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He grimaced as he shook his head, clearly not convinced, but also clearly not refusing them outright. ‘If you can show me that there is more capital, say between four or five million, then I would readily sign the papers. But without it...’ He trailed off and shrugged apologetically.
As Ella’s stomach dropped, her mind furiously spun, filtering through her private bank accounts, calling to mind Célia’s own investments. There was one option, her only option. But would she take it?
‘Would you be willing to give me two days?’
‘Of course,’ he replied. ‘I do believe in your company and what you are offering and would very much relish the opportunity to work with you and your clients. Get in touch when you’re ready and we’ll talk.’
* * *
Roman had been pacing almost since the moment Ella had left to meet Liordis. Whether because of the effect he had had on her last client meeting or that he had come to see just how much this meant to Ella, this meeting had eclipsed even his own business interests in importance.
And while he had been the one to bring Loukas to the table, still as yet undiscovered by his wife, he had not been assured of the outcome. In what felt like a matter of minutes Ella returned, and he was shocked to find, when he checked his watch, that nearly two hours had gone by.
He realised immediately that something was wrong. The way she looked not at him but at the horizon, her mind clearly whirring away rather than relishing the joy of success. It ate at him, and even the knowledge that he should wait until she was ready couldn’t prevent the question falling from his lips.
‘What happened?’
‘He... Loukas does want to sign with us...’
‘But?’
She let loose a gentle, not quite bitter half-laugh at something he couldn’t fathom.
‘He doesn’t think we have the capital to do what we say we can.’
‘He’s wrong,’ Roman declared with a finality that surprised them both.
‘Maybe...maybe not. He made some suggestions that were surprisingly astute—’
‘Given his reputation?’
‘Yes. It would most definitely not do to underestimate him. But I can’t deny that those suggestions might stretch us, given our current finances.’
‘Yes, but trying to arrange for more capital could stretch you further,’ Roman responded, quickly seeing to the heart of her concern.
‘Maybe. But...’ She turned to him then, her hands rolling over each other before her, an unusually insecure gesture from his wife. ‘But if I were to sell you my shares in Kolikov Holdings—’
‘No.’ Roman’s quick, determined response surprised them both.
‘Roman,’ she chided. ‘Will you hear me out?’
‘I don’t need to.’
‘Roman,’ she tried again, and he realised that she just couldn’t see it. Couldn’t see how giving him her shares, how handing control over to him would tempt him. Would give him the power to take it all away. She would hand over the very thing that kept him on a leash. And instinctively he knew. He knew that should she lose that hold, should she lose the last bargaining chip she had with him, it would destroy everything. Because he would be unable to resist putting those shares to the very use that she would not want. No matter how much she had come to mean to him, no matter how much he wanted to be more...he simply wasn’t capable of it. He couldn’t change. He had needed to be a monster to fight Vladimir and he was still that same monster. His...feelings for her hadn’t changed that. And if he did use the shares to achieve what he wanted, the cost to Ella would be devastating. Her pain and the shock of a second betrayal...it would be too much for her to bear.
‘Firstly,’ he tried, desperately and silently needing her to understand, ‘I don’t want you to overstretch your company at such an early stage in its development. At the moment you are risking a great deal. If I say yes, you would risk even more. And secondly, we haven’t actually done a market share price, so I couldn’t honestly say that you’d get a fair price.’
‘I believe in what Célia and I are doing. I believe in this company and know, know, it will work. And I don’t need a market price, I need a fair one. And I trust you to be fair. I don’t need more. I just need enough. And I think five million is a fair and appropriate price. It’s enough to inject some of it into the company and still have a cushion that allows for some wiggle room.’
‘Please think about this.’ He was almost begging. Never before had he felt that sense of a precipice before him.
‘Roman, honestly, I don’t need to. I know that this will work, I know that this is what I need. Please, would you buy the shares from me?’
And his earlier promise came back to haunt him. That he would give her anything she wanted, while she wanted it from him. Only this time, giving Ella what she wanted...would cost him everything.
* * *
Within two days the money had come through from the sale of her shares to Roman, Loukas had happily signed the paperwork, becoming their first client, and Ella was almost bursting with joy. She knew that she had put all of her eggs in one basket, but it was a basket that she and Roman shared. She was investing not only in herself, but them.
