Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
“Are you sure we can’t take you to your sister’s?” Randi asked as they got ready to leave.
“No, my rideshare should be outside,” Cari said. “Thanks so much for inviting me. This was fun.”
“I’m glad you joined us,” Eden said. “We’ll see you tomorrow. Prepare to be awe-struck by Randi’s presentation.”
“Oh, I’m looking forward to it.”
Randi held the door open and they walked Cari to her rideshare. “See you tomorrow.”
Kelly hurried towards them. “Thanks again for taking Eden home, Randi.” She turned to Eden and reached for her hand. “I promise on our next date I will pick you up and take you home.”
“It’s fine.” Eden smiled.
“See you,” Randi said as Kelly walked away.
They walked to Randi’s car in silence. Once they were on their way out of the parking lot Randi glanced over at Eden. “What are you going to tell Letty about tonight when you get home?”
Eden chuckled. “Well, I’m going to tell her it was a strange night.”
“You didn’t have a good time?”
“No, I did. Part of the time it felt like we were out with friends then at times it felt like I was on a date. It was all rather confusing.”
“I’m sorry,” Randi said. “We shouldn’t have joined you.”
“Oh, no! I’m glad you did,” Eden said. “I felt kind of out numbered not knowing anyone at the table. Of course, you would’ve joined right in and added to the conversation, but you know me. I’m more reserved until I get to know someone better.”
Randi scoffed. “You were charming, as usual. I got the impression Kelly didn’t expect to have to be so hands-on with the band.”
“Yeah, she apologized several times. She warned me that she was helping them set up and might have to do a few things during their sets.”
“Are you going to go out with her again?”
Eden shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe. We’ll see.”
They rode in silence for a while as they got closer to Eden’s house. “Did you have a good time?” Eden asked.
Randi nodded. “Yeah, but I agree. It was kind of weird at times.”
Eden laughed. “Thank God! I thought it was just me.”
Randi chuckled. “Oh no, I felt it, too.”
“Thank you for being there,” Eden said softly.
Randi pulled into her driveway and looked over at her. “Always.”
“Do you want to come in and go over the presentation one more time?”
Randi shook her head. “No, we can go over it in the morning. There is a fine line between being ready and practicing too much for something like this. You want it to sound natural, not memorized.”
Randi felt Eden squeeze her hand. “You’ll be great! You always are.”
Randi sighed. “I don’t know about that, but your confidence in me certainly helps.”
“I’ll see you in the morning,” Eden said. “I’ll bring you a frappucino, extra caramel.”
Randi smiled. “Thanks.”
Eden got out of the car and Randi waited until she was safely in her house with the front door closed before backing out of her driveway.
On the short drive to her apartment she replayed the night in her head.
Eden was right. It had been strange at times.
She kept looking for sparks between Eden and Kelly, but didn’t see any.
For a moment, she thought there might be when she saw a familiar smile on Eden’s face; however, Eden had turned and directed the smile at Randi.
Randi shook the thought out of her head. “No way,” she muttered. All this talk about friends to lovers and sparks had made her see things that weren’t there.
All she needed was a good night’s sleep. The presentation tomorrow was a big deal to the company and to her. That’s where her mind needed to be.
As she got ready for bed she went over the main points she wanted to make in her head.
She was glad Eden would be there. It did give her an extra shot of confidence, but she didn’t need it.
Randi believed in HLR’s strategies, products, and people’s ability to take Cari’s books and her career to the next level.
Convincing Cari to make the investment in herself and her books would be the hard part.
Randi slipped between the covers and settled into bed.
She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
When she closed her eyes she thought of Eden’s smiling face.
There had been times over the years when she wondered if she had a chance with Eden, but the risk was too great so she’d kept her feelings buried inside her heart.
She rolled over and fell asleep thinking of her best friend.
The next morning Eden found Randi in the conference room preparing for the presentation. She set the cup down in front of Randi and smiled. “Here you go,” she said. “One vanilla frappucino with an extra pump of caramel for the star of the show.”
