“Enchanted or amused, depending on the day. All right, I have to get back to other pressing matters. I’m very excited about all the opportunities presenting themselves for Stevens Environmental Restoration Fund. Ultimately, this will end up being good for the industry, and we’ll still be able to take out Mother Earth Cooperative and make it look like they’re a fringe group of freaky zealots. I can’t believe how perfectly it’s going.”
Bonnie agrees. “Nothing would please me more than destroying the organization completely, and it seems like it was meant to be.”
“We’ll see what we can do. They still have a significant individual donor list, but if we remove their corporate donors, we effectively eliminate their international influence, which I believe would have pleased Mark immensely.”
“You’re right, and that’s good enough for me as well.”
“I’ll let you know how Charlotte reacts to the idea after our meeting tomorrow afternoon. I suspect she’ll see the utility of supporting SERF, given the fact the three major stockholders are on the boards of both organizations.” There’s a knock on Sean’s office door. “I have to go. Someone is at the door.”
They say good-bye, and Sean barks, “Come in.”
Jessica opens the door, holding a wicker basket full of dark chocolate, pistachios, and a bottle of his favorite scotch. She is wearing a tight V-neck orange dress with snaps all the way down to the slit up the middle, and high heels.
He sits back in his chair and grins. “Wow, this is a pleasant surprise. To what do I owe this fortuitous visit?”
“Well, babe,” she replies, putting the basket of goodies on his small office coffee table, “it’s getting late, you and I have been working nonstop since we returned from the grand opening, and even though we spent the weekend at Bonnie’s, we were focused on Wendy and Bonnie and not us. So I decided you are going to take me out to dinner tonight, but only after I have sex with you. Right now. I told Evelyn to go home for the night, and the doors are locked.” She pauses, smiling at the look on his face. “Do you like this dress? I designed it with special features, specifically with you in mind.”
Sean closes his mouth. “You’re serious? What do you expect me to do? Bend you over the desk?”
“That’s exactly the way I envisioned this going tonight, actually. And I’ve thought about it since before we even got together.” She walks up to his desk and sits on it, twisting to face him. “Are you interested?”
Sean stares at her for a moment, then gets up and checks to make sure Evelyn is gone. He closes and locks his office door, flips on some music, and walks over to Jessica, taking in the sight of her sitting on his desk, exposing her legs to midthigh.
He shakes his head, smiling, then takes her head in both of his hands and kisses her slowly, gently, and with such tenderness that when he breaks away from the kiss, she is breathless. She slides her hands to the top snap of the dress, stands slowly, and then pulls, making all the snaps release at once. Sean sucks in a breath, and she’s pleased to see his immediate reaction to her nakedness.
She steps forward, placing both her arms around his neck, and kisses him with an intensity that unsettles him briefly. He responds by sliding one hand down her waist to cup her butt, while his other hand travels upward, grasping a handful of her red hair. Then he breaks away from her kiss and starts kissing her neck. Jessica pushes her exposed body into his, throwing her head back to allow him better access to her neck. He releases her hair and shoves the open dress off her shoulders, allowing unrestrained access to her breasts. His kisses travel down from her neck to her chest, then back up to her mouth. She reaches down and unbuckles his belt, opening his suit pants and letting them drop to the floor. She reaches into his boxers and gives him a slight squeeze, and then he grabs her shoulders and twists her around to face the desk. She gasps, reaches back, and tries to tug his boxers down. He pushes her forward again, effectively forcing her to place both of her hands on the desk, and she groans in pleasure as he slides his hands along her body and cups both of her breasts. He gives a gentle squeeze, and then, using his middle fingers, he flicks each of her nipples.
Jessica gasps again and pushes her ass against Sean. She spreads her legs a little, allowing him better access, and he immediately takes advantage of it, sliding effortlessly inside her. Jessica pushes back again, fully engulfing his penis. He groans and grips both of her hips, gently pulling himself even deeper.
