Chapter 63
CHAPTER 63
SIMON
I t was prep day at Fit Gal and I was ready to finish planning out my presentation for Fit Guy. The team and I had gotten a lot of work done on it and we were almost there but not quite yet.
Whistling under my breath, I walked to our office, unable to wipe the grin off my face. Abi and I had spent half of the weekend together, my dad knew about us, and Abigail now knew that I’d told my parents.
It felt like things were finally starting to turn around for us and I was excited. We were finally in a good place and it made me a damn stretch happier than I remembered being in a long-ass time.
When I walked into our office, she was already there. Her headphones were on and she was hard at work, her fingers flying across the keyboard as she mouthed along to whatever song she was listening to.
After I set down my stuff, I peeked over her shoulder and pretended to be studying her work. I wasn’t really looking at anything other than the Walker Marketing logo on her presentation, though. She laughed as she whipped around to face me, pulling the headphones off and pointing her index finger at my chest.
“Hey, we’ve been through this before. No stealing my ideas.”
“How about a kiss?” I asked, keeping my voice down and smiling as I lowered my head closer to hers. “Think I can steal a quick one of those?”
“Maybe.” Those blue eyes twinkled as she tilted her head back a little further and brought a hand around the nape of my neck. “It has to be really, really quick, though.”
“I hate it, but I’ll take it anyway.” I pressed my lips to hers, groaning at the sweet taste of her and immediately wanting more. “I could lock the door.”
She giggled but broke away, swatting at my arm before she pointed at my desk. “Get busy, Si. We’ve only got today, remember? We won’t be here on Thursday.”
“I’d rather get busy with you, but your wish is my command.” I straightened up and went over to my desk, unpacking my things and getting set up before I opened a document I’d been working on. “I have a meeting booked with Blake and Ashley this morning. I’m willing to share it with you if you’d like.”
“Why are you meeting with them?” she asked, turning her chair so she was facing me. “Were we supposed to set up one-on-ones?”
“Nah. I just like to pick the client’s brain before I really get into developing a brand. I have questions about the vision they have for it, and if I’m being completely honest, creation is not my favorite side of things.”
“It’s not?” she asked, clearly surprised. “Why not? I love it.”
“Which is why we work together so well,” I said easily. “We complement each other, but frankly, I struggle with it. I love the client side of our jobs, though, and I like to think that’s where my strengths lie, so I talk to them in order to get a clearer idea of what to create.”
“Ah.” She smiled slowly. “Well, I hope they give you the answers you’re looking for.”
“Thanks, but I’m not counting on it. Not unless Blake throws me a bone, anyway. Ashley sure as hell isn’t going to want to make things easier for me.”
Abigail winced. “I’m sure she won’t be petty about it. The bracelet wasn’t for her. Surely, she has to understand that.”
“Fingers crossed,” I joked, but even if she didn’t want to play ball, I knew her brother would, and I planned on focusing mainly on him because of it.
Blake had been much more professional than she had since the start, and even if I didn’t have much hope of winning this account anymore, I was going to give it my best. Abi got back to work and so did I, keeping it up until it was finally time for my meeting.
“May the odds be ever in your favor,” Abi murmured as I got up and I chuckled and nodded my agreement.
“It’s highly unlikely, but one can hope.” I bent over to drop a kiss on top of her head. “See you later, baby.”
“Later!” she called after me, and I smiled even though I was about to have my first one on one with the bosses, half of whom were legitimately put off by me for my rejection.
Sighing, I strode down the hallway to the small conference room, taking a seat and reading over my notes while I waited for them to arrive. A short while later, Blake opened the door, waving his sister in ahead of him.
Ashley was clearly still pissed, one eyebrow steeply arched as she stared straight ahead. Blake sighed but sat down across from me and folded his hands on the table. “Simon, we’re glad you scheduled in some private time with us. We’ve been wondering when we were going to hear from any of you.”
I chuckled. “Well, Abi seems pretty clear on where she’s going?—”
“That’s because she’s actually a professional,” Ashley muttered, curling her fingers and studying them as if she wasn’t even aware that both Blake and I had looked at her.
He let out another soft sigh and turned his attention back to me. “I saw her when she arrived this morning. She looked pretty upbeat. Jeffrey didn’t seem quite as positive, though. I’m hoping he’ll take the same initiative you have by asking to speak with us.”
“I’m sure he’ll reach out if he needs you.”
“Yes, well, God forbid anybody needs anything from you.” Ashley gave me a pointed smile. “Now, what can we do for you , Simon?”
