Pearl nodded and ran a hand over Cord’s shoulder, brushing off a piece of lint. “You look nice in a suit.”
I’d known Cord a long time, long enough to decipher the flash of a goofy grin on his face.
He returned my questioning glance with a small shrug.
“Good morning.” The three of us stood as Kelsey and two of her senior people entered the room. I’d asked her to meet privately, told her we were against exploring the merger and we weren’t changing our minds, but she insisted she wanted her team there. She planned to steamroll us like I’d let her in the past.
“Morning,” I said, extending my hand to greet them. Mason and Cord did the same, and we settled around the table.
“Let’s get started,” she said, resting both hands on the tabletop. “We’ve prepared a plan to—”
“That won’t be necessary,” I interrupted.
Her expression tilted in veiled annoyance. “I figured you’d want me to lead the planning, but by all means.”
Cord cleared his throat. “As we’ve told you, we’re not moving forward with a merger.”
Kelsey’s eyes narrowed, and she gave Cord a withering look. “I thought I made it clear why this was in both of our best interests.” Her laser-like stare turned to me, and her two vice presidents exchanged their own worried looks.
“We never agreed to this.” I examined her face, a cool and composed mask, but a muscle in her neck ticked. “And your intimidation tactics and threats will not work.”
“Let’s pause here,” one of her vice presidents spoke up. “We believe this will be mutually beneficial, especially considering current . . . events. We’ve brought along some figures—”
Kelsey’s expression shifted, her lips pursing. “Don’t bother, Brad. This has nothing to do with business.” She held my stare. “This is personal, and they’re making a mistake.”
The years of familiarity hung between us. The arch of her eyebrow and the set of my jaw held their own silent conversation.
Mason interjected with a chuckle, breaking the wall of tense silence and rapping his knuckles against the conference table. “Oh, man.”
His interruption took her off guard, and her calculated stare faltered. “Excuse me?”
He flashed an easy smile. “I just appreciate your moxie. I might have enjoyed working with you.”
“So, what’s the problem?” Kelsey regained her cool composure.
Mason laughed again, and I knew Kelsey’s teeth were clenched. I never imagined I’d appreciate the cocky way Mason carried on a conversation. “I just met you, so I can’t speak for Wes and Cord, but there’s nothing personal for me.” Mason relaxed in his chair, his smile still directed at Kelsey. “But you’ve driven your profits into the ground, and you’re about to be sued by hundreds, if not thousands, of clients for negligence or worse, and . . .” Mason paused his speech to slide a manila folder across the table with a smirk. “You should be more careful with your digital footprint.”
Kelsey eyed the folder like it was covered in something vile. She turned to me. “Why is your communications person lecturing me about IT? I don’t think you took my warning seriously, Wes. I meant what I said.”
“Aww, don’t be like that,” Mason said with another megawatt smile. “They said you went to Northwestern. Me, too. I figured we’d talk MBA to MBA. Did you take Organizational Culture with Stronbacher?”
“Yes. So what?”
“Small world. You must remember the first thing he talked about was trust. It’s present in a strong organization, and it’s lacking in weak ones.”
She shifted in her seat, pretending to ignore Mason. “We’re adults, Wes. All of that was years ago.”
“We happened years ago, but that—” I motioned toward the folder. She’d used an old account from college when identifying me as the person hugging Britta and implying we were sleeping together. “That was a few weeks ago. You trying to manipulate us to save your own ass? That was last week. And you threatening to hurt someone I love? That was about a minute ago.”
Kelsey didn’t reach for the folder, but clasped her hands in front of her. She’d flinched when I said “love.” “How did you find out?”
Her two VPs looked like they’d rather be anywhere else.
“There’s probably one person in the world who would remember that screen name. Unfortunately, he’s in this room,” Cord interjected. “What I don’t get is why you would tank the Best Life project when it was helping you just as much as us.”
“I had no choice,” she said, voice clear and confident as ever. She met Cord’s eye and then mine, head held high. “When you told me you were seeing the fat girl from the park, I was surprised. She’s not your usual type, but I didn’t think about how she looked familiar until that photo went around.”
I clenched my fist at my side.
“I wasn’t going to do anything with the information. You shot me down and I got over it, but then the other writer started stirring up trouble and digging into the issue with our coaches. I had to protect my company and get that thing shut down. Linking you to this affair did that. People count on me, Wes. Anyway, I didn’t make you sleep with a client. This isn’t all on me.”
“Damn.” Mason’s smug comment earned him a look so withering, my balls wanted to hide. “Much respect for your ruthlessness. Didn’t you guys date for like six years, though? Cold. As. Ice. I admire that.”
Color rose on her neck, and her two executives shifted away from her. Her fingers dug into her palm, something she only did when she was trying to hold in emotion.
I leaned forward, elbows resting on the table. “It doesn’t matter anymore; it’s all done. The key thing is that we are not merging, and you will not be joining us as COO. A statement will go out within the hour, and if you follow through with any of your promises, we will do absolutely anything we can to make sure your dangerous approach to coaching gets the attention it deserves. Actually, we’re going to do that regardless.”
Kelsey’s eyes met mine. I hoped to see a flicker of apology in them, of sadness, of regret for this entire ploy, but I saw only the cool blue of her irises, fixing me with an icy stare. All I could see in her face was the person who sacrificed Britta and me for her own benefit.
One of the HottrYou execs pushed back from the table, breaking the tense silence in the room. “Well, then. I think we’re done here, right?”
The rest of us stood to shake hands and share nods, but Kelsey didn’t move. I saw her press her nails to her palm once more, then stretch and link her fingers. “That’s it?”
The room stilled, and everyone turned to face her, silence hanging behind her question.
“That’s it,” I said.
She rolled her shoulders back. “Okay. Well,” she said, her cool and professional mask back in place. She stood, smoothed her dress down, and strode to the door. Before stepping out, she turned to me, an apologetic expression painted on her features. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry, Wes. I wish things had turned out differently. It really was just business.”
Cord shot me a look across the table, but I didn’t need his warning. I actually believed her this time when she said it was just business, which made my reply even easier. “Goodbye, Kelsey.”
* * *
WHEN THE DOOR closed behind them, Pearl slipped in, eyebrows raised. “She’s a piece of work.”
Mason slumped back in his chair. “I kind of admire her. I’d be curious what it’s like to fu—” Mason stopped, catching the eyes in the room on him. “Sorry. I mean, what it’s like to work with her.” Mason pulled the folder he’d given to Kelsey back over and opened it, thumbing through things. “We should poach a few of their people before they fold—there’s some talent.”