The Love Game

Chapter 2

“I need a big account to land a big account or for someone to give me a chance.”

Iris trailed her friend Cathy Yee through the buffet line during the monthly Marketing Professionals Association luncheon Tuesday afternoon. The group had taken over a banquet room in one of the downtown restaurants. Well-dressed marketing professionals on an extended lunch break packed the dim walnut-wood room. Circular tables covered in white cloths faced the speaker’s podium. Serving stations lined the far walls of the cramped space.

Iris considered the menu items: potato or chicken-noodle soup, green or pasta salad, turkey or veggie wrap, coffee or water, chocolate chip cookie or fudge brownie. She skipped the salads, and stuck to the meat selections, coffee and both dessert choices.

“I know. I was there once.” Cathy, a freelance designer who’d been flying solo for almost ten years, passed on the soups, but chose both salads, both wraps, coffee, two fudge brownies and a cookie.

Iris considered her friend’s waiflike, five-foot-two-inch frame clothed in a black pantsuit with onyx accessories. Where would all that food go?

“I was so disappointed not to get that contract with Anderson Adventures.” Iris balanced her lunch plate and bowl in one hand, and her coffee cup in another. “It’s as though the three months I’ve spent in my own business has completely wiped out my eight years of experience.”

Iris frowned as her friend led her to a table toward the back of the banquet room. Cathy usually preferred to sit front and center. Maybe she wasn’t as interested in this afternoon’s social media topic.

“They make you prove yourself all over again.” Cathy’s voice held more than a touch of irritation.

“Exactly.” Iris laid her plate, soup bowl and coffee cup on the empty table Cathy had claimed. The benefits of arriving early.

She and Cathy had met during one of these lunches years ago. They’d become fast friends. Then when Iris had confided in Cathy about the problems she was dealing with at work, Cathy had encouraged her to strike out on her own. The two partnered on many of their projects. Iris’s writing skills allowed Cathy to expand her client services and Cathy provided design work for Iris’s contracts.

“It’s a good thing you didn’t tell your sisters about the interview.” Cathy’s jaw-length curtain of raven hair swung forward as she pulled her chair under the table.

That would’ve been bad. “I wanted to land the account before I said anything to them.” Iris added cream to her coffee. “Now I don’t have to explain that my potential client thinks all of my experience leaked out of my brain when I opened my own firm.”

“It would’ve just given them more ammunition to push you back into working for someone else.”

Iris hummed her agreement as she sipped her coffee. “So what’s on your mind?”

“What do you mean?” Cathy sounded distracted. Another sign something was bothering her friend.

Iris pointed her fork toward Cathy’s plate. “You’ve piled enough carbs and processed sugar on your plate to put you in a coma. Are you still thinking of returning to the wonderful world of corporate dysfunction?”

Cathy blew a frustrated breath. “The economic recovery is slow and my bills are high. Everything’s gone up.”

“I understand but just give it a while longer, Cat. Don’t give up on your business yet,” Iris encouraged her friend, thinking she should take her own advice.

“It’s not just the economy.” Cathy’s words sped up as her annoyance kicked in. “Clients don’t want to pay what we’re worth. They think since their son has a Mac, why should they pay you to design a brochure when he can do it for free? Or their daughter can spell so why should they pay a professional copywriter?”

“The insane asylum where I used to work had started squeezing vendors that way.”

“And what’s worse is that these kids, fresh out of college and in many cases untrained, accept this pocket change as their wages instead of researching the industry pay standard.” Cathy’s voice tightened. “It’s insulting.”

Iris frowned at her turkey wrap. “Yes, it is. Have you considered your sister’s suggestion that you apply to be an adjunct graphic arts professor with her university? It could supplement your business income.”

“I’m considering it.” Cathy huffed another breath. “I’m not getting any younger, Iris. I’ve got to—”

“Afternoon, ladies. Mind if we join you?” The male voice interrupted their conversation.

Iris’s heart sank at Peter Kimball’s request that he and his associate sit at their table. She gritted a smile and lied through her teeth. “Not at all.”

The seasoned marketing professional and owner of Kimball & Associates sat beside her. His young sidekick, a man Iris didn’t recognize, took the chair to Peter’s left.

Iris sucked in her breath as Peter extended his hand across her chest to Cathy.

“Pete Kimball.” The marketing executive gave the designer a toothy smile that didn’t reach his pale blue eyes.

“We’ve met. Cathy Yee.” Her friend barely acknowledged him before returning to her veggie wrap.

Peter withdrew his hand, smoothing it over his salt-and-pepper, salon-styled hair. “Oh, yes. You look different. So, Iris, how have you been?”

