"I don't" Karl started to say, but emboldened by his
discomfort and becoming more convinced that Helen
had been honest, I cut him off.
"I'm not sure." I said. "I'm still learning the ins and outs
of the company. I want to honor my grandfather's
legacy, but I don't want my inexperience to get in the
way. With the guidance of people like Karl Yunger and
Chandler Grayson here, I would like to take an active
role in ensuring the success of the company moving
forward."
"Alright," Julia said, "I think there are a lot of
shareholders and employees out there who are going
to be happy to hear that."
"There are a lot of details to work out" Karl leaned
forward and placed a hand on my shoulder. "But rest
assured, under the guidance of current -executives and
the board, we will make sure the Gerrard legacy
continues to thrive."
There wasn't much left to say after that. The damage
had been done, and I could see a subtle unrest from
the audience at my announcement. Julia moved on to
ask a list of questions that she claimed had been
collected from the crowd. I answered a few of the
questions directed at me with as much tact and ability
as I could, but anything related to the business was
intercepted by Chandler or the PR Director. After about
fifteen minutes, the segment was over, ending with
applause from the audience and a round of handshakes
between the people on stage. The handshakes I
received from Karl, the PR Director, and the two other
men were as stiff as their smiles... I had clearly said
things they hadn't expected to hear. Chandler was the
only one who seemed enthusiastic toward me.
Afterward, the five of the people sitting with me
walked off the stage and into the crowd, immediately
swarmed by dozens of people from the audience
asking questions and waiting to hear more details. I
was just about to head to where' Ashlee and Chloe
were waiting for me when I felt someone touch my
arm. I turned to see Julia offering me her hand, "Mr.
Upton, thank you so much for coming. I understand
you're incredibly busy right now, but if you're ever
interested in a more one-on-one interview, I would love
to set up something with my team."
As she pulled away, I felt a business card in my hand
and gave it a
quick glance. I looked back up at her and she gave me
another smile, "I think the public would be very
interested in hearing more of your story. It's the kind of
thing most people dream of, but it actually happened to
you. It could be a big hit."
I pocketed the card, "I'll think about it. I'm not exactly
sure how much of my story I want out there. I don't
feel comfortable being in the spotlight this much."
Julia nodded, "I understand that, but whether you like it
or not, it already is out there. At least, if you work with
me, you can have some control over the narrative... tell
the story the way you want it told."
That wasn't the first time I'd been told that today. Like
Erin, she made some good points. It wasn't like I could
hide anymore now that the news had been broken. The
only reason hadn't been swarmed by paparazzi or
reporters was because I'd mostly been staying in places
that I had nothing to do with. Except for Marduke,
which most people had heard I'd quit, I avoided my old
haunts.
"You're right. Give me some time to think it over and I'll
let you know. I promise. Thanks again for the great
interview, Mrs. Lyons."
"Please call me Julia, and I mean it," she said, "call me
anytime."
"I will," said and retreated from the stage. Chloe
immediately fell in beside me.
"Looks like you made a new friend."
I glanced at her, "What? Julia?"
"It's Julia already?"
"That's what she told me to call her," I retorted. "And it's
not what you think.
Chloe shrugged, "If you say so. Her body language said
something different."
I was shocked, and my legs forgot to move. Chloe kept
moving, and I had to double-time it to catch up with
her. "Wait! Seriously?"
Monday, 3:25 pm
An hour later, Chloe and I entered the Dunbar building
and were greeted with the strange sight of Bobbi
talking to one of Andrew's security guys. She was
leaning against the front desk next to two coffees from
The Bluebeans cafe down the street. Today she wore a
smart, brown and black jacket, with a matching skirt
that went two-thirds of the way down her thighs,
appealingly molding to her tight ass. By her body
language, I could tell she was flirting with the man; her
movements were animated and she gave an easy
laugh at something he said. As soon as they both
caught sight of me, Bobbi's smile faded as she
straightened and grabbed the pair of coffees. As I
approached, she offered me one of the cups.
"What are you doing here?" I asked as took the
proffered cup of coffee from her.
Her brows knitted in confusion. "You told me to meet
you here with coffee"
The weekend had been a blur for me... an ongoing,
hedonistic haze of inebriation and tits that had resulted
in its intended consequences-making the details of last
week fuzzy. But as she reminded me, I vaguely
remembered my conversation with her. I'd told her to
stay away for the weekend and meet with me on
Monday.
I looked her up and down. Her outfit appeared to have
been tailored to fit her body well, showing off the
subtle curves of her slender frame in an appealing way.
Under her jacket, the neckline of her maroon shirt
plunged to show off a decent amount of cleavage,
likely enhanced by a bra engineered to increase the
effect her smaller breasts would actually give. I was
becoming intimately familiar with everything currently
hidden under those clothes.
I bit my lip as I considered what to do with the rest of
my afternoon. After the press release, a little release
sounded good right about now. Erin had stayed behind
with Helen to assess the damage control after my
announcement to the press, leaving me with no
assistant.
"Come on." I said and stepped toward the elevator.
Chloe followed me, but Bobbi hesitated until I had the
elevator doors open. I stepped inside, turned, and
placed my foot on the door to keep it from closing as I
stared at her from halfway across the lobby. After
another beat, she came, taking her sweet time. After
she stepped on, I used my key card to *********** the
top floor. The entire way up, Bobbi stood next to me in
complete silence fidgeting with her coffee cup.
I handed my untouched coffee to Chloe while still
keeping my eyes glued to Bobbi. "Could you get rid of
this? It's probably poisoned." Dont forget to leave a Comment
The Love Of Money - Episode 100 By shary 0 Thoughts on this episode.