Boardroom Sins

by J. Margot Critch

“Yes. It’s a power move. To save my company.”

  “That’s interesting.”

  “What are you doing in my office?” she asked, walking toward him.

  He shrugged. “I had to make a phone call and I couldn’t find my cell phone,” he lied easily. “I looked down and saw your letterhead. So you’re buying out your own company.”

  “Of course. It’s not ideal, but I won’t let you take my company from me.”

  “Why couldn’t we find any information on what RMD is?”

  “You had me investigated?”

  “Yes,” he said, unflinching. “We had to know what we were up against in our takeover bid.”

  “My father gave me shares when I left town, but he didn’t want anyone to know they were mine. I guess he thought I wouldn’t be able to protect my own stake in the company when he was gone. He didn’t want me vulnerable. So he created the holding company for me. Nobody knows it’s me. I think it was his way of keeping controlling interest away from others. He never imagined that I could take care of it myself. He should have known better.”

  Brett frowned. He understood her father’s intentions, but while Rebecca might be a lot of things, vulnerable certainly wasn’t one of them. But something else she’d said nagged at him.

  He had an idea, a way that they could both survive, and that he could save face. “This is great. Why don’t you sign your shares over to Alex and me? You can work for us. We’ll give you a great executive position at Collins/Fischer.”

  Her eyes widened, and she gave a short, loud guffaw. “You’re out of your goddamn mind. I didn’t work this hard to sign over my rightful property to you.”

  “Hear me out. DI has been struggling for years. An acquisition by my company can keep the company from folding completely. The shareholders are happy. You can come work for me. Everyone will get what they want.”

  “Not me,” she said. “That isn’t what I want. I’m going to rise and restore Daniels International to the great company it was. No matter what it takes. I don’t need your help. I have my own plans, and I will never sell out my father’s company.” She took a deep breath. “You should leave.”

  “Rebecca—”

  “Get out!”

  Brett blew out a frustrated breath. “Fine. I’ll go,” he said, stalking past her. “Goddammit,” he muttered. “But mark my words. We’re not done here. I’ll see you Friday at the shareholders’ meeting, and don’t think for a second that any of the holdouts are going to stick with you over me.”

  * * *

  Brett slammed his fist on the steering wheel as he pulled his car out onto the road. He didn’t know if he was madder at her or himself. He knew he couldn’t be angry at her for trying to protect her family business. That last remark was his lashing out, probably unfairly, and he settled his anger on himself. How had he let the fact that Rebecca was behind RMD get by him? Goddammit, he knew exactly how. He’d been distracted. If only he hadn’t been so caught up in his own life, in her and her body. He should have been smarter, more aware. She’d vowed to stop them. Did that include using him, keeping him close to stop him?

  Using the car’s Bluetooth system, he called Alex. After several rings, his friend answered, out of breath. “Dude, do you have any idea what time it is?” he said by way of greeting. “I’m not exactly alone here.”

  “It’s Rebecca,” Brett said.

  “What’s Rebecca?”

  “RMD. It’s her fucking initials.” Brett quickly explained what had gone down in Rebecca’s office.

  Alex was quiet for a bit. “Are you kidding?”

  “I wish I was. Her dad set up the holding company in secret years ago. She bought up all those shares in the last week using her own money.”

  “Well, shit,” Alex breathed out.

  “Alex...” Brett heard an annoyed, disembodied female voice in the background. Alex’s late-night company.

  “Dude, let’s get together tomorrow morning,” Brett said. “We’ve got to get our shit together before the stockholders’ meeting on Friday. Get back to your night.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  REBECCA TAPPED HER fingers impatiently on her desk. A nervous, angry energy ran through her. She tried focusing on work but to no avail. The words and numbers on the computer screen in front of her blurred. She was mad. Mad at Brett, mad at herself.

