by J. A. Rawls
“Thank you Sami-uh-ma’am. I look forward to meeting with your staff and working for your firm.” Mike was in shock as he ran his hand over his breast pocket and felt the outline of the check. He could not contain his smile.
Charlie slapped him on the back. “Welcome to the family. You’re going to find, I’m sorry to say, that working for my mom is much harder than working for Jana.” His voice lowered to a conspiratorial whisper, “Besides, she’s not as nice to look at.”
Jana pinched Mike, “Are you in there?”
“I’m here; but I’m in shock. You knew this didn’t you?”
“I won’t lie to you. Sami told me this afternoon and asked if I wanted to tell you. As much as I did I thought it was better if she told you. I want you to know I had nothing to do with this, and Sami reminded me of that this afternoon as well. You did this on your own, and I’m very proud of you. This is what you were hoping for. It definitely starts your company in the right direction.” She pulled him into a very suggestive and intimate kiss. “How about we go back to the room and start where we left off. If I remember correctly a very sensual young man started his evening with a cold shower. Maybe over the next few hours I can erase that terrible incident from your mind.”
“I sort of thought we would enjoy the dancing, have a few drinks, party with the crowd,” Mike joked.
“I’m game if you are,” she tugged on his tie, “but don’t ever say I didn’t offer an-interesting-alternative.”
“How about a compromise, I need to wind down a bit from the shock Ms Brandon just laid on me. As much as I hoped for the account I wasn’t as confident as you were. I could use a couple of drinks. How about we slide into the bar at Delmonico’s and you can have a couple of Pomegranate martinis and I’ll have a couple of beers and we can see where the evening takes us from there. You game?”
“I’m game, let’s tell Charlie good bye and get out of here.”
“No, let’s wave at Charlie from across the room and get out of here.” As if Charlie heard he turned and saw them wave and leave the room.
Mike and Jana sat quietly in the bar and enjoyed their drinks. No glib conversation, in fact no conversation at all. Mike looked at Jana and smiled, “Want another drink?”
“Okay.”
Mike raised his hand to signal the waitress to bring another round. Once received again, nothing.
Jana finished her second drink and stood up, “I’m going to the room, take a hot bath and go to bed. You stay and work this out in your mind. Three words to me in the last half hour tells me you don’t need me to muddy the water here.” She gave him a kiss and left the bar.
Mike watched her leave, and though he wanted her to stay he couldn’t ask her to. She’s right, I need to work this out for myself.
Jana pressed the elevator button, and as the door opened Charlie was standing there. She started to enter and he pushed her back, “No you don’t. You look like you lost your best friend, what’s up here? Where’s Mike?”
“Nothing’s up, I’m going up to take a hot bath.”
“Alone, you’re kidding right?”
“No, I’m not kidding. Look Charlie I’m tired and I want to relax. Mike is in the bar at Delmonico’s trying to balance the world on his shoulder. I just spent the last half hour with him and he said exactly three words – ‘want another drink’ - which were not very satisfying. I can’t help him here, and though I might marry him if he asked me one more time, I don’t think that’s going to help either.”
“Jana, you can’t do that.” Charlie pulled them to a corner, away from the crowds. “Neither one of you are ready to get married. You would grow to hate each other, you would hate him for making you give up your company, and he would hate you because you would no longer be the woman he fell in love with. Don’t do anything crazy here. I’ll talk to Mike. He just needs to sort it out. I hate to tell you this, but I’ll be your escort home tomorrow. Mom wants Mike to stay here a couple more days and work out the logistics of moving his firm into her building. I know this isn’t what you want to hear but you two being apart for a day or so won’t be such a bad idea. It’ll give you both some time. Okay, go up, take a hot bath and go to bed. I’m going to talk to Mike.” Charlie kissed her on the forehead and pushed the button for the elevator. “It’ll be okay, don’t worry.”
“Thanks Charlie I really appreciate your help. Good night.” The elevator door opened and she stepped in.
