I fill her in. “Can I bring you something to eat? Drink? Anything?”
“I’ll make a pot of strong coffee. That’s all I need.” Her voice is weary. “Adam Richards is going to love seeing me in the hot seat.”
“You impressed me with your professionalism the first time we met after the launch. You’ll do the same to Oz and Dex tomorrow. You’re going to be great. Everything will work out just fine.”
Only I’m not sure that it will. This has quickly snowballed and become so much bigger than me. I’m not the only person who has a say in all of this, and I can’t help but feel that I’ve gotten Chloe into an even bigger jam with her asshole boss than she was already in.
“I need to go, Leo. I’ve got a long night ahead of me.”
“Promise you’ll call if you need anything at all?” I ask.
“Promise. I’m hanging up now.”
I go home, but I’m up all night in case Chloe needs anything. She calls a few times to ask questions. After giving her the information she needs, I give her a pep talk and tell her how fucking awesome she’s going to be before letting her get back to work. I call a list of European clothing vendors Dex divvied out to me, since it’s in the middle of their workday across so many time zones. Once I’ve assured them Checkmate is on top of the situation, I’m feeling pretty worthless with nothing else to do until morning. I make a desperate attempt to help both Checkmate and Chloe. I think back to the press release she wrote after the launch. It mentioned Checkmate supporting charities and philanthropic efforts for women.
I spend the entire night online researching organizations that could help us change the negative message coming from the press and social media. By morning, I’ve compiled a list of reputable organizations that provide support, education, and opportunities for both girls and women. I’ve also brainstormed a list of positive initiatives Checkmate can get involved in, and I’ve emailed both to Chloe in case she can use them in her presentation. My ass is dragging by the time I arrive at the office the next morning.
Adam Richards is already on hold the second I walk in. I have Leticia put him through, even though he’s not the PR person I want to talk to. I sink into my leather chair and spin it around as the morning sun casts a brilliant glow over the ocean of glass and steel. I pull in a breath and pick up the phone.
“Leo Foxx.”
“Mr. Foxx.” Adam’s voice rakes over my nerves, and I want to jerk the phone away from my ear. “Adam Richards here. Good to talk to you.”
I’ve found that when I let my words be few, people see it as a sign of intelligence and wisdom. Or it intimidates the hell out of them. So I stay quiet and don’t respond.
Adam skips over the uncomfortable silence without missing a beat. He’s a skilled, slick salesman. “I spoke to Chloe this morning.”
Good for you, asshole. “So you’re aware that she’ll be presenting her campaign ideas this afternoon.”
“About that,” Adam says. “I know you want Miss Evers on your account, but she doesn’t have the experience to fast-track such a large account. My partner and I will be taking over so you get the very best work from our firm.”
This guy is a bigger asshole than I thought. He’s hijacking a big account that Chloe brought into his firm so he’ll be able to take the credit, and he’s highlighting her youth as a way to undermine her, all while making it seem like he’s doing me a big favor.
“No,” I say flatly.
This time he stays silent for a beat, but it doesn’t intimidate me in the least because I know my instant rejection has caught him off guard.
He clears his throat, letting his nervousness show. “Mr. Foxx, Chloe will still be on the team. She’ll play a role in the campaign, but the intensity of your situation is beyond her scope.”
Wow.
“Chloe takes the lead.” I don’t threaten to go to another firm because Adam might use that against Chloe and blame her for losing the account. But I leave no room for discussion on the matter and make it clear that my decision has been made. “That’s final.”
More silence. I pick up a memo that Leticia must’ve gotten up at the ass-crack of dawn to type for Dex, Oz, and me. It’s an initial field report about how sales have shown a steep decline in the last two days.
Slick finally says, “All right, Mr. Foxx. You’re the client, so we’ll do things your way. If you change your mind all you have to do is say the word, and my partner and I are ready to jump in.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, but I have complete confidence in Chloe,” I say.
“See you this afternoon then,” Adam says, and I hang up.
My sister sashays in like she owns the place. “Hey, big brother.” She sets a to-go cup of piping hot coffee in front of me from my favorite coffee shop on the corner. “Thought you might need a shot of caffeine after watching the news.” She stands back and gives me a disapproving once-over. “Looks like I was right. The bags under your eyes are so big I could use them as luggage for my next vacation. Did you sleep any last night?”
I take a big gulp of the rich, bold roast. Ava has fixed it exactly the way I like it, and the strong flavor eases the knot in my chest as it slides downward. “Not really, no.” I rub my eyes with a thumb and forefinger.
“Well, this is why I introduced you to my friend, Chloe.”
Wait.
Shit.
That’s right. I’ve been walking around in such a thick fog of lust that I’d forgotten Chloe is Ava’s friend. If this goes badly, Ava could lose a friend, Checkmate could lose business, Chloe could lose her job, and I could lose Chloe.
This has gotten so fucked up.
If I had a flask of whiskey handy, I’d pour a shot or two into my cup of joe.
“Chloe is coming in this afternoon,” I tell Ava.
“Good.” Ava flounces into an armchair in front of my desk. “Then you’ve got nothing to worry about. Is there anything I can do?”