  She hadn’t seen Brett in several days, not since he’d found out she was RMD. She knew that his ego had prevented him from reaching out to her. To be honest, her ego had caused the same. He was a proud man, and the fact that she’d bested him had made him angry. But that didn’t dull the ache, the hollow, in her chest. The short time that Brett had been in her life had affected her more than she’d ever imagined it could. It hurt to think about, so every time she’d thought about him, she’d doubled her efforts into saving Daniels International.

  But there was something about Brett. He did something to her. And Rebecca wondered if another man had ever made her feel the way Brett did. She’d never been in love. Was that what she was feeling? Was it possible that she was actually in love with Brett Collins?

  “No!” she told herself, her voice firm and strong in her empty office.

  But are you sure?

  No! Brett was everything she hated—privilege, arrogance, stubbornness. But goddammit, he was sexy, fun, adventurous, and they were able to relate on a level that she’d never experienced with another man. She clenched her fists. It was lust, not love. He was gorgeous and incredible in bed, but that didn’t mean anything. There were millions of good-looking guys in the world. She’d never met one as good in bed as Brett was, but that didn’t mean anything. He was just one man among millions.

  But Rebecca couldn’t ignore the way her heartbeat increased speed, how her breath became shallow. Maybe it was love. She shook herself free of it. She couldn’t be in love with Brett. They were similar in nature, sexually compatible, but they were also enemies. She had no future with him.

  She frowned and checked her watch. The shareholders’ meeting would start in ten minutes, and she would face down Brett, Alex and the other few shareholders who remained. She stood and tried to mentally psyche herself up for what would probably be an epic showdown. She’d worked hard, but there was one more step, and that would be appealing to the last few remaining holdouts—then she would own more than enough to secure sole ownership of the business. It was time, so she gathered her things and headed upstairs.

  When she got to the conference room, she saw that she was the first one there, except for the catering team who were busy putting together a coffee station and trays of fruit and pastries. They offered her a cup of coffee, which she gratefully accepted, and she took a seat at the head of the table.

  Slowly, each seat of the table became occupied by the holdouts, the older men who had known her father, and as the meeting start time drew closer, there were still two unoccupied seats—Brett’s and Alex’s.

  She checked her watch again. It was ten on the dot. Time to start. If Brett didn’t want to show, she would just go ahead and start without him. Standing, she smiled at those in attendance. Between the push for shares by Brett and herself, the number of shareholders in the room had dwindled greatly.

  “Gentlemen,” she addressed them. “Thank you for coming today. Now, looking around the room, there are far fewer of us than there was the last time we all met.”

  The door opened, interrupting her. She looked and saw Brett and Alex enter the room. They walked to the table and sat as if they owned the place. Hell, they probably thought that they did. But it wasn’t over yet.

  “Sorry we’re late,” Brett said, sitting back comfortably in his chair.

  “The meeting started at ten,” she reminded him.

  “Yes, forgive us for our tardiness,” Brett said, extending his hand. “Please continue.”

  Rebecca then
turned back to the rest of the men. “Gentlemen, I thank you for your patience, but I’ve gathered you here today because I know you all. I know that you were all close to my father. And out of that loyalty to him, you were reluctant to sell your shares to the two companies that approached you to sell. I want to thank you for that.” She tried to catch the eye of each man in the room, to let them know her thanks was heartfelt.

  “This is my first shareholders’ meeting since I became CEO, and I know if my father were here at this meeting, he would start by talking about Daniels International’s profits and future plans, but I need to address the elephant in the room.” Rebecca cast a glance at Brett. “When Collins/Fischer sent a tender offer on our company, many people sold their shares for the premium they were paying. You didn’t. And to secure the rest of the company, RMD stepped up to stop them from taking over. And you still held on. But I want to tell you that RMD is me, and to my father’s memory, I am standing up to the cannibalization of real estate development in Las Vegas. Collins/Fischer’s goal is to be the only name in real estate in this town. But we can’t let that happen. A monopoly would be good for no one.”

