Connexion

Part 51

Caleb rifled through his hair, but kept his eyes on Jena, "Ok, Jena, just back up. We can start again..."

Jena shook her head, "No! I am not about to rehash this with you! But just in case you want to. The key points are: My team is superb; our clients love our cakes; we do not have leeway; our business model works for us!" It had done for the last few years, the last couple in particular, when she had generated enough income to buy the land behind her unit, and build a house.

"I did not mean to question your business acumen." He gestured around him, "Your reputation evidently shows your business is successful. And you know I was at Alice and Bruce's wedding and now I know you made that cake."

"I did not make that cake!" Jena snapped at him.

"You didn't?" He narrowed his eyes.

"I did not make that cake." 

"Sorry, must be a miscommunication issue!" He rubbed his forehead. He wondered when he had lost control of this meeting. He was pretty sure that Jena made Alice and Bruce' wedding cake. He said firmly,"Sophie said your company made it."

"Yes. We did. But I didn't. Sally did."

Splitting hairs, he thought. Caleb took a breath, rubbed his jaw with his palm and fingers and reconsidered his next move. Jena folded her arms and glared. A few seconds later, Caleb changed his strategy, he said, "Look, my sister's wedding is important to me. "

"Delighted to hear that." Jena muttered and squared her shoulders.

Caleb rubbed his lip with his fingers, to buy him time to rein his escalating frustration. "I'm here to see what I can do to ensure that you have the capacity to create her cake."

Clearly the wrong thing to say, because he noted that Jena banked her huff. Instead she went for a question. "Wonderful."  With sarcasm she asked, "Can you bake?" She thought she had already explained her company strategy. That she did not want to expand. That she was happy with her team. That the business model worked for her. She picked up a mug. She was tempted to hurl it at him! 

"No." He narrowed his eyes as he contemplated her sarcasm and the question.

She asked, her eyes openly showing her growing temper even if her voice remained cool, "What about, can you ice a cake?" She tacked on. She had built her business employing people with good skills. Now this man turns up, makes demands, and expecting her to fall in with his plans.

Of course he wasn't offering to bake or ice. He intended to throw money at her! That usually bought what was needed. Everyone has a price. 

Caleb's eyes were cagey, when he said, "According to my PA, you no longer have a hands on role."

"True."

"And you, apparently, neither bake nor ice." He pointed out.

"So?" She should have known he'd have checked up on her. He was so annoying.

"It means you are available!" He all but added, so there! 

She narrowed her eyes. The utter gall. Arrogant man. Assumptive idiot! She murmured.

Undeterred Caleb carried on, "I accept your team are booked. But you are available!" Cavalier, Jena glared. Caleb continued,  " And we know you started this business so obviously you can bake and can ice!" His eyes suggested he knew he had her cornered.

Temper vied with utter astonishment. "So let me see if I understand your logic, Mr Harland. If you were asked to engineer a part, and all your engineers were occupied, you'd step out of your fancy penthouse office and onto the factory floor to create the part?" Her voice did little to hide the fact she was beyond incensed.

"Maybe. Depends on the circumstances." He nearly grinned at her, this was not going to be as simple as he'd assumed. But then, in the back of his mind he hadn't really thought it would be that simple. Not when it involved her. He hadn't found himself on the shop floor for ages, but he was pretty sure that if times ever called for him to don an overall and get his hands dirty doing engineering, he'd do it. 

Jena wanted to throw something. Frustration vied with exasperation. "I have no intention of explaining myself to you Mr Harland. I have never met someone with your level of arrogance! She was amazed by his breathtaking self-confidence. "But just in case, you have misunderstood me, we have no free capacity." This was not going to be as straightforward as she'd anticipated.

For seconds neither said anything. Jena was trying to find a way to throw him out! Caleb put his mug on the table, and was trying to find a way past this impasse.  Eventually Caleb broke the silence. "What would it take to buy your time?" He asked coolly. "Money is no object."

Jena counted to ten. Her eyes were molten as she processed his question and his belief that she could be bought. She fumed. The gall of the idiot-man. 

With precision, she placed her mug on the table. She took her time, dusting a speck from the table. All to ensure her temper was banked before she spoke. She lifted her eyes and met his eyes. "Mr Harland, there are several other wedding cake making businesses in town." Her tone suggested his offensive question did not worry her. But her eyes contradicted that. Caleb could see fury in eyes but her voice remained calm. "I can give you the names of several reputable people with good reviews. Approach one of them! You can throw your money at them." Her eyes went molten when she said bluntly, "In my case, money is not the obstacle, the obstacle is that By Design is simply not available. And for your information, we are really particular when we accept a commission! And unfortunately for you, you do not meet our threshold!"

How dare he think he could just buy her? How dare he assume he could manipulate her into doing what he wanted by throwing cash at her?

"And while I have entertained you and your rude argument, I suggest you leave before I dump my cold coffee over your head!" She said quietly with the glimpse of a feign smile.

Caleb's eyebrow quirked, but he ignored her threat.  Family was important  to him, and while Isaac had reminded him that Sophie did not fall into Caleb's responsibility-remit for her, Caleb also remembered he had made a promise to his sister. "My sister is set on your company, By Design."

His sister sounded spoilt. Jena kept that thought to herself. Must be an interesting family, one sibling is arrogant and the other must be a diva.

Suddenly Caleb changed tack. "Is your reticence to provide a cake for my sister, has anything to do with my refusal to bend to your wishes?" He wasn't sure this was the best way to go about getting her to change her mind, but the last few minutes suggested that pandering to her did not work.

His sudden change in his approach had her stymied for a few seconds. "What?" She asked, and tacked on "When? And which wishes?" It was like wading through treacle, she thought. Actually, closer to quick sand.

 Like a bombshell, he said, "Melanie."  His eyes tracked Jena's eyes. "Because I took her out while she stayed with you?" And he tacked on, "And because I did not accept you as a substitute?"

Utter fury swamped her.