Chapter 16

My office feels unusually quiet as I continue to stare at my computer screen, not really reading anything. It’s the same thing I’ve been doing all morning.

In the past, I’ve always been able to work through any personal turmoil I'm going through. But with this situation, I can’t seem to parse out the personal from the work because it’s all intertwined.

It doesn’t help that I got so little sleep last night. By the time I got done finalizing the exploration questions with Jackie and Michelle, it was almost ten o’clock. Once we were done, I felt like I needed to focus before today so I went to my own apartment instead of Lauren’s and now I haven’t seen her since she left my place on Monday.

She called me this morning to let me know that Altitude “leadership” thinks she should stay home during Olivia’s visit. Lauren sounded less than thrilled with the decision, but I honestly can’t blame whoever made that final call. If Olivia’s visit is just an indirect way of making contact with Lauren, then she shouldn’t be here to make it easy for her ex.

I’m also relieved for my own, biased reasons. I don’t think I could concentrate on this upcoming meeting if I knew Lauren was around. I’m already nervous enough for it.

I look at the clock on my computer and see that I only have 20 minutes until the meeting starts. Which means Olivia is probably here in the office— maybe even already in the conference room with Michelle— and I can feel the nerves in my stomach grow.

I pull out the mirror in my desk for one final look. I’m acutely aware that while I’m about the meet one of Altitude’s biggest clients, I’m also about to meet my girlfriend’s extremely beautiful ex-wife.

I usually try to dress nice for client meetings, but I can’t lie to myself and say I didn’t spend a little extra time getting ready this morning. Jackie may be able to see through my pettiness, but Michelle will just assume I’m trying for the sake of the account.

After I finish reapplying some of my lipstick, I smooth out the dark blue sleeveless blouse I’m wearing. I paired it with a pencil skirt that has won me more than one pitch and I’m happy to see that at least my appearance looks more put together than my insides feel.

“Hey,” I hear as someone say as they knock on my open office door.

Jackie is standing there uncertainly. We haven’t talked on a personal level since she left my apartment over the weekend. Normally it wouldn’t be weird for Jackie to stop by my office, especially before a client meeting, but things still feel awkward. We spent most of yesterday together but Michelle was there the whole time and this is the first time we’ve been actually alone.

“Hey,” I say back tentatively.

“They’re ready for us. Michelle sent me to get you.”

My eyes automatically snap back to the clock on my computer to confirm that I wasn’t actually late.

“Apparently, Olivia Ellison wants to start now,” Jackie adds when she can see the confusion on my face.

A wave of annoyance rolls through me but I will my face not to show it. Olivia Ellison is once again proving that she has an insatiable need to control situations. Beyond what Lauren has told me about her ex, I’ve already seen it first-hand. Not for the first time, I feel a spark of anger over her presence here. This entire meeting feels like at the worst, some kind of trap, or at best, a complete waste of time.

“Have you seen her?” I ask Jackie, not able to stop myself.

Jackie gives me a long look for a moment before she shakes her head slightly. It’s as if she’s having an internal battle on whether or not she can speak to me like a human.

“But Sarah did,” she finally says, staring around my office instead of looking into my eyes. “And you can imagine what she said,” she adds, but her voice sounds guarded and doesn’t hold her usual humor.

I’m sure I can guess what Sarah said, knowing Sarah. But I can’t help myself but ask anyway.

“What did Sarah say?”

Jackie leans against my doorway and looks down the hall before turning her head back into my office.

“That she was the hottest woman she’d ever seen.”

This time I know I can’t hide my extreme annoyance so I busy myself by putting the mirror back into my desk drawer. When I look up, Jackie’s eyes are on me. I wouldn’t say her expression is warm, but she does look softer than she has in recent days.

“Ready?” she asks.

“No. But let’s go,” I reply and move around my desk so we can head to the conference room.

I leave my phone on my desk because I’m paranoid that somehow Olivia will see Lauren’s name on it. But as I walk slowly behind Jackie, I can’t help but think about her and what she might be doing right now.

I’ve felt a sort of tension from Lauren ever since Olivia sent that text over the weekend. Once Lauren found out about the exploratory meeting in the office, her mood didn’t improve. We both know there has to be more to Olivia being here beyond giving Altitude some account insights.

After making some calls yesterday, Michelle is pretty convinced Ellison isn’t giving any of the other agencies the same courtesy. Though, given the fact that we’re only two weeks out from the pitch itself, this meeting feels more like Olivia trying to create chaos in our process than help us.

