He turned his attention back to the women, “This is a beautiful home. But I have to say – the thing that makes it the most unique, in my experience, is that with homes of this caliber, it's exceedingly rare to find one that comes with an agent whose beauty actually exceeds that of the property.”
He flashed them his brilliant, movie star smile and turned to move further into the living room.
Even though he hadn't stayed around to witness it, Lauren was supremely aggravated that he had – again – rendered her speechless. What was it with this guy? She had read his bio online. He wasn't just some 'pretty face' they brought in to host – he was an actual real estate agent! She didn't see how it would be possible that he didn't understand how unprofessional his behavior was. The only explanation was that he didn't care.
--- ~ ---
Ben wandered over to the gigantic wall of windows to take in the view, and slow his breathing. Dear God. That blonde was a knockout. In the truest sense of the word – she had knocked the wind right out of his lungs, and apparently knocked the sense right out of his head.
She was elegant, sophisticated, beautiful beyond belief. When he had been a boy, growing up in circumstances that could in the kindest possible terms be described as 'humble,' he had looked at women like her – moneyed, graceful – and they had represented to him a life that he knew he would have to claw and fight his way into if he were ever going to be allowed to have it.
And he had fought his way up the ladder of success. At 18 years old, he had taken a hard, realistic look at what his assets were. What did he have to offer? He settled fairly quickly on two things: one, he was not bad to look at, and two, he had formidable powers of persuasion.
This led him equally quickly to realize what career would make the best use of those assets – sales. He had started out selling vacuum cleaners door to door. That had been a miserable experience, but it had taught him valuable lessons about human nature that served him well in his career to this day. It had taught him the single most valuable skill that any sales person must possess, whether the product was a hundred dollar vacuum cleaner or a million dollar home – the ability to read a person and instinctively know what approach would get them to close the deal.
Some people liked facts and figures and stats – hard numbers made them feel safe and secure to execute a buying decision. Some people were all about emotion – they needed to feel right about making the purchase. Some people needed to be charmed. Some people needed to be sympathized with. Some people needed a hard sell.
It wasn't about what approach the person liked...that was the mistake made by unsuccessful sales people, they went with the approach that their prospect felt comfortable with. No. A sale was never about the person's comfort. It was about pushing them OUT of their comfort zone, and getting the yes. It was all about closing the deal.
And yet, it was a delicate balance. You make them feel too comfortable with you, and they then feel comfortable telling you no. You make them feel too uncomfortable with you, and they abandon the transaction. It was all about instinct, all about the right approach.
When it came to intuition about what approach a prospect or a colleague needed in a given situation to achieve a given outcome, there was no one better. Ben Stevens was the master.
So why was he screwing it up so royally with Lauren Harrison?
God, he could see that the 'charming' approach was falling completely flat with her. Instinctively, he sensed that what Lauren would respond best to was no 'approach' at all. He could feel that she was an excellent judge of sincerity and artifice, and that in order to connect with her, he should stop trying to sell himself and just BE himself.
He knew that. In his head. Yet, he was powerless to stop putting on the act with her. Things flew out of his mouth, and he felt as if he had no power whatsoever to filter them. He was watching himself fail at his most basic skill – human connection. It was like he was standing outside himself, not able to control his own words and actions.
Why was he behaving this way around this woman?
The better question was...why the hell couldn't he stop?
--- ~ ---
Lauren marched over to where Ben stood gazing out the windows and said briskly, “Mr. Stevens, I only have a limited amount of time to discuss the details of the property with you before filming begins. Shall we get started?”
Ben turned to her, flashing that too-brilliant smile again. It put Lauren's teeth on edge.
“Mr. Stevens is my father,” he said jovially, “Please, call me Ben. And may I call you Lauren?”
“If you like,” she replied, careful to keep all traces of the irritation she felt at his larger- than-life persona out of her voice, “Now, shall we get started?”
“Oh, Lauren,” he said cheerfully, “All the pertinent details of the home are written out for me on cue cards. Why would I want to waste the opportunity to talk with a beautiful woman such as yourself by discussing the dry topic of architecture?”
“I'm sorry, then why am I even here, if not to educate you on the details of the property?” Lauren said in the chill, distant tone that only her closest friends knew signaled the fact that she was absolutely livid, “Can someone please explain that to me?”
Ben winked at her, “I assume they let you come because they figured you'd want to meet me.”
Lauren raised one eyebrow. The nerve of him! She would never give him the satisfaction of screaming or yelling at him, however. That was not in her character. Rather, she simply replied with a small half-smile, “Well, I assure you that 'they' could not have been more wrong on that count. Now, I do have appointments this afternoon, and as I consider lateness to be the height of unprofessional behavior, I will leave you to your cue cards.”
With that, she spun on her heel and glided gracefully out of the living room, across the entryway, and through the front door. Again, she would never give him the satisfaction of storming out, even if every cell in her muscles was burning with the desire to stomp out to her car like a toddler throwing a tantrum. God, that would feel sweet! But it simply wasn't in her nature to indulge in public displays. She would have to take what satisfaction she could from the small sarcastic barb she had leveled at him on her way out.
True, it was innocuous enough that it probably hadn't even registered as a blip on his radar. Still, at least she hadn't merely bowed to his “star” attitude and faded away into the background like one of his acolytes. At least, whether he had heard it or not, she had told him – albeit, in her classy, roundabout way – precisely what she thought about him and the way that he represented the profession that she loved.
She climbed into her Mercedes, turned it on, and placed her hands on the wheel, surprised to find that they were actually trembling with anger. She shook her head. This was so unlike her! Why was Ben Stevens, of all people, having such an unprecedented effect on her? Yes, he was a jerk – but Lauren had met some prize jerks in her time. None of them had engendered frustration this instant and profound in her.
No, Ben Stevens was in a class all by himself. He might actually be the single most infuriating man she had ever met! The way he thought he was the center of the universe. The way treated everyone else in the room like he was the sun and they were merely planets in his orbit. The way he just assumed that his looks and charm were enough to make any woman – Lauren included – fall to giggly, starstruck pieces.
Yes, Lauren decided, he is arrogant and entitled and completely and totally aggravating. He behaves unprofessionally, and treats others as if they don't exist. He is the human embodiment of every single trait that I find distasteful in another person, let alone in a man.
But this caused her to ponder an enigma which was a little more disturbing. Yes, there was one thing about the encounter that truly bothered her above all else, one question that nagged at her and wouldn't leave her alone.
Why was the back of her hand still tingling where he had kissed it?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
/> Melanie Shawn is the writing team of sister duo Melanie and Shawna. Originally from Northern California, they now make their home in So Cal – but they wish they lived in Hope Falls!
You can keep up with all the latest Melanie Shawn news, including new releases and contests, at:
http://melanieshawn.com
and
http://facebook.com/melanieshawnbooks
Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
First Chapter Of Home Sweet Home
About the Author
Sweet Victory Page 28