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Jonas was annoying. There was no better way to put it. He had a lot of ideas, but he didn’t know when to take a back seat. He wanted to pitch a million things at me, and when I came up with reasons I couldn’t run with each of them, he didn’t slow down. He just pivoted and moved on to the next in an endless stream of ideas until I finally stopped him.
“What is it you want from me?” I asked.
“Your time,” he answered. “I think I’ve got a great concept, and I’m interested in going into the athletic fashion industry. I just need a little mentoring.”
“Mentoring?” I couldn’t believe it. It was worse than I thought. He didn’t want me to acquire any of these ideas he was promoting; he wanted me to help him see them to fruition. That could potentially take more time than just doing them myself.
Not that they were all bad ideas, but I was busy enough running my own ship. I didn’t have time to sit down with Jonas every week or every other week or even every month. But I had a sneaking suspicion that denying him would have consequences.
He had all the right connections. He went through the club, through a mutual friend who I also didn’t want to disappoint. Jonas went to the right schools, and he tossed names out left and right, letting me know that he was a rising star. His implication was clear. If I refused what he was looking for, he would take his considerable moxie to the next billionaire. I would earn myself a sworn enemy, and potentially lose customers.
The threat of startups was real. In the tech space they were legendary, but even in fashion, you had to be careful. “Hip” was an adjective applied easiest to young upstart companies, not old established ones. I could invest heavily in designers to stay current and trendy, but at the end of the day, my brand was already known. I couldn’t make the jump from affordable, practical clothing to cutting edge athletic gear overnight. He could.
He had the money and the connections to hire designers and begin manufacturing. I could either play mentor and earn a friend, or I could kick him out and gain an enemy. I didn’t actually want to do either. What I wanted was to be left alone. But I didn’t have that option.
I finally said I would think about it. I made up some excuse about having to clear enough space on my schedule, and I asked him to get in touch with Ava. Then I walked him to the door, not giving him time to get into Ava’s business.
He seemed to forget all about making an appointment when he saw my secretary again. I didn’t like the way he looked at her. It was as if he was imagining her in some compromised position. I saw she noticed it too, and the icy stare she gave him would have turned off most men. Jonas Matthews was not most men, however. He had to be encouraged to leave. I walked him to the elevator, making sure to push the button that would take him back to the lobby.
I returned to Ava’s desk. “What a jerk.”
“Where did you find him?” she asked.
“Friend of a friend,” I responded.
“He’s…enthusiastic.”
I laughed. “He is that. Have you taken your break?”
“I did,” she said.
“But did you eat?” I asked the follow up question, knowing implicitly that the answer was no.
Ava shook her head, favoring me with a shy smile.
“Come on,” I went back into my office to grab my wallet, returning a moment later. “Let’s go get a slice of pizza.”
“I can’t let you take care of me all the time,” she argued. I was pleased to see that even though her words were dismissive, her body language wasn’t. She stood up, prepared to follow me to the door.
“It’ll be a working lunch,” I told her. “I need to decompress after that meeting.”
“I’m not surprised.” She joined me in the elevator. “The man is like a verbal octopus.”
I turned to face her, considering that metaphor. “He is,” I agreed. “He had a lot of ideas, and I couldn’t get a word in edgewise.”
“What did he want?”
“Essentially, he wanted to threaten me.”
Ava gasped, her pretty eyes flashing wide with shock. “Oh my gosh.”
“It’s not as dramatic as all that,” I assured her. “He wants to start his own clothing line, and I can either help him by mentoring him, or he’ll forge ahead without me.”
Ava relaxed, her visions of me being held at gunpoint or whatever it was that had captivated her, replaced by a more realistic picture. “That doesn’t sound so bad.”
“He has the money and the time. He could be a serious competitor,” I replied, annoyed with myself for being so hung up on the prospect. I had dealt with startups before. I could just wait until he reached a certain market share and then buy him out. I didn’t need to validate him with my attention.
When the elevator stopped, I held the door open for Ava. She walked through, giving me time to get ahead of her again. We left the office together, completely ignoring the security guard. He was well paid and wouldn’t spread any gossip. Besides, I was free to have lunch with whomever I wanted to. It didn’t mean anything.