“Thanks, but no.” I get up to hug her. “I’ll call you later.”
My sister leaves, and I spend the morning calling the rest of the list of vendors Leticia has divided between me, Dex, and Oz. I also touch base with our project managers working on the expansion into Europe and Dubai to assure them we’re working to contain the situation. These new ventures are still in their infancy, but I don’t want them to derail.
By lunchtime, I can no more stop myself from texting Chloe than I can stop traffic in New York City.
How are you?
Not more than fifteen seconds go by before she responds, but it seems like fifteen hours.
So serious. You have so little confidence in me.
What the hell does she mean by that?
Not what I said.
She shoots a text right back.
Didn’t have to. It’s implied.
I can’t type fast enough.
How so?
The dots do their dance.
You’ve only sent me naughty texts until now. You’re worried I won’t measure up.
I nearly crumple the phone in my fist.
It occurs to me that I’m not the only one that’s been watching and learning what makes Chloe tick. Gleaning knowledge from her tone, body language, the little things she says, the bold things she does. She’s been doing the same to me.
I’m worried about YOU. Nothing to do with my confidence in you.
She doesn’t respond, and I wonder if our little adventure is over.
Chapter Thirteen
At four o’clock I’m still shut up in my office fielding questions from department heads and vendors. Sounding positive over the phone hasn’t been easy when I’ve spent the afternoon wallowing in guilt because I’ve thought mostly of myself since the moment I met Chloe. I’ve thought about little else but banging her silly in every position. I’ve done the opposite of what Checkmate encourages its clients to do—put women first, before ourselves.
Leticia buzzes me. “FYI, Chloe is setting up in the conference room. Both Mr. S
immons and Mr. Richards are with her. I’ll let you know when she’s ready.”
I haven’t been in contact with her since lunchtime, and it’s killing me. I want to go to her and wish her luck. I don’t because of how it might look in front of her bosses.
Chloe’s situation at work was precarious before we met. I knew that letting our relationship get personal might backfire, but I took it to the next level anyway because of the wicked, crazy attraction between us. Now the worst-case scenario seems to be coming to fruition, because there is no doubt in my mind that Adam knows I’m into her. And that makes him even more of a loose cannon as her boss and ex-boyfriend. Even if I could bring myself to pull away from Chloe now, Adam would likely still think we’re involved.
By the time Leticia buzzes me, I’ve spent another thirty minutes letting the guilt nearly drown me. Because I’m still not thinking of Chloe. I’m selfishly thinking of myself and how much I don’t want the sensual trip we’re on to end before it draws out to its most logical destination—me pleasuring her a hundred ways before I fall into my own dreamy state of sexual satiation.
I push myself out of my chair and meet Oz and Dex in the hall. We walk to the conference room together, as always a united team of both friends and partners.
Jealousy wraps around my stomach and cinches it tight when I see Chloe sitting next to Adam. Across the table from them is a tall, built, blond guy. They stand to greet us. Both men are dressed in expensive suits, but Chloe takes my breath away in a fitted light-brown tweed skirt and jacket that are both stylish and professional. I am absolutely not thinking about what she’s got on under all that tweed. I am absolutely not wondering if she’s wearing a thong. Or nothing at all. Heat skates through me when our gazes meet. Thick strands of amber beads are twisted around her neck like a choker, and I’d like to see her in nothing but those.
Shit.
I shake my head to clear my thoughts.
Adam is standing the closest to me, and I swear I smell a familiar scent. A Checkmate scent. Something bites at the back of my mind. He’s not the kind of client we want at Checkmate. He’s the opposite, because from the little Chloe has shared about him, he’s a prick with women.
He speaks first. “This is my partner, Zach Simmons.”
We shake hands. He’s younger than I expected. Maybe the original Simmons on the letterhead is his father, just like Adam. I get a better vibe from Zach right from the start than I do Adam. Adam still looks at me like a smug prick.
After all the introductions are made, we sit around the conference table.
Adam clears his throat. “I have to be honest and tell you that Zach and I haven’t seen Chloe’s presentation. Typically, it would go through us first for our approval, but given the time-sensitive nature of your company’s needs, this will be the first we’ve seen of it.”
He’s already throwing Chloe under the bus. If we aren’t happy, if we don’t hire their firm, he can lay the blame at her feet and fire her.
Fuck. Slick just captured a valuable piece in this game.
I want to reach across the table and shove a few chess pieces up his ass.
Chloe is taking it in stride. Her pleasant, poised expression doesn’t waver, and she snags a remote from the table and starts walking us through a PowerPoint presentation.
She commands the room. Talks to us like she’s a friend. Totally professional and in control of the situation. Somehow we know it’s going to be okay, because of her soothing tone and confidence in our company and the message behind her presentation.
She flips to a new slide with a list of bullet points. The bullets are chess pieces. I can’t help but smile. Dex and Oz seem impressed. So does Zach.
Adam’s relaxed posture is gone, and he’s stiff as a plank of wood. His smug smile has gone missing too, replaced with a pissy look that announces his ownership of the Douchebag of the Year Award.