It’s simply impossible to know what her ultimate motive is. It seems odd to me that she has come all the way to Seattle and hasn’t tried to reach out to Lauren again. But so far, that one text was the extent of her communication to Lauren.

I’m in my head by the time we reach the conference room and I almost walk past it until I see that Jackie has stopped.

When I walk the couple steps back to the door, Jackie’s brow is furrowed as she looks at me. Just like in my office she looks like she wants to say something but instead she just turns to the door and opens it.

I take one last deep breath to calm the nerves jumping around my stomach. This is just a client meeting, I remind myself. Olivia Ellison is just another prospect.

But as I enter the room, that small reminder dissolves as I come face to face with a beautiful, dark haired woman sitting at the head of the conference room table.

“Emma King and Jacqueline Silva, I presume,” she says in a low, authoritative voice. “Michelle here claims you’re the stars of this show.” A pair of dark green eyes roam up my body before coming up to stare piercingly into my own.

“Let’s see then, shall we?”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Part of the reason I’m on the development team is that I’ve always been confident in front of clients and prospects. Presenting, speaking in front of groups, or just connecting with clients one on one has always been a strength of mine. But as I stand there stupidly staring at Olivia, that’s not obvious to anyone.

“I’m not one to ever correct Michelle, so I’ll take the compliment,” Jackie says smoothly, moving over to where Olivia and another woman are sitting so she can shake their hands.

Even though Jackie and I aren’t in a good place right now, I’m still appreciative of her typical confidence because in that moment I feel unusually paralyzed. Talking about and planning for Olivia Ellison was one thing— suddenly seeing her right in front of me is an entirely different matter.

“I’m the Silva part of the equation, but you can call me Jackie. Only my mom calls me Jaqueline,” Jackie says as she shakes Olivia’s hand.

“Olivia Ellison. And this is Madeline Rosario,” Olivia says as Jackie moves over to shake the hand of the other woman sitting at the table.

“But you can call me Maddie,” the woman replies with a smile. “Only Olivia calls me Madeline.”

I see Jackie return Maddie’s smile before taking the seat next to Michelle. And it’s only then that I realize I’ve just been standing near the door, watching Jackie act like a normal human while I just stare at them. If Michelle told Olivia I was some kind of “star,” I certainly wasn’t proving it yet.

It’s not until I can feel all the eyes in the room on me that I’m able to kick myself into gear and repeat Jackie’s motions.

“Emma King,” I say as I walk over to Olivia’s side of the table and extend my hand to her.

Unlike the way she stayed seated when Jackie introduced herself, Olivia stands when I reach her. She doesn’t say anything as she takes my outstretched hand, but I can feel her eyes roam up my body again and I can’t tell if she’s checking me out, assessing me, or just trying to intimidate me.

Olivia looks exactly like the pictures I’ve seen of her, but maybe even more beautiful and I understand Sarah’s sentiment. But unlike the softness that is always simmering right under the surface of Lauren’s domineering persona, Olivia seems strangely cold and detached. When her eyes reach mine again, there is no genuine warmth there, even though she has a small smile on her face.

Needing to break the intense moment, I turn to Maddy so I can shake her hand as well.

“Nice to meet you, Emma,” Maddy says to me and her smile feels much more sincere than the one Olivia is still directing towards me.

I take the chair next to Maddy so I’m across the table from Michelle and Jackie. Olivia continues to stand at the head of the table, and as I sit down, I’m able to get a better view of the woman.

The dark green dress she’s wearing matches her eyes almost perfectly and despite my less than friendly feelings towards her, I also can’t help but notice how uniquely green they are. Unlike Lauren’s own green eyes, which are light, Olivia’s take on a much deeper hue and remind me of the evergreen forests surrounding Seattle. I can’t help but wonder cynically if Olivia and Lauren used to sit around comparing whose version of green is prettier.

The gold buttons of her silk dress and branded designer belt only enhance how sophisticated, and quite frankly, rich the woman looks. With her impossibly black hair, fair skin and high cheekbones, I once again think that Olivia Ellison looks like a runway model.

It’s been so long since I’ve felt this kind of burning sensation in my stomach that for a moment, I don’t realize it’s jealousy. In any normal circumstance, I would look at someone like Olivia and probably feel a sense of desire. But looking at her now only reminds me that she was married to my girlfriend.

Olivia’s voice jars me out of my distracted thoughts and when I bring my eyes back up to hers from their journey down her body, I can tell she noticed. But based on the smile that seems to grow slowly on her face, mixed with the slight look of surprise, she doesn’t seem to mind the attention.

