This Is True Love (Exclusive! #1) (6 page)

BOOK: This Is True Love (Exclusive! #1)
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“Alex, do you want one?” Fliss twisted toward him. She would be polite even if it killed her.

“No, I’m good.” He clapped his hands. “Now, if you guys are done feeding your faces, let’s get started. I’ve got some good news.”

“On the Farrah Blake project?” Pete asked after swallowing.

“Yes. I’m happy to announce that everything else we’ve been working on needs to be put on the backburner. We, well, actually Fliss secured a meeting with Phillip Mansfield.”

Tim, Pete, and Amanda looked at her with new respect, sending twin rushes of satisfaction and relief through her.

“How did you manage that?” Amanda asked. “We’ve been spinning our wheels for months.”

“He produced a soundtrack to a movie I did a few years ago,” Fliss said.


The Love of Money
,” Tim said, his first words since their initial meeting.

“Tim is an encyclopedia of movie knowledge,” Alex said.

Fliss nodded. “When Alex told me he was working on the project, I sent the proposal to Phillip, and he called Alex a few days ago. He obviously enjoyed what he read.”

“With any luck, he did like the proposal, but we haven’t secured the rights to the project yet,” Alex said. “We know there are at least two other production companies angling to make the movie, but it’s pointless. They won’t win. Crescendo will.”

So sure. So confident. Fliss didn’t doubt him. Now that he had his chance, he wasn’t going to let it slip through his fingers. It was kind of hot. Really hot. If she were interested in hotness. Which she so wasn’t.

“With that said, we need to come up with the best pitch possible,” he continued. “What do we know about Mansfield?”

“Besides the fact that he’s one of the most influential people in the music business?” Pete asked.

“Yes, besides that,” Alex said dryly.

Pete shrugged, grinning. “Hey, you asked.”

“So I did. Does anyone have anything else to add?” Alex looked around the table.

“I do.” Fliss ordered herself not to fidget as four pairs of eyes swung her way. But surely one crutch would be okay. She grabbed a pen from a silver container at the center of the table and twirled it between her hands. “He likes candy, especially peanut M&Ms.” She shrugged when Alex shot her a
come-on
look. “What? He does.”

“That’s actually good info, Ms. Chambers,” Tim said.

She beamed, thrilled—and relieved—someone had her back. “Tim, I knew I liked you, but remember, I told you to call me Felicity.”

“Felicity.” Tim nodded, even as red flooded his cheeks.

She tilted her head to the side. “Why don’t you tell my partner here why it’s good to know that Phillip likes M&Ms?”

Tim sat up straighter. “Well, we want him to feel comfortable with us.”

“Exactly.” She angled toward Alex, waving the pen in excitement. “We want to show him that we understand his needs and wants. That we’re paying attention to detail. The same attention we’ll pay to making sure we accurately tell his wife’s story.”

Alex crossed his arms over his chest. “Fine. We’ll bring a jumbo-sized bag of peanut M&Ms to the meeting as a gift. What else?”

“He’s from Chicago. Solidly Midwestern. He understands hard work. He demands it from the people he works with,” Amanda said.

Fliss nodded. “Yes, he’s meticulous. He visited the set of
The Love of Money
several times to ask the writers and director questions. He wanted to make sure each song on the soundtrack conveyed the right mood.”

“He understands money,” Alex said. “He’s ruthless but fair. We need to appeal to the businessman side of him. This movie
will
make money. It
will
be a hit. It’ll be released in December to get maximum exposure to garner Oscar nominations. He’ll like that.”

“He’ll want to know exactly what you have planned,” Fliss said. “Highlight the fact that you wrote the script.”

“Good point. I’ll also mention Crescendo’s accomplishments,” Alex said. “He’s done his own research, I’m sure, but it never hurts to reiterate what we’ve achieved.”

Fliss was loving this. Excitement coursed through her veins. This was why she’d wanted to join Crescendo. She was contributing to a project she wholeheartedly believed in. Alex was listening to her. Things were going better than she could have expected. “What about talking about your connection to Farrah and what it means to you to make the movie?”

Alex shook his head in dismissal. “No need. He has the proposal. He knows I plan on treating her realistically but fairly. This meeting is to assure him we plan on making a successful movie. He likes cold, hard facts.”

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to rely on words on paper to express your feelings about Farrah? He’d probably like to hear
why
you’re going to treat her fairly.”

“No, he doesn’t care about my past. He’s a businessman. He won’t be happy if no one goes to see the movie and it doesn’t make any money.”

She rubbed her forehead with her right hand and carefully considered her next words. “True, but my gut is telling me you should still mention it.”

Alex was already shaking his head before she’d finished speaking. “Fliss, look. I’ve been to a million of these meetings. They want to know the facts. How much money the movie will make. The budget, the direction I plan to go with the script. He won’t care that I grew up in the same neighborhood as his wife. We’re taking the right approach.” His tone made it clear he expected her to drop the subject.

Too bad she wasn’t interested in following his script. Nervousness no longer registered on her radar. She leaned toward him, her eyes battling his across the few feet separating them. “I get no say in the matter?”

“In this case, no.” His voice and gaze remained resolute.

Fliss’s eyes narrowed. “I see. Nice to see you taking other opinions into account.”

“I’m not going to feel bad about making the right decision. I know what I’m doing.”

“And I don’t? Is that what you’re saying?” Her breath quickened as her temper started to boil. No one made her lose her cool like he did. Why was he refusing to let her put her stamp on this deal?

“Don’t put words in my mouth, Fliss.” His voice had quieted, making the words more ominous.

Like she cared.

“I don’t have to,” she shot back. “You’re doing a pretty good job on your own.”

A quick, hard clap of hands had them swinging their heads around.

