Page 34 of Untamed Billionaire
“Um…?”
Chloe didn’t bother to hide her impatience. “You’re going to upgrade your warehouses, Bill! You’re going to update so that you can compete with Mechlin, and possibly me! Because I’m getting sick of paying the property taxes on that land next to you.”
Chloe stood up, smoothing her dress down over her stomach. Her too flat stomach, she thought. Her dress was too loose on her, which meant that she’d lost too much weight. Her weight was one more aspect of her life that she could now take control of.
“I have to go, Bill, but please be sure to contact Marco immediately. Explain that you have the space and you’ll beat the prices of any competitors.” She turned to leave, but stopped and turned back, taking a piece of paper out of her purse. “Oh, and here is a list of meetings that might be able to help you as well.”
“Meetings?” he asked, dazed as he reached for the paper she took out of her purse. “What kind of meetings?”
“Alcoholics Anonymous meetings,” she told him, her voice gentle now. “It’s ten fifteen in the morning and you’re already drunk, Bill. You need to get control. But this is something that you have to do for yourself. You have to want to sober up and gain control of your life.”
With that, she turned and walked out of Bill’s office, waving a friendly goodbye to his assistant as she pushed out into the bright sunshine.
“Okay, step one is finished.”
Ten minutes later, Chloe stepped into the union steward’s office of the ILA, the International Longshoreman Association. These were the guys that offload all of the ships that come into Port of Charleston. Without their skills, the ships would hover off the coast with products and supplies. These guys were the conduit for all ocean-to-land efforts.
“Good morning, Ms. Forsythe. It’s a pleasure to meet you, although I’ll admit I was a bit confused as to why you would want to speak with me.”
Chloe sat down in the chair in front of the man’s desk. “Well, Mr. Glasser, I’ve heard rumors that you might slow down the off-loading of certain vessels that are coming into the port.”
The man chuckled, leaning back in his big leather chair. “We provide the same service to every ship that comes in. We don’t play favorites.”
“Really?” she questioned, tilting her head slightly. “Even if someone, perhaps a powerful someone like my father, recommends that some ships might need to be…pushed to a lower priority?”
The man’s eyes widened slightly, but he regained control of his features and shrugged, not admitting anything. “We work in coordination with the harbor master. My guys offload as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
Chloe smiled at the man, but kept the smile cool enough to maintain a business-like demeanor. “Here’s the thing,” she started off, leaning forward slightly, “I’m not saying that he said something, but my father is a third generation rich bastard. He likes to manipulate people by controlling business details. He sits back in his office, sipping bourbon with his cronies and laughing about how he is the puppet master for the city.” She placed her hands over her knee. “Marco Hudson, on the other hand, has had to work harder and faster than his competition. He didn’t even graduate from high school because he had to work in order to survive. He’s a street hustler, Mr. Glasser.” She nodded when his eyes opened slightly.
A moment later, Mr. Glasser’s eyes narrowed as he leaned back in his chair, flipping a pen against his thigh. “So you’re saying he’s one of us.” the man grunted.
“Exactly!” She stood up and the man politely stood as well. “If you were so inclined, I’d recommend not slowing down the off-loading of certain ships coming in. Maybe you could give the middle finger, so to speak, to people like my father while helping out another guy who actually works for a living.”
The man came around to the other side of his desk, extending his hand. “Thank you for that information, Ms. Forsythe. I appreciate the heads up.”
“Please, call me Chloe,” she said to the man, shaking his hand with a smile. “And good luck.”
The man smiled and waved as Chloe walked out of his office. Chloe didn’t stop there. She had conversations with several other businesses, friends, and acquaintances of her family, people she’d dined with over the years and knew personally, but she’d also done her research on each person’s businesses. She was an avid and astute investor, after all. It was a bit insulting that everyone treated her as if she were merely a pretty face, but she proved to each of them that she knew what she was talking about. Today’s conversations finally revealed her abilities as an astute and merciless businesswoman. No longer would she need to hide herself. Emma was safe!
Chapter 10
Marco ended yet another call and leaned back in his leather chair. When Bill Jennings had unexpectedly arrived at his office this morning, Marco hadn’t thought much of it. He was surprised by the competitive storage rates Jennings had offered and nodded a tentative agreement with the man. The rates were better than what he’d gotten from several other warehouse firms and would save him a good deal of money.
But when he’d received calls from the longshoreman’s steward, the harbor master, and three trucking companies…all of them informing him that his shipments would have priority when they arrived…Marco was stunned. He’d already been working on several ways to disrupt the rumors that his shipments would be “delayed”. As of this afternoon, however, there would be no delays. Every obstacle in the shipping and transporting process had been cleared, almost magically.
Chloe.
He smiled as he thought about her. About the possibility that she’d done all of this. Damn, she was good! And beautiful!
His assistant sent him a message and Marco instantly clicked on it. “Chloe is here to see you.”
Marco stood up and walked to the door, yanking it open. Sure enough, Chloe stood by his assistant’s desk, looking cool and beautiful. She didn’t have a hair out of place after all of her meetings today. How the hell could she look so fresh and alive after talking with perhaps ten different people today?
“Hello, beautiful,” he growled and took Chloe’s hand to pull her into his office. As soon as they were alone, he had her pinned against the wall. “You’ve been a very busy woman, today.” He nuzzled her neck, so turned on by her brilliance! No, not just her brilliance. He was turned on because her efforts today said that she cared. Even if just a little, she cared for him! It wasn’t just their agreement!
“I…” she gasped when he nibbled her neck. “I don’t know what you mean!” She shifted against him and he shimmied her dress higher up over her hips.
“I think you do,” he countered, then planted his hands against her adorable ass, lifting her up so he could press his painful erection against her core.