“I’d like to say a few things before we get started,” she says, still standing at the head of the table.

I finally tear my eyes away from Olivia to look across the table at Michelle and Jackie. Michelle seems more tense than I’ve ever seen her, and I can’t help but wonder how much interaction she’s already had with Olivia since the CEO and Maddy arrived at Altitude. The smile on her face seems tight and I’m curious if she also feels a sense of annoyance at Olivia’s presence. After all, Olivia has already made it very clear who is running this meeting and it’s not Michelle.

“Thank you for having us here today,” Olivia continues. “As you know, my father is stepping aside, effective at the end of this month, and I am taking over as CEO for all Ellison family subsidiaries. Ellison and Altitude have shared a long history together and my first order of business is not to change that relationship. But as you also know, we are launching something special. Something revolutionary. Something cutting-edge and new. And I need that kind of thinking from my agency partner. That’s what I’ll be looking for when making my choice. My father is a traditional man and he’s led our company well by being a steady and consistent leader. But I should warn you now that I’m not my father.”

Olivia stops talking for a moment so she can take her seat, but even when she’s sitting, she’s still an imposing figure with her long legs crossed in front of her like she owns the room. I look over to Michelle to see if she’s going to speak, but her face only shows slight concern.

“I’m here to be a resource for you so you can be successful in two weeks when we return,” Olivia continues. “An offer I’m not giving the other agencies. I hope you will take full advantage of my presence here.”

Her eyes land on me when she ends the sentence and their intensity makes my entire body want to fidget. I do everything I can to keep a level gaze with her and not look over at Jackie or Michelle, who I’m sure are attempting to process Olivia’s opening statement in the same way I am.

Olivia is obviously trying to make this visit seem like an advantage for Altitude. Something we should be grateful for. But Olivia’s speech sounded rehearsed and didn’t hold a lot of real emotion. The sincerity of her visit just doesn’t seem to fit with the cold, appraising woman that’s in this room.

“Thank you, Olivia,” Michelle finally says but her voice isn’t the strong, commanding one I’m used to hearing from her. Though to be fair, I wouldn’t want to follow Olivia’s grandstanding either. “As you said, our two companies have enjoyed a long and successful relationship. I know you’re used to working with our Austin team, but I’m certain you will also be impressed with the Seattle office’s level of experience and success in the technology space. It’s not every day that a new launch comes around that is this exciting and groundbreaking and I know I speak for all three of us, plus Altitude’s leadership, when I say that we are more than capable to handle the job and passionate about the opportunity to lead in such a groundbreaking space.”

As Michelle speaks, Olivia finally removes her eyes from mine and turns her attention to the other side of the table, but it really wasn’t until Michelle was a sentence or two in that it happened. Olivia’s focus on me is unnerving and more than confusing. Could she somehow know about my relationship with Lauren? Or is this just how Olivia acts in meetings? It’s hard to know without having experience with her, but she’s definitely not giving Jackie the same kind of scrutiny.

“Let’s not speak for the group, Michelle,” Olivia replies with a smile that doesn’t quite reach her assessing eyes. “But you’re right, I am used to working with the Austin office. So please—” she motions with her hand to me and then to Jackie, “—tell me about yourselves and what role you play at Altitude. But first, Madeline, why don’t you start?”

Olivia is such an overpowering presence that I almost forgot Maddy was sitting there as well. In any other scenario, I’m sure I’d be appreciating how pretty she is in her own right. It’s not every day that two beautiful women come in for a client meeting. Most senior level people in the tech industry are unattractive white men.

But now that I’m looking at Maddy more closely, I notice just how pretty she is. Her outfit doesn’t immediately scream money in the same kind of way that Olivia’s does, but her white blouse is flattering against her beautiful brown skin and her eyes remind me of the color of honey. She gives Olivia a quick nod before turning her attention back to us.

“Thanks, Olivia. And thanks for having us here. I know it’s not always easy moving meetings around last minute,” Maddy says.

Her tone is already less combative than Olivia’s and as she looks at us, she seems to be genuine in her sentiment. But I also remember what Lauren told me about Maddy and how loyal she is to Olivia. It could be that they just do a good job playing good cop/bad cop. Or maybe the Lauren of all it all is making my head feel like a fun house and I’m reading way too much into things.

I realize I’m not listening to anything she says as I continue to over-analyze the situation so I force myself to focus back in on what she’s saying.