Ten
Charlie entered Delmonico’s and saw Mike sitting alone, nursing a beer. Jeez he looks worse than Jana did, here goes. “Buy you another beer?”
“Charlie, good to see you, but no, I already had two, and if I intend to find our room I’d better not.”
“Don’t make me drink alone,” Charlie raised his eyebrow, “I’m a good listener.”
“Okay, one more but you have to at least agree to point me to the elevator. Without Jana I get really turned around in this hotel.”
“I promise I’ll get you to the right elevators.” Charlie ordered two more beers. “What gives here Mike? I just saw Jana and she looked like she lost her best friend. What’s going on with you two?”
“I asked her to marry me; I love her; your mom hired my firm to do her accounting work, Jana is the CEO of her own business and it isn’t in Vegas. Guess that pretty much says it all.” Mike shrugged his shoulders, holding up his palms questioning what to do.
“I can’t make any choices for you, but maybe if you talk it through I can help line things up. First you’re in love with Jana. That’s really not surprising; I’ve been in love with her since I started to walk.” Charlie sat back and paused, “I can’t remember when she wasn’t a part of my life. Even though Craig hired me, I stayed with the company when he left because of Jana. But loving her does not have to equate to marriage. Do you understand that? Love doesn’t always result in marriage. If it did there would be a lot more divorces. What else?”
“I still love her, but okay. Your mom gave me the contract to do her accounting business. In fact, I have a fat ass check in my pocket to prove it. That’s not bad; it just sucks as far as timing. You know when I began this affair with Jana three days ago I was pretty sure I could have an affair and walk away, but I don’t want to. I have a huge opportunity on my door step and all I want to do is walk away. I mean, I could go home with her tomorrow and I know Mr. Nichols would give me a job without question. My only problem is that this offer, this opportunity is something I’ve been working for since I finished college. I don’t want to give it up.”
“Why would you even consider that as a viable option? Jana told you when this started that she wasn’t looking for marriage, didn’t you believe her?” Charlie raised his glass and drank down half his beer in one pass, he knew what was coming.
“Sure then, when she said it. But we hadn’t spent the past couple days together. I didn’t think it would be this good, and it’s not just the sex, though that is fantastic. It’s more, it’s the way she makes me feel, and I know she feels the same. I would give anything if she’d be my wife.”
“So you’re willing to give up everything you worked for?”
“Yes,” Mike said, “I am.”
“That’s crazy. She’s no more ready to get married than you are. Though I want you to know, I think if you asked her again she’d say yes. But Mike, it would be one of the biggest mistakes you both made. Jana doesn’t want to give up her company and move to Vegas, and you don’t want to give up the opportunity you’ve been given, only to go back to working for someone else. Why should either of you? You’re both consenting adults, you knew the plan going into this, and you both need to be honest about what you want. Jana was so proud of you this afternoon when mom told her she was going to hire you. She told her she wouldn’t be sorry. She even staked her reputation on it. By giving up what you’ve been offered you not only hurt yourself, you’d hurt Jana. That’s not any foundation for a healthy marriage.”
Mike gazed around the bar, as if
looking for the answer, “But I want Jana in my life. I know it’s hard to believe, but I do love her.”
“I know you think you do, but after three days I can’t believe you have the type of lasting love needed to start a marriage. When you throw in the fact that one or both of you will walk away from something very near and dear to their hearts, it’s almost like asking for the marriage to fail. You both need time on this marriage thing and you both need to take that time. Look at me,” Charlie said. “If you truly love her, and she feels the same, it will be that way tomorrow and six months from now. Start up your business; get that going because if you intend to marry Jana you need to be able to support her in the style she’s accustomed to. I doubt after a couple of days you even know what that means.” Charlie smiled, “For example do you realize the dress she wore to my mom’s wedding cost her $3,400? Are you really ready to take that on?”