Randi sneered and reached for the cup, taking a sip. “Oh, that’s good.”
Eden looked Randi up and down and felt a little flutter in her stomach. She didn’t know how many times she’d seen Randi in this outfit, but today she looked…especially striking.
“I see you took my suggestion to wear the suit,” Eden said, raising her brows.
Randi smiled and smoothed her hands down the front of her blazer. “I did. You know what makes me look good.”
“I do.” Eden smiled. “You look very professional and also quite stunning.”
Randi looked at Eden and widened her eyes.
“Own it, Powell. You know you look good. Give me that confidence,” Eden encouraged her.
Randi chuckled. “I’ve got my confidence and if I don’t—”
“You can always fake it.”
“You do listen to me sometimes, don’t you?”
Eden laughed. They’d spent many evenings with Randi practicing a presentation and Eden offering suggestions. Randi was never short on confidence, but always made the quip that she could fake it, if need be.
“All set?” Analise asked, walking into the conference room.
“Yes ma’am,” Randi replied.
Analise looked at her watch. “Cari should be here anytime. You didn’t keep her out too late last night, did you?”
Eden and Randi exchanged a look. “No,” they replied in unison.
The phone buzzed in the conference room and Analise picked it up. “I’ll be right there.” She turned to Eden and Randi. “She’s here.”
When Analise left the room Eden stood in front of Randi, smoothed the lapels of her blazer, and rested her hands on Randi’s shoulders. “I’m really glad you were here this week. You’re the best person for this presentation. I’ll be sitting right here, cheering you on.”
Randi smiled and exhaled a deep breath. “I’m glad I’m here, too.”
Analise led Cari into the conference room. Randi walked over to meet them and smiled.
“Wow, you look different than you did last night,” Cari said, raising her brows.
Randi gave Eden a knowing smile and turned to Cari. “We’re like a family here at Hook, Line & Reader, but we are professionals and take your career seriously. Let me show you.”
Randi rolled one of the chairs out for Cari to take a seat.
“Can I get you something to drink?” Analise asked.
“Water would be great.” Cari looked at the platter in the middle of the table that contained pastries and other offerings. “Don’t tell me you baked these, too?”
“I got up early and made them especially for you,” Randi replied.
Eden couldn’t help but laugh. Randi was not a cook. She’d convinced Eden to take a baking class with her once and Randi never got the hang of it. Eden couldn’t understand why she wouldn’t simply follow a recipe, but no, Randi always thought she knew better.
Randi chuckled. “No, I’m kidding. Eden can attest to my lackluster baking skills.”
“However, she did pick those up at our favorite bakery on the way to work this morning,” Eden said. “You’ve got to try one. The scones are the best.”
Cari smiled, reached for the pastry, and set it on a plate. She took a small nibble at one corner and raised her brows. “Mmm, that is good.”
Eden smiled. “Are you nervous?”
Cari set the scone back on the plate and wiped her mouth. “I am. Asking me to turn over parts of my business that I painstakingly built and refined is daunting.”
“Oh, we get that,” Randi said compassionately. “No one knows your business like you do. It’s your baby.”
Eden smiled at Randi’s kind and nurturing tone as she eased into the presentation.
“You could write the best book in the world, but if no one knows about it then the story remains untold. It’s all about discoverability. That’s what we do. We help readers find your book and then you make them fall in love with it,” Randi said.
Eden could see the curiosity on Cari’s face. Randi had a way of drawing people in and Cari was not immune to it.
“Let’s start with advertising,” Randi said.
“I’ve always done okay with ads,” Cari commented.
“Yes, but wouldn’t it be nice to do better than okay?” Randi countered. “I’ve done a few I’d like to show you.”
Randi clicked a button on her computer and an ad appeared on the screen.
Cari gasped. “Oh, that’s good, really good.”
Eden couldn’t help but smile at Randi. Her creativity amazed Eden and even though she’d already seen the ads she couldn’t keep from being, once again, captured by the tagline and images. She’d already read the book, but wanted to read it all over again.
