Bravo, thought Jonas. That’s my girl!
William shrugged good-naturedly. “It was worth a try. A pity! I would have enjoyed taking you out.”
“Well, what do you think of our new cousin?” Annie had been watching William closely as he watched Lauren and Jonas dance once again. Her brother’s face was far from passive.
“I believe Jonas has decided he wants her for himself. I don’t blame him, but I wish I had seen her first.”
“She is lovely, isn’t she? She sparkles when she is with him.” Annie smiled fondly. She had a special place in her heart for Jonas. Few people knew how good he had been to her and William over the years. “I believe Jonas has finally found someone who isn’t influenced by his name and probably doesn’t know his net worth,” said Annie quietly. “I like her.”
“I like her, too. And so does Jonas. He can’t take his eyes off her.”
“Neither can you,” said Annie dryly. She stood and reached for his hand. “Let’s join them for one last dance. Be honest with yourself, William. All you have is a small crush, and all you had in mind was a flirtation.”
William reluctantly produced a half smile. “You know me too well, and Lauren catches on quickly. You are absolutely right. That is all I had in mind.”
When they returned to their table, Lauren’s phone was ringing. She apologized as she removed it from her bag. “There was a problem with a client yesterday, and I agreed to take his call. Will you please excuse me a minute?”
Though she politely left the table and walked towards the French doors of the alcove, her companions quieted when she answered the phone. And without apology proceeded to listen to her end of the conversation.
By the expression on Lauren’s face, it was clear to her companions the client was being difficult, but she handled him with what to Jonas sounded like practiced ease. She was calm, patient and impressively knowledgeable as she dealt with each of his concerns, then ended the conversation on a lighthearted note. Jonas was impressed.
“I am so sorry,” she apologized as she put her phone away and returned to her seat. “He gets on these tangents when I’m not available. It can be tiresome.”
“So that’s how pampering is done.” Jonas’ eyes gleamed with amusement. “I must say no one has ever told me to spend the afternoon with a woman simply to appease me in business.”
“That’s because you’re not Phillip Fine,” Lauren replied wryly. “Sometimes it’s the only thing that works with him. And not just any woman. Only his wife.”
“Would you care to enlighten us?” William invited.
Lauren looked at her companions and by the expressions on their faces conceded that her end of the conversation might have sounded a tad odd. Maybe a small explanation was in order.
“The problem with this particular client started with an inexperienced young account manager. He had been thoroughly trained so I assumed when I handed him a twenty-thousand-dollar-a-day account he’d follow up with the client. Unfortunately, when he saw the name of the client—a quite prominent figure on the East Coast—he was too intimidated to contact him. I discovered the problem when I was going through some reports and wondered why nothing was happening with a potentially huge account I had personally brought on board. I met with the account manager and got to the bottom of it, then called the client. Ever since that client has refused to deal with anyone but me.
“He has an amazing talent for making money. He has more than he’ll ever need, but it’s become a game to see how much he can accumulate in his lifetime. To that end, he drops by periodically to make sure we spend his money wisely. On one occasion, he was still in my office at five o’clock in the afternoon and showed no inclination to leave. I still had hours of work ahead of me and knew I’d be there ‘till midnight if I didn’t get rid of him, so I asked if he had an interest or hobby that might take his mind off business for a while.” Lauren smiled. “I was thinking a strenuous game of tennis or a few rounds of golf, but he got this wolfish grin on his face and said his only interests were business and his wife. So, I had this epiphany. I suggested he relax a little, put business aside and go home and spend a romantic evening with his wife.” Lauren bit her lip and gave them a small grin. “And it worked! He was out of my office so fast I hardly had time to blink. So, these days, when the occasion calls for it, I use variations on the same theme. It’s amazing how well it still works.”
“That is the best story I have ever heard.” Annie was wiping tears of laughter from her face. “I would never have had the nerve to tell a client that.”
“It certainly isn’t what I would tell any other client, but Phil is a special case. I would gladly hand him over to one of my account managers, but he refuses to be handed over, so I’m stuck with him.”
“And he spends an enormous amount of money with you,” injected Jonas lightly, “so you want to keep him as a client.”
“Not personally, but the firm does.”
“So, what happened to the poor guy who screwed up?” asked William. “Did you fire him?”
“We found him a position within the firm better suited to his talents. He’s been a loyal and hardworking employee ever since.”
Jonas looked at her speculatively. “When you say we, Lauren, do you mean you?”
“I spent some time with him, got to know his strong points. Then I went to bat for him with HR. He was a bright, pleasant, well-educated young man, just unsuited to what he’d been hired to do. It was no big deal.”
“It was a big deal to him,” Jonas pointed out. “He still had a job.”
“That was my goal,” Lauren said.
“You are an impressive woman, Lauren,” said Jonas quietly.
“What we have here is a baby-faced executive,” injected William, but it was said with a certain fondness. “I’m beginning to see that you and Jonas are a great match. You’re two of a kind. He was just a baby when he took over the already successful Juul Enterprises and has made it even more successful.”