“Fine, thank you.” The waves of irritation Cathy generated distracted Iris.

“I heard you left RGB.” Peter dug into his pasta salad.

“Yes, four months ago.” She toyed with her chicken-noodle soup.

“I’ve always admired your talent. I’m sure I can find a place for you on my team.”

“Thank you but I’m not looking.” Iris suppressed a shudder as she took in his smarmy smile. She considered his deep, golden skin. Was he using a tanning bed? Perhaps that tint came from a can.

Iris glanced at Peter’s associate. The young man was methodically making his way across his plate.

“What are you doing, then?” Peter’s smile faded as his gaze sharpened.

“I’ve opened my own marketing and public relations consulting firm, The Beharie Agency.”

“Really?” Laughter burst from Peter’s throat. “Starting your own business is a lot of hard work. You don’t have the exp—”

“I’m ready for more coffee.” Cathy nudged her. “Want some?”

Iris looked at her still full cup. “Yes.”

She joined Cathy, leaving the table without excusing herself.

“What a jackass,” Cathy hissed. “He introduces himself to me every time he comes to this thing. How many Chinese women does he know in Columbus, Ohio, that he can’t remember me?”

“Consider the source.” Iris was offended on her friend’s behalf. Peter’s laughing in her face when she announced she’d started her own firm didn’t seem so bad in comparison. “I can’t go back to that table with him.”

“We’ll find another table.”

“But I left my lunch at that one.” And she was starting to get hungry.

“Fix yourself another plate.” Cathy led them back to the buffet line. “Now we have even more incentive to succeed. You know what they say.”

“Living well is the best revenge.”

Iris looked forward to proving to Kimball & Associates, as well as Anderson Adventures, that they’d underestimated her. She just needed a chance.

* * *

Wednesday was a long day that included participating in a client conference call and drafting another project proposal, which Iris hoped to submit by the end of the week. But tonight she set those thoughts aside as she pulled her canary-yellow Camry into the driveway of her family home. She parked beside her sister Rose’s cobalt-blue BMW. Iris was a few minutes early for their weekly family dinner. But as usual, her older sister was already here.

Their dinner was a family tradition Iris and her sisters had continued even after their parents had died. Lily, the middle sister, had moved back into the large suburban home.

Iris grabbed the cake box from the passenger seat. Juggling the box and her purse, she slammed the driver’s-side door shut with a hip and pressed the automatic lock button on her key chain. She hurried up the walkway and stairs, then let herself in through the front door.

“Something smells wonderful.” Iris followed the scent of seasoned chicken and vegetables down the hallway and into the kitchen.

Rose and Lily stopped talking when she appeared in the doorway. Paranoid much?

“You brought dessert.” Lily broke the short silence.

“Chocolate cake.” Iris sauntered into the kitchen and put the box on the counter beside the stove. She turned to her sisters with her hands on the hips of her powder-blue jeans. “Okay. Let’s have it.”

“Let’s not.” Lily continued stirring the pot of chicken stew. Her curvy five-foot-three-inch frame was clothed in faded blue jeans and a bright orange sweatshirt featuring the logo of the Cincinnati’s NFL team. Her dark brown hair was a riot of curls that fell past her shoulders.

“Why not?” Rose crossed her arms over her bloodred sweater. With her sleek dark brown hair swinging above her narrow shoulders and her honey-brown features subtly made up, Iris’s thirty-four-year-old sister looked more like a runway model than an attorney.

“Because I’ve gone to a lot of trouble to cook this dinner and I don’t want it ruined with an argument.” Lily’s attention remained on her stew.

Iris arched a brow at Rose. “Does it have to be an argument?”

Lily answered. “No, it doesn’t. But lately the two of you can’t even agree on the weather.”

“That’s not a recent development.” Iris’s tone was dry. “Rose and I have never agreed on anything, especially since she thinks she knows everything.”

“Here we go.” Lily shook her head as she turned off the burner under the stew.

Rose uncrossed her arms and straightened from the counter. The two-inch heels of her black boots added to her five-foot-eight-inch height. “Maybe if you stopped to consider my advice instead of ignoring it to charge full-speed ahead, you’d realize that sometimes I do know what I’m talking about.”

“And I know what I’m doing.” Iris dropped her arms. “Why can’t you accept that?”

“You think you know what you’re doing but I’m not so sure.” Rose’s expression was heavy on the irritation but tempered with concern. “Why did you leave a perfectly good job with a stable company to start a business during a horrible economic climate?”

Cupboards opened and shut as Lily began serving dinner.

