One Night Standards(30)

Somehow, he’d managed to make the situation even worse for himself.

He dialed her anyway. “Mark,” she said, and he felt a little of the tension ebb away.

“I wanted to hear your voice,” he replied.

“You sound sad,” she said. “Not going well, huh?”

“You could say that.” You could also say that things are a flaming, complete and utter disaster.

“Don’t worry,” Sophie said, obviously trying to reassure him.

“Well, keep your chin up,” he told her, more to buck himself up than her. “No matter what happens on the business side, we’ll still have each other, right?”

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. “I love you,” she murmured.

He felt warmth blossom in his chest. “I love you, too,” he said. “I’ll call you tonight.”

He hung up, then stared at the phone for a long minute. She wouldn’t screw him over, he thought.

But his own company, he realized…now, that was a different story. They didn’t think he could make it. They didn’t believe in him.

Maybe, he mused, I need to think outside the box on this one.

He mulled it over, then picked up the phone. “I’d like to speak to Mrs. Abigail Marion, please. Tell her it’s Mark McMann from Trimera.”

There was a click as he was transferred. Then he heard Mrs. Marion’s smooth voice.

“Mark,” she said, almost gleeful. “I’ve been expecting to hear from you.”



“IT’S GOOD TO SEE YOU, MARK,” Mrs. Marion said warmly, gesturing him into her office. “It was a very difficult decision, I don’t mind telling you. Still, I’m sure that with the package Trimera is offering, I wouldn’t find better anywhere in the marketplace.”

Mark sat across from Mrs. Marion’s broad teak desk, frowning slightly. He’d been racking his brain for the past twenty-four hours, getting almost no sleep in the process.

This is all because you got involved with Sophie Jones. Ever since he’d decided to give Sophie a ride, his life had changed irrevocably. Now, he was on the brink of the biggest coup of his career…and he was about to jeopardize all of it, for her.

You can do this.

He cleared his throat. “Trimera did offer amazing terms,” he said. “You know, we never would have been able to offer you that many perks and benefits if it weren’t for such a large account. And of course, Trimera’s a multimillion-dollar company.”

Her smile was puzzled. “Mark, I already said yes to Trimera. You can stop selling.”

“The thing is…the products won’t be as good as Diva Nation’s.”

Her eyes widened at his admission. “Yes. That was a consideration,” she said carefully. “But you assured me you could make similar products.”

“Knock-offs are always inferior to the original,” he said, even as a part of him wondered just what Simone and Roger would say if they knew what he was up to. “And Diva Nation is definitely onto something, with their palette, their cosmetic ingredients…”

He let the sentence peter off as Mrs. Marion held a hand up, halting him.

“Mark, what exactly are you trying to do here?” Her voice was calm, but her eyes were shrewd. “Because if I didn’t know better, I’d swear you’re trying to get rid of our business.”

“No, not at all,” Mark said hastily. This was where it got tricky. “Trimera definitely wants your business, and you won’t be able to get a better deal anywhere, as you said.”

“So why do you keep bringing up Diva Nation?”

“Because it’s not their fault that they couldn’t compete,” he said candidly. His business-school teachers would be wincing over his negotiation style. Hell, part of him felt like dying inside, for taking this blatantly honest approach, but it was a chance he was going to have to take. “They had the superior product. And you won’t find anything on the market that rivals it. If they got some patents in place, you’d have a lock on the market with things like their lip gloss.”

“Again, it wasn’t about the product, it was about the deal.” Now Mrs. Marion sounded annoyed, a bad sign. “I don’t like wasting my time, Mark. I thought you’d know that by now. What do you want me to do?”

Mark took a deep breath. He felt as he had years ago, the first time he’d ever leaped off a high dive. And back then, he’d belly flopped nearly knocking himself unconscious.

Here’s hoping this goes better.

“I think I’ve come up with a way to give the business to both Trimera and Diva Nation.”

