Unlikely Venture (The Venture Series Book 1)

by Luciani, Kristen

  Dammit. All of her projections went up in smoke with that debacle. She sighed. I need to find another silver bullet to bulk up the numbers or I’m toast.

  The sun was bright outside. Squinting, she fumbled around in her bag for a pair of sunglasses. It was time to get back to the office and do some more research. There had to be another promising start-up out there just waiting to be scooped up by DMC.

  She spotted a cab parked in front of a gleaming black Alpha Romeo. As she hurried to the curb, her heel got caught in a sidewalk crack.

  “Shit!” She craned her neck to inspect the damage. The heel was all scraped. Repairs would cost a fortune. She glared at the woman who stole her cab while she lamented the injured shoe. Hunching her shoulders, she looked around. Maybe there’s another cab close by. Her eyes fell on the Alpha, traveling to the man standing against it. She blinked in disbelief. This was getting a little ridiculous. It was starting to feel like the Groundhog Day of one-night-stands.

  “Well, well, we meet again.” A slow smile spread across Paul’s face.

  “Um, yeah…how strange is that? I just came from a meeting upstairs…” Jessica waved toward the building behind her.

  “You look a little perplexed.”

  Jessica laughed. “You could say that, but it’s probably an understatement.”

  Paul’s eyes bored into her. “Really. Was it a rough client meeting?”

  “Well, an almost client, I guess. But definitely not any more.”

  He raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

  “I had an appointment with a potential client and all hell broke loose right before I got up there. Evidently, one of the partners staged a coup and announced a company takeover.”

  “Sounds like a party to me. It’s never really a productive day unless you stage a coup, you know?

  Jessica grinned. “I guess not.”

  Paul looked down at his iPhone. “Listen, I’ve got to run. But since we’ve met, yet again, I was thinking that you might be interested in attending a little cocktail party tomorrow night. There’ll be a lot of industry insiders there, lots of good contacts for your resurrected job. Why don’t you stop by? I can introduce you to some really self-important people with inflated egos. It should be a trip.”

  Jessica’s ears perked up. Contacts! No strings! I’m in! “That sounds fantastic. It seems like a great opportunity. What time?”

  “About seven. At the University Club. I promise it won’t be too boring.” He chuckled and hopped into the driver’s side. The Alpha peeled away from the curb.

  What a freaking morning.

  JESSICA PLOPPED INTO a chair and pulled out her cell phone to call Lisa. Her feet were killing her but vanity won out as usual.

  “Lisa Embry.”

  “Li, it’s me.” Jessica stretched her legs out and wiggled her toes.

  “Hey! What’s going on, lady? Can you still walk?”

  Jessica cringed as the numbing sensation crept into her toes again. “Barely. But not because of what you’re thinking, so get your mind out of the gutter. It’s also not why I’m calling. You’re not going to believe how random this is. Remember how I ran into Paul Emerson the other day?”

  “Yeah, who would believe he gets his own coffee?”

  “I know!” She snorted with laughter. “But weirder than that, I met up with him again…this morning. He was hanging out next to his car, outside of the building where my meeting was. Is that ridiculous?”

  “Seriously? You sure he doesn’t have a GPS on you somewhere? Sounds like you’ve got a stalker!”

  Jessica rolled her eyes. “Look, all I’m saying is it’s weird. He mentioned this cocktail party happening tomorrow night with a lot of industry insiders and casually threw out an invite. He thought it might be good to meet some people and make contacts for my job. Do you think I should go? I mean, if there will be a lot of people there, it could be good for business.”

  “Honestly, I don’t see a problem with it. Has he put any moves on you?”

  “Nope. I made it clear I’m not interested and I guess he’s okay with us being professional acquaintances if he’s inviting me to this shindig, right? I was afraid it would be uncomfortable, but everything’s out there and behind us. What do I tell James? He’s mentioned Paul’s name a zillion times and I’ve never told him we even know each other, much less slept together. And with him and Chris trying to get funding from Paul’s company? I don’t know, it just feels…messy.”