Iris arched a brow. “Because it was obvious I wasn’t going to advance there.”

“At least you had a steady income.” Rose threw up her arms. “You could pay your bills. You had health insurance, life insurance, a retirement account and sick days. You won’t be able to stay home when you’re sick now.”

“I rarely used my sick days when I had them.”

“Here.” Lily forced a soup bowl into Rose’s hands, then crossed back to the counter.

“But at least you had them.” Rose remained focused on Iris.

“That’s fine for you to say.” Iris gestured toward her sister. “People at your company respect you and your experience.”

“You have to pay your dues, Iris.”

“Pay my dues?” Her head was going to pop off her neck. “I’d been with RGB for six years. Meanwhile, new employees were coming in without my experience and leapfrogging over me up the corporate ladder, getting more money and more seniority, while I was doing all the work.”

“So you bit off your nose to spite your face.”

“What are you talking about?” Is Rose even hearing me?

“Rather than stay and fight, you jeopardized your career and your financial security. Meanwhile, the people you were trying to get even with will be fine.”

“This isn’t about revenge.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’d been fighting for six years, Rose.” Iris crossed her arms. “It was clear I wasn’t going to win that war.”

“Here.” Lily shoved the stew at Iris.

Iris took the bowl. “What are you doing?”

“I’m going to eat my dinner in peace.” Lily carried her stew and ice water toward the dining room.

“You’re just going to leave us?” Iris frowned at Lily’s back.

Her middle sister turned to face her. “Do you think it’s fun for me, listening to the two of you argue all the time? Why do we have these family dinners if it’s not to enjoy what’s left of our family?”

Iris glanced at Rose. “I—”

“It’s just us.” Lily sounded tired. “Dad’s been dead almost three years. Mom died less than a year ago. I’m in this house, surrounded by happy memories of our past. Then you two come in and shout them down. I don’t want to do this anymore. I’m not going to do this anymore. Eat your food, then leave.”

Iris’s skin heated with shame as Lily walked away. “She seems pissed.”

“Yes, she does.”

“She never gets pissed.”

“No, she doesn’t.” Rose sighed. “And she’s right. We’re lucky to have each other. We shouldn’t forget that.”

Iris nodded. “We should apologize to her.”

“Let’s do it.”

Iris squared her shoulders, then led the way into the dining room. Lily sat alone at the table set for three. Iris took the seat at the place setting across from her. Rose settled beside Iris. Lily ignored them.

Iris waited a beat. “I’m so sorry, Lil.”

“So am I.” Rose’s voice was soft, contrite.

Lily looked up. Iris held her breath, waiting for her sister’s response. Lily was the only one who even tried to understand Iris’s feelings. She’d never meant to repay her sister’s love and support with pain.

Lily spooned more stew. “So how was everybody’s day?”

Their laughter shattered the tension. Hours flew by as the sisters enjoyed dinner with seconds and dessert, and good conversation. They shared kitchen duty after the meal. Then Rose and Iris left. The outdoor lights illuminated the porch and driveway. Iris stood on the other side of the front door and listened as Lily connected the locks.

She joined Rose on the driveway. “Be careful driving home.”

“You do the same.” Rose paused beside Iris’s Camry. “Listen, if you decide to go back to work, I’m sure I can help you get a position with another company. I have connections in the business community.”

“I am working.” Iris struggled to keep a hold on her temper.

Rose held up her hands. “You know what I mean.”

“Yes, Rosie, I’m afraid I do.” Why are we forever at odds? “I appreciate your offer. But I don’t need my family’s help to get a job. I can do this on my own.”

“Iris—” Rose stopped herself. She exhaled a familiar, frustrated sigh, then started over. “I know you want to do this by yourself and I commend you. But promise me that, if things get too hard to handle on your own, you’ll come to Lil or me for help.”

“I promise.” But she wouldn’t need help. She was going to succeed on her own. She could do this. If only she could land a big enough account.

* * *

“Earth to Ty. Are you in here?”

Tyler glanced around at the sound of his cousin’s voice. Xavier Anderson, the company’s vice president of finance, strode into Tyler’s office Thursday afternoon. Donovan Carroll, their friend and vice president of sales, joined him.

“What?” Tyler was still clearing his thoughts from the computer programming problem that bedeviled him.

“We knocked three times.” Donovan jerked his clean-shaven brown head toward the door behind him.

Tyler followed the gesture, then returned his attention to the two men. They were both tall and fit, and similarly dressed in dark pants and long-sleeved jerseys.

“I didn’t hear you.” Tyler pressed a couple of keys to save his computer file.

