Voyage (The Vivienne Series Book 4)

by Karen Gordon

  I bookmark the page then pull myself away to be even nosier. I look up financial profiles of his business and I’m even more impressed. His numbers are solid but even more than that is the info about the charities he supports with the profits. He’s pretty much a one-man-band so I’m guessing he contracts out most of the work. I picture him sitting in a café in some exotic locale setting up contracts, checking sales data, doing the mundane things you do to run a business but not doing it from a cubicle somewhere. He is truly living his dream.

  My stomach rumbling pulls me out of my research stupor. I check the time. It’s two in the afternoon. Oops. I guess I should make an appearance downstairs.

  ✈ ✈ ✈

  The house is quiet but I find coffee set up in the kitchen and some bread and fruit. I make myself a plate and head for the table until I see Mikel working on his laptop on the porch.

  “Morning.” I set my stuff on the little café table and take the seat across from him.

  He stops working to look up at me, grin and raise his eyebrows. I don’t know if he is amused by me waking up so late or by me hooking up with Pete.

  “Afternoon?” I’ll assume the first, it’s easier to deal with.

  “You slept well?” There is a hint of innuendo in there but he’s one to talk—Annalize and her arias. “I did, thank you.” I sip my coffee and tear at the bread as he goes back to work.

  When he finishes what he was doing he closes the lid and turns his attention back to me. “The others have gone to lunch in town.” He anticipates my next question. “They weren’t sure if you wanted them to wake you to go.”

  I’m blushing when I shake my head and say, “late night.”

  My embarrassment amuses him but he gives me an out to dull it. “It was a late night for all of us.”

  He meant to make me feel better but his words remind me of what Pete told me about him and Annalize. I pretend to be looking out over the lake as I steal a glance at him. He wants me, and I could have him. It’s such an odd thought, especially about my boss. Then I remember that Pete has played with him and Annalize. I chance another glance at him.

  “What?” I’m caught this time.

  Do I ask him? Now would be the perfect time, when we are alone. But, is it really any of my business?

  He doesn’t read my mind but he comes close. “Did Anna go too far last night?” He smiles to himself. “She is fond of you.”

  I want to ask him but the words are stuck in my mouth.

  “Did she ask you to join us?”

  I try not to choke on the sip of coffee in my mouth. “Uh, no…Pete said…” He nods that he understands so I don’t have to finish the sentence.

  “He is a good man. We like him.” His reply astounds me. It’s so…mater-of-fact.

  Curiosity takes over and I can’t help myself. “So, you and Annalize are both bi?”

  “Si.”

  “And you both sleep with other people.”

  “Si, usually together.”

  “But you’ve been with other people, alone?” Ok, it’s part curiosity and part wanting. I’ve been sexed up like crazy and I’m still attracted to Mikel.

  He knows I’m beating around the bush. “What is it you want to ask, cara?”

  Let’s start with why I get butterflies every time you call me cara and why I can’t stop staring at your hands. But I can’t say what I want, so I just shake my head.

  “Ask for what you want, cara, you just might get it.”

  I think he knows but he’s going to make me ask. I just can’t. I can’t ask my married boss if he will fool around with me, even if it is technically ok with his wife. And hours after I’ve had a one night stand. I’m still too…me, too uptight, too lost in rules.

  He doesn’t push me farther. Instead he takes my hand, kisses it and changes the subject. “Tomorrow we will go to Milan to the office. We can enjoy another day here.”

  It’s a statement and a challenge. Can I push myself to enjoy the day the way he’s insinuating? I don’t know, but just playing it out in my mind is damn enjoyable.

  Chapter Seven

  My attraction smoldered below the surface for the rest of my trip but it was never mentioned again. Annalize continued to flirt with me but no more than she did the rest of the world. With her it’s all sweet and light, with Mikel it simmered. I tried to distract myself by thinking of Pete but logically I knew there was nothing really between us. I might run into him again, if I happened to be on a trail in the Himalayas. Going to Milan and to the office helped. We were alone there and for the most part he kept the mood casual but business-like.

  In the end I decide it’s Italy’s fault. Damn this sexy country with their great food and wine and hot men and women. It’s in the air and I simply caught a case of it. I’ll be better once I get home, back to drive-thru food, cheap beer, and men who run away from me.

  It also helps when Mikel and I have an interesting conversation about my employment status. I understood that all I would receive from Ora was some expenses covered and commission but I still see myself as an employee. I’ve always been an employee, always had a boss. But when I called Mikel boss he corrects me.

  “I’m not your boss. You are your own boss. I am contracting with you to sell my planes.”

  I’m my own boss? It takes a while to sink in. I am my own boss. I can do whatever I want. I can decide how I work, when I work, where I work. It’s thrilling to just think it through. Imagine how I’ll feel living it.

  Knowing he isn’t my boss makes me feel a little less guilty about lusting after Mikel. I carry with me the effects of years of HR sexual-harassment lectures but now that I see him more as a co-worker than my superior— it’s still an HR no-no in my world, but less so.