“My baby-face comes in handy,” Lauren laughed. “People tend to underestimate me.”
Jonas smiled and thought of his first impression of her. “I can believe that. I thought you were maybe eighteen, twenty at the most, when we first met,” he admitted.
“I was aware of that,” she smiled. “You treated me like a teenage cousin at first. It was sweet.”
“It didn’t take me long to realize my mistake,” he said in his defense. “I was dying to ask how old you were.”
Lauren looked at him in surprise. “What stopped you?”
“I believe there is something about a gentleman never asking a woman her age?”
“Not in the twenty-first century,” Annie cut in smartly. “And I am not afraid to ask. How old are you, Lauren?”
“I’m twenty-nine.”
“You do look young for your age,” Annie agreed. “You’re lucky. William and I just turned thirty, and we are already getting our first gray hairs.”
“Time for you to think about settling down, William,” Lauren teased. “Then you won’t feel such a need to flirt all the time.”
“I could say the same for you,” he said and winked at her.
Straight-faced, she fibbed, “I would, but no one has wanted me so far.”
Jonas let out a guffaw.
“You could try Jonas,” suggested William, unconvinced. “He’s available.”
Lauren pretended to look Jonas over carefully, then said with feigned skepticism, “I don’t know.” She turned to William. “Is he a good catch? You have to be so careful these days. You never know if a man is after you for your money.”
The table erupted.
As they pulled away from the restaurant, Lauren looked back at the stately old mansion and thought of Jonas’ grandmother. She had been denied a relationship with her half-brother when she was alive, but today, be
cause of Jonas, their grandchildren had a close relationship and were the best of friends. And tonight, they had welcomed Lauren into that little circle. Leaning back in her seat she turned to Jonas. “I had a good time tonight.”
“Glad you enjoyed yourself.” He reached over and took her hand. “I learned a lot about you tonight, Lauren. And about your work. You’re quite a woman.”
“I never set out to have a career in business I just sort of fell into it.”
“Tell me about it.”
“It’s not particularly interesting.”
“Wrong. Everything about you interests me.”
Lauren laughed softly. “All right, but stop me when you’ve heard enough. When I returned from Taiwan, I planned to remain in Utah. I was staying with my parents temporarily, trying to decide what to do next. I had only been home a few days when I got a phone call from a company in Washington State. The vice president of sales invited me to fly up and interview for a position.”
“Just like that?”
“Uh-huh. I had no idea how they got my name. Later I discovered a friend from college worked for them and had heard I was back from Taiwan. He recommended me. On a whim, I flew up and interviewed. To my surprise, I was offered a position in sales with a tempting salary. I told them I had never done sales, but they assured me I would get all the training I needed. In my ignorance, I decided to brave the corporate world.”
Jonas admired her decision. He knew from experience the challenges of working in corporate America.
Lauren grimaced. “I didn’t like it at first. I’d been teaching grade-school age children in Taiwan for two years, and I just wasn’t that business-oriented. I decided to give it a year, and if I didn’t love it by then, I’d look for something else. Then a strange thing happened. As I gained experience and confidence in my job, I became quite successful at it, and they promoted me. Now I had a sales team under me and a lot of responsibility, but it was fun. After a while, I was promoted again. Then I was sent on loan to the New York office to help rebuild their sales department, and before long the CEO began making noises about me relocating there permanently. Seattle strenuously objected, and I found myself in the middle of a tug-of-war. For the next year, I spent every other month on each coast doing the work of two people, which was ridiculous, and I finally told them so.
“In the end, I agreed to consider relocating if they agreed to increase my pay to compensate for the much higher cost of living in New York. Financially, I was comfortable in Seattle and saw no reason to move to the East Coast and be poor.”
“You’re amazing, Lauren. You were willing to move that far away?”
“I was spending half my time there as it was. I wasn’t especially attached to Seattle, so it didn’t seem like that big of a deal—until we began negotiations for my pay. Their offer was not very generous at first, and we spent months going around in circles. I finally told them I refused to relocate unless they agreed to pay me fairly. I had already talked to people in the New York office to get a good understanding of the actual cost of living there compared to Seattle. Plus, my taxes would be much higher. I wasn’t greedy, I simply wanted to be able to afford a small apartment of my own in a safe neighborhood. I gave them a figure I would not go below.”
“And they met it,” Jonas said, impressed.
“Eventually. It had to be approved by the board, but in the end, I got what I asked for. I have been in New York ever since.”
“And had other promotions?”
“Well, yes. But I have known for a while it isn’t something I want to do long term. My job can be very stressful, and I often work eleven or twelve-hour days.”
“But it affords you a fairly luxurious lifestyle,” he pointed out.
Lauren looked at him. “I’m required to dress reasonably well, and I admit to the occasional weakness for pretty shoes. But I live on a portion of what I earn. The rest I save or invest for my future. That will allow me to walk away when I’m burned out.”