The shock registered on Mike’s face. “Shit! No, not really. I can’t even imagine spending that much money on one item. You’re right I had no idea. Jana and I definitely move in different worlds. I bet the shirt I have on cost more than everything else I’m wearing,” he ran his hand over the luxurious fabric, “am I right?”
“Close, really close,” Charlie laughed. “Mike, that’s why you need to give this some time, time to get to really know the world she lives in, and what her expectations are. Having good sex doesn’t give you an open window to her soul. Take the time to get to know each other. You’ll still see each other. Your parents live in the same city as Jana, and Jana comes here three or four times a year. Take advantage of those meetings. Get to know each other as friends, and then decide your future. In the mean time you start your new company and let Jana run hers.”
“Thanks, Charlie, for the counsel. Maybe I don’t agree with everything you’ve said, but I know it’s the right decision for now. I need to go up and talk to Jana, we need to work all this out and come to an understanding on the future.”
“One more thing,” Charlie said, “before my mom left, she told me that her foreman would be contacting you tomorrow and asking you to stay here a couple of days to work the logistics of your firm moving into their building. I told Jana I’d escort her home. She understands you need to do this, but I didn’t want it to come as a surprise to you when you get the call in the morning.”
“Appreciate it. Maybe staying on here for a couple of days would be good for both of us. I’ll stay, I don’t really want to because I really want to spend every minute I can with Jana before I leave, but I have to set my priorities, and getting my business situated is critical to my, to our, future.” Mike stood, shook Charlie’s hand, and left the bar.
That boy has a lot on his mind. I hope our talk helped give him some direction. The cougar is out, and I don’t think it’s a good idea for him to cage her so soon. Swallowing the last of his beer, Charlie rose and walked into the casino. Time to lose some of my inheritance, he smiled as he took a seat at a dollar slot machine.
*****
Mike unlocked the door of the room, it was completely dark.
“Mike, I hope that’s you?” Jana whispered.
“It’s me. Can I turn on a light? We really need to talk.”
“Sure, turn it on.”
Mike entered the room to find Jana setting on the sofa. He really expected her to be in bed. Actually he was glad she was up, it would have been harder to carry on this conversation in bed, it would’ve been a distraction. “I’m sorry about not talking to you earlier. I know you would’ve tried to help me sort through all this, but I needed to make these decisions on my own. I spent the last forty-five minutes in the bar with Charlie. He gave me some good counsel, but even with that I know the decisions I make now are mine alone.”
Jana let him talk, “I’m listening.”
“The last couple of days have been the best, and worst, of my life. I’ve fallen in love with the most beautiful woman, and I believe she cares for me as well. I’ve locked down a very lucrative future for a company I’ve been planning on since the day I entered college. I’ve had the greatest sex any one man could ask for.” He smiled, “But even with all those things, to fully take advantage of them I’ve got to be willing to make some major sacrifices. I want to be with you Jana, forever.” He saw her flinch, but he continued, “No, I know you would marry me if I kept pushing you, but I don’t want to do that. If, and I say if, we ever marry I want it to be because you want to, not because you feel obligated to.” Mike walked to the mini-bar and took out a bottle of water for Jana, and a beer for himself.
“Thanks,” Jana said; she waited for Mike to get it all out before she responded.
“Leaving marriage out of the equation, it helps me concentrate on my business. I’m so happy, in fact ecstatic, about the possibilities I have with Brandon Inc. I couldn’t have planned it any better. It gives me sufficient funds to stand up the business without having to borrow any money, it gives me great office space, and Sami-Ms Brandon-told me today in the meeting the firm she hired would be able to do work for other companies as long as they weren’t major competitors. So I can pursue other business ventures as well and she’ll still house my offices rent free as long as I work for her. I want to do this, I want to be my own boss and make a success of what I know best.”
“Sounds like a great plan, but you seem reluctant to go forward.”
Mike nodded, “I want you in my life Jana, I don’t want the past few days to be a beginning and end to our relationship. That’s the bottom line.”