Slowly and deliberately, he withdraws, and with equal determination slides into her again. Jessica twists with eager anticipation, encouraging him to increase his tempo. As their pleasure builds, Jessica looks over her shoulder and demands, “Harder.”
He thrusts into her, and Jess suddenly cries out, her legs beginning to tremble. Sean reacts with equal fervor until he explodes, extending Jessica’s climax while simultaneously enjoying his own orgasm. Jess collapses onto the desk, and Sean follows suit, covering Jessica. Both are panting and shaking with pleasure.
As their world returns to normal, they put themselves back together and get dressed. Sean looks into Jessica’s eyes and kisses her gently. “That was truly a magnificent surprise and totally unexpected. Thank you. What are you in the mood for, for dinner?”
“Hmm, Italian? Do you know any good places?”
“Do I ever. There’s a small restaurant in North Beach on Columbus Avenue. It’s a ways away from here, so I’ll drive.”
“Terrific. I’m starving and really in the mood for great food and more of your undivided attention. We’ve needed this for a while now, Sean.” She touches his arm and looks into his eyes. “Let’s promise we will each work on keeping this flame fresh and ignited like it was tonight. I never want to lose this.”
He wraps his arms around her. “Absolutely, we will. You’re right. It has been too long. Now let’s go have a wonderful dinner.”
CHAPTER 21
TO RIGHT A WRONG
Sean wakes abruptly, mildly disoriented, to the smell of fresh coffee. He props himself up on his elbow, looking around blearily, then recognizes he’s in Jessica’s bed. She smiles as she pauses at the door. “It’s great to see such a wonderful naked man in my bed in the morning. I could get used to it.” She walks into the room, carrying two cups of coffee, and sits on the bed with him.
Sean grins. “What wonderful man? I’m jealous.”
She gives him a look. “I’m not going to dignify that with an answer. What’s on the agenda today?”
“I have an extended meeting with Bradley on SERF in preparation for my presentation this afternoon with Charlotte. I’m going to try to convince her to put our SERF proposal on the agenda for the board this month.”
“How do you think she is going to react to it?” Jess asks, sipping her coffee.
“I think she’ll do it, given the voting majority of the Global Metal Refining board comprises the majority voting block for both organizations.”
“It just seems a bit incestuous to me. How do you think the media will respond when they find out about the shift in support?”
“They’ll try to create suspicion, but I’ve planned for that. We’ll spin it to SERF’s advantage by revealing Ricardo’s association with MEC and his plans to also have his own cousin assassinated. That reality is so detrimental to MEC that even when they deny any knowledge of Ricardo’s plan, the FBI and DEA will have to acknowledge the deal made with Jesus Rodriguez. Once that happens, you’ll see most corporate donors deserting MEC and, hopefully turning to SERF as the only viable alternative.”
“Won’t that destroy MEC?” Jess asks, frowning.
“Probably not, but it will definitely destroy their credibility and most of their corporate support.”
“How do you feel about doing that?”
He shrugs. “It doesn’t matter how I feel about it; it only matters what my client wishes to accomplish. That’s precisely why I’m so successful in the international mark
eting arena.”
She rolls her eyes. “That’s a cop-out, and you know it. We both know its Bonnie’s intention to seek revenge for Mark’s murder, but what if MEC really wasn’t aware of Ricardo’s plan?”
“I can’t imagine they didn’t have some knowledge. They’re an extremist group of ecoterrorists, and Bonnie and I will negate their influence on Mark’s behalf. Frankly, Mark and I were working toward that end anyway, but the turn of Ricardo’s involvement only enhances my ability to destroy the organization’s credibility. Jess, it’s what I do.”
“I understand. It just seems so cutthroat.”
“It is, and I make no apologies for it.”
“Would you have done the same thing for MEC if they hired you instead of Global Metal Refining?”
“Yes. Actually, I told Mark they were looking at retaining me in order to get him to move first.”