I came so close to rolling my eyes that I could practically feel how satisfying it would’ve been. Honestly, her petulance would’ve been amusing under different circumstances. Trying to remain professional even in the face of her snark, I smiled at her brother and even managed to glance her way without the smile slipping.
“Well, I have a few questions about your vision for the Fit Guy brand,” I started. “The idea is to dovetail it with Fit Gal, but does that mean you’d like to use the same colors, for instance? Or perhaps simply colors that complement yours?”
“Isn’t it your job to figure that out?” Ashley asked sweetly. “I could’ve sworn your task was to do the branding. If we knew exactly what we wanted, why on earth would we be paying someone to do it for us?”
You’re not paying me yet, lady.
Blake ignored her, looking thoughtful for a moment before he refocused on me. “That’s a good question. To be honest, I haven’t given much thought to the colors, but I think we’d open to using the same ones if there’s a way to make the pink and the turquoise a bit more gritty. I know how that sounds, but I think you understand what I mean.”
“I do. Alright, so we’ll look into using the same colors, but if my understanding is correct, you’re good with complementary colors as well?”
“Oh, honey,” Ashley drawled. “The closest you’ll come to a brainstorm is a light drizzle, isn’t it?”
Ha. That’s actually pretty good.
Wishing I could’ve laughed without looking unprofessional, I simply kept focused on her brother. “You mentioned you wanted to build from the Fit Gal foundation, so I think I know the answer to this, but the idea then is that every guy can be a Fit Guy just like every girl can be a Fit Gal, right?”
“Right,” Blake said immediately. “We definitely don’t want to come across as a company who cares how many hours you work out every week, but we do think guys can be more competitive about that than women, so that’s something to keep in mind. We do know that the strategy and how to convey our messaging will have to be different.”
“Awesome, so that means no objections to approaching the product a little differently?”
“None whatsoever.” He grinned. “I’m really glad someone brought that up.”
“I’m about to bring something up,” Ashley muttered.
She kept it up for the entire meeting, but in the end, her brother seemed just as frustrated with her as I was. After we were done, I left the conference room feeling aggravated as hell from having to fight my way through a series of pretty basic freaking questions, and Abigail frowned when I walked back into our office.
“Dang, rough meeting?”
“Let’s just say she really wanted that bracelet.” I dropped my gaze to the silver chain around Abi’s arm, something possessive purring inside me at the sight of it there. I’d noticed that she hadn’t taken it off yet—at least, not as far as I knew—and it did things to me to know that she kept it with her no matter where she was or what she was doing.
As I grinned and sat down, Jeffrey popped into our office. “Oh, good. You’re here. I caught Blake and Ashley before they left the meeting room and they’re waiting for us there.”
“They are?” Abi’s eyebrows pinched together. “We weren’t supposed to have a team meeting today.”
“Uh, no.” Jeffrey shifted on his feet, his expression nervous. “I called this particular meeting myself. It won’t take long. I realize everyone is busy.”
She held his gaze as she rose from her chair. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah,” he said quickly, but it was too quick. He was also suspiciously pale and he kept fidgeting with his fingers. “Everything’s fine.”
“Are you sure about that, bud?” I frowned but got up and followed him back down the hall. “You feeling okay? You don’t look so good.”
“I’ll explain in a minute.”
I didn’t know the guy as well as Abi did, but I still felt a tinge of worry in my gut. “Alright, man. Let us know if it’s anything we can help with.”
We reached the conference room I’d only just left and he waved us in ahead of him, shutting the door with a click behind him once we were all inside. Blake and Ashley were still where they’d been before. As we sat down, I waited for Jeffrey to join us but he remained standing.
Pushing his glasses to the bridge of his nose, he sucked in a deep breath and gripped the back of the chair in front of him. “I’m sure you’re all wondering why I asked you here, but I promised I wouldn’t waste any of your time, so here goes.”
He looked at each of us in turn. “I’ve decided to remove myself from the running for the account. Fit Guy is the complete opposite of me and I know I can’t provide Fit Gal with what it will need in the future. It’s been an honor to work with you all, but I think it’s best if I bow out gracefully.”
Surprise rendered me speechless for a moment and Abi’s hands flew up to her mouth. I saw the shock on her face and even Ashley seemed blindsided. Blake, however, nodded a few times, then got up and extended his hand toward Jeffrey.
“Thank you for being honest with us,” he said kindly. “We really appreciate that you came forward if that’s how you feel. You’re a hell of a guy, Jeff. We’ve enjoyed having you here and thank you for all the hard work you’ve put in. Good luck.”
