Suddenly Adrian wasn't so sure. He looked at Abram for support, but Abram pretended to look elsewhere. Adrian swallowed, "I can't say beyond what I have said. Let's see how things go, ok?" Well, well, someone is on his own, Rhonda smiled inwardly and applauded her friend.
No, not ok, Gina said. They would not pour substantial resources to go through the bidding process against Kronos beyond due diligence. They needed to know if Trelleco management would throw their support behind her company so they could avoid the lengthy and costly process of selection.
"I can't promise that."
Gina and The Boss had anticipated this development. They had run
He sat on his throne, a big leather chair behind his big table, waiting for her to come in anytime now. He could hear the taps of her stilettos on the wooden floor furnishing the executive quarters, and saw her walk towards his office with quick steps, briefly stop at Linda's desk, and continue the sway of her long legs in the direction of his office when his secretary motioned her to go in. Her smile was already forming as she entered, and widened as she neared; the taps of her shoes silenced instantly as they sank into the plush carpeting of The Boss' office. "I actually threatened the CMO of a Fortune 100 company and it worked!" Gina exclaimed—referring to the meeting that afternoon. Her eyes were flashing with excitement, her entire face lit up. She put her hands on his desk and leaned forward, bringing her fac
The phone call with Abram ended soon with the two gentlemen agreeing to meet again that week to discuss the next step. The Boss punched in the extension to Linda,"No more interruptions. Just take everything down for now. Thanks, Linda." He then turned his full attention back to Gina. He saw her glass was empty and asked if she wanted another, to which she nodded and replied, "Yes, please."As he handed her the glass, his fingers lightly brushed over hers; she asked, "Oh, could I have three olives, this time?" He cocked an eye at her but complied without a word and handed her the glass for the second time. She took a sip of her martini and slid one olive into her mouth."Okay, so where were we?""I was just about to tell you about Adrian's reaction." Ah yes, that fool."Right. So?""Well, I tried to remind them, not so subtly, of our good relationship. Of what we've built over the years with them. But Adrian was being dismissive and
She now had a purposeful life. A sense of beginning, middle, and end. No matter how trivial the end was, or how short the trip could be, it would be eventful, because she was going to move along with full awareness; because her mind would not be tired of forever being alert even to the tiniest joy; because now her heart wanted to savor every moment—moments which many might see as being all the same. From then on, she would truly experience her days, and her life had just become a journey. All this because of a kiss? But that wasn't a kiss like thousands of other kisses she had had. That was a kiss of profound depth; one that wasn't planned but happened, one that originated from the lips but felt as if from everywhere in her being.
Abram witnessed how his friend was lost in his thoughts, unmindful of his presence. This was not the reason he wanted to meet him tonight, he regretted having troubled him. He had shared his enthusiasm about Gina's competence too far. "Georg, forget about it. That is not the reason I asked to meet you tonight. We were supposed to meet again this week, but then the secretary brought something up to my attention this evening, and I thought, if you could make it tonight, why not tonight?" "Alright. Tell me." "In a week there'll be a meeting with key shareholders. We have all but Colin lined up to support your company as our partner for the Indonesia proje
"What is it, Rhonda?" he asked, pouring his drink. She walked into his office, with long strides and an upright posture. She wanted to catch him before he was gone again. She had been trying to get a private moment with him for the past two days—and one was finally there. He motioned her to sit. He sat himself down, too, with a drink in his hand—something to do when awkward moments came along. His usual smile when he greeted her was absent. She noticed that. "Well, I have been with you for almost three weeks now," she said, sitting across from him on the other side of his enormous desk. Tense shoulders, strong bare arms, her elbows on the armrests. She did not lean back on the comfortable leather chair. "Yes, probably. I don't count the days. Cigar ok?" Without waiting for her answer, he lit his stubby cigar. She nodded, racing with his torch—her approval had to count. "May I know if I am doing ok by y
The usher walked them through a narrow, dimly lit hallway, making several turns until they reached what seemed to be the end of the labyrinth. She opened the thick door to a huge room, and closed it quickly once they were inside. The room was dominated by red, Rhonda felt the space was both warm and discomforting at the same time. It had a well-appointed bar and a bartender, and three more doors other than the entrance. From the sign on one of the doors, she knew it was a bathroom, but she wasn't sure where the other two doors would lead to. The carpet was plush, and the lighting was generous but subdued. She felt the floor engulf her dainty feet, freed her of her stilettos and devoured her naked soles. The mixture of scents of the pouring alcohol, leather, and cigars, together with the sight of scantily clad waitresses hustling and bustling, presented a luxury that pampered the luscious imagination. Seated around a large sectional sofa were a group of suit
A lounge. Within the same establishment. On their way out. So they went there, carried by feet with steps no longer staked into the ground, for what had transpired in the karaoke room had bred inspirations in their heads, grown his penis in the presence of a lady friend, and made her vagina pulsed with life and wet with anticipation. While walking, their arms touching should've meant nothing, instead, it consumed every bit of their wakefulness already corrupted by the carnal minds. And if they were to carry on a little further, time would distill those inspirations into a commonsensical proposition of how the two should truly end the night. So a couple more drinks would not lead them to the road—they had exclaimed "last one for the road"—but to the loosening of considerations, relaxing self-imposed mora
After a good night’s sleep, and a promising day ahead, she was wide awake at 5, beating her 7 AM daily alarm. In her dream, he was kissing her everywhere but on the lips, and when he moved to the last destination, she was awakened. Sleep wouldn't let her have the crown of her dream. The morning air was cool, yet she found her naked body sweating. She reached for her phone on the bedside table and checked the sent text messages—a habit she had acquired after completing each routine activity. She wasn't sure whether she had sent it. She found it: her text to Tom—their Portland's managing consultant—sent just before she went to bed last night. "Tom, can our internal meeting be moved to midafternoon? I need to discuss something with him before I leave for Portland."&nb