  Then again, I have no HR department over me anymore…

  I’m still trapped in this conundrum, overthinking it to death, when Mikel drops me off at the airport to fly home.

  “I have given you a lot to go over. Don’t worry.” This is his mantra with me now. “You will get the manuals and things soon enough. You can read them then and get started.”

  I’m still worried about making sales but also about the silent elephant sitting between us. Why can’t I just let this go? It’s become almost a challenge for me now, and I love challenges. Can I ask for what I want? It’s a little late now, but…

  I stand on the curb and wait for him to emancipate my massive suitcase from the tiny trunk. He sets it in front of me, a barrier between us, but one I’m not going to let destroy my plan.

  With my hands in my blazer pockets I hem and haw and make no sense. I know he’ll say yes, he’s all but pushed me to do this. But I’m still having a horrible time getting past my own barriers.

  I take a deep breath so I can talk. “Would you…” I’m talking to my suitcase, not him. I force myself to look up at him. “Would you kiss me…goodbye?”

  I love his huge grin because it says so much, how he’s proud of me for asking and how much he hoped I would.

  Luckily he takes over at this point because I’m sure I would make things really clumsy and awkward. He steps around the suitcase, takes my face in his hands and pulls me in to him. Then he kisses me slowly, sensually, making it the perfect reward for asking.

  I can’t just stand there. I’m in this far, I might as well go for broke. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull myself closer to him. Anyone watching us would think we were lovers having a long goodbye. But we aren’t lovers, we’re friends, friends who push each other to do daring things, to have adventures, to grab a little of la dolce vita.

  He finishes by hugging me close and telling me, “Very good, cara.” Don’t know if he means my bravery or the kiss but, yes, it is.

  ✈ ✈ ✈

  My dolce vita doesn’t wear off for a few days once I’m home. I float around, spending days sitting in all of the downtown squares in Savannah, noting the sounds, smells, personality of each. I lay on the grass in the park across from my apartment and rea
d, for pleasure. It’s been too long since I’ve taken the time to lose myself in another world. I eat slowly and have wine with almost every meal.

  I try to get Dom onboard but she just doesn’t understand. Sure she loves hearing my stories of Smilin Pete and Mikel and high-fives me several times for sticking my tongue down the throat of two different men in one week. But she also tells me that I would have gotten bonus high-fives had I kissed Annalize and lived out all my fantasies on Mikel. She’s always been more daring than me, in everything, but I think pregnancy is actually making her hornier. She swoons as I give her all the lurid details of my days and nights in Italy.

  The boxes from Ora don’t arrive for a week and a half. By then my Italian hangover is over and I’m back to American-panic mode. I scour the manuals and company information, studying it and committing it to memory. I cram like I’m taking all my final exams tomorrow. I need to feel completely prepared before I contact the two leads we have from the convention. Mikel has talked to each briefly and told them that they would be contacted by Ora’s new North American sales rep. I order my business cards and schedule a lunch with Bob. I need pointers and a pep talk.

  “So what’s the word?” I knew Bob would be full of gossip about me from JetStream.

  “Company line is that you found a better opportunity and they wish you well, et cetera, et cetera.” He takes a drink and lowers his voice. “But the best rumor is that you are carrying Jack’s baby and were paid to go away.”

  I have to laugh at that one, like I would ever touch Jack’s nasty-ass carcass. Billions of dollars can’t make up for what’s missing in him. “Let ‘em talk. I’m so over that place.”

  Bob lifts his Styrofoam cup to toast me. “Good for you. I don’t think there was a way for you to win with Jack.” We are having a clandestine meeting at a seedy but delish BBQ place away from the city.

  “So, how much can you help me with this sales thing and not feel like you are giving up any company secrets?”

  He chews his sandwich while he thinks. “I can definitely recommend a few books.”

  “Cool, send me links.”

  He does this as we continue eating.

  “Start with the Zig Ziglar. It’s classic and applies to everything.”

  I nod and highlight it on the list he just sent to my phone.

  “Be patient, that’s a good one for you.”

  “Really?” I’m being sarcastic because he knows me so well. Patience is definitely not one of my virtues.

  “You’re asking for a multi-million dollar decision. The art is in knowing how much to push and how much to hold back. This almost never happens quickly.”

  “Ok.” I’m going to have to really work on that one. Can’t research that to death. I’ll have to learn to trust my gut more.

  “I don’t know what kind of expense account you have but these people expect to be wined, dined and gifted. And not just the man signing the check. His whole buying team: pilots, broker, secretary…”

  I laugh thinking about all the goodies I got as his secretary. I did love them and I did have a lot of influence over how much access anyone had to Bob. Not a lesson to forget.

  “And finally…” He pauses, building up to something profound. “I want a ride.”

  I laugh. “I know, you and me both. I can’t get my hands on one until I need it for a demo flight. I have to schedule it with the flight crew in Italy and make sure the buyer has the means to really buy one. It’s a new company so I have to be really frugal with the jet rides.”