Jeffrey shook with him, then with a mute Ashley, and then accepted a hug from Abi when she got up and pulled him into her arms. She spoke quietly to him for a moment and he smiled before he nodded and pulled away. Then he turned to me.
“See you around, Simon. Karen was wrong, you know. You’re not so bad after all.”
I chuckled as I gripped his hand firmly in my own. “Neither are you. Good luck, Jeff.”
“Same to you.” He nodded and gave us all a wave, and once he was gone, it was officially Simon vs. Abigail for the account.
Astor vs. Walker.
I’d suspected it would come down to this eventually, but I hadn’t been prepared for it to happen today. What the hell do I do now? I feel like the little dog who’s finally caught the damn car.
Blake and Ashley said their goodbyes, wishing us both luck before they left us alone in the conference room.
Abi smiled as she looked over at me. “Well, that was unexpected.”
“Yeah, I didn’t see it coming at all. Did you?”
She shrugged, her eyes glazed over with thought before she refocused on me. “You know, I can’t say that I saw it coming, but I knew that he felt like he was out of his depth here. Jeffrey’s too smart not to have realized that he may not be suited to this account.”
“Because he doesn’t like fitness regimes?” I asked. “He seemed to like Zumba just fine.”
She rolled her eyes at me and chuckled. “No, not only because of that. What this company is looking for is full-service representation. Someone who can do it all. Jeffrey’s firm focuses very much on market analytics and technology. They’re the best at what they do, but he was worried about all the other stuff he might have to do if he won.”
We walked back to our office together and I was surprised that his office was already empty when we passed. “Did he pack up while I was meeting with them?”
She shook her head. “I don’t think he ever unpacked. Every morning when I ran into him, he only had his laptop. He travels light.”
Not unlike the two of us , I thought, but I didn’t say it out loud. The truth was that this was temporary at least for one of us, and the other would probably be given a much nicer office to work out of if the winner was expected to occasionally work from Fit Gal HQ at all.
After shutting our door behind us, we got back to it, making the most of our time before packing up to head home. As we reached our cars, she smiled at me. “We’ve got an early flight out. Don’t be late and remember to pack all your best country outfits.”
I laughed. “I’m a city boy through and through, baby. I don’t have any country outfits.”
Those blue eyes shimmered with barely restrained laughter. “Well, do your best. You’ll stick out like a sore thumb if you take your fancy suits down there. Those people live in jeans.”
I frowned. “All of them?”
“Most of the ones I’ve met.” She winked. “Charlie’s brothers will never let you live it down if you show up wearing shiny shoes and designer suits.”
“Point taken.” But I had no idea what to pack if not that.
She walked around her car and came up to me. Smiling, she looped her arms around my shoulders and pulled me close. “See you bright and early, City Boy.”
“Sleep tight.” I pressed a kiss to her cheek, holding her soft body against my own for a few beats longer than necessary before I sighed and let go. “The guys are coming over for burgers and to hang out before we leave. Any chance I can convince you to join us?”
“I haven’t packed so much as a pair of panties just yet, so I’m going to have to say no. Tell them I said hi?”
“Or you could just not take any panties,” I suggested. “I can buy you some jeans at the airport. Problem solved.”
She laughed. “Thanks, but I like my own jeans. And my panties.”
Pouting and pretending to be disappointed, I waved and got in my car. She chuckled and climbed into hers. Then I waited for her to back out ahead of me. When I got to my place, Benny was already there and he grinned, handing over a beer.
“Now that’s service,” I joked.
“Where’s mine?” David asked, arriving right after me.
Benny laughed and passed him one too, and all three of us sat down at the bar, shooting the breeze until Josh got there. He caught us up on what had been happening between him and Eden, and when he was done, David turned to me.
“Are things getting serious with you and Abi again, then?” he asked. “You’re going to Texas to help out with something for Walker Marketing, so it’s got to be getting pretty damn serious.”
“I’m going to Texas to help my girlfriend’s sister with something. Not Walker Marketing, but yeah. I’d like it if things did get serious.” After a brief pause, I finally grinned and shook my head. “She’s my person, gentlemen. Everybody probably already knew that, but if it’s going to get serious with anyone, it’ll be with her.”
The guys laughed and high-fived, cheering and hyping me up. Benny eventually shushed them. “Sure, we already knew that, but have you told her yet?”
“I’m going to wait until after presentation day,” I said. “I don’t want her to feel like it’s calculated.”
But as soon as those presentations were done, I was getting my girl—and there was absolutely nothing and no one that was going to stop me.