“—and I was in-house at an Austin company that became a client of Olivia’s consultancy firm. After two years of being on the client side, an opportunity came up within her company. We’ve worked together ever since and when Olivia asked me to join her team at Ellison, I jumped on the opportunity,” Maddy says. “While Olivia will be heavily involved in this launch, I will be the primary point of contact for the agency who wins the business.”

As she’s talking, my eyes slide back over to Olivia and it’s then that I notice she’s staring at me. I quickly glance over at Michelle and Jackie, but their eyes are trained on Maddy, who’s now talking about her role at Ellison. When I look back to Olivia, she has a slight smirk on her face that looks more cocky than charming.

“Thank you, Madeline,” Olivia says, finally breaking eye contact with me to look back over at her colleague. She then turns her attention back to the three of us. “Madeline should be trusted through this process as if she were me. Any direction from her, can be considered direction from me.”

This whole meeting is feeling more tense by the minute and as I look up at the clock behind the conference table, I can see that we’ve already wasted ten minutes of our hour-long meeting on Ellison talking at us, but not really telling us anything useful. And we still need to get through our own requested introductions. At this point, we’ll probably only get to ask three of our exploratory questions.

“Thank you for that background,” Michelle chimes in next. “I can start from our end—”

“Actually, Michelle,” Olivia says, cutting Michelle off. “Since we spent some time together this morning, I’d like to hear from Jacqueline and Emma.”

If this were any other situation, I would have laughed at the comically wide eyes on Jackie’s face, but luckily, I was able to hold that in and Jackie was able to school her features quickly. Michelle’s smile tightens even more and it’s as if I can feel the tension rolling off her and over to my side of the table. Michelle has always been a strong leader and she’s great with clients, but I’m not sure even in all of Michelle’s years of working in the agency world, has she come across someone like Olivia Ellison.

Olivia is giving Michelle an unreadable expression, but it almost looks as if she’s waiting for Michelle to challenge her. But when Michelle simply looks over at Jackie to begin, Olivia’s gaze follows.

“As I said before, I’m Jackie Silva. I’ve been with Altitude for seven years. I started working here on the client services team as a graphic designer, but through my time here, I have transitioned into a creative lead on the design team. My team manages and leads all creative ideation, creation and execution for any new business effort.”

“Thank you, Jaqueline. As I understand it, most of your experience at Altitude sits within the gaming industry, is that correct?”

Jackie just stares at Olivia for a moment before answering and I’m sure she’s trying to work through what Olivia just asked. It’s true that when Jackie was on the client services side of things, her two largest accounts were both in the gaming industry, but she’s worked on the development team for four years now and it’s not clear how Olivia’s comment is relevant to anything.

“Um, yes. That’s correct,” Jackie says, glancing at Michelle as she does. “But I’ve led creative strategies for many different verticals.”

She sounds both a mix of uncertain and defensive and it feels as if we’re suddenly in the Q&A portion of a pitch when we’re the ones who are supposed to be asking the questions of Ellison.

Olivia gives Jackie one of her long, intense looks before nodding and bringing her eyes to rest on me again. She quirks her eyebrow and I have to assume that’s her way of asking me to begin.

“I’m Emma King,” I start to say before Olivia chimes in.

“Is Emma short for anything?” she asks.

I’m grateful my parents went for something so basic because Olivia seems to enjoy overriding nicknames. I’ve literally never heard anyone call Jackie, “Jaqueline,” until this meeting and I can just imagine Olivia trying to call me “Emily” or “Emmaline” or something.

“No, it’s just Emma. Is Olivia short for anything?”

The words leave my mouth before I can stop them and for a moment, the room is silent as Olivia continues to look at me. I don’t dare glance over at Michelle or Jackie knowing they’re probably as shocked by my question as I am. But Olivia’s complete dominance of this meeting is starting to get to me.

“And what would Olivia be short for?” she asks back, now with a slight smirk on her face.

I shrug. “I’m not sure. Olivier?”

Now she’s giving me a full smile and this is the first time I’ve been able to see her perfect, white teeth. The smile doesn’t do anything to soften her features, but at least she doesn’t seem to be offended by my question.

“It’s just Olivia.”

“Right,” I say and finally look over at Michelle. When I can see her eyes boring into me, I know I need to move things along. “I’m a Vice President of Development here. I’ve been at the agency for two years and before that I worked for The Adams Group in New York City, leading digital strategy. My background is mainly rooted in the technology space and before landing in development, I worked across both client services and analytics.”

For the first time since Jackie opened the door to the conference room, I feel confident. I’ve given that introduction hundreds of times before and I know that for my age, my career trajectory has been impressive. Olivia is no longer smiling but giving me a thoughtful look as I finish.