  “Definitely do not tell him. Your little tryst happened months ago, before you even knew James. You’ve basically told Paul it’s not happening again, so why complicate things? Just let it go, make up a story about a client dinner and leave it at that. If you tell him, it will blow up.”

  Jessica bit her thumbnail. “Yeah, you’re right. I guess I needed to hear it from someone else. I just don’t like the lying.”

  “Look, technically, you’re not lying. You might actually make contacts at this party that ultimately turn into clients, so it’s totally aboveboard.”

  “Okay…”

  “Oh by the way, don’t wear any of your slutty dresses. If you want to keep it professional, leave the cleavage to a minimum.”

  Jessica giggled. “Got it. Thanks, Li. I’ll let you know how it goes.”

  Her phone buzzed with an incoming call.

  “Li, let me run. I’ll call you later.” She switched over to the other call. “Jessica Latham.”

  “Hi Jessica, this is Dr. Martin. How are you feeling?”

  The concern in his voice was evident. Oh no…please don’t tell me… “I’m okay. As good as can be expected. I guess you’re calling about my test results.” She bit a stray cuticle, bracing herself for the news she feared most. “H-how bad is it, Doc?”

  JESSICA PICKED AT a jalapeno popper with her fork, feeling sick to her stomach. She tried to put the conversation with Dr. Martin out of her mind but it was futile.

  James cringed. “Jeez, that thing is potent! It’s making my eyes water!”

  With a weak smile, she put the fork down and gulped some water.

  “Jess, are you okay? What’s wrong? You’re not yourself tonight.”

  She let out a shaky sigh. “Yeah, it was just a long day. I guess I’m just tired.”

  “So, how’s your client list coming along? Any more prospects?” James sipped his ginger ale.

  “Well, now that my silver bullet basically imploded I need to find a replacement. But I’m working on it. Something will come up. There are tons of companies here, I just need to find the right ones.”

  James smiled. “This place is definitely a hotbed for new technology. How about your boyfriend Charlie? Heard from him lately?”

  “No, not since before I left the city. Something is definitely up with him. I’m thinking he’s on his way out of DMC. One of my friends caught him meeting with a competitor.” She waved a popper in the air. “Let somebody else deal with him.”

  “Well, in the meantime, at least you don’t have to deal with any of his crap, right? That’s got to be a nice break for you.” He popped a piece of grilled chicken into his mouth. “Why aren’t you eating?”

  “My stomach’s a little upset.” She took another drink of water. “I’ll be fine.”

  James leaned closer. “Do you want to leave? I’ll take you home so you can rest, okay?”

  She closed her eyes, took a deep breath and pulled away. Her heart started pounding when she saw his confused look. “James, I need to tell you something.”

  James furrowed his brow. “What is it?”

  She opened her mouth, unable to stop the words from tumbling out. “I have multiple sclerosis. I was diagnosed six months ago. That’s the real reason Drew and I broke up. He didn’t want to commit to taking care of me. He said it was too much to handle and he left. That’s why I was so afraid to tell you. I really care about you and I thought you might leave too.” She took a deep breath and her eyes filled with tears.

  James cupped her face
and leaned towards her with an alarmed look. “Jesus, Jess. Are you okay? Are you in any pain or anything?”

  She shook her head. “No, I’m not. I’ve been lucky so far. My symptoms have been pretty innocuous. There was a period when I was tired all the time, like tired enough to fall asleep on my desk at work. Then it subsided for a while and recently I started having these weird pins and needles sensations in my feet, a lot of tingling and some numbness.”

  “So, what does your doctor say? How are you handling it?”

  Jessica took another breath, not wanting to revisit the conversation with Dr. Martin. I still need time to process everything. “They caught it pretty early, which is good, and the doctors say that younger girls diagnosed early fare better in the long run. A lot of people with MS experience episodes where they deal with multiple symptoms at once, like me. But there’s no cure and no real way to know how it’s going to impact me later in life. So, it’s scary and still kind of a shock.”