  “If I may interrupt for a second.” Brett’s deep voice rang out in the room. Rebecca looked up and saw that Brett was now standing, a grim smile turning his lips upward. “Sorry, gentlemen, ma’am.” He acknowledged her, the only woman in the room, with a brief nod. Her eyes locked on his for a brief moment. At that moment, he wasn’t her larger-than-life lover. He was cold, methodical. This was Brett Collins in business mode.

  “What do you want?” she asked.

  He seemed amused that she was the only one to speak up, and one corner of his mouth ticked upward. “Well, we wanted to take advantage of all of the remaining shareholders in the room. By now, we know you’ve all received our letters and know our intent.” Brett glanced around the room. “We’re shareholders in Daniels International. We have just as much reason to be here as anyone else does.”

  “Nobody else in this room is in the middle of a hostile takeover of the company,” Rebecca told him.

  He ignored her and turned to the rest of the men in the room. “Gentlemen, what we’re doing here today is to talk to you about selling your shares in DI. You’ve seen our offer, and you’ve seen Ms. Daniels’s offer. But let’s be blunt. Daniels International has seen a steady decline in profits in the past decade, and the value of your shares is going down. We’re now offering an even higher premium for your shares. If you’re interested in selling, we’re now offering more than fifty percent above the market value.” Eyes widened as they named their new price, including Rebecca’s, and she seethed at the gall of the man. To come into her meeting and begin complete destruction of the business that she was trying to protect...

  Putting her palms on the table, Rebecca looked around the room. “Gentlemen, please,” she started. “I know what Mr. Collins and Mr. Fischer are offering is very generous, but it’s foolhardy. Daniels International is on the way back up, I promise. We have big plans for the future, which I will gladly detail once Mr. Collins sits down. Have profits been declining? Sure. There’s no question of that. But we’re going to make a big comeback, and you don’t want this to be the way you give up your stake in this great company. You all knew my father and saw this company in its heyday,” she said. “We’re going to bring this company back to where it was, and we’ll be better than ever. You have my word.”

  She felt Brett’s glare on her, but she ignored him, basking in the agreement of several of the men in the room, all old friends of her father’s. They’d held on to her every word, nodding in alliance as she detailed Daniels International’s plans for the future. She cast a defiant look at Brett, still standing on the other side of the table, his mouth open, poised to speak over her, but she looked at him in challenge and was surprised to see him back down.

  She raised an eyebrow and then addressed the room. “I think that’s everything today, gentlemen. Meeting adjourned.” Without another look at Brett, Rebecca gathered her belongings and was the first to leave the room.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  BRETT LEANED HIS elbows on the bar at Di Terrestres. The club was full, but no one bothered him; it must have been obvious he wasn’t in the mood to be approached. He was pissed. Frustrated. He wanted to grab a bottle of five-hundred-dollar bourbon from behind the bar and go up to his office and polish the thing off. But he didn’t. Like most people who grappled with addiction, his sobriety was a daily struggle, and he normally had tighter grip on it. The stubbornness to not go back to “old Brett” was what allowed him to own a bar. But some days were harder than others. And it had been a hard day. He stayed at the bar, where there were witnesses, people to whom he was accountable. He clenched his fists in wanting. Things had not gone the way they were planned.

  Rebecca was staying put, and he’d have to deal with her being a regular presence in the local real estate industry. It was his problem, not hers, and he never should have dragged her into it. He thought he’d owned the world, could do anything he wanted, but in one fell swoop, he’d lost it all. Because of his stupid, foolish pride, he’d lost out on a business goal that had not only cost him money but was a blow to his reputation. No one else in the boardroom had agreed to sell to him, no matter what he’d said. The remaining shareholders were all loyal to the company and the Daniels name. And his scheming had also cost him the only woman he’d ever cared about.