“Why don’t we take a break?” Pete asked in an overly jovial tone.

Fliss glanced around the table at Crescendo’s employees. The varying levels of curiosity, horror, and uncertainty she read in their expressions made it clear she and Alex had put on quite a show. She turned back to him. He sat there, stone-faced, obviously not interested in compromising.

“A break sounds great. Excuse me.” She pushed away from the table and exited the room without a backward glance. Before she wrung her co-owner’s neck.

So much for thinking their mutual enthusiasm for the Farrah Blake project meant their new partnership would be a skip down the yellow brick road.

***

Fliss looked up at the knock on her office door. “Come in.”

“Hey, I just stopped by to let you know you don’t have to stay here all night,” Pete said, stepping into the room. “Don’t let the old man think he can keep you chained to your desk.”

She chuckled. “Thanks for the words of wisdom. Does he know you call him old man?”

A horrified expression spread across his face. “No. Do you think I have a death wish?”

She joined him in companionable laughter, the stress that had taken up residence in her shoulders during the meeting finally melting away.

A shadow in the doorway caught her eye. She glanced over Pete’s shoulder and met Amanda’s stricken eyes. The other woman jumped back and hurried away. Hmm, interesting.

“I’m serious. Time to shut it down,” Pete said.

She shifted her gaze back to him and offered up a reassuring smile. “I will in a few minutes.”

“Okay. See you tomorrow.”

Fliss waved good-bye and turned back to her computer, where she’d been watching old videos of Farrah’s interviews and performances on YouTube. When she wasn’t stewing over her argument with Alex, of course. Ooh, he made her mad. Still, one thing had become clear today. She wouldn’t quit. She loved acting, but she’d enjoyed stretching her mind in a different way.

A loud growl from her stomach reminded her that lunch was a distant memory. She stood and stared at the desk she’d wasted no time cluttering. She could clear the surface, true, but she was going to make a mess of it again tomorrow. She clasped her hands together in excitement, finding it hard to believe she actually had a desk to clutter. An office, too.

She looked around the austere space. It had been Keith’s, but he’d probably stepped foot in it twice. She made a mental note to bring in a few photos of her family and friends and a plant to liven up the place. Maybe some artwork.

Fliss stretched her arms above her head. Aside from her Farrah research, she’d done line edits on the script and shadowed Pete, Amanda, and Tim throughout the day to learn their roles and how everyone worked together. It had been a long day, but she’d ordered her nerves back into hiding and jumped right in, becoming more comfortable as the day had progressed. The team was still a little wary of her, especially Amanda, but they’d been helpful and answered her million questions. And actually considered and agreed with some of her ideas. Unlike Alex. Her grin faded away.

Why did he have to be so pigheaded? Where was the guy she’d hung out with six weeks ago? Was that man a figment of her overactive imagination? The camaraderie they’d shared that night had been unexpected but nice. Before the kiss anyway. Would they,
could
they ever get back there? At least be civil with each other and have a good work relationship? They’d make great partners if only he’d give it a legitimate shot. His experience. Her enthusiasm. Their differences could complement each other so well. How was she going to get him to take her seriously?

She sighed, picked up her purse, and exited her office. Quiet greeted her. No keyboards clicking or music playing. Looked like Amanda had left with Pete. Tim was gone, too. She checked her watch. Seven fifteen. No wonder everyone had cleared out. Fliss paused outside Alex’s office. Everyone except the boss. Light spilled from underneath his door. The tapping from his keyboard provided the only sound from inside.

She raised her fist but stopped before making contact with the door. Their intermittent conversations after the ill-fated meeting had been stilted at best, the tension in the office abating only when he’d left for a few hours to get his car air conditioner fixed.

But they couldn’t avoid each other forever. Not if their partnership was going to work. She knocked.

“Yeah?” he called out.

She turned the knob and stepped inside. “Hey.”

His eyes flickered up from his computer. “Hey back. What are you still doing here?”

“Working.” She lifted a shoulder. “Well, when I wasn’t looking over my shoulder waiting for you to come and kick me out.”

“Fliss…” His brows knit together in clear exasperation.

She just stared at him.

He sighed and settled back in his chair. Deep lines bracketed his mouth, betraying his strain. “About this morning. I’ve been thinking. I’m sorry I was a little…”

“Hardheaded? Unyielding?” Two of the kinder words she’d called him during the day.

His eyes flashed, but then he tilted his head in acknowledgement. “Fine. I deserved that. I shouldn’t have talked to you that way. This project is important to me, and I want everything to be perfect.” He looked away. “I
need
everything to be perfect.”

Although his voice quieted on the last sentence, Fliss heard the emphasis on
need
. What was that about?

Before she could ask, he continued. “I’m used to making all the decisions around here. Those decisions have paid off tenfold over the years. I know what I’m doing. Still, I didn’t have to be so…rude.”

Wow. Alex relenting? She’d never thought she’d see the day. But this was the second time today he’d shown her a softer side. Did he actually experience emotions like lowly humans did? She inched closer to his desk. “So have you adjusted yet?”

His eyes narrowed. “Fliss…”

She chuckled. “You’re so easy.”

“You live to torture me, don’t you?” A grin, striking in its effortlessness, accompanied the question.

This time, her laughter came more freely. “Maybe.”

His smile spread, softening his features. God, he was handsome. So lethal it should be outlawed. “Maybe as in definitely?”

If she were delusional, she’d swear he was flirting with her.

“Maybe. A woman never reveals all her secrets.” What was she doing responding in kind?

“What secrets are you hiding?”

None, except for the fact that she was enjoying their flirting a little too much. It felt a little too natural. A little too right. “I’m not telling.”

BOOK: This Is True Love (Exclusive! #1)
4.05Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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