Randi smiled. “Thanks. This is just a start.”
“So I turn it over to you, but what if I have ideas?” Cari asked.
“You’re not turning it over to me,” Randi said, using Cari’s words. “You’ll approve every ad and give us input on what you want to see. You’re still a big part of this, Cari.”
Eden saw Cari relax as Randi clicked through several other ads she’d created. It reminded her of the other night when Randi had been giving Eden’s pitch at the event. She, too, had been nervous, but when Randi started to talk, Eden began to loosen up just as Cari was now.
Randi talked about social media and how they would use selected personal information to connect with readers.
Yes, they wanted to gain new readers, but as Randi explained they were establishing a relationship.
Readers were loyal and Randi outlined how they would cultivate trust thus earning their loyalty.
Eden encouraged Randi with a look, a nod, or a smile whenever she glanced her way.
Seeing Randi in her element, shining with her expertise, made Eden’s heart beat fast. She wondered if Cari felt the same thing.
Randi could be captivating and Eden noticed she, Cari, and Analise were all enthralled and under her spell.
When Randi talked about in-person events she looked over at Eden. During the week as Randi developed the pitch they’d decided it would be best for Eden to talk about the relationships Hook, Line & Reader had with the local bookstores.
“We regularly hold events at area bookstores as well as participate in book events at local venues,” Eden explained. “Are you comfortable doing book signings?”
Cari sighed and frowned. “They’re not my favorite thing to do. I feel so awkward.”
Eden gave her a compassionate smile. “I get that,” she said.
“Not all of us have a way with words like Randi does.” She smiled at her best friend and looked back at Cari.
“However, we have a local bookstore with quite the sapphic following. The Plot Twist is a cozy space that is perfect for signing events. We’ve done several Meet the Author events as well and Ginger, the owner, makes the readers feel special and is so good at putting the author at ease. ”
“That sounds like fun,” Cari said.
“Once again,” Randi said. “It’s another way to cultivate a relationship with your readers.”
“I do love getting to know my readers,” Cari said. “I hear from several readers regularly through my newsletter. Would HLR take that over as well?”
“Mmm, take over isn’t exactly what we’d do,” Randi said.
“We’d like to make it easier for you. Readers want to hear from authors.
We can do the business parts of the newsletter, including upcoming releases, promoting your back list, and upcoming events.
But you would still do the personal section, maybe with a look behind the scenes or a little about what you’re working on. Things like that.”
“We’re not trying to take anything away from you,” Analise said. She was sitting next to Cari, quietly taking in the presentation.
“We want you to have more time to write,” Analise continued. “We know that not all the parts of being a self-published author are necessarily, hmm, how should I say—pleasant. There are parts of my job that I don’t love and I imagine there are parts of yours that you don’t either.”
Cari nodded and chuckled. “So you’d do the things that I don’t love?”
“Absolutely.” Randi smiled.
“This is all very tempting,” Cari said. “What if I find I miss doing ads or my newsletter?”
“It’s your business,” Randi said. “We’re here to do the parts you don’t want to, but also, it’s your call. You direct us, Cari. We give you options that we think will help your sales or your brand. But you always have the final word.”
Eden studied Cari and could see the ideas flying through her head. She narrowed her gaze and leaned forward. “You’re wondering if you can afford us?”
Cari slowly nodded.
“It’s our job to pay for ourselves,” Eden said.
“That’s right,” Analise added. “We can always start this on a trial basis. Let us prove ourselves.”
Cari looked from Eden to Analise then over to Randi.
She smiled and sat back in her chair. “You’ve given me every opportunity to give this a try with virtually no risk to my name.
” She sighed. “How can I say no to Randi’s pitch?
You have me eager to get started. But I’m not only getting Randi, right? I get this entire team?”
Analise smiled. “You get all of Hook, Line & Reader.”
Eden looked at Randi and could see the relief on her face. She quietly chuckled. Eden couldn’t imagine anyone saying no to a Randi Powell pitch.