  James shook his head in disbelief. “Your ex left because of this? He just walked away from you, when you were trying to deal with everything?”

  “Yes.”

  “Jess, I-I don’t even know what to say. I can’t imagine how he could do that to you. I completely understand why you didn’t want to say anything. He’s a complete asshole for hurting you.” He tilted her chin. “But that’s not me, Jess. I’d never walk away, because I want to be with you. You’re such an amazing girl. I’m so glad I met you. I’ve never felt like this before. I don’t care about your illness. I mean, of course the unknown is scary, but we’d face it together. I’d be there for you. I want to be there for you.”

  Jessica’s heart soared hearing those words. “You know, you’re pretty fantastic yourself.” She brushed her lips against his, chills rushing through her. “So we did it, we actually made it out tonight. Now I want to take you home with me, what do you think about that?”

  James flashed a wicked smile and signaled their waiter. “Can we get the check, please?”

  “SO EMERSON, WHAT do you think about that whole mess with Secure Transact? It’s all over the street.” Brian Cheney sipped his drink as Paul crafted a careful response.

  “Brian, you of all people should understand that if you’ve got weak links in the chain you need to remove them in order to plunge ahead.” Paul gave Brian a knowing look. “Andy Sykes was a marionette and Margaret Reynolds was pulling all the strings. She and Ray Androtti had plans to decimate Blakely. He just beat them to it.”

  “Yes, but what about the fallout? Pretty major, don’t you think?”

  “It’s all in the spin, Bri. Their clients only care about the software and Blakely has a solid team. They can recover.” And Blakely better keep his mouth shut about Blue Coat or I’ll bury him with that damn patent.

  “So you’re thinking you can rescue them?” Brian winked at Paul. “Is that your play here? Are you planning a Blue Coat takeover?”

  Paul gave a tight smile. “Well, if it looked like a worthwhile investment, I’d certainly make sure they stuck to a winning long-term strategy instead of adjusting their business plans on a weekly basis. They’ve been lacking for a strong leader from the beginning and I think we both know what kind of success Blue Coat has had in the past when we’ve brought our expertise to the table.”

  “No need to get defensive, Emerson.” Brian smirked, taking a long sip of his scotch. “I was just curious to see what your thoughts were. I take it from your response they’re still fair game?”

  “Let’s just say I’m evaluating several potential investments right now. Everything is fair game. And judging from your recent lackluster returns, I’d say you should be keeping your eyes open as well.”

  “Come on, Paul. Tell me, what’s the deal with you and Androtti? You still pissed off about that chick messing around with him behind your back?”

  Paul cleared his throat, trying to keep himself calm. This guy is fucking unbelievable. If we were anywhere else, I’d beat the shit out of him.

  He leaned closer and put a strong hand on Brian’s shoulder. “I don’t appreciate your interest in my personal affairs, Brian. Watch yourself.”

  Brian recoiled, his hands up as if to surrender. “Easy! I didn’t mean to ruffle any feathers. Don’t be so sensitive!” He let out a nervous chuckle and his eyes darted around the room, focusing on the front entrance. “Whoa, who invited her?”

  Paul spun around, his gaze falling on Jessica. His pulse quickened as she navigated her way towards the bar.

  “She works for DMC.” Paul drained the rest of his glass, keeping the response as short as possible.

  “So you actually know her? You bang her yet? Or are you still trying to get in there, thinking if you invite her to the oh so exclusive University Club, she’ll fall all over you?” Brian chortled as Paul gritted his teeth.

  “It’s strictly professional, Brian. We’re business associates.” Paul smirked. For now, anyway. “Listen, I’ve got to make the rounds. I’ll catch you later, okay? Enjoy.” Fucking asshole.

  “Yeah, you enjoy too, Emerson. You better keep an eye on that, though. Can’t promise I won’t take a shot later.” Brian nodded his head towards the bar with a grin.

  Paul watched Jessica lean against the bar. She looked so sexy, so unassuming. There wasn’t one breathing male who hadn’t taken a long hard look at her as she strode across the room, but she seemed oblivious to the attention. Does she not know how hot she is? Or is she just used to guys gawking at her?

