Chapter 47

Jay

Jay walked into the office with a smile on his face. It had been a while since he felt like himself, but after two days with Kasey, he was feeling on top of the world. Nothing could shake his supreme confidence, not even Mitchell who was awaiting his arrival, perched in his favorite seat.

“Good morning,” Jay the back of Mitchell’s head as he walked into his office.

“You’re early,” Mitchell growled, turning to greet Jay without a smile on his face.

“I’ve got a lot to do,” Jay answered. It was the truth. He’d developed a plan, and now all that stood between him and the success he was normally accustomed to, was hard work and dedication, neither of which was foreign to him.

“Well, you better. I’ve been on the phone with the legal team all morning, and there’s no plan in sight.”

Mitchell was panicking, but Jay knew how to handle it. Mitchell was usually pretty calm, but this time he was really rattled. Maybe because Jay had made some reckless and terrible decisions that didn’t have any easy remedies.

“I’ve been talking with Kasey. She’s coming in today with a new strategy I think will put us back on top where we belong,” Jay smiled, while revealing his secret weapon. He wasn’t ready to share with Mitchell how close they were, considering his unpredictable moods, but he couldn’t contain his excitement about their future.

“What time should I be ready to hear this?” Mitchell asked, as he stood, apparently satisfied with Jay’s explanation.

“I’ll call your office when she gets here?” Jay had to fight back his smile. It never ceased to amaze him how Mitchell could be an executive in such a stressful industry, yet sometimes seem about to crumble under pressure.

“Fine.”

Mitchell was gone before Jay could inquire about how long he’d been waiting in his office. All he’d done was run up another bill with the legal team, who would surely be sending over a five figure invoice to cover Mitchell’s worrying. As Jay settled into his desk to prepare for the meeting, he decided Mitchell was due a few hours with the lawyers to ease his anxiety, although he wished his best friend could just take it up with his shrink on his own dollar.

The day blew past as Jay checked emails, responded to requests, and checked tasks off his to-do list. Before long, Kasey was texting him to alert him of her arrival, and he met her at the elevator after instructing his secretary to email Mitchell and set up the conference room for an impromptu meeting.

“You look lovely,” he greeted Kasey, who instantly blushed, looking as beautiful as she did when he’d left her in bed that morning.

“You never disappoint in a suit yourself, sir,” she subtly tugged at his suit jacket before continuing toward his office.

The staff lit up at her return, different employees leaving their cubicles to greet her with open arms. Instantly, Jay warmed with the affirmation that he’d made the right decision in sacrificing so much to have her back with him, both at home and here in the office.

“Okay, she’ll be back for the social hour later,” Jay interrupted the gathering, placing his palm on the small of Kasey’s back as he led her towards the conference room.

“You’re being a bit touchy for the office, aren’t you?” Kasey whispered once they were out of earshot of the staff.

“You can’t expect me to be hands off after this morning,” Jay leaned down to whisper directly in Kasey’s ear.

Never in a million years did he imagine himself being so open with a woman in the office. Jay was fiercely private about his personal life, but he felt a different kind of possessive energy around Kasey. He wanted everyone to know they were together, which was opposite of his normal approach with the women he dealt with.

Kasey was nothing like the other women he’d had in the past, liaisons he could barely label as relationships. She walked into the conference room with a smile that lit the way, and even Mitchell couldn’t stop from jumping to his feet to greet her.

“Mitchell! It’s so good to see you!” She shook hands with Jay’s business partner before sitting at the head of the table. Jay’s eyebrows rose with shock, but he followed her lead, sitting across from Mitchell so that Kasey was between the two men.

“I’m excited to hear what you’ve been working on,” Mitchell said, and Jay hoped Kasey didn’t hear the skepticism in his tone. The last thing he wanted was for her to lose confidence at such an important meeting.

Agents couldn’t pay for this opportunity—a private meeting with two of the most powerful men in the industry. Kasey reached into her bag, retrieving a thin manila folder. If she was losing confidence, her actions didn’t let on to the shift, as she began her presentation.

“Mitchell, I know you’re familiar with my work, but more importantly, my relationship with my authors,” she began, with a statement that demanded a response.

“Yes, of course. I’ve admired your work for years,” Mitchell crossed his arms, intrigued.

“My success is as much a testament to my network as it is to my commitment to get to know my clients. I offer more than a way to sell books, and that makes me more valuable than a traditional agent. What I offer is a full service agency, providing authors with a unique composition of resources based on their individual needs.”

Jay watched Mitchell’s eyes squint with confusion before he turned towards him. He was waiting for further explanation, but Jay wanted it all to come from Kasey. After all, it was her vision so he doubted anyone could sell it better than her.

“You’re talking about a management company,” he interrupted Kasey’s spiel, but his eyes were on Jay.

“She’s talking about what her clients need and how we can provide a solution,” Jay answered, trying not to sound too defensive.

“There are plenty of management companies available, Kasey,” Mitchell turned his attention to the head of the table.

“You’re right. And there are also plenty of publishing houses, but there isn’t anybody offering both under one roof,” she answered quickly, as if she expected his response.

“So, you want to launch a new company?” Mitchell asked Jay without addressing him directly.

“There’s no reason to build our third house back up as it was. We’ve tried it and we saw how far it could go. Now that we can start from the bottom, it’s up to us to make it stronger, more useful, and a step above the competition,” Jay spoke confidently about Kasey’s strategy.

“The legal team hasn’t even reached their conclusion on the results. I’m sorry, Kasey. I don’t mean to end your presentation, I know you have more to go along with the pitch, but there’s still a chance we can get out of our deal with Renee.”

“Mitchell, why would we wait around for their conclusion when we can be proactive instead?” Jay countered, annoyed by his partner’s lack of innovation.

Kasey had more than a vision, she had spent the time to map out investment costs and expected returns. Mitchell was so concerned with the past he didn’t even give her the benefit of the doubt to focus on the potential of their future.

“Getting something like this off the ground is going to cost a fortune,” Mitchell said, exasperated.

“It’s a small investment in the short run for the returns we can expect in a relatively short time span,” Jay argued, finding a way to keep his cool despite his growing irritation.

“How can you be sure?” Mitchell challenged, unimpressed.

“Well, it’s still business, of course, so nothing is for certain,” Kasey answered.

Jay watched as she presented Mitchell with one graph after the next, outlining her plan in great detail. She was confident and unfazed by his pessimism. Jay was impressed watching her passion as she spoke about her initiative without hesitation.

By the time she finished, Mitchell was out of questions, though he was far from sold on the idea. Looking between the two of them, he shook his head before making his final plea.

“Shouldn’t we at least wait for the final report?”

“No. We’re moving forward with this initiative, Mitchell. Kasey, can you please give him all the projections and necessary steps to implementation? Look over those so you can stay on course,” Jay stood as he gave Mitchell his instructions.

“Of course,” Kasey gathered the paperwork before sliding it to Mitchell.

“And please be sure to cc Mitchell on all email correspondence so that he can be in the loop with everything,” Jay gave one more order before leaving the conference room.

He couldn’t imagine keeping his cool for much longer. Mitchell frustrated him whenever he presented himself as an equal partner, but even more so when he combatted Jay’s strategies. They both knew Jay was the mastermind, but sometimes Mitchell behaved as if he still needed to prove it.

The legal team could come back with whatever outcome they found, it wouldn’t change anything. Jay wasn’t the type of man to wait for someone to save him. He’d made a mistake and he was determined to fix it, but he wanted to do it on his terms.