“Craig Adams told me you were the one who got away. What made you decide to leave The Adams Group and start at Altitude?”

My stomach drops as soon as she says Craig’s name and I’m guessing this is what Jackie felt like when Olivia asked about her past accounts. But this feels even more personal than just some insight into my past work. It’s clear Olivia is trying to showcase that she’s done her homework on us. This production of making introductions is simply that— a production. Olivia knew exactly who we were when she came into this room.

“Craig?” I ask tentatively.

“He’s an old family friend,” Olivia says but doesn’t elaborate or give me any other information as to why I would have come up in a conversation with my ex-boss, who lives across the country in New York.

Every muscle in my face is going into not letting her see how confused and shocked I am by her revelation. Somehow this feels like a game and I don’t want Olivia to win each round.

“I wanted to move closer to home. And while I will always be appreciative of my start at The Adams Group, I also wanted to join a company that was more advanced in their integrated media effort,” I say.

“Meaning?” she asks, leaning forward and for the first time, I feel like I have her genuine attention.

“The Adams Group has found success in the traditional PR space. In fact, I think some of their leadership still use rolodexes to call their media contacts. But I’m much more interested in the cross section of PR and marketing. Reaching new audiences with new channels. Altitude leads the country in integrated media campaigns and I wanted to be a part of that,” I explain before giving her a polite smile. “But please do say hello to Craig for me.”

I’m aware that we’re not in a pitch so perhaps I should have saved my little monologue for later. But this meeting is clearly something other than an exploratory meeting and it’s felt like we’ve been barreling towards failure from the start. It can’t hurt to showcase why Ellison should be choosing us while we have their attention.

“I can see why he likes you,” she responds with her own smile.

When I glance across the table, both Jackie and Michelle look like they’re holding their breath as they look between Olivia and me.

“We have thirty minutes left before the two of us need to be on a call, so I think we should start with your questions,” Maddie says.

I feel an automatic sense of defensiveness considering it’s not our fault we’re so behind schedule. But I hold my tongue because mentioning that, or the fact that they came into town and only gave us an hour of their time, probably won’t win us any favors with Olivia.

“Yes, thank you Madeline,” Olivia says and she doesn’t seem upset with Maddy directing things. “Anyway, I have a good sense for the team now. The boss and the artist” she says as she points to Michelle and Jackie on one side of the table. “And—” she pauses as she looks at me with another thoughtful expression. “—the mouth,” she finishes.

The intense eye contact we’re currently sharing almost mirrors the first few times I ever sat in a room with Lauren. But I feel no desire for this woman and the way she says mouth isn’t sexy, it’s just uncomfortable.

“Emma, why don’t you start us off?” Michelle asks in a rushed tone, and it’s clear she’s trying to veer things into a more professional arena.

“Great,” I say, finally pulling the list of questions we have for Ellison in front of me so I can look down at it and refocus my attention on the reason we’re here.

Given the time we have left, I know we won’t get through all of them so I mentally prioritize where we should focus with what time we have.

“The proposal you sent our team calls out the fact that you’re looking for an integrated campaign. How much of the budget do you expect to be utilized for PR versus digital channels?”

“We want your presentation to focus on where you think those dollars should land. But I will say, we are looking for a healthy mix of media. We’ll expect the traditional approach to securing stories in tier one media outlets, mixed with digital strategy. It will be up to you to advise us on that exact breakdown,” Maddy says easily.

As I continue to go through questions, Maddy begins to systematically answer them while Olivia sits back and eventually begins to scroll through her phone. Her eyes connect with mine every now and then and I get the sense that even though she’s letting Maddy drive the conversation and seems distracted, she’s still very much paying attention.

When I finish with some of the more tactical questions, Jackie jumps in with the questions we prepared on creative direction. And just like in any other development meeting, Michelle, Jackie and I move around each other smoothly— with each of us chiming in when necessary to add color or specifics. But what should feel like any other development meeting, still feels strained with Olivia’s larger than life presence.

“We only have about five minutes left. Emma, any other pertinent questions?” Michelle asks me and I can’t help but think she wants this meeting to end even though we’ve really only scratched the surface of our outlined questions.

“Just one. As we head into our presentation for you in a couple of weeks, I’d like to end today with a question on measurement. What does success look like for you at the end of the campaign?”

Maddy looks over to Olivia who’s looking at me with a steady gaze. Like earlier, she seems to be thinking before she speaks and the room stays silent as we wait for her.