Mrs. Marion’s expression, usually so carefully schooled, now betrayed open shock. “How in the world do you think you’ll manage that?” She laughed. “I don’t know that you understand the point of an open competition for business, Mark!”

“First, if I could come up with a solution,” Mark said doggedly, ignoring her obvious mocking, “would it be something you would be interested in? Something Marion & Co. would support?”

“Are you kidding? Those fabulous products, with the Trimera financial perks?” She was all but drooling over the possibility. Her grin was avaricious. “I would be more than interested, Mark. But I don’t see how you’d pull it off.”

Mark slowly outlined what he had in mind, and he saw the light of surprise turn to admiration in her eyes. “It won’t be easy for me to convince my team,” Mark finished, “but I think that it’s the best solution for everyone.”

Mrs. Marion smiled slowly. “What you’re proposing goes far beyond a simple salesman’s job,” she said. “You’re pulling off a big corporate deal, here. Does Trimera know what they have in you?”

Mark couldn’t help it. He grinned. “I sure hope so.”

“Although I will say, I wondered if your relationship with Sophie Jones would affect your business sense,” she added, knocking his pride down dramatically. “If your company knows about your association with her…well, I imagine they wouldn’t take it quite so favorably.”

Mark set his jaw. He hadn’t intended on discussing Sophie, or his relationship with her personally. “I suppose you’ve heard the rumors,” he said, wondering how exactly to address it even as he resented the fact he was addressing it at all.

“Heard them?” Mrs. Marion laughed. “Dear boy, I started them.”

Mark stared at her. “You did?”

“Well, Lily did,” she amended. “She saw Ms. Jones going into your hotel room in San Francisco. I was somewhat surprised when Lily reported it to me, but I wasn’t completely shocked. The chemistry between you two is rather obvious…if you’re observant.”

He got the feeling nothing made it past Mrs. Marion. “It didn’t have any part in our competition,” he pointed out, feeling like a broken record. How many times would he have to defend them?

If you do something stupid, you’re going to have to pay the consequences.

“Obviously it didn’t,” Mrs. Marion agreed. “Otherwise, you never would have suggested knocking off her products. That power play impressed me, and really made me consider you and Trimera. Although I’m surprised Sophie didn’t try to punch you right there!”

Mark winced. He hadn’t been proud of that. The fact that Mrs. Marion was proud of his maneuver did nothing to improve the situation.

“But now—obviously you’re feeling guilty,” Mrs. Marion continued. “And that doesn’t impress me, Mark. If you’re servicing this account, I need to know that you’ll be able to handle it. Emotions are wonderful things, and I’m not saying you have to be an automaton. But business is business.”

“This is business,” Mark said firmly. “You want the best product for the best deal. Trimera wants the account, and Diva Nation needs the money. It’s completely win-win.”

“And Sophie has nothing to do with it?” she prompted.

Mark grimaced. “I won’t try to lie and say she wasn’t a factor,” Mark said. “But if it weren’t to our advantage, I wouldn’t pursue it…even if it meant Diva Nation were out in the cold.”

“Would she do the same thing, I wonder?”

“I’m sure she would,” Mark said, even as he wondered about the statement. If she knew it would ruin his chances, would she be as business-minded? He wanted to say yes, but he wasn’t sure. “She understands it’s just business, and her family is important to her.”

“Would you blame her, if the situation were reversed?”

“Of course not.” Mark smiled, feeling more confident. He and Sophie had discussed that much, at least.

“You sound pretty sure of yourself.” Mrs. Marion stood. “Well, then. Talk to your company, and I’ll approach Diva Nation for one more meeting. It will be interesting to see how this all plays out.”

“I’m sure it will work out beautifully,” Mark said, shaking her hand.

“You know,” Mrs. Marion said, “if Trimera doesn’t go for it, maybe I could find a place for you here, in my organization. I’m always looking for talent that’s hungry and creative.” She winked. “And good-looking doesn’t hurt.”