Lilies, Lies, and Love (Season of Love #3)
Prologue
Asher
Doug slams both hands on the conference table, sending a shudder through everyone seated around it. “This is a disaster! We can’t lose Jacobson. He’s our biggest client.”
“I’m sorry, Doug,” Shana says, wringing her hands in front of her. “We’ve tried everything, but he’s going with Hackett Studios.”
“What does Jan’s firm have that we don’t, huh?” Doug snaps, his face now matching his tomato-red tie. “We’re one of the biggest architecture firms in the US, for crying out loud. Jacobson knows that better than anyone. How many buildings have we designed for them around the world?”
“Um,” Shana mumbles, sweat beading on her forehead.
Doug’s scowl deepens. “It was a rhetorical question, Shana. I don’t care about the actual number. Tons , that’s how many. Get him on the phone now.”
I sit stiffly in my chair, holding my breath as Shana dials Jacobson’s number on the conference phone. No one dares make a peep.
The clack of a receiver carries over the speaker. “Jacobson speaking.”
“Karl, it’s Doug from Purdy and Nader.”
Karl heaves a sigh on the other end. “Look, Doug, I know what you’re going to say. I’m sorry, but we’ve made up our minds. We’re going with Hackett Studios in Chicago. The contract is already signed.”
Doug rubs his bald head, the vein on his temple popping with frustration. “Are you kidding me? We’ve been working together for over ten years. What happened? Why didn’t you come to me directly with your concerns? I’m sure we could have worked something out.”
“I’m sorry. It’s nothing against you or your firm. They’re just more advanced in Chicago. They have tools you don’t have, and we need to do what’s best for our company”
“What’s that supposed to mean, ‘tools you don’t have’?”
“Sorry. Can’t say more. Maybe we’ll work together again in the future.”
“Karl—”
“I have to step into a meeting. Bye, Doug.”
The receiver clicks, and we all hold our breath, waiting for Doug to unleash his wrath on us. But I’ll admit, my curiosity is piqued. What are those tools Jacobson was referring to? Are they literal tools or marketing tactics?
“What the heck is happening here?” Doug booms, his palms slamming the table once more. “Do any of you have a clue?”
A general murmur and a shake of heads ripple around the table.
“Maybe they just have a bigger budget, more cash flow,” I say tentatively, and every pair of eyes falls on me—including Doug’s, which are narrowed into slits.
“What do you mean?”
I swallow hard. Crap. I should have just kept my mouth shut. Maybe that was another rhetorical question. “I don’t know. Their firm seems to be on an upward trend. Jan called me a few times, trying to poach me. She even offered an all-expenses-paid trip to Chicago to win me over, so I’m guessing they have the resources.”
Okay, I know what you’re thinking. That’s the oldest trick in the book, right? Trying to make your employer finally see your value by telling him you’ve had other offers. Yes, it’s low, but it’s also true. Not that I’d ever consider taking them up on it. Moving from New York to Chicago, of all places, is the last thing on my mind. But maybe it’ll convince Doug that I’m not the fresh-out-of-college intern I once was. That I deserve the project manager promotion he’s been dangling over me.
Instead, he drills me with a death stare. I guess it wasn’t the place nor the time. He doesn’t care about merit right now. Doug wants answers that none of us can give him. No matter how much we wish we could.
***
I’m hunched over my desk, working on another mind-numbing project, when my phone rings. I pick up the receiver.
“My office, now,” Doug barks, then hangs up without waiting for an answer.
My heart rate spikes. My boss rarely calls me into his office, and his tone wasn’t exactly inviting. But frankly, that’s just how Doug communicates. Maybe what I said earlier had an impact on him after all. Maybe he’ll finally see that I give more to this company than anyone else while receiving little recognition. I’ve always had this feeling Doug doesn’t really like me, but perhaps that’s about to change.
I knock on the glass door of his office, and he waves me in.
“Have a seat,” he snaps. “I have a project for you. Something important and sensitive. I’ll need someone I can trust for this, and I think that person might be you.”
I nod, my pulse quickening. This is it. I’ll finally have the chance to work on something exciting. Maybe even . . . I swallow hard. “You’re giving me the Larcin project?”
Doug’s bushy eyebrows draw together. “What? No. I’ll be handling that with Mike. It’s our number one project right now, so I need someone with more experience overseeing that. But rest assured, the project I’m giving you is no less important, by any means. You mentioned that Jan contacted you about coming to work for her in Chicago. How long ago was that?”
I clear my throat. “She tried to poach me when she first left two years ago, but I said no. Since then, she’s called every few months, asking me if I’ve changed my mind. Last time was just at the beginning of January.”
“Good. I want you to call her back and tell her you’re interested.”
I blink rapidly. “What! No, but I’m not. I was just saying—”
“You’ll lie. Tell her you resigned here—I’ll take your picture down from the website—and that you’re interested in a tour to see if it could be a good fit. You’ll go to their offices, gather as much information as you can, and report back to me,” he says, leaning back in his leather chair with a smug look on his face. “We need to figure out what gives them the competitive edge. Especially if it’s a tool that we can develop ourselves or buy. We can’t let Hackett keep stealing our big clients. This is the fourth one leaving for Jan.”
I stare back at him, my eyes wide. “Are you serious?”
He narrows his eyes. “Of course I’m serious, Forbes. The company is at stake.”
“I don’t know, sir. It feels wrong.” I had a good relationship with Jan when she was senior VP here. She’s the one who recruited me for my internship, and we parted on good terms.
He leans forward, his murky brown eyes drilling into me. “I’ll consider it a personal favor. A gauge of trust and loyalty to the company, the kind I like to see in my senior management.”
My mouth goes dry. Is he really offering me a promotion in exchange for spying on the competition?
“Where would I even start? They won’t let me access their files.” And why am I even considering this?
“It shouldn’t be that hard,” he says with a shake of his head. “Find a way to get back into the building after hours, and befriend someone who works there. Once you’re in, have a peek in their system and look at their files.”
My knee bounces under the desk, and I’m starting to feel feverish. “What if I don’t find anything?”
“Let me put it this way,” he says, leaning his elbows on his desk. “Do you think you’re worthy of that promotion, Forbes? That you can be a pillar of this company? Someone I can rely on?”
A shiver courses through me. “I do.”
“Then you won’t let me down.”
I rake a hand through my thick hair. “And if I refuse?”
His jaw ticks as he reclines in his leather chair. “Then maybe you don’t have the guts and drive to work at this firm.”
I swallow hard, nausea swirling in my stomach. It’s not an opportunity, it’s an order. If I refuse, not only will I not get that promotion I’ve been slaving away for, but I’ll be out of a job. Having to start from the bottom again. I’ll be thirty next year. If I don’t move up the ladder now, I’ll be stuck forever. I can’t live with that. My job is the only thing keeping me going now that I’ve lost both my cheater of a girlfriend and my best friend.
“Asher?” he demands, arching an eyebrow. “Can I count on you?”
Do I want to be a spy? Absolutely not. But sometimes, sacrifices have to be made to get where we want to go. This assignment is the key to my career. If I do this for Doug, I’ll get that promotion and finally have the chance to work on bigger projects that interest me. He’ll see what an asset I can be for the company. If I don’t, I’m back to square one.
I look Doug in the eye and give him a terse nod. “You can count on me.”