“I would say success means that this isn’t a ‘campaign’ at all as you put it,” she says and each word that she speaks is slow and deliberate. “I want Ellison Tech and green tech to be synonymous with each other. I want to be seen as the future of cloud computing. Whatever strategy we decide on, it needs to be one that ultimately solidifies us as a thought leader. As the leader for sustainable technology. And it needs to have longevity far past the ask of the proposal.”

I had a feeling when I asked the question that they wouldn’t give me anything quantitative to work with so I shouldn’t be surprised by her vague and romantic answer. But it still gives us some indication as to the narrative they’ll want to hear in the room. I simply nod once she finishes and look back to Michelle.

“I know you two have a call, so we should wrap up,” Michelle says and her tone doesn’t hold any of its usual fake charm she puts on for clients. It’s only been an hour but the woman sounds exhausted.

Olivia is the first to get up from her chair and despite my annoyance with her, I also notice how graceful she is with her long limbs. Jackie and I both stand up next, and it almost looks choreographed— as if we only stood up once our queen was standing.

“I’m sorry we have to rush out of here,” Maddy says. “But it was nice to meet you and I look forward to seeing you again in a couple of weeks.”

Olivia stays where she is at the head of the table and I’m not sure if I should go over to her to shake her hand or if one shake was enough for her. But the agency training in me pushes my legs forward and I walk the few steps to the head of the table so I can shake her hand.

“Very nice to meet you, Olivia,” I say.

“It was nice to meet all of you,” Olivia says, turning to give Jackie and Michelle a polite smile before bringing her gaze back to me. “I’ll be seeing you again. Very soon.”

I give her one nod before turning and heading to the door. I don’t even bother to look at Michelle and Jackie as I leave, knowing we’ll have our own debrief once Olivia and Maddy are gone. But right now, I have to get out of this conference room.

As I head down the hall and back to my office, I’m finally able to take the breath I felt like I was holding for that entire meeting. I don’t even make it back to my office before I need to lean on the wall, close my eyes, and just breathe.

That meeting could have gone worse I suppose, but it also could have gone better. And now I’m more confused than ever as to what Olivia’s motive is for being here. Because that meeting was clearly useless as an actual exploratory meeting. I’ll have to go through my notes to really determine if we learned anything.

More than anything, I think what I learned has nothing to do with the account itself and everything to do with the woman behind the account. Because if there’s one thing I learned in the last hour, it’s that Olivia Ellison is determined to control everything about this and based on Michelle’s lack of backbone in the meeting, Altitude is prepared to give her what she wants.

Before anyone sees me leaning against the wall and asks me what’s wrong, I shake myself out of my moment and head towards my office.

As I get back to my desk, I look at my cell that I had left there and see that there’s a text from Lauren. Thinking of you, it reads.

And I instantly remember that there is a stark difference between the commanding woman I just left in the conference room and the one who just texted me. Sure, Lauren may control me in our more erotic moments, but that control is given freely by me. I won’t be granting Olivia that same control, despite her best efforts.

Chapter 17

I don’t even have time to respond to Lauren’s text when I hear a knock on my door and Michelle and Jackie are coming in.

They’re both quiet as they take the chairs across from my desk and Michelle just gives me a serious look for a moment.

“Well, that was different,” she finally says.

“That’s one word for it,” Jackie replies with a short laugh. “Olivia Ellison is an asshole.”

For the first time all day, I feel a smile creep up on my face at Jackie’s words, even though I know she wasn’t trying to specifically make me laugh like she used to. But it’s a relief to hear someone else say the exact thing I’ve been thinking since leaving the meeting.

“That asshole is still in the office and may be for a few more hours, so let’s hold that kind of talk until tomorrow,” Michelle says, but her voice doesn’t hold much actual chiding.

“So, you agree with me then,” Jackie says and it’s not a question.

“She’s a challenge, I’ll say that. This seemed to be more about her scoping us out than a meeting meant to give us a real edge,” Michelle responds.

“Or she was just trying to catch a peak of her ex-wife.”

“Jackie, stop,” Michelle says and now she does sound stern. Jackie simply puts her hands up to indicate that she was done. “There’s nothing we can do about that. We just need to figure out what we learned. Emma, you’re quiet. Any thoughts?”

Frankly, I agree with Jackie’s assessment, but ultimately, I know that Michelle is also right and there’s nothing we can do about any motives Olivia has outside of the pitch itself. We have to focus on what we can control.

“I agree with Jackie. I’m not sure we learned a lot of tactical information. I think the biggest learning is that beyond Olivia, we need to impress Maddy. She seems rational, but I also have to assume she’s fully in Olivia’s corner.”

