party isn’t the appropriate venue for this discussion, but Francesca insisted I speak to you,” he began on an ominous note. “She’s usually right about these things.”
“What things?” Téa asked warily.
“Business matters.”
She stiffened. This couldn’t be good, not when it involved so much frowning. “Business matters…as in Billings’s contract with Dantes?” At his nod of confirmation, she said, “I thought Connie was handling that.”
He studied her with a golden gaze remarkably similar to Luc’s, if perhaps a shade tawnier. “Let’s just say that your cousin hasn’t been very responsive to the concerns I’ve raised. So, if he’s representing you in this matter, he’s not doing a very good job of it.” He hesitated, then asked, “You’ll be in charge of Bling soon, won’t you?”
“Five more weeks,” she acknowledged.
“Then you should know there’s a strong possibility that Dantes won’t re-up our contract.”
She fought to keep all emotion from her expression while she figured out how to deal with the unexpected—and alarming—information. All the while, a thread of panic wormed through her. If they lost the Dantes account, the company would be in serious jeopardy. Other accounts might follow suit and her inheritance would go from impressive to nonexistent.
And that meant she’d fail her family.
“Can you tell me why you’ve changed your mind about doing business with Billings?” she asked with impressive calm.
“It’s a quality issue. Yours has gone down while your prices have skyrocketed. Conway says it’s at your insistence. We’ve had another company approach us offering far better prices and top-notch quality.”
Téa straightened in her chair. She carefully returned her cup and saucer to the wrought iron table and swiveled to confront Sev directly. “No one offers better quality than Billings.”
“Once upon a time that would be true,” he acknowledged. “But not any longer.”
She searched desperately for a solution. “What if I can guarantee both? Would you re-evaluate your decision?”
“Your guarantee doesn’t hold a lot of weight considering the quality of the merchandise we’ve been receiving.” He hesitated, then nodded. “But since our two companies have always enjoyed such a stellar relationship, I’ll give you a couple of weeks to get to the bottom of the problem.”
“Thank you. I’ll look into the matter and call you Monday, at the latest.”
Sev inclined his head. “One last thing…”
He shot a look over her shoulder. Téa didn’t need to follow his glance to know that Luc was approaching. She could feel him. Feel him as though he were a rising tide and she the waiting shoreline.
“Yes?” she prompted.
“Your…association…with Luc won’t influence my decision,” Sev warned quietly. And with that, he stood and returned to his wife.
Luc shot a glance in Téa’s direction and grimaced. Ever since they’d left his grandparents’ house she hadn’t said more than a half dozen words, but had wrapped herself in silent gloom. Streetlights flickered over her, giving a harsh highlight to the tension scoring her face.
“Okay, what happened?” he demanded.
She was so lost in thought he couldn’t be certain she’d heard him until her voice slipped out, soft as the night. “Nothing happened. It was a lovely evening.” Then as an afterthought, she added politely, “Thank you for inviting me.”
“You’re welcome. Now what the hell is wrong? And don’t tell me nothing. Something happened.”
She swiveled slightly to face him. “Maybe I will tell you what happened. I realized where I’ve been going wrong all this time. I realized that my distraction is causing me endless problems and that it has to stop.”
That was good, right? “That’s good, right?” So why had his alarm bells kicked in?
“It’s excellent.” She managed a wobbly smile that didn’t convince either of them. “In fact, it’s so
“What things?” Téa asked warily.
“Business matters.”
She stiffened. This couldn’t be good, not when it involved so much frowning. “Business matters…as in Billings’s contract with Dantes?” At his nod of confirmation, she said, “I thought Connie was handling that.”
He studied her with a golden gaze remarkably similar to Luc’s, if perhaps a shade tawnier. “Let’s just say that your cousin hasn’t been very responsive to the concerns I’ve raised. So, if he’s representing you in this matter, he’s not doing a very good job of it.” He hesitated, then asked, “You’ll be in charge of Bling soon, won’t you?”
“Five more weeks,” she acknowledged.
“Then you should know there’s a strong possibility that Dantes won’t re-up our contract.”
She fought to keep all emotion from her expression while she figured out how to deal with the unexpected—and alarming—information. All the while, a thread of panic wormed through her. If they lost the Dantes account, the company would be in serious jeopardy. Other accounts might follow suit and her inheritance would go from impressive to nonexistent.
And that meant she’d fail her family.
“Can you tell me why you’ve changed your mind about doing business with Billings?” she asked with impressive calm.
“It’s a quality issue. Yours has gone down while your prices have skyrocketed. Conway says it’s at your insistence. We’ve had another company approach us offering far better prices and top-notch quality.”
Téa straightened in her chair. She carefully returned her cup and saucer to the wrought iron table and swiveled to confront Sev directly. “No one offers better quality than Billings.”
“Once upon a time that would be true,” he acknowledged. “But not any longer.”
She searched desperately for a solution. “What if I can guarantee both? Would you re-evaluate your decision?”
“Your guarantee doesn’t hold a lot of weight considering the quality of the merchandise we’ve been receiving.” He hesitated, then nodded. “But since our two companies have always enjoyed such a stellar relationship, I’ll give you a couple of weeks to get to the bottom of the problem.”
“Thank you. I’ll look into the matter and call you Monday, at the latest.”
Sev inclined his head. “One last thing…”
He shot a look over her shoulder. Téa didn’t need to follow his glance to know that Luc was approaching. She could feel him. Feel him as though he were a rising tide and she the waiting shoreline.
“Yes?” she prompted.
“Your…association…with Luc won’t influence my decision,” Sev warned quietly. And with that, he stood and returned to his wife.
Luc shot a glance in Téa’s direction and grimaced. Ever since they’d left his grandparents’ house she hadn’t said more than a half dozen words, but had wrapped herself in silent gloom. Streetlights flickered over her, giving a harsh highlight to the tension scoring her face.
“Okay, what happened?” he demanded.
She was so lost in thought he couldn’t be certain she’d heard him until her voice slipped out, soft as the night. “Nothing happened. It was a lovely evening.” Then as an afterthought, she added politely, “Thank you for inviting me.”
“You’re welcome. Now what the hell is wrong? And don’t tell me nothing. Something happened.”
She swiveled slightly to face him. “Maybe I will tell you what happened. I realized where I’ve been going wrong all this time. I realized that my distraction is causing me endless problems and that it has to stop.”
That was good, right? “That’s good, right?” So why had his alarm bells kicked in?
“It’s excellent.” She managed a wobbly smile that didn’t convince either of them. “In fact, it’s so
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