  “So you’ll fly commercial?”

  I grimace. “Yeah.”

  “Go with Delta. Best frequent flyer program, least headaches when you miss a flight.”

  “I know.”

  He doesn’t continue with his list when he remembers that I was the one who booked all those flights, and found him alternatives, and healthy meals. “You’ve got that part down, huh?”

  “Yeah, I just…don’t feel ready.”

  “You won’t.”

  “Not helpful.”

  “But the truth.” He wads up his sandwich wrapper, bringing our meeting to an end. “You do it anyway. You’ll never know all the answers. You’ll find them and show the customer that you are willing to do that, work your ass off to make them feel comfortable plunking down millions of dollars on your product.”

  He rises to leave before me. Even in the middle of nowhere we feel the need to be secretive. Joel is still pissed and could easily take it out on Bob.

  I grab his hand and squeeze it before he can get away. “Thank you. You don’t know how much this means to me.”

  “You got this, I swear. You are ten times smarter and harder working than those yahoos we got back at the office.”

  He’s right. I work circles around them. I can do this.

  “And I want a ride.”

  I laugh and agree. “You got it. I don’t know how yet, but I’ll make it happen.” And I will. I’m always true to my word.

  Chapter Eight

  I make my first mistake before I even make my first sales call. Luckily I catch it in time to fix it but it still rattles my confidence that I would overlook something so obvious. I’m ecstatic about ordering my business cards. There’s something so official about a printed four-color card announcing your position. I checked the spelling and placement at least ten times before I hit the order key but now that they’ve arrived the mistake is glaring—my address.

  I live in an apartment. My address on the card has my apartment number. Who the hell is going to order an eighty million dollar jet from a business with an apartment address? I might as well have a PO box in New Jersey.

  Lucca, Dom and Luis don’t think it’s a huge deal but I do.

  “I don’t think they’re going to be paying that much attention to the address. Seriously, if I was looking at that jet, I’d never notice your address.” Luis is practically drooling on my sales brochure.

  “But image is a huge part of this industry. It’s all about prestige.”

  Never one to dwell like I do on her mistakes, Dom offers, “How many did you order? Just reprint them.”

  “With what address? I don’t have an office and I can’t afford one.” They are all glossing over what is really bothering me, that I feel like I’m losing my touch already. I’m so freaked out by the task ahead of me I can’t think straight and I’m making stupid mistakes.

  Lucca wanders through the room toward the washing machine carrying a load of laundry. “Use my address.”

  I laugh at the beautiful simplicity of her solution. She’s right. It’s a street address that no one will really know or care where it is. The cards weren’t that much so I can order another set. On her way back through she adds, “Put a suite number after it. We’ll call Dom’s old bedroom suite D.” God I love this wise woman.

  She declares, “problem solved,” and moves on with her work.

  She solved my problem but more than that she reminded me that I don’t have to do this completely alone. I’ve got some very smart friends who are willing to help.

  ✈　✈　✈

  On August 8th I have my new business cards, all my sales materials, and the number of my first prospect in hand. I call to set up a meeting with Brad Prinster, the Director of Flight Operations for a hotel group based in Miami. It’s a friendly chat about why they are interested and their timeline, nothing I couldn’t have handled as a secretary, but my hands sweat and my heart pounds through the whole thing. We end it with the ball in his court. He’ll look at his CEO’s schedule, the CFO’s, the head of the local airport and a few other people and see when would be a good week for me to come down and meet with everyone.

  As soon as I hang up I do a happy dance. I did it. I’m in business. I’ve crossed the line and walked out into the public eye as Vivienne Ramsey, North American Sales Rep for Ora Aviazione. I didn’t want to admit it until now but I had a possibly irrational fear that he would call me out as an imposter. My nightmare scenario was hi
m knowing that I’m really a secretary and telling me to have a real sales rep call him. But it didn’t happen and I am launched.

  I record the call; time, date, details, impressions in my sales-tracking software. When I get to the “Follow Up” section I’m stumped. There is really nothing I can do but gather more information about the company. As it is I know where Brad went to college, his degree and a rough estimate of his income. It was Dom’s idea to look up his home address and find his house on Zillow. Then she looked at all the houses around it for sale. It borders on obsessive stalker but right now I have nothing but time and a zealous drive to succeed. We do research on pretty much anyone I might need to meet with. I want to know them inside and out, to know what makes them tick, what makes them happy. I want my jet to make them happy.

  I put a follow-up date one week away. That should be enough time to organize some meetings. I could pull that off in an afternoon if I worked there.

  August 15th – I call Bob before I call Brad Prinster again to see if I’m being too pushy. He laughs at me and tells me to cool my jets (then laughs at his own joke). I don’t laugh. It’s been an excruciating week of waiting. I suck at patience. I want results and I want them now. Per Bob’s advice I make a note to give it another week.