyn, this is Mason’s mother, Janice Sullivan Harris.”
Evelyn nods so as not to invite any conversation. Hopefully it’s enough to get Janice and her date to move on so we can talk. I don’t want to talk about company business in front of Janice.
“You look familiar to me,” Janice says to Evelyn. “Have we met?”
“I don’t think so. It’s nice to meet you.”
With a lot of dramatic flair, Janice pulls her date up close to her, and they lock their arms. “I won’t interrupt. I just wanted to introduce my boyfriend, Dr. Michael Frieman. He’s a urologist here in San Francisco. Isn’t he just the cutest?”
He turns bright red.
“It’s great to meet you, Dr. Frieman,” Evelyn says politely.
“Good to see you again Michael.” He turns to me. “Maybe another time, you and Mason can join us for dinner.”
“That sounds lovely. Enjoy your evening.” I smile as they walk away, relieved that they aren’t trying to join us.
The waiter takes our drink orders of two mai tais, and we settle in for a chat. Most of the time, our conversations out like this are mostly social, but we always get a little bit of business in.
Evelyn leans in. “That’s Mason's mother?”
“That’s her.”
“Wow, she’s nothing like I’d expected. He’s so reserved, and
she’s so… not.”
I shrug. “You can’t pick your parents.”
“Are you dating him?”
“I guess you could call it that. I’m pretty crazy about him and have been for a very long time.”
“I thought he was living with someone?”
“They broke up. And Frederic and I are no longer together either.”
“Does this mean you’re officially off the market?”
“I’d like to think so, but it’s still early. We’re just trying to figure life out. He’s got a lot going on. Plus, we have our own mess to contend with, so things are kind of crazy right now for me, too.”
“Oh my goodness, here I was hoping it was the prince who would come through for you, but Mason Sullivan means you stay here and don’t move to some tiny European country. That’s a great thing.” Our drinks arrive, and we toast. “To living in San Francisco,” Evelyn says.
I take a healthy drink. “Let me tell you, a deserted island in the South Pacific sounds more and more delightful every day.”
“Oh, I hear ya.”
“I understand you worked from home today. Is everything okay? That’s so unlike you.”
“You won’t believe this. Last night I put my unmentionables in the washer, and the drain got clogged with one of my bras. I woke up to water everywhere.”
“Your bra did that?”
“I know. The itty-bitty-titty holder was small enough that when the water drained, the bra went with it, but it didn’t fit in the actual drain, so it got clogged.”
I can’t help but laugh. “I’m sorry. I can just see your face when the repairman shows up and plucks a bra out of the drain.”
“You have no idea. I was mortified. This guy’s butt cheek cleavage was better than my regular cleavage, so it was the worst. I had repairmen coming and going all day.”
“I’m sorry. Will your homeowner’s insurance cover it?”
“Thankfully, yes. But it’s a time suck right now.”
We talk for a time about a few things going on, and when it comes time to talk about what’s going on, we finish our first drinks and order a second round. I want to sleep tonight, and I’m hoping this helps.
Fascination: (Billionaire Venture Capitalist #9): A Friends to Lovers Romance Page 16