Page 25 of Lovesick

Chapter 9

Before he had a chance to open the conference room door, Louise fast-walked down the hall carrying a stack of folders and accosted him, managing to pull him aside.

“Let me take some of this from you.” He didn’t wait for her answer because he knew she’d protest. Instead he lifted three quarters of the stack from her arms. The twinkle in her eyes rewarded him, causing a warm rush like a summer breeze through his body.

Although he hadn’t realized how tense he was, the tension was somewhat relieved. They had a lot at stake at this meeting. She must be exponentially more tightly wound than he was.

“Thanks. You didn’t need to—”

“I know. You ready?”

“Don’t make me spout clichés about being born ready. I’m glad I caught you, though. The store is having a big Star Wars event in the children’s department tomorrow and I wanted to make sure you knew about it so you could bring your son in. We’ll give him the VIP treatment.” He paused. It was a dangerous thing to bring his son in here where he might meet Louise. It was the last thing he wanted.

“The Star Wars characters will be reenacting a battle scene and I’m sure we can arrange for Tim to take part . . . you don’t look enthused. He doesn’t like Star Wars? I thought every eight- year-old boy would—”

“No. Of course Tim is a big fan.” In spite of Max’s reluctance, there was no way he could deprive his son of that kind of special experience. “I’ll have his nanny bring him after school.”

He’d wanted to keep Louise separate from Tim, but maybe that wouldn’t be a problem. She would be busy with the store and the final details of the big Back to the Future event the following evening. He doubted she’d have the time or inclination to visit the toy department tomorrow afternoon. He should tell her point-blank he didn’t want her to meet Tim, but that seemed extraordinarily mean. Yet it was the truth.

“Louise—”

Margo came bustling down the hall then, interrupting them and he was brought back to the fact that they were about to enter an important meeting.

“Hey doc, you ready for this? You’re star of the show—not to put pressure on you,” Margo said with a smile. She opened the door and they all went inside.

He put a hand on Louise’s back as he took the seat next to her and his heart sank as he felt her stiffen.

She said, “Don’t worry, Max, you can bring Tim. I’ll stay clear of him if that’s your worry.” She met his eyes with disappointment in her own, but as soon as George spoke, introducing the investor Sosi Petrov, Louise went into full-tilt business mode and didn’t look back.

* * *

Sosi Petrov wasa striking young woman, Louise had to admit, but only to herself. The tall, willowy woman was smart too as evidenced by her presentation of the investors’ offering. It meant a lot of money for each member of the Regal family.

“What do you plan to do about management staff job security?” One cousin from London asked.

“Nothing. We can’t promise anyone’s job security.” She laughed and added with a wave of her hand over the room, “But of course you all will be so rich you won’t need to work.”

This comment steamed Louise more than anything else she could have said. The woman didn’t know her audience very well.

“That might not be what our concern is,” Louise said. Her abundance of tact was not lost on the others. “Perhaps we’re concerned about the maintenance of our brand and its position in the market.” She saw a lot of veiled smiles and encouraging nods around the room.

“Of course our new management team will bring in an efficiency consultant to streamline operations,” Sosi said, her confident smile not faltering. She really had no idea what the problem was. The woman thought that money was the answer to everything. Louise could use that to bring home her point, let the woman show her stripes. Louise would help exaggerate Sosi’s avaricious approach without a care or thought to anything or anyone else and she knew this would cause queasiness in more than a few family members who were on the fence. After all, the family name would still be on the company.

“Tell me, Sosi, why you don’t like the idea of a company doctor in particular,” Max said.

Sosi darted a glance at Max and gave him a tight smile. Max gave her his typical eyebrow raise that spoke volumes and ratcheted up the woman’s discomfort. She wasn’t totally oblivious after all.

“The idea of a company doctor is a quaint notion but highly impractical. Nothing personal, Dr. Pendleton.”

“Call me Max. And it has everything to do with making things personal. Because employees are not numbers on a spreadsheet. They’re people.”

Louise wanted to throw her arms around him right then, but she settled for moving her thigh against his in a light intimate touch of encouragement. He didn’t look at her. She didn’t look at him. But she knew he got the message. She could feel the heat and tension of a different kind, the sensual kind, radiating from him.

“Max is right,” Louise said before George had a chance to respond. “Our employees make us who we are and we can’t afford to turn Regal’s into another turnstile business where employees are treated like widgets and they in turn treat customers like widgets.”

Sosi nodded, frowning. “I see. Of course.” The woman didn’t see a thing.

George spoke then, “We’ll take the time in the coming week before the vote to decide, to analyze the numbers. We’ll also be evaluating the success of the upcoming event we have planned that celebrates our old-fashioned, people-oriented values. We’re dubbing it Back to the Future. It’s a Norman Rockwell meets the Jetsons affair. You are of course invited, Ms. Petrov.”