“Were they really?”
He nods. “They couldn’t afford me at the time, and Mark could. Mark and I were distant friends, but he knew I was ambitious, and he feared I might help them in an effort to get my company known. He wasn’t willing to take that chance, so he hired me and helped me turn SGM into a world-renowned marketing firm. I got the benefit of his connections and influence, and he got my ambition and strategy expertise. It was a win-win for both organizations.”
“So your loyalty to Mark came about simply because he hired you first?”
“Initially, but as we learned to trust each other, our friendship developed, and we both achieved our goals and made lots of money. Why? Does this offend you?”
“Offend? No. Surprise, yes. I just assumed you were friends first and then became business partners.”
“We were acquaintances first and manipulated each other into a position that became mutually beneficial. The friendship developed as a result of our trust, and it was icing on the cake.”
“I see. Well, I guess it all makes sense.” She smiles. “I guess I just think my friendship and loyalty to Bonnie developed in a much healthier way, and I like our way better.”
He smirks. “They were just different paths, but they led to the same outcome. I would have done anything for Mark, not because he was my best client, but because I cherished his friendship, guidance, and wisdom. He was there for me during the times of my life when I could have easily given up, retired, and lived comfortably, albeit not as comfortably as I do now.”
“Have you considered doing that recently?” Jess asks, surprised.
“Heavens no! I love the work I do, and if I retired, I’d get bored and end up doing something else, so why quit when I’m on top? Besides, I have this pretty amazing upstart fashion apparel business to make famous.” He winks at her. “That’s definitely a new and exciting challenge for SGM. I can’t stop now.”
She giggles. “I see.”
Sean gives her a kiss. “I have to go. I have to stop by my place to change before going to work. And thanks to you, I’ll get to face constant ridicule from Evelyn regarding last night’s activities.”
Jessica smiles. “Good luck with that. Have a wonderful day.” They kiss one more time, and then she turns on the shower for the start of her hectic day.
When Sean walks into the office, Evelyn hands him several phone messages along with a clean rag and some Murphy’s Oil Soap.
Sean gives her a look that could kill.
Evelyn chuckles. “Well, I have absolutely no idea what you two did in your office or on your desk last night, so I’m not going to touch your desk until I know it’s been cleaned, and I certainly wouldn’t expect the cleaning staff to have to do it. I didn’t want you to get embarrassed by anything they might find, so told them they could come back later to clean your office.”
“Very funny. Our meeting last night was very innocent.”
She snorts. “Whatever. I mean it—I’m not putting anything on your desk until it’s cleaned.”
“Really, you’re being ridiculous,” he says. He winks at her and disappears into his office to wipe down the desk. He reappears a short time later and hands her the Murphy’s. “There, now you can relax and get back to work.”
“Thanks, lover boy.”
He raises his eyebrows. “There will be no more of that, Evelyn.”
“Yes, sir. Bradley will be here in a moment. Do you want to meet him in your office or the conference room?”
“Let’s make it the conference room, since there’s coffee in there. And because the oil hasn’t soaked into my desk yet!”
Sean heads to the conference room and pours two cups of coffee, and Bradley joins him a moment later. Sean hands Bradley a cup. He sits at the table to hear what Bradley has discovered. Bradley begins the discussion by listing MEC’s corporate donors in order from largest to the smallest.
Sean sits forward, realizing that among Charlotte, Bonnie, and himself, they have a significant number of key contacts in each of MEC’s largest fifty corporate donors.
He stops Bradley. “What income percentage do the top fifty donors make up for MEC?”
Bradley does a quick calculation. “A little over fifty-three percent.”
Sean almost laughs. “Correct me if I’m wrong. You’re telling me that if SERF can woo these fifty donors away from MEC, their income drops by nearly fifty-four percent overnight?”
Bradley nods once. “That’s correct.”
“And how much of that fifty-four percent is made up by Global Metal Refining?”
“That would be almost thirty-two percent.”
