Ambition(3)

"Yes Miss Williams, they have," Traylor said, taking the seat opposite me. I wanted him separated by the table. While I was hoping that my words alone would neuter the man, I was taking no chances. People do stupid things when pushed, after all. "You should see the streets, Miss Williams. Gunfire on a nightly basis, shops closing left and right. Over a hundred of my parishioners have come to me over the past month stating that they have lost their jobs, asking for the church's help. We've helped as many as we can, but the church's coffers are tapped out. Now, I know that your particular organization is not in the charity business, but I do feel that we can be beneficial to each other.”

"Oh, and how is that?" I said, leaning forward and letting him see just a bit of my cleavage. I may not be as busty as Sophie, but with a Wonderbra and a button down v-neck silk blouse, it doesn't matter. I wanted to keep the Bishop off guard for when I dropped the bomb on him.

"Your…um… your company can use good publicity," Traylor replied, licking his lips unconsciously before pulling his eyes back up to my face. "While you have done lots of good for the city, the fact is that there are some who are resistant to what you’re trying to do. A good charitable donation to Holy Assembly would go a long way towards easing concerns in the minds of some people."

"I see," I said, sitting back and pretending to consider his idea. He was right, in a certain sense. After investing in over four dozen companies in the city, MJT was becoming a major player in the business and political currents of the city. We were ruffling feathers, some of which were starting to try and push back. "It would be quite helpful. And of course, having the positive word of a man as powerful as yourself wouldn't hurt either."

“I’m not the powerful one, I only have what the Lord has given to me to use to further his kingdom," Traylor said, spreading his hands out beatifically, as if he were laying claim to the whole world around him. For all I knew, he was, although not through his holiness, that was for damn sure. "But yes, I can do a lot to ease the concerns of the community."

"And how much are we talking here?" I asked, pretending to read the document that his request had come in. In fact, after discussing the original proposal with Mark and Sophie, I hadn't opened the folder in days, and honestly didn't care if the folder had contained cut-outs from the most recent issue of Captain America. "You left that part blank, I noticed. My secretary wasn't happy about that."

"That depends totally on you," Traylor replied. "Our charity outreach program can cost us upwards of a million dollars a year, although I wouldn’t expect your company to provide anywhere near that. On the other hand, the more you give, the more good we can do."

"I see." I stood up from the coffee table and walked back over to my desk, wishing that I had chosen a hard floor rather than rugs for the office. Let's face it, the sound of a woman's heels clicking along tile while she sashays around in a tight skirt can send blood flow to all the right places. I could feel Traylor's eyes glued on my hips and legs as I walked, and I pondered just how easy it was to use my sexuality to totally throw the man off. Funny, really. I had a few classmates in college, self-professed militant feminists, who said that my using my sexiness to get what I want was just selling out to the male dominated system in place. To me, I thought it was weird how I was supposedly powerless, but could reduce these supposedly powerful men to mindless, begging wretches with just a swish of my ass and a glimpse of my boobs.

Getting a pen from the holder on my desk, I turned around and perched on the edge, my face dawning as if I'd come to a sudden realization. "Bishop, I've got it! I know a way for us to both get what we want!"

"What's that, Miss Williams?" he said, taking me in at my full height. I wondered how much of his mind was on what I was saying, and how much was undressing me mentally. "I'm all ears."

"Well Bishop, if you're looking for funding for charity, I have a great idea. What about a new community center, with education and job training programs, a food bank, after school activities, even child care for working single mothers? I mean, a place that could be a real hand up and not a hand out."

"That sounds amazing, Miss Williams. But such programs are very expensive. When I looked into something similar, I was told it would cost nearly five million dollars just to get up and running, after finding a building, renovations and similar issues. I just don't have that amount of funding." He was lying through his teeth, as we'd kept tabs on Traylor's church. His personal finances alone were worth well over ten million dollars, and there was more owned in his church's name that they used, all tax free under their supposed 'ministry programs.'