Friends Or Lovers Part 18

He was moving in the right direction, but a little more caution was called for.

"I agree with you on the 'listen and listen and listen," I answered.

After waiting for a moment to see whether he might say anything else, I offered my opinion.

"Of course, if we admit that we 'got it wrong both you and I could be for the high jump if this ever goes to court......"

I had his attention now and a look of horror spread across his face. His eyes left mine and looked down at the table for a few seconds. When he looked up again, there was a definite sense of conviction as he spoke.

"Then I guess admitting we got it wrong is out of the question," he said, with just a hint of a smile.

I smiled back at him a big smile showing my teeth. I looked him straight in the eye as I answered him.

"Well make a manager out of you yet!"

Without letting my eyes wander even for an instant I took the lead.

"Okay, Phil. Well do as you suggest. Well say that we want to look at the whole thing again, listen to what they have to say. I want you to bring a notebook and take lots of notes. Well keep our mouths shut, at least until Ive talked to Dave and Legal, and just keep insisting that well do everything we can to mediate a solution. This afternoon is about buying time. Okay?"

I could see from Phils reaction that his ego felt well and truly ma.s.saged. He broke into a smile and nodded. I looked away from him to give the impression the meeting was over. When Phil got up and made to leave the room, I completed the act of seduction.

"Phil?" I asked, and then waited until his eyes were again looking into mine, "Youre a good lad. I appreciate you."

I did not look away and his eyes remained on mine until he could hold the gaze no longer. I caught a trace of redness in his cheeks. He turned to go, started to walk, but when he reached the door he glanced over his shoulder and smiled at me again. I smiled back. I have to admit that sometimes it is great fun being a woman.

Chapter 27.

I feigned surprise when I met Mikes solicitor and was as pleasant as possible. If his solicitor had been a man, I might have peppered my pleasantness with a brusque manner. If we were to meet again in a court room or industrial tribunal, a married woman giving a single woman a hard time in the witness box would not be pleasant. I have to say that Mike was proving a lot smarter than Id expected. To my surprise, I found myself developing a grudging respect for him. If we made it through this conflict, I promised myself that I would get to know him better.

I opened the meeting and stressed that we would be as co-operative as possible. No conclusions had been reached. Mike initially looked as if he was ready for a battle, but my opening gamble paid off and took the wind out of his sails. I introduced Phil as my a.s.sistant and said that he had expressed a view that we should listen to Mike and Nathan. At the mention of his name, Phil looked up and smiled, still beaming from our earlier encounter.

First Nathan, then Mike, gave their accounts while I nodded, prompted, enquired and encouraged. Phil made copious notes as the story unfolded more or less exactly as John said it would. At certain points in the narrative, I expressed surprise and shock at what I was hearing. Phil followed my lead and we successfully communicated the seriousness of what had taken place.

Every few minutes I glanced at Mikes solicitor friend to see how this was playing with her. At the start of the meeting, she had looked calm and confident. With each reaction, I noticed that her look changed from one of confidence to one of puzzlement. Sometimes she would look at Mike and tilt her head to one side. She was trying to work out how the meeting could be going so well for her client. At the end, after taking both Mikes and Nathans statements, I offered to get Phil to type them up and send Mikes to her for checking. At this suggestion, she started to engage me.

"Thats good of you, Penny," she said. I didnt like her using my first name but I let it pa.s.s.

"My pleasure," I answered.

"Mikes got issues over lost pay, and a problem with his housing situation......"

"We can help with that," I answered. My comment stopped her in her tracks. She was not expecting this. With surprise on her face she uttered a question.

"How?"

I was growing in confidence and put the final piece of my plan into place.

"There are two flats rented by the company to accommodate sales managers who commute here from time to time. One of them is free at the moment and I can arrange for Mike to use it until he can make alternative arrangements."

"Who will pay?" she asked.

"The company will pay," I answered.

"And what about the loss of pay since changing his job?"

"On pay, Ill have to clear any changes with my director, David Stockton. I meet him later tonight."

I paused for a second before I asked the next question to ensure it had maximum impact.

"What would be helpful is if you could work out with Mike the amount of wages he has lost. I cannot guarantee that we will meet it in full, but Im sure it will be sufficient for him to treat you to dinner. Could you do that?"

As I asked this question, I looked at them both. They looked at each other for a moment and I noticed that she nodded her head at him.

"Yes. Well do that now. Mike can confirm it in writing."

Mike looked at me, then at her, then at me again. I detected a smile on his face. After a few moments, he gave a short chuckle.

"Women! I have no idea why you go around letting men think they are in charge."

He chuckled again as he looked at Phil, then me again.

"Ill check with Dave tonight," I said, "just to see whether I need to involve Legal. If we dont, then youll have my response tomorrow. Ill deliver it by hand, if necessary."

Mike smiled at me the first time I had seen him do so and I have to admit that his face was handsome. In all our previous meetings, hed looked worried and pensive, but now I saw him in a moment of happiness, I was taken aback at just how attractive he looked.

"Penny?" he asked.

"Yes?" I answered.

