the only thing I don’t understand, Mr. Carver, is why you did not accept my brother’s offer,” Jason said. “He offered you more money, and any reasonable man would have accepted it.”
There was a pause on the other end of the line. His answer would determine our next steps. I needed to know what he was after.
“I want to sell my company to Hayes Industries,” he said. “Because I want a seat on your board, Mr. Hayes. I believe that you and I could take this business to a whole new level together if we were not limited by the restrictions posed by your bother. I think you’ll find that the other members of your board agree as well. It is time for a new CEO.” Ah, so he was after my job. Well that made sense. If he managed to split Jason and me up with this ploy, then he could move right in during the disputes and take over a significant chunk of my business. That wasn’t going to happen. I signaled for Jason to end the call, which he did diplomatically, without giving Nick any more information.
A comfortable silence filled the room after the line went dead. “I guess we know what he wants,” said Jason. “I’m sorry I doubted you man. I had no idea he was that power hungry. What do we do now?”
“I guess we call a board meeting and cancel the negotiations. I don’t want to have anything to do with him. Unfortunately, I don’t think the rest of the board will feel the same way, which has me worried. I wonder what he meant when he said our board would agree with him.
Do you think we have a rat inside the company?”
“I dunno man,” Jason said. “I’ve always trusted the guys that we work with, but maybe it’s time to buy some people out and move on. We can’t let this kind of stuff happen. I’ll call Ben today and see if he has any updates for us. What’s your plan?”
“Well,” I said, thinking it over in my mind, “I guess there is no major hurry. The board still thinks I am away in Hawaii, and we should probably keep it that way for now. Let’s see what Ben turns up, and then we’ll make a decision. If we bring this out in the open too early, I’m afraid we won’t be able to sniff out the rats. There could be lasting implications from this that extend beyond the Carver deal.”
Jason agreed with me, so we decided to wait until we had more information before proceeding. I needed to get some supplies, and I wanted to take another nap before my shift at the bar tonight, so I showed Jason out and agreed to meet with him again for lunch the next day.
I collapsed on the bed and let my mind run wild. Nick was trying to take over my business, and I couldn’t even bring myself to care. My mind continued to turn back to only one thing: Alissa Allen. I couldn’t wait to see her again. I felt so relaxed with her; it was like nothing else in the whole world mattered when she was around. I was beginning to worry though, about how she would react when she knew the truth of who I was. I wasn’t going to be able to keep it from her too much longer. She had a right to know. If I wanted her to be in my life, then I needed to know that she could accept me, and that meant being honest about myself. I just hoped that she would understand. I never expected to feel this strongly for her. I never meant to deceive her either. I just wanted her to get to know me without all the hype. That was okay wasn’t it? She was strong. She would understand. I would tell her tomorrow. I would go and buy a change of clothes, take a nap, work my shift at the bar, and then I would meet Alissa first thing in the morning and tell her everything.
God, please don’t let her hate me for this.
Chapter 14: Action and Reaction
Lexy
“Well, it’s about time.” Alissa finally accepted the warm washcloth in my hand and wiped her tear stained face.
She groaned.
“Are you going to explain to me what that massive over-reaction you just had was all about?” I asked.
“Over-reaction? You can’t call it an over-reaction
There was a pause on the other end of the line. His answer would determine our next steps. I needed to know what he was after.
“I want to sell my company to Hayes Industries,” he said. “Because I want a seat on your board, Mr. Hayes. I believe that you and I could take this business to a whole new level together if we were not limited by the restrictions posed by your bother. I think you’ll find that the other members of your board agree as well. It is time for a new CEO.” Ah, so he was after my job. Well that made sense. If he managed to split Jason and me up with this ploy, then he could move right in during the disputes and take over a significant chunk of my business. That wasn’t going to happen. I signaled for Jason to end the call, which he did diplomatically, without giving Nick any more information.
A comfortable silence filled the room after the line went dead. “I guess we know what he wants,” said Jason. “I’m sorry I doubted you man. I had no idea he was that power hungry. What do we do now?”
“I guess we call a board meeting and cancel the negotiations. I don’t want to have anything to do with him. Unfortunately, I don’t think the rest of the board will feel the same way, which has me worried. I wonder what he meant when he said our board would agree with him.
Do you think we have a rat inside the company?”
“I dunno man,” Jason said. “I’ve always trusted the guys that we work with, but maybe it’s time to buy some people out and move on. We can’t let this kind of stuff happen. I’ll call Ben today and see if he has any updates for us. What’s your plan?”
“Well,” I said, thinking it over in my mind, “I guess there is no major hurry. The board still thinks I am away in Hawaii, and we should probably keep it that way for now. Let’s see what Ben turns up, and then we’ll make a decision. If we bring this out in the open too early, I’m afraid we won’t be able to sniff out the rats. There could be lasting implications from this that extend beyond the Carver deal.”
Jason agreed with me, so we decided to wait until we had more information before proceeding. I needed to get some supplies, and I wanted to take another nap before my shift at the bar tonight, so I showed Jason out and agreed to meet with him again for lunch the next day.
I collapsed on the bed and let my mind run wild. Nick was trying to take over my business, and I couldn’t even bring myself to care. My mind continued to turn back to only one thing: Alissa Allen. I couldn’t wait to see her again. I felt so relaxed with her; it was like nothing else in the whole world mattered when she was around. I was beginning to worry though, about how she would react when she knew the truth of who I was. I wasn’t going to be able to keep it from her too much longer. She had a right to know. If I wanted her to be in my life, then I needed to know that she could accept me, and that meant being honest about myself. I just hoped that she would understand. I never expected to feel this strongly for her. I never meant to deceive her either. I just wanted her to get to know me without all the hype. That was okay wasn’t it? She was strong. She would understand. I would tell her tomorrow. I would go and buy a change of clothes, take a nap, work my shift at the bar, and then I would meet Alissa first thing in the morning and tell her everything.
God, please don’t let her hate me for this.
Chapter 14: Action and Reaction
Lexy
“Well, it’s about time.” Alissa finally accepted the warm washcloth in my hand and wiped her tear stained face.
She groaned.
“Are you going to explain to me what that massive over-reaction you just had was all about?” I asked.
“Over-reaction? You can’t call it an over-reaction
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