Part 9 (1/2)
”That's right, he follows the Bill Clinton definition of s.e.x.” Miriam waved her un-high-fived palm dismissively and grinned at Holly. ”Come on, this is a big deal.”
”It's not a big deal, and it's not happening again,” Holly said, pretty sure she meant it. ”Come on, we can't go knocking boots with our clients any old time we feel like it.”
”We own the company, hon.” Miriam scooped up a spoonful of Greek yogurt while Holly took a nervous sip of her iced tea. ”We can pretty much make the rules.”
”Right. And I think the rules of professional conduct are pretty clear on the fact that it's a bad idea to get romantically involved with someone who's paying you to rebrand his corporate ident.i.ty.”
”I'm pretty sure there are no rules for that particular arrangement,” Miriam pointed out. ”Didn't you kinda make up that whole thing? It's not like there's a user manual for rebranding a person.”
Holly sighed. ”Hooking up with a client would be bad under the best of circ.u.mstances. Hooking up with the one client whose fee is going to get us out of this mess with the bank is just idiotic. I don't want to blow this.”
”You didn't blow anything, which is kinda too bad for Ben.” Miriam grinned. ”That was very generous of him.”
”You're impossible.” Holly forked up a bite of her salad, not sure if guilt or l.u.s.t was winning out in her carousel of moods this morning. Part of her wanted to be ashamed of herself and committed to never, ever getting intimate with a client.
Part of her just wanted Ben's hands on her body again.
Stop it. Remember what happened the last time you let a guy wedge himself in the middle of your career?
”You just made a face like you want to stab something besides that cherry tomato,” Miriam said around a bite of yogurt. ”What are you thinking?”
”About Chase,” she admitted.
”Ew. Can we not talk about your ex when I'm eating?”
”Well you were the one who asked.”
”Fair point.” Miriam poked her spoon into the yogurt again. ”Why are you thinking about Chase when you're still wearing that morning-after glow from your evening with Ben?”
Holly sighed. ”Because fooling around with a career-obsessed guy is how I got into trouble last time, remember?”
”You think I might have forgotten the d.i.c.khead whose name is still on our d.a.m.n mortgage and who ordered you to quit working and squeeze out his babies?” Miriam shook her head. ”Not all guys are like that, Holly. Some even believe in the novel concept that women can have careers and husbands and families. Imagine that.”
”We're getting off track here,” Holly said, wis.h.i.+ng Miriam's words didn't sting so much. ”Right now it's the career I need to focus on, and the fact that this job with Ben is going to help us get my a.s.shole ex off the loan.”
”Fine. At least tell me if Ben was good.”
Holly felt her face grow hot. ”I don't kiss and tell.”
Miriam gave her a smug look and licked the back of her spoon. ”From what you told me, he did a lot more of the kissing than you did. For the record, there's nothing hotter than a guy who's eager to go downtown. Didn't you tell me once that Chase was so averse to chowing box you practically had to grab him by the ears and push his head between your legs?”
”G.o.d, I can't believe I told you that. Or any of it, really. I just needed someone to talk to about it.”
”As your best friend and business partner, you won't get any judgment from me. My lips are sealed. Which is more than I can say for yours.” She grinned wider, and Holly wished the ground would swallow her up.
”Miriam-”
”Okay, okay, I'll stop teasing you. I do want to point out that you didn't do anything wrong. You're both consenting adults, right?”
”Right.”
If by consenting, she meant tearing off her clothes and spreading her legs and begging Ben to put his mouth on her within twelve hours of meeting him. G.o.d, what did he think of her? She'd left in a hurry last night, barely remembering to grab her shoes or purse or the loungewear Ben insisted she take with her.
”I'll call you tomorrow,” he'd shouted after her as she ran for the elevator like the building was on fire.
Now, Holly glanced at her phone and tried not to notice it was already after two. She'd stayed busy all day, working straight through lunch and resisting the urge to call or text Ben. Though she was still on the fence about whether continuing their professional relations.h.i.+p was a good idea, she'd created a detailed rebranding plan for him. Watching him in action last night-at the event, not on the living room floor-had given her plenty of ideas where Ben could stand to improve his skills.
There was no need for improvement of any kind with his skills on the living room floor.
She'd worked up a detailed SWOT a.n.a.lysis, identifying strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats based on her own observations at the event, and on the spreadsheet of information Ben had sent yesterday afternoon. She had a lot to offer him. She could do a lot of good with this a.s.signment, proving to herself and to Ben that she was good at her job. That she took her career seriously.
Chase sure as h.e.l.l never did.
”Did you have a chance to look at the RFP from Urban Trax?” Miriam asked.
Holly turned her attention back to Miriam, grateful to be talking about business again. At least that was a comforting topic. ”Urban Trax,” she repeated. ”That's the chain of outdoor stores?”
”Yes, kinda like REI.”
”Sorry, I've been a little out of the loop with that one.”
”Don't sweat it, I have things covered. Here, check out the preliminary logos I was brainstorming last night.”
Miriam swiped the screen on her iPad and brought up a PDF featuring several impressive mock-ups. She handed the device to Holly, and Holly scrolled through the sample logos, amazed once again at the caliber of talent on the First Impressions team.
”Wow, this one's amazing.”
”Thanks,” Miriam said. ”That's my favorite, too. It's a little premature until we land the deal, but I'm confident we will.”
”Keep me posted,” Holly said, forking up another bite of salad. ”I should have an update on the Happy Valley account by the end of the day.”
”No rush. I know this Langley Enterprises job is kind of a priority right now.”
Holly nodded, conscious of the heat that spread through her body at the thought of Ben and his company. ”Yeah, it is. It's not just about the CEO rebranding, either.”
”You think there's potential for more work?”
”I'm hoping. It's a big opportunity.”
”Exactly how big are we talking?”
Holly's thoughts veered to images of Ben's ma.s.sive hands, his broad shoulders, the impressive bulge she'd felt in the front of his pants- ”Earth to Holly?”
”Sorry,” she said, dabbing her mouth with a napkin. ”I was just thinking about our prospects for new business.”
”You were thinking about your prospects for getting in the CEO's pants,” Miriam said, flas.h.i.+ng a salacious grin. ”I know you, girl. I can read it all over your face.”