Chapter 38 – Harrison
THIRTY-EIGHT
HARRISON
Three Days Later
In all my years in business, I’d learned two indisputable facts: Numbers never lied, and they didn’t care about your feelings.
No matter how badly you wanted them to…
And after sitting through my thirtieth investor pitch this week, the numbers were screaming at me to accept reality.
Sweet Seasons was still bleeding millions by the minute, and no amount of late-night strategy sessions, creative ideas, or budget cuts could fix it.
The corporate side of the company was overstaffed, and even if—by some miracle—we ran a campaign that netted us $500M, it would take years.
Someone needed to be laid off.
Well, thousands of someones, according to the latest strategy team I was currently listening to this morning.
Maybe we can compromise on the number somehow…
“Good morning, Mr. Cross.” Mr. Ken Lay, a salt-and-pepper-haired man who looked ten years older than me, slid a folder across the table.
“Morning,” I said.
“As the owner of the Lay Group, I’m proposing a pretty aggressive timeline.” He motioned for me to open the folder. “If you choose to accept our three hundred million dollar investment, we must implement Phase One immediately.”
I glanced at the first page.
“You want me to lay off forty-nine point eight percent of the staff?” I asked. “Why not just say fifty?”
“Fifty percent sounds cold and callous.” He smiled. “Don’t you think?”
I flipped to the next page, seeing the words Savings Long-Term in bold.
“We have put together very generous severance packages, and we’ve even lined up a temporary staffing firm to help the affected employees find new jobs,” he said. “We’ll use the savings from this phase to jumpstart Phase Two.”
“It says you’d only be giving them two weeks’ notice,” I said. “That’s… a bit short, Mr. Lay.”
“It’s also pretty standard.” He shrugged. “You’ve laid off people with two hours’ notice from what I recall.”
“That’s true…” I flipped through a few more pages, and Andrea’s voice cut through my thoughts.
“Most of the people who work here have been here for almost a decade or more, and I’m asking you not to destroy their livelihoods…”
I tuned it out as I looked at more of the equations.
If their math was even halfway right, we’d be back within striking distance of Starbucks within eight months.
“Are there any severance packages in play for the employees who have to be let go?” I asked him. “That would need to come from your end if I consider.”
“Why would you even want to give these people extra money on their way out, Mr. Cross?” He crossed his arms. “Half of them are literally dead weight.”
“Dead weight?” Andrea’s voice—her real voice—suddenly cut across the room, making everyone turn to the door. “Is that what you just said?”
“Ah, Miss Stone.” Mr. Lay smiled at her. “I wasn’t aware that you would be joining us today.”
“Me either.” She looked at me. “We aren’t supposed to entertain any investors who suggest layoffs.”
“Ha!” Mr. Lay snorted. “That would be impossible. Surely you’ve seen the numbers?”
She didn’t respond to him.
Instead, she stood in the doorway clutching the belt of her gray coat in one hand, a thermos in the other.
Her cheeks were flushed with fever, her hair half-tucked into her collar, her watery eyes proof she’d managed to escape from my bed.
“Gentlemen,” I said, narrowing my eyes at her. “My CFO is currently sick and will be going back home within the next few minutes…”
“I’m feeling better now—much better, actually—considering what I’m hearing.”
“We’re just getting started on fine-tuning the logistics, Miss Stone.” Mr. Lay gave her a pleasant smile. “If you’d like, I can give you a quick recap.”
“I just want to know if I heard you right about laying off forty-nine point eight percent of the staff. Is that correct?”
“Oh, well—yes.” He was still smiling. “Doing that will immediately save costs, and not saying ‘fifty’ definitely makes it sound better.”
“You’re going to lay people off the week before Thanksgiving?” She looked directly at me. “Four weeks before Christmas?”
“Everything is still up for negotiation,” Mr. Lay said. “If you bring us on, I can promise you we’ll be more than fair.”
“With all due respect, Mr. Lay, I’m not talking to you.” She glared at me. “I’m talking directly to Mr. Cross.”
“Why can’t you just—” I shut my folder as she coughed a few times. “Can someone get Miss Stone some water, please?”
“Yes or no, Mr. Cross?” She moved closer, swatting an intern’s glass away.
“Andrea…”
“It’s a simple yes-or-no question, Mr. Cross.” She was inches from me now—eyes fierce, voice trembling. “Are you literally sitting here planning to fire people after telling me otherwise?”
“Mr. Lay,” I said, ignoring her even though a knot tightened in my stomach, “pick up where you left off before the intrusion. As I promised, I’ll save my questions for the end.”
“Um…” He glanced nervously between us. “Yes, sir. So—if we order employees by seniority, we can start the first round of terminations with the people who haven’t been here that long. Afterwards—”
“So you’re a bold-faced liar.” Andrea seethed. “You lied to my face, wrote a contract that means shit to you, and you’re determined to be a heartless asshole who values your margins over people.”
A collective gasp snapped through the room before silence swallowed the air.
“Everyone out,” I said quietly. “Now.”
Chairs scraped, papers rustled, and the door slammed shut in an instant.
“This is exactly why I told you to stay your ass at home.” I looked at her. “You just ruined my first impression with them.”
“I wish I’d done it sooner.” Her voice broke, breath uneven. “I believed you when you promised—fucking promised—that no one would lose their job. I defended you. I actually—” Her voice cracked again. “I thought you were better than this.”
The words hit harder than they should have, but I refused to get emotional.
“Interesting choice of phrase, Miss Stone,” I said. “I could say the same about you right now.”
“How could you even consider this?” Her chest rose and fell like she couldn’t pull in enough air. “This is people’s lives.”
“It’s mine, too.” I hissed. “I didn’t buy this company for shits and giggles, and regardless of whatever the hell is happening between us, my long-term goal hasn’t changed.”
“If you go through with this, I’ll never speak to you again.”
“Given your immaturity today,” I said quietly, “I’d be okay with that.”
Pain flashed across her face like a slap.
“So I’m just a number on a spreadsheet to you as well?” she asked.
“Right now, you’re a pain in my ass and seconds away from me making you attend some mandatory anger-management classes.”
“I meant what I said about never talking to you again if you go through with this.”
“Please don’t threaten me with a good time.”
Silence.
“I’ll have my things out of your place by the end of the day.”
“You’re being dramatic, Andrea.” I sighed. “Let me take you home and we’ll talk about it. I can explain.”
“No, that’s okay.” She walked to the door, voice brittle. “I’d hate for you to miss out on any more fun from ruining people’s lives.”
“If you walk out of the door without hearing me out, I’m not going to chase after you.”
“Good,” she said without looking back. “I’m counting on it.”