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James
“Get Fletcher on the phone,” I commanded as I walked into the office the next morning.
“The older or younger one?” Alisha asked.
“The older,” I responded, storming through the door of my office. Taking off my jacket, I tossed it on the couch and rolled up my sleeves, ready to get to work. After the shitshow last night, there was nothing more I wanted than to end all this.
After Rose stormed out last night, I realized the words I said to her, and how she misconstrued what I was saying. I called her over and over again, but she refused all my calls, eventually shutting her phone off. I thought about going after her, but figured she needed some time to cool off. I waited up for her all night, thinking she would come home to me when she was ready. That never happened. And at seven o’clock this morning, I left for the office, determined to finish this deal once and for all.
I glanced at the picture on my desk. It was the only photo I had of us smiling. I couldn’t even remember when it was taken. I looked at it every day, just a glance here and there, but it kept me grounded, focused on what I needed to do.
“Mr. Langston, I have Mr. Fletcher on the line.”
I stabbed the button on the phone. “Thank you, Alisha.”
I snatched the phone from the cradle and turned to face the window. “Mr. Fletcher. I believe I have an offer you’ll be interested in.”
“James, we’ve been through this already.”
“I bought Constance Media yesterday.”
The silence was deafening. “I’m listening.”
“Come to my office. I have a proposal for you.”
“And you’re sure I’ll sign.”
“I know you will, but you should have bought the company when I first offered it. Now you’ll pay more for it.”
I hung up and left it at that. I was so fucking pissed right now that I couldn’t even think of acting professional. After I proposed this deal to Fletcher, I knew he’d sign. Once we started putting things in motion, I’d tell Rose everything. I didn’t know if we could save our marriage at this point, or if she even wanted to try. But I wouldn’t give up. As long as that ring was still on her finger, I had a shot. I just wish I had realized sooner how miserable she was. Maybe I could have done more to change things.
Fletcher was at my office within the hour. He looked a little pissed to say the least. I was assuming he wasn’t particularly happy with the way I talked to him on the phone, but I was through with bending to other people. I was ending this shit today and taking back my life.
“James,” he said tersely. “This deal better be a damn good one. I don’t appreciate the way you spoke to me.”
“Let’s sit down and get to business. I don’t think either of us wants to waste time.”
He nodded and took a seat. I shoved the file folder across the table to him, watching with a smirk as he scanned the numbers, nearly choking on them. “This is a lot more than you originally asked for.”
“And you’ll be rewarded one hundred times over. The deal is signed. You’ll be expected to expand Constance Media by ten percent over the next year, which shouldn’t be a problem considering their rate of growth.”
“I’m assuming you’ll be keeping your shares in the company,” he said. I could tell he didn’t like this deal.
I tossed another folder across the desk, something I had been working on for some time. “No, you will purchase the stock from the Wallace family and the Langston family at twice their worth. Once news breaks of the company buying Constance Media, the stock value will double. After that, you will have controlling interest in the company.”
“And your families are willing to just walk away from their shares? I don’t buy that for one minute.”
“On top of buying their shares, you will also sign a very generous retirement package for both my father and John Wallace. That will end any and all obligations you have to anyone in our families.”
He looked at the paperwork with great scrutiny. I could tell I’d piqued his interest, but it was too soon to say if he’d sign. I was pretty confident he would after he read through the entire contract and crunched the numbers.
“Take that back to your office and look it over. I expect to hear from you in the next week.”
He shook his head, surprise on his face. “I have to admit, I didn’t think you’d come up with anything that could entice me to buy. I’ll look this over. If everything is as it should be, you have yourself a deal.”
“I look forward to hearing from you.”
Alisha walked in my office after he left. She rushed over and leaned on my desk. “Did he take the bait?”