“This summarizes the elements of the campaign.” She highlights the first. “We should start with a press conference as soon as possible, not just a press release. The message will be much more powerful if the founders of Checkmate speak to the press personally. The public needs to get to know each of you, hear your voices, see your body language. We don’t argue or deny the allegations. We get people to start talking about something more positive, like what nice, personable young men you are.”
The next slide appears on the screen. It’s a list of the organizations and charities I sent her last night. “I suggest you form an in-house task force immediately. Checkmate already supports several charities. I would suggest strategically picking more from this list. We need to put together press releases on each organization and their goals. The public needs to know how they actually help the recipients of the charity. We should release this information in smaller bites instead of dumping it all on the public at once. Checkmate’s support will be the central message of each press release.”
She flicks the remote and the second bullet is highlighted. “A few GIFs about Checkmate have gone viral the past few days. We ignore them and bury them with positive messaging. I suggest offering a two-for-one sale on the products you offer on the public side of your retail stores. This sale should go live as quickly as possible.” Chloe pauses and gives us that million-dollar smile that makes my heart thump. “The customers can receive this discount if they bring a lady-friend to the store with them and use the code ‘LADIESFIRST’.”
My smile has to be as big as Chloe’s. That’s so damn clever. I want to write hash marks on the whiteboard because of all the points she’s racking up.
She moves to the third bullet about our media advertising. “This is a new advertising strategy that will take longer to implement than the first two bullets for obvious reasons, but the message should shift so your mission statement is more obvious.” She switches to a new slide with a Checkmate ad that’s running nationally in men’s magazines, on billboards, and on the internet. It’s a male model in black and white. He’s looking very suave while he buttons a cuff. Our Checkmate cologne is on his dresser. “This ad focuses on the man.”
She flips to a new slide. It’s fantastic. A good-looking guy wearing glasses is sitting down, a hot as hell woman stands over him grasping his tie while he looks up at her. It’s in black and white, except for her red lips, red nails, and red heels. “This ad focuses on the woman. I put this together myself, but we would work closely with your advertising agency and use this as an example of the message we’re trying to achieve.” Chloe stares directly at me. “Look at her.” She pauses so we can study the woman in the picture. My eyes stay trained on Chloe, and hers on me. “She’s empowered. It’s all about her. Isn’t that what Checkmate stands for?”
Chloe’s expression is still professional. But her eyes tell me a different story. They’re greedy, ravenous, yearning for me to take her to places she’s never been. And I know that’s me in the picture with her standing over me. She’s got me firmly in her grasp and can do anything she wants with me. I’m hers for the taking.
“That’s exactly what Checkmate stands for,” Dex says.
Oz nods.
She’s killing it, and I’m certain my partners are sold. The real prize, though, is her douchebag boss still doesn’t have a reason to fire her. She’s reeled us in as clients, she can save Checkmate’s ass, and walk out of Simmons & Richards with a gold star on her résumé. Any firm in the Big Apple will take her after this coup.
She points to the last bullet. “This is the main thrust of the campaign. It will take a little time, but we can fast-track it to get the message out as quickly as possible.” Her self-assured countenance changes. Shifts. Falters for the briefest of moments.
No one else seems to notice but me. I catch it because I’m so into her that I’ve studied her, memorized the nuances of her body language, her expressions. She’s doing so well, I don’t understand why she’s losing confidence now.
She fiddles with the remote nervously. “Sometimes you have to fight fire with fire
.”
And shit. I know what’s coming. This is the part that will make my partners squirm. It made me squirm the day I met Chloe. It was the only part of her press release after the launch that I took out because it was too risky. Since I was uncomfortable with it after the launch, maybe she’s worried that it might be a deal breaker for us.
The room gets warmer, and I pull at my collar.
“I propose a three-part narrated exposé on Checkmate studios. Each part would feature one of the founders. We start from the beginning. Where you came from. What’s it like being the smartest guys in every room you step into?”
Oz starts to swivel his chair back and forth.
Chloe stumbles over her words. “We mix in the interview clips with each of you going through a transformation at a Checkmate studio.”
Adam relaxes and his smile returns.
Asshole.
Dex shakes his head. “I don’t like it.”
“Let’s not rush to judgment. I want to hear the rest of Ms. Evers’ plan before we make a decision,” I say.
Zach Simmons hasn’t moved a muscle. He’s just listening.
“We won’t be giving away any trade secrets. We don’t want Checkmate to lose its mystique,” Chloe says.
“That’s exactly what you’re proposing,” Oz says.
“We do this in a way that enhances the mystery behind Checkmate.” Chloe pauses. “We give them snippets inside the studio, not the whole story. We explain how your personal body products work, without giving away the formula. Most importantly, we show them how your life-style coaches offer guidance to make men better partners, better spouses, better dates.” Her smile turns more confident. “We pull the emotional heartstrings of the public by letting them see you through the eyes of the women in your lives who love you. We interview these women, and when people see you as someone’s son, someone’s brother, someone’s nephew who gets his cheek pinched by a doting aunt or grandmother, that’s when you’ll win back public opinion.”
ForePlay: A Checkmate Inc. Novel Book 1 (The Checkmate Inc. Series) Page 9