  He grimaced. He thought he could have loved Rebecca. But it would never work between them. There was too much bad blood and animosity, especially now that he’d tried to take her company from her. She’d played her part, but he was the one who’d sounded the death knell for any relationship they could have had. He’d ruined everything.

  “I should have known we’d find you here,” he heard Rafael say from behind him. Alex was with him, and they joined him at the bar, flanking him. “We tried calling you.”

  “Yeah, my phone’s off.”

  His friends eyed his glass warily.

  “It’s water.”

  “What’s going on?” Rafael asked.

  He shook his head. “Did you ever feel like you just ruined everything?”

  “No, but I generally do everything right,” Rafael answered.

  The bartender came over with drinks for Alex and Rafael and then left quickly, knowing that they were engaged in serious conversation. Brett turned to Alex. “I’m sorry.”

  “What about?”

  “I’m sorry I got us involved in a venture we couldn’t win. It was my pride that was motivating me. And we lost.”

  “It’s fine,” Alex said, even though Brett knew that Alex was just as upset as he was. “Just be straight with me from now on.”

  “I will,” he promised.

  “Seriously, though. Why are you moping? We’ve lost deals and takeover bids before.” Alex stopped. “It’s just business. We’ll get the next one.” He paused. “You can admit it, you know. This was all about Rebecca, wasn’t it? Are you in love with her?”

  He nodded. “She fucking hates me.”

  “Yeah, probably.”

  “I guess the party’s here,” someone else called from behind him. When the three of them turned, they saw Alana and Gabe join them at the bar. Alana went behind the bar, dodging the busy bartenders, and she grabbed an unopened bottle of wine and a bottle of Perrier for Brett, and the group moved on to their regular table. “What’s with the long faces? I take it the Daniels International shareholders’ meeting didn’t exactly go as planned?”

  Brett guffawed. “You got that right.” He filled them in on the details of the meeting. “Needless to say, our takeover bid of Daniels is over.”

  “Good for her!” Alana exclaimed, her smile wide. “That’s fantastic!”

  “Not for us,” Alex groused.

  “I’m sorry it’s not want you wanted, but I’m so proud of her. She was alo
ne and worked her ass off to save her company. You have to respect that.”

  “Alana’s right. You’ve got to give it to Rebecca. She’s one hell of a businesswoman,” Rafael reasoned.

  “So she beat you. Is that why you’re sulking?” Alana asked.

  “I’m not sulking,” Brett snapped.

  Alana poured herself a glass of wine and raised it. “Here’s to Rebecca. It’s nice to see a woman come out on top in this city sometimes.”

  Brett raised his glass and clinked it against hers. He couldn’t fault Rebecca. She was going to be good for Daniels International, and if anyone could restore it to its former glory, it was her.

  “Shall she always be a thorn in Brett Collins’s side,” Gabe finished. “So, are you guys going to hold on to the Daniels stocks or what?”

  “We’ll have to come up with some sort of plan. I don’t know. I fucked up with her. I need to make it right.”

  “Dude, you have my blessing to do whatever you need to do,” Alex said.

  Brett nodded. Despite that he’d hurt Rebecca, he was happy for her. Proud of her success. He’d given her a run for her money and she’d come out on top—it was admirable.

  Brett was grateful to still have his friend’s trust. “Thanks for everything, guys.” He stood and walked away. Even though they were trying to talk business and joke around with him, he couldn’t handle their concerned looks. He needed some time alone.

  He didn’t realize that Alana had followed him. “You love her, don’t you?” she asked.

  He didn’t say anything for a while as he dwelled on the time he’d spent with her. She was gorgeous, sexy, but tough. He respected her, and she took up way too much of his mind, and he could only think about when he would be able to see her again. Somehow, somewhere along the way, he had fallen in love with her. Brett nodded. “Yeah, I think I do.” Rebecca had been right. If he’d set all of this aside, he could’ve spent the last few weeks focusing on things that really mattered, instead of blindly trying to shut her down. Only now did he realize what he’d lost.