“You are very unusual.” Jonas doubted she knew how much of herself she had revealed in the last few minutes. He was more impressed than ever. Squeezing her hand gently, he said, “Come home with me for a while? It’s still early.”
“Maybe for a little while. I don’t want to interfere with your work.”
“This isn’t the first time you’ve worried about my work. You don’t seem to resent it.”
“It’s reality. Why would I resent it?”
“One more thing that makes you unique.” He turned his head and looked at her. “Tonight is going to have to last us a few weeks, Lauren.”
She sighed. “I know.”
They drove in silence until Jonas asked, “What did you think of your cousins?”
“I liked them very much. I hope Annie and I can be friends.”
“I think she would like that.” Jonas smiled. “You handled William well.”
“Years of practice,” she admitted ruefully. “He’s a nice man when he forgets to flirt.”
“Yes, he is, and outstanding at his job. We’re lucky to have him working for us.”
Once inside the apartment, Jonas pulled her close. He ran a hand slowly over her hair and down her face touching her nose, her lips, and her brow. “I’ve become addicted to you,” he admitted softly. “I don’t want to do without you. These few days we’ve spent together have been the happiest I can remember.”
Lauren’s arms came around his neck, and she buried her face against him.
He felt the moisture of tears against his neck. “Don’t cry, love. We’ll get through this. Come to Lisbon with me,” he decided suddenly.
Lauren’s first impulse was to shout, “Yes!” Instead, she shook her head. “Not a good idea. And you have your conference to worry about.”
He led her to the sofa where she settled beside him. “We would have the evenings together,” he pointed out. “I’d arrange for someone to show you around during the day, maybe take in some shopping if that appealed to you. Lisbon is an interesting city.”
“I don’t think so.”
“I’d have you on a plane by Saturday,” he coaxed. “That will give you Sunday at home to rest before starting your work week.”
She shook her head. “That’s not the problem.”
He put a finger under her chin and brought her face close to his. “What then?”
“Where would I stay?”
“I’ll arrange for separate hotel rooms, I promise.”
“Maybe separate hotels would be better.”
Jonas cracked a smile. He finally caught on. “If that’s what you’d prefer. Maybe in a different part of town?” he teased gently. She was adorable.
“The thing is, if we were in Lisbon together it would be tempting for us to want to share a room. And I don’t want to take that risk.”
“Don’t you trust me to look after you?”
“It’s not about you, Jonas,” she admitted, a delicate blush staining her cheeks.
Jonas looked at her for a long time. “We’ll do it your way then,” he finally agreed.
“Am I being ridiculous?”
“No. But I don’t mind admitting I would have loved having you with me.”
“This is what happens when you fall in love with a good LDS girl,” Lauren said, not quite apologetically.
“Hasn’t it occurred to you yet that’s one of the many things I love about you?”
“When I get home tonight I’ll probably be sorry I said no,” she said, her voice muffled against him. “I am being ridiculous!”
“Not ridiculous, just cautious. But I would have looked out for you and made sure you didn’t seduce me.”
Lauren felt her cheeks blush again. “Jonas!”
“Well?”
“Why is it so much easier for you?”
“I don’t know about easy, but
I do know we have something extraordinary together that goes much deeper than merely wanting each other. But we also have some challenges to work through, and I don’t want there to be any regrets.”
Seeing the love in his eyes, Lauren wondered if there was a finer man alive. He was honorable and wise and unselfish. “Jonas?”
She felt his lips against her temple. “Mm-hmm?”
“I think you’d better marry me soon.”
Coming from a culture where couples usually knew each other for years before deciding to marry, often living together ahead of time, Lauren’s words should have sent him running in sheer panic.
Just the opposite happened. Jonas understood that he had been handed a precious gift. Pulling her close, he promised, “Soon, Lauren.” His hands cradled her face. “Let’s take this time apart to think things through carefully. Then we can make plans.”
“I’ll try. I love you, Jonas. I love you so much I hurt inside.”
“I love you, too,” he said and kissed her gently. “More than you know.”
She stayed in his embrace a while longer, then said with regret, “It’s time for me to leave. You have things to do.”
Jonas loosened his hold on her, and they both rose. “Regrettably.”
“I’ll call a cab.”
“No, I’ll take you home.”
“Jonas, that’s at least a fifty-minute round trip. You stay put. I’ll take a cab. Please?”
In the end, he reluctantly agreed and called for a taxi.
They stood by the window, waiting. When a vehicle finally pulled up to the curb, Jonas sighed deeply. He hated the idea of her leaving. “It’s here.” The words came out very reluctantly. “Ready?”
Lauren gathered her things and nodded. She knew if she spoke she’d break down. He held her hand all the way down then pulled her to him for a kiss before they went out to the street. “Take care. I’ll call. Or text. Or email. Everything! You’ll know my flight as soon as I do.”
Because of Lauren: A Love Story Page 13