“Agreed,” Michelle says. “And I think we learned something about the larger company narrative Olivia will want to see.”

“So, does this really change anything about our campaign ideas?” Jackie asks.

“No. We continue with what we have. I think we just need to think bigger and focus more on thought leadership. Make sure it’s clear how our ideas will catapult them as a leader in the sustainability space for years to come. We should work with Sarah on a measurement plan for that,” I say.

“Great. Now we should break until tomorrow. Continue working on the presentation obviously, but from your private offices and not from Anchor. I don’t know how long Olivia and Maddy will be in the office,” Michelle says and stands up from the chair.

“I’ll set-up a touch base for us tomorrow morning so we can see where we stand on everything. Once we finalize the campaign ideas, Jackie’s team can start on the presentation itself,” I say.

“Should be fun,” Jackie deadpans as she too stands up.

“Speak tomorrow, then,” Michelle says and leaves the office.

Jackie follows her to the door, but when she gets there, she turns around to me with an unreadable expression. I’m ready for another admonishment from her since that seems to be the only way we engage anymore, but then I see her lips curl into a faint smile.

“Olivier?” she asks.

She doesn’t wait for my reply, but just shakes her head slightly and leaves the room, closing the door behind her.

I pick up my phone ready to finally text Lauren when I hear another knock on my door. I’d love for just one moment to decompress from that meeting, but apparently, my team has other ideas.

“Come in,” I call out and I’m not able to hide the slight annoyance from my voice.

Suddenly, Olivia is in my doorway and it’s only now that she’s standing there, that I notice just how tall she is. It adds to her overall imposing appearance.

“Bad time?” she asks with a smile that implies she doesn’t care if it’s a bad time or not.

“No, it’s fine,” I say with my own smile, hoping it covers the lie. “Did you need me for something?”

At that, Olivia’s smile widens even more. “Oh, I think so. We head back to Austin early tomorrow morning. But I’d like to invite you to have a drink with me after work.”

When I don’t say anything and just continue to stare at her from my desk, she takes a step into the office and closes the door behind her.

“I think people call it Happy Hour,” she adds.

I know my face isn’t hiding the surprise I feel at her question and I have to force myself to make my lips actually move.

“Thank you. But, no.”

I internally cringe at my blunt response. I know it’s not that unusual for a long-standing client to get drinks or dinner with their agency partner. But doing it during a pitch process, when there is business to be won, is highly unusual. Plus, the way Olivia is looking at me now makes me think her request is not completely professional in nature. But I could have been smoother in my rejection.

“I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a ‘no’ that quick,” she replies, but doesn’t seem deterred as she takes another step closer to my desk.

“Sorry, I just have dinner plans.”

“Good thing this would be before dinner.”

I can tell that she won’t take rejection without a fight so I decide to just be honest with her. Or at least as honest as I can be without telling her I don’t feel comfortable being alone with my girlfriend’s ex-wife.

“It also just feels a little inappropriate to get drinks alone together. It feels like a date,” I say and I can feel my stomach flutter as I say it, but I’m also reminded of my earlier resolution not to let Olivia control me.

“I assure you, Emma, if I was interested, you’d know for sure if it was a date or not. I recognize we didn’t get through all of your questions. I’m giving you the opportunity to do that. Besides, Madeline will also be there. And she’s inviting Jacqueline. We’ll meet at the bar in my hotel at 4. I’m sure Michelle won’t mind you leaving early for a client meeting.”

Her use of the word client is intentional. I know Olivia has enough experience in the agency world to know that I can’t just say no to her request. Not with the account on the line.

Every interaction we’ve had, even before she came to Seattle, has proven that Olivia is used to getting her way. This is even more apparent when she turns to the door of my office and opens it to leave, indicating that the decision has been made, despite how I feel about it.

“I look forward to seeing you there,” she says. Before she’s out of the doorway, she turns back to me. “I’ll even let Altitude pay. Just so you don’t confuse this with a date.” She gives me a quick wink and then is gone.

Once she’s gone, I lay my head back on my chair so I can take a deep breath and think about what I just agreed to. Not like I really agreed to it— more like I was told. The last thing I want to do is spend part of my evening with Olivia, but I doubt I can get out of this. I’ll have to let Michelle know this is happening, but first, there’s someone else I need to tell.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“I’ve paced my entire apartment about 300 times. Finally,” Lauren says as she answers my call. Her voice sounds as strained as it did this morning when I spoke with her.