"I underestimated you. Thank you."

He looked me strongly in the eyes.

"I underestimated you as well. Thank you."

At the start of the day, I would have been happy to see someone kick him hard in the b.a.l.l.s, but as it turned out a mutual respect was born. Id hoped to stall things long enough to consult with Dave but wed gone almost as far as resolving the whole thing. As Mike turned to leave the room, he fixed me one last time with his handsome face.

"I can now see why Dave hired you."

I tried to return his look but found that I could not as I felt a rush of adrenalin rip through me. He beat me at my own game. The moment of exhilaration pa.s.sed and I finally understood why he had such a good reputation as a salesman. Not only did he have integrity and courage but, when he felt at ease, he was also extraordinarily s.e.xy.

Chapter 28.

I remained in the room with Phil while Mike and his solicitor exchanged words. I noticed them hug warmly as she departed. Clearly they were more than acquaintances; the way they looked, laughed, touched and moved indicated a much closer relations.h.i.+p. Mike, now I was experiencing him up close, was a friendlier person than I had thought. It made me wonder why Dave harboured hostility towards him.

Phil, with a puppyish expression, fussed about me.

"That was fantastic, Penny! Absolutely brilliant."

Such praise I can live with, but I actually felt exhausted. Its hard to force niceness and that was exactly what I had been doing for most of the last two hours. It was time to cool Phils ardour now the job was done.

"That is sweet of you," I said, with a look that communicated not just my appreciation, but also the gap in status between us.

His face, while still smiling, developed a small frown and his body language became submissive.

"Thank you," was all he could say.

"Can you tidy up the loose ends here? I need to get ready for this evening."

Phil nodded and still smiling, offered a further comment.

"I learnt a lot today," he said.

A curious look came over his face.

"What made you change your mind about Mike?" he asked.

This comment caught me short for a moment.

"Lets just call it a womans intuition, shall we?" I responded.

"Nothing more?" he asked again inquisitively.

Clearly he was not convinced. I flicked my head back, and let my locks fall about my face alluringly.

"Dont you believe in womens intuition, Phil?"

His smile returned as well as his confidence. If he had felt dominated a few moments ago, all trace had left him. He started to walk out of the room and his final remark not only surprised me, but also deflated my ego a bit.

"I certainly believe in a womans cunning!" he remarked.

As I stood there, I thought back over the whole day. A number of shocks, surprises, twists and turns had left their mark. I thought of the way John had helped, Mikes willingness to accept a settlement when he could have thrown the book at me, and Phils shrewdness at seeing through me. I had one of those "ah ha!" moments in life. Suddenly things came together. Perhaps men were not jerks after all.

Chapter 29.

What a day it had been and there was still quite a way to go. I visited the womens toilets. As I delicately added a small amount of rouge to my cheeks, Jo the marketing manager came in looking very pleased with herself.

"You look happy," I remarked.

"Yes, good meeting. We signed a contract this afternoon. It will give a boost to our training programme, and get the new team ready."

"Sounds good," I chirped. "Im off tonight to see Dave strut his stuff at the launch. Are you coming?"

"Yes, of course, Ill be there. Always enjoy watching Dave strut his stuff!" she remarked.

Her comment surprised me, but as Id had a totally stressful day, I let my hair down a bit as well.

"Hmm! He can look quite das.h.i.+ng at times, cant he?"

"Yeah! Ill say. Shame hes taken. All the good ones are."

"You looking?" I asked, thinking back to the book John had recommended to me.

"Arent you?" she answered.

I thought for a moment. Was I? I didnt really know. Certainly, I enjoyed fantasising about people sometimes people I knew but did that mean I was looking? Jo smiled at me as she washed her face and removed some of her make-up. She was not a stunner but even without make-up her skin was quite good. She had cut her hair quite short a mistake I thought because without a good size bust it gave her a rather boyish look. Long hair would have made her look womanly. Jo looked professional, not attractive.

As these thoughts flashed through my mind, I also considered her question. Over the last couple of months I felt a change in myself. With Carole announcing her marriage, having a second child, with meeting John and feeling more comfortable with men as friends, perhaps I was ready to look. I considered Mike, and how hard he had tried to make things work with his wife. Clearly, there were men who wanted marriage. Even John, flirty as he was, had a maturity and confidence that came from understanding how to keep a relations.h.i.+p interesting. Then there was Dave, the sadness in his eyes when he thought of his wife, the total commitment he seemed to have for her. I certainly felt that I wanted that before I died.

"Maybe I am!" I finally answered.

"Really? With Dave?"

I could not help but laugh out loud at this suggestion.

"No! Not Dave. Hes nice and all, sweet really, but I dont think hes my type."

Jo seemed pleased that she was not in compet.i.tion and moved a little closer.

"Theres a rumour going round that his wife is ill, that she wont live long. He might be back on the market soon."

Her comment made me both cross and curious. I found it hard to believe that Dave himself would mention this to anyone else. Perhaps he had. Perhaps I had misjudged him.

"Whats the rumour?" I asked, deciding to dig a bit.