“That much was obvious.” Donovan shoved his hands in the pockets of his gray Dockers. “We should assign someone to check on you in case of a fire. I’m sure you wouldn’t hear the alarm.”

“Van and I are going to lunch.” Xavier stopped behind a guest chair. “Do you want to join us?”

“No, thanks. I packed.” Besides, Lauren Cobb, Xavier’s girlfriend of two months, would probably be there. He’d rather eat alone.

“You’re going to make me be the third wheel?” Donovan sounded as though he was only half joking.

“Sorry, man.” Tyler gave him a sympathetic look.

“You need to get out of your office once in a while, Ty.” Donovan pulled his hands from his pockets and folded himself onto one of the two gray guest chairs opposite Tyler’s desk.

Xavier took the other. “Have you heard from Kimball & Associates?”

“No, I haven’t.” Tyler looked at his black Movado watch. It was almost noon. “I thought you were going to lunch.”

“We have a few minutes.” Donovan shrugged. “So what’s the status on Kimball?”

Tyler turned away from his computer. Obviously, they weren’t going to let him get back to work. “They haven’t acknowledged my request for a proposal. They haven’t even responded to my emails or returned my calls.”

Xavier blew out a breath, sounding almost as disgusted as Tyler felt. “We’ve been working with them for years. Why are they now giving us poor service?”

Donovan glanced at Xavier. “I heard a couple of their account representatives recently left the company.”

Xavier ran a hand over his close-cropped hair. “You’re going to have to go with the other company.”

“You know I can’t do that.” Tyler leaned back on his chair. “This is our summer product launch. It needs to carry us into the fall. Iris Beharie’s a solo operation. One person can’t handle a project this big.”

The other men knew what was at stake. He’d told them. If he didn’t put together a successful product launch, Foster would name a chief executive officer from outside of the family. He couldn’t allow that to happen on his watch.

“It’s March nineteenth.” Donovan shook his head. “‘Osiris’s Journey’ drops July tenth. We only have sixteen weeks before the release.”

“I know the schedule.” Tyler rubbed his eyes with his thumb and two fingers. “I’ve found a couple of other companies to contact.”

“We don’t have time, Ty.” Xavier pinned him with his onyx stare. “You’re going to have to go with The Beharie Agency.”

Tyler frowned at the other two company vice presidents. He hated not being in control and that’s what had just happened. He’d gambled on hearing from the larger company. But the clock had run out, leaving him in the risky position of having to work with Iris Beharie. The threat came on two fronts. Professionally, Tyler wasn’t confident Iris could deliver a successful launch, which he needed to ensure Anderson Adventures remained in his family’s control. Personally, he didn’t know whether he’d be able to resist his attraction to the marketing professional. He didn’t know whether he’d want to.

Tyler sighed. “I just need another week.”

“Why are you resisting working with The Beharie Agency?” Xavier gave him the penetrating stare that made Tyler think his cousin could read his mind. “You were impressed with her proposal. Van and I read it, and we agreed with you.”

Donovan nodded. “It was detailed, creative and unique to our company. So what’s wrong?”

There was too much at risk. “Suppose halfway through the project, she’s unable to meet her contractual obligations?”

“We’ll deal with it—if it comes to that.” Donovan spread his hands.

“If it came to that, it would be too late.” Strain made Tyler’s voice brittle.

“You don’t have to prove yourself to us.” Xavier broke the momentary silence. “We know you’re a genius when it comes to game design and programming. And you know everything there is to know about this company.”

“That’s not good enough for my father.” The words were even harder to admit today. Would he be able to reach the bar his father had set for him?

“Foster wants you to spend more time getting to know our associates. And he’s right.” Xavier’s casual shrug belied the intense look in his eyes.

“What am I supposed to do?” Tyler jerked his chin toward the frosted-glass door of his office. “Walk up and down the hallways, asking people how their day’s going?”

“That’s what I do.” Donovan’s hazel-brown eyes twinkled with irreverent humor.

“You do a lot of things I wouldn’t do.” For example, agreeing to share a meal with Lauren Cobb.

“Then maybe Foster’s right.” Xavier frowned. “Despite your programming genius, your design creativity, the decades you’ve spent learning every aspect of the company, maybe you aren’t the right person to lead Anderson Adventures. If the only thing standing in the way of your goal is getting to know the people who actually keep the company going, Foster is better off looking outside for his successor.”

The rebuke stung, just as Xavier had meant it to. “Why does he have to look outside of the company? Why can’t you or Van take over?”

“That’s a good question. Why can’t you ascend to the throne, Xavier?” Lauren Cobb’s amused voice preceded her into the room.