“I’m sure you have. Luckily the meeting is over so you can give your hardwood floor a break.”

“And?”

I sigh into the phone before I answer. “Your ex is a trip. She started the meeting twenty minutes early and acted like we were late. We took half the time on introductions where she went on to tell us about our own experience that she had researched already, and then we got through only a quarter of our questions. So, all in all, a real success,” I finish in a sarcastic tone.

“I should have warned you that she’d try to start the meeting early. She always does that. And I wish I could say any of that surprised me.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m surprised either,” I reply.

“Did she mention me at all?” she asks next in a much quieter voice.

“Not once. She’s trying to make it seem that she’s very much here to give Altitude an advantage.”

I can hear Lauren snort into the phone at that. “And she couldn’t do that via phone from Austin?” she asks but it’s clear it’s a rhetorical question. “Olivia never just helps anyone.”

“Well, the day is young so who knows what else she’ll throw at us.”

“I thought the meeting was done?”

“She’s asked me to get drinks with her right after work.”

There’s a long pause before I hear her voice again. “Drinks?”

“She just stopped by my office and said she knew we had more questions to get through so she’s giving us more time tonight.”

“She’s being manipulative.”

“I know that. But there’s not much I can do about going. She’s a client. Should I have said no?”

“Is Michelle going?” she asks, ignoring my question.

“No. It sounds like just Jackie and Maddy.”

“Oh, so it’s a double date,” Lauren says back in a biting tone that sets me on edge. This day has been exhausting enough without Lauren making it worse.

“It’s not and you know it. But need I remind you why I’m even in this situation to begin with?” I ask her in my own short tone.

I don’t want to be fighting with Lauren. Before I called her, all I wanted was to leave here so I could go kiss her and be held by her. But the tone of this call is anything but comforting.

There’s another long pause before Lauren speaks again. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I know you’re just doing your job,” she says quietly and I can’t help but think she sounds defeated.

“I’d still like to see you tonight,” I say in a much softer tone.

“I’d like that to. I can order us a later dinner if you text me when you’re coming over.”

“It won’t be late. I’m only staying an hour.”

“Where is the drinks meeting?”

“Her hotel bar.”

She lets out another short, humorless laugh. “Of course. And now I get it. She’s going to try to sleep with you.”

“Does she try to sleep with all her agency partners? Is that her thing? Invite them back to the hotel bar for a meeting and a fuck?”

“No. At least I don’t think so. She’s more subtle than that. But I know her type. And I’ve seen you. She’ll try. Guarantee it.”

“So, she can try.”

“Not many women have the power to say no to Olivia when she’s on the hunt. Believe me, I know.”

“I think you need to give me more credit than that, Lauren. She can do whatever she wants, it doesn’t mean I’m going to sleep with her. Is that really what you think of me?”

I can’t stop the anger from seeping into my tone again. Deep down I know Lauren doesn’t actually think I’d sleep with Olivia, but even the subtle implication is setting me off. I am only in this situation because of Lauren and it’s entirely unfair for her to pull the jealous act when it’s her ex-wife I’m having to see.

“Of course not, Ems. It’s what I think of her.”

“It doesn’t matter if the meeting is in her hotel bar or on the bed itself, she won’t succeed in seducing me or whatever you’re implying.”

“Ems, just—"

“Trust me, please. Lauren, you need to trust me.”

“I do trust you. And I can’t wait to see you. I’m sorry. She just gets in my head. It’s been a rough morning just sitting here wondering what she’s doing over there.”

Her voice is so small that any anger I felt, melts away pretty immediately.

“Which I’m sure is her goal of being here. But you don’t need to worry. Maybe worry about the account,” I say with a laugh, trying to infuse some levity into the conversation. “But not about me. I’ll be over later. I’ll text you when I’m on my way,” I say softly.

“Thank you for being so wonderful all the time. I’ll see you soon, baby,” she says right before we hang up.

The knot in my stomach that has been slowly growing since this morning tightens as I put the phone back down on my desk. I meant what I said and that Lauren doesn’t need to worry about any attraction I might have towards Olivia. But I also know that some of Lauren’s fears are justified based on the way Olivia has acted with me so far.

I glance at my clock and note that I have three hours before we need to meet at the hotel. I turn to my computer and open up the browser— three hours is plenty of time to do my own research on Olivia and Maddy.

I may have done a preliminary look when I first found out about her, but now that I know she’s done her due diligence on me, I figure it’s only right to repay the courtesy. I’m not going into this happy hour as unprepared as I was this morning.