“It doesn’t have to be an end to our relationship just because you’re here and I’m not. I come here quite a bit, three or four times a year at a minimum. Your folks live where I do so I expect you’ll travel to see them as well. This doesn’t have to end, it just won’t continue at the same pace.” She laughed, “And mind you, I’m not complaining, but I’m not sure I could maintain this pace!”
Mike laughed as well. Jana’s remark seemed to lighten the situation for him. “Charlie told me I was going to have to stay here a couple of days and work out the logistics for my company and that he would escort you home tomorrow.”
“Yes, he told me. Mike, I understand. I’m a CEO as well. Sometimes, whether you like it or not, the company has to come first. If you don’t understand that then you won’t succeed. I guess that’s the decision you have to make. If you want to follow your dream, you stay and get things set up.”
“I want to stay. I want to get this company off the ground the right way.”
“I’ll fly home tomorrow, and when you get back in town next week, we can spend as much time together as we can before you have to return to Vegas. Did you give up your apartment?”
“Yes, I was planning on staying with my parents, but I haven’t said anything to them yet.”
“Tell you what, you come back and spend the last couple of days you’re in town at my place. That way we can spend even more time together. You no longer work with my company, so it shouldn’t create any more gossip than has already been started. Besides that your car is still in the shop. You can use my company car to take care of any last minutes things you need to do before you leave. How does that sound?”
“Almost too good to be true. You know when we began this affair I thought it would be just great sex, slam bam thank you ma’am. It hasn’t been. I’m in love with you Jana and I want you in my life. I want my company to be a success, and I know before I offer for your hand in marriage again I have to be able to support you in the style you’re accustomed to.”
“Well, not exactly. Mike, if, and it’s a big if, we make the decision down the road to get married, I don’t come to a marriage empty handed. I have a very large, very successful company as you know. If I decided to sell it outright I could live quite handsomely on the earnings of the reinvestments for the rest of my life, your life and then some. I’ve also considered moving my headquarters to Nevada for tax reasons. No I’m not making any hasty decisions right now. I need time to work all this out
in my mind too. All that said, both of us need to concentrate on our individual CEO responsibilities.” She yawned, “I’m tired can we sleep now?”
“Yes,” he said reluctantly. He didn’t want this to end without a commitment on Jana’s part, but from her comments he knew she wasn’t ready for that. She was probably right, and for now he would leave things as they were.
Jana climbed into bed and snuggled into Mike’s arms. He held her tight and within minutes she felt his body totally relax in sleep. Smiling, she drifted off thinking how nice it was to have a man in her bed, I’ve missed this intimacy, and if Mike leaves…
*****
The normal, day-to-day office environment was exactly what she needed to put her life back on track. Las Vegas was exciting and her time with Mike had been wonderful. The reality now was work, and putting normalcy back into her daily routine, which always put a smile on Jana’s face. Charlie was the perfect escort home and upon her arrival she had received a dozen red roses from Mike. The card simply stated, ‘Miss you. Had a great time, wish you were still here, Mike’, sweet but no love sonnet. She was a little disappointed, but she knew he was doing what he felt was best. She turned on her computer and glanced through her e-mails. Nothing that needed her attention right now, she could concentrate on the trip she was planning for next week to England and on to Egypt. It would’ve been nice to take Mike along, but that wasn’t possible. She heard a knock on the door and looked up just as Charlie entered.
“How’s it going this morning? You look good, the weekend must have been relaxing in spite of all the issues you and Mike encountered.”
“It was a great weekend, and I truly enjoyed my time with Mike. I miss him, but I know he had things he needed to take care of.” She saw Charlie’s eyes narrow. “Don’t look at me that way, I’m fine really. I know him staying there and me staying here is the best for right now. In the meantime you have a trip to plan for us. Also, Charlie thanks for escorting me home. I really appreciate you standing in for Mike.”