  Paul smiled, certain that this was the night that things were going to change between them. The chase was fun for a little while, but it got old fast. Jessica agreed to come, even though she could have declined the invitation and requested a more formal meeting at his office. He would have read that message loud and clear, but her choice to join him for a cocktail party in a social setting? Well, that told a different story altogether. He’d been patient, but tonight he’d make his move.

  JESSICA BEE LINED for the bar looking for something to take the edge off. Events like these were all about networking, but she wasn’t comfortable walking up to strange men and making idle conversation. Sobriety was overrated in this type of situation; she needed a drink to loosen up. Maybe more like three. Dr. Martin and Lisa would not be pleased.

  The balls of Jessica’s feet burned in her five-inch Christian Louboutins. She slouched against the bar, shifting her weight. Jesus, no barstools? I already need a reprieve and I just got here! She was such a sucker for bad girl shoes. But height equaled confidence, so she would suffer for a few hours.

  “You made it, I’m glad.”

  Jessica looked up to see Paul standing in front of her. “Hey! Thanks again for inviting me. This place is pretty outrageous. You’re a member?”

  “Yes. Can I get you another?”

  “Oh, um, sure. Vodka soda, please.” She turned to survey the crowds that gathered for the event, feeling a bit intimidated. Okay, one more drink won’t hurt.

  Paul handed her a glass, a pleasant smile on his face. “So, most of the people here are venture capitalists, although there are some CEOs floating around. You might hit the jackpot tonight.”

  She giggled. “Hopefully! Anyone I should be wary of?”

  “Nah, they’re all harmless. I’m sure any of them would be thrilled to make your acquaintance.” He winked.

  Her tolerance wasn’t what it once was and the two drinks made her feel warm and a little woozy. She gulped a glass of water, trying to clear her head. I don’t need a replay of the Dezzie concert, especially when I’m alone.

  “Do you know everyone here?” Jessica shifted again, gritting her teeth. Please let someone get the hell up so I can grab a stool!

  “Yeah, I’ve worked with all of them in some capacity or other. I’ll get you face time with the right ones, though.” He looked past her and an annoyed expression crossed his face.

  Jessica creased her forehead and glanced over her shoulder. Rochelle. What the hell is she doing here?


  Turning back to Paul, her lips turned up in an amused smile. “Yeah, that’s the same reaction I have when I see her. So, you guys work together?”

  Again, the guard went up and his eyes shut her out.

  “Look, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be nosy or anything. If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s cool.” Jessica shrugged.

  “No, it’s fine. She’s just a colleague.” Paul finished the rest of his drink. Jessica sensed he wasn’t divulging any more information than that. “How about we—”

  “Paul! Jessica!” Rochelle looked less than thrilled to see them together. “So nice to see you again!”

  Jessica grunted. There’s nothing nice about it, bitch.

  “Rochelle, I was just about to introduce Jessica to a few investors. Enjoy the party.”

  “Oh.” She shot a toothy grin at Paul. “Well, maybe I could steal her for a few seconds? Just want to catch up. It’s been a little while. Is that okay?” Rochelle dug her nails into Jessica’s arm and pulled her away.

  Not wanting to make a scene, Jessica wrenched her arm away from Rochelle when they were out of Paul’s earshot. “Rochelle, what is wrong with you? Where do you get off—”

  “Jessica.” Rochelle plastered a triumphant smile on her face and crossed her arms. “Where do I get off? Are you serious, honey?”

  Jessica’s mouth dropped open. “What are you talking about?” Is she insane or something?

  “Jessie, really? Cozying up to Paul Emerson while your dreamy CEO boyfriend sits around at home mooning over you? Is that really a nice thing to do?”

  “You have no idea what you’re talking about. Paul and I are colleagues, that’s all!”

  “Really.” Rochelle sounded unconvinced. “So, the fact that he’s looking at you like he’d like to lap you up like a dog at a water bowl on a hot day, that’s just me misinterpreting the situation, right?”