Page 5 of Must Be Love - Irresistible Bachelors

“It’s going, Peter. How are things in Brooklyn?”

Peter grins. “Brooklyn is great, man. My practice is picking up. How about you? How’s Manhattan?”

“It is what it is. Plenty of patients, and never a dull moment.”

Peter claps my back. “Exactly, man. New York City is where it’s at for dermatology. Only LA might have more patients than us.”

“You ever think about going west?”

He rolls his eyes. “Not a chance. I like the snow too much.”

“I get that.”

“Plus, I’d hate LA people. I’ll stick with these patients. They’re annoying enough as it is.”

“They definitely can be. That’s part of why I’m branching out.”

“What do you mean?”

I pull out my new business card.

“Blake Cosmeceuticals. I’m working on the product side now.”

“And still taking patients?”

“Yep. It’s a lot, but I like it. Plus, I don’t have as much face time with patients now that I’m working on developing new products.”

“Damn. Maybe I should get into that. I love the work, but I’m sick of patients coming in with unrealistic expectations.”

I nod in agreement. That’s one of the major reasons why I wanted to work on production. I’ve had patients come in expecting me to make them look sixteen when they’re already over sixty. That’s just not possible. For a dermatologist to do, anyway. A plastic surgeon might be of more assistance to them. At least on the development side, I can avoid some of that drama.

“It’s great,” I add.

“I bet. Too bad I’m not a science guy. I did well enough in it to earn my degree, but I never excelled in those classes.”

I remember that about him. He didn’t always get the best grades in our science classes.

“Yeah, I love science. It’s been really interesting to get into how different chemicals work to help certain issues, and how some can actually make an issue worse.”

Peter pulls out his own business card and hands it to me. “You should send me your products. Send some testers. I’ll check them out and try to work them into my regular rotation.”

“Hey, thanks. I’ll get my distribution center to send you out a load.”

“Perfect. I look forward to checking them out.”

We say our goodbyes, and Peter makes his way toward the panel rooms. I figure I should check out the actual floor now. I’ve only been to a few booths so far, and I’m here to see what my competitors are doing. I need to make the most of this annoying convention.

As I meander through the crowded aisles, my mind wanders. Yes, the patients and the science were huge factors in why I decided to start my company. However, there was one other aspect I couldn’t help but consider.

Products are where the big money is.

Don’t get me wrong; I make a decent salary as a dermatologist. However, starting my company has made the difference between living in a regular apartment in Manhattan and owning my new townhouse.

Think about those girls from that reality TV show, Kylie and Kendall Jenner. They may have earned some money for being on TV, but they’re not rich because of that show. It’s their companies that make them the real money.

The fact that I can make a shit ton of cash by doing something I enjoy is icing on the cake. At least, I make a shit ton of cash as long as my company does well.

We were off to a slow start last year when Blake Cosmeceuticals launched. It took a lot of work from our sales team, and a bunch of calls from me, to get people to trust in our products. Things started to pick up about six months ago when the reviews started coming in.

My products work. Of course they do. I spent a year testing everything to make sure they worked.

A lot of my patients acted as test subjects. They had to sign some forms, of course, and go through all the regular testing levels, but most were on board. You build trust with patients, and they’re willing to do pretty much whatever a doctor asks them to do. I would never abuse that power, but it was nice to have a built-in set of testers.

I try to clear my head as I make my way from booth to booth. I need to focus if I’m going to make this stupid convention worth it.

I stop at one booth for a company called Marsden. They focus almost entirely on special healing lotions.

The one closest to me says it’s for damaged hands. I squirt a small amount onto my hand and rub it in. My hand definitely feels smoother, but the lotion leaves a greasy film that I don’t like. I make a mental note of the ingredients. My products don’t have a lot of oils in them if I can avoid it. This one has three different types.

A few of the lotions at this booth are better. One makes my hand itch a bit, though that’s probably because I’ve used six or seven types already. I’m not going to blame the product for the reaction. At least, not this time.

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