Page 9 of Ruthless Financier
“He’s said repeatedly he just met the guy at that party. And he condemned him once he heard the charges, calling it sick. We both read that. That was one of the reasons I even took this meeting.”
“That was for work only. This is more.”
“I still believe him on that.” I’d never have my own company so fast and easy without his offer. I folded my hands on the table. “Well, it’s a business deal for me, and it catapults me at least fifteen years ahead on my life plan.”
Ajax finished with the posters and put them near the door.
“You have a life plan that long?” he asked. “I’m still figuring out what I want for dinner.”
Most people thought about food too much. I’d written out a business proposal for myself as an assignment in college, and I continued to update the plans and schedules. I find if I write everything down in a checklist, I can get more done than if I just “go with the flow,” as my sister Nicole might recommend.
Jasmine asked, “But what about love?”
If I convinced Jasmine this was a good idea, I could tell my sisters and other cousins more easily. I said, “Look, I swore off love and romance long ago.”
“You just hadn’t met the right guy. He’s out there, and if you marry the wrong guy, you’re complicating your life.”
“No.” I curled my fingers together. I wish every woman in the world would stop believing that.
“There is no such thing as Mr. Right,” I said. “That’s what women tell themselves so they can be choosy—which they should be. But either way, if I accept this deal, I don’t need to ask my sister and her new husband to invest in me. I owe no one favors.”
“Except Mr. Ruthless. You’d owe him, a lot.”
Point one for her. But we’d have a contract. Two to five years sped up my plan, and I could stop saving every dime I ever made to help me get there. I glanced at the door Jacob had left through as I said, “It’s not about love. We’d have a black and white contract with no complications. The money goes into my bank account and he has no part of my business.”
“Except he’d be your husband and, in court, entitled to half.”
“We’ll have lawyers. Relax,” I said, and stood up. “I don’t sign bad deals. And this could be the best one I’ve ever had.”
“The best?” Jasmine jumped up to join me, but she shook her head and said, “There is no talking you out of this, is there?”
My mother had called me pig-headed as a girl, but now it was my job to ensure that her shelters for battered women, and the second home for battered women with children, had the financial security to thrive in a long-term way. When she’d been a girl herself, she’d wished for a safe place her mother could go to when things got physical. So, as an adult, she’d created a place like that for others. And now it was my job to carry on her legacy.
The money would help me ensure that the shelters she’d started would have the financing to be independent and true to their goal. And I’d get my own business. Jasmine could continue to work with me, and Ajax could learn the ropes faster under my tutelage.
Fast-forwarding my life was the best choice for everyone. I shrugged and said, “No, there is not.”
Jasmine squeezed my arm, and as I was about to walk away, she asked, “Well then, can we stay for the wedding?”
“I’d like that.” I turned and hugged her. Working with my cousin, who’d lived with us for a short while and shared my room as a girl, was great.
Other than my sisters, I had no female friends—or friends at all, if I was honest. There’d been no time. Jasmine was the closest, as we spent eight hours together, every day, just as we had as kids in the same classes. “Then let’s go dress shopping.”
Ajax opened the door for us, but asked, “Can I be excused from that? I’ll go do something else.”
I pressed my hand on his shoulder. I trusted both of them.
“Yes, I need you to go find Frank, Jacob’s lawyer,” I said. “And as soon as the contract is ready, bring it to me.”
He saluted me and said, “On it.”
“Thanks,” I called after him.
He took the paperwork and boards with him, so the room was bare now. Jasmine stayed at my side as we headed to the elevator.
“Do you need me to call your sisters and let them know?” she asked.
The elevator came fast and we jumped in, still alone. I shook my head. “They’d try to talk me out of it. They don’t always like my ambition. Better to let me call them after.”