“Again, so I understand fully, if Global Metal Refining’s support switched, MEC would lose a third of its revenue?”
“Yes, precisely. Why is that so important?” Bradley asks, looking suspicious.
“It just seems a little unbelievable, that’s all. Would you be willing to speculate which services MEC would likely discontinue, given first Global Metal Refining’s switch, and then each of the other donors, beginning from the top?”
Bradley looks pleased with himself. “Actually, I anticipated that question. I speculate that if Global Metal Refining discontinues its support of MEC, several of their planned marketing campaigns would halt immediately, some nonessential staff services would be reduced, and a small number of layoffs would occur. As the next few donors withdrew, MEC would probably be forced to discontinue most of its marketing campaigns in the United States in order to maintain an international presence because most of their overseas operations are self-supporting, as far as administrative costs go, with a heavy reliance upon marketing expertise from the US operations. At the approximate time the top fifteen donors discontinue support, MEC is thrust solely into survival mode. Staff terminations would occur fairly rapidly, and the organization would need to switch from environmental concerns to strictly business development endeavors.”
“What are your projections once the donor list drops below the top fifteen?” Sean asks.
“At that point, if they haven’t been able to stop the hemorrhaging, or at least slow it with increased individual donations, then I suspect international operations will experience cuts, and the decline will continue until the only presence MEC will have is their administrative offices in the United States, and that’ll be skeletal.”
“Can you compile a list of MEC’s largest corporate Latin American donors?”
“They’re already there.”
Sean looks surprised and pleased. “Perfect, thanks. Is there anything else I need to know about MEC?”
“Yes, actually. Hector Sosa, the UN ambassador to Brazil, sits on MEC’s board of directors and has been seen a lot with Charlotte Evans at social events. If you do this, it could really irritate him, and I suspect he could create problems for Beauty Boutique Clothing: Brazil.”
“Shit. I didn’t realize. By the way, he’s dating Charlotte. That’s why they’ve been seen together so much lately.”
Bradley sighs. “Do you really want to go after MEC, given the connections?”
“Well, I suspect the only relationship problem we’ll create going after MEC will be for Charlotte Evans, not Beauty Boutique Clothing: Brazil. This wrinkle puts an interesting spin on interpersonal dynamics for Charlotte. If she doesn’t support the voting majority of her board, she is likely to be removed as the Global Metal Refining CEO, and if she supports her board, she may lose her Latin lover. I guess she’ll have to make a decision about which is more important in her life. Oh, the dilemmas life constantly throws at us.” He grins.
“That sounds a bit harsh!”
“Do you think I’m being a dick?”
Bradley raises an eyebrow. “Can I answer that question frankly?”
“Absolutely. I’m a big boy, and I’ve been called much worse.”
“I’m not sure I’d call you a dick. You’re a shrewd strategist—a little egotistical, maybe even narcissistic—but you also a have a wonderful side, and you’re a terrific boss, even if a bit too demanding at times. Mostly, I’d say I think you’re more of an asshole than a dick.”
Sean bursts into laughter. “Oh you do, do you?”
“I’m sorry, sir, but it seems to be a better fit for me.”
“I never thought you had that in you, and I’m actually proud of you. Do me a favor and make sure you continue to let your testicles drop. You’ve made more points with me with that one statement than with all the incredible work you do around here. I like the moxie you just showed. Keep it up, and you’ll go far, fast, at this company. Now, is there anything else I need to know?”
“Well, one more thing. I believe I deserve a good raise this year and not just the standard three percent. I’ve handled some highly sensitive projects for you personally, and I seem to be your go-to guy lately.”
“That’s what I’m talking about. You’re right. How would you feel about a ten percent annual raise and a travel expense account?”
“That’s terrific, but I think twenty percent would be more appropriate. Why would I need a travel expense account?”
Unmerited Favor: The Compassion and Peril of Mercy ( Un missable Series Book 2) Page 21