I looked up to see him looking at me with determination in his eyes.
"Valerie, I know that I might never understand it up to that level, but I want you to know that you can come to me, to any one of us with your problems. This time, whether you want...
We all stood up to acknowledge their presence as a form of respect, but all I could think about is how this day can't get any better. His assistant was close behind him, with a notepad in hand, ready to jot down what was gonna be said in this room.
"You may sit."
After everyone was settled, he went on saying
"We all know why we're here, and it is to announce the new business partner that we are gonna be doing this new project with. You all know Grant Enterprise, and the CEO and owner of it as well. He's the man who's standing in front with me today. This is Mr Grant, Maxwell Grant, and I'm confident that the new casino we're gonna open up in the heart of this city will be the best one yet, that will be finished by December, being opened on New year's day the following year. We have half a year left, and we want this plan to be a success by the end of this year. Mr Grant, you can talk to them now."
He went in front of us, and scanned his eyes around, until they landed on me. They stayed a millisecond longer and continued to scan the room. Most of the women in the room were ogling the man in front of them, for his handsomeness was too much to comprehend sometimes.
"I'm pretty sure you all know me."
Everyone laughed, while I just rolled my eyes at the predicament. I get that he's rich and all, but, seriously?!? That wasn't funny.
"I hope that during this time that we are gonna be working together, we will work in peace, and that this project will not only be about building the casino, but will also make our relationship as firms become stronger."
People clapped their hands as he sat down. I have to hand it to him. That mini speech wasn't half bad.
The meeting went by in a flash, and when it was over, the CEOs went out first, followed by the rest of us. As I was walking to my office,the boss called me to his office. When I got in, Max was also there. I internally rolled my eyes.
What's going on now?
"You called me, sir?"
"Yes, Valerie. Mr Grant wants a report on our financial situation"
"Okay, sir. I will email-."
Max interrupted my sentence. How gentlemanly of him
"I want you to be there, Ms Williams. I might have some questions that will be strenuous and too long to reply to via that platform."
"He's right, Valerie. That's why you're going to leave with him, and inform him there on all that he needs to understand."
I mentally scoffed. I didn't want to go with him
"Okay, Sir"
"Well, I'm about to take my leave, Ms Williams."
"Okay, let me-"
"Valerie. Please stay over for a couple of minutes. I hope you don't mind, Mr Grant."
He looked between the two of us
"I'll be outside"
He left and I took a seat in front of him. He sighed and looked at me, the face that was once happy now seemed troubled.
"Look, Vee, I know that you are not very keen of him, and I can't help but agree with you on that one. Sure, he's cocky and sometimes arrogant, but he's the only one who can help us out of our predicament. We have too many creditors and loans, which might force us to shut down in the next five years. You have to try your best not to tick him off, because this deal can make us quickly pay those loans and creditors a year after the project's complete. I'm sure that he doesn't know about this, which is why we must be extra nice to him."
"I agree with you, Sir. We really do need this deal. It's our only way to keep the company open. I've grown quite fond of this establishment, and watching it have to close down is really having an emotional toll on me."
"Well, you shouldn't keep the man waiting. Go on now. Oh, and when you're done, you can go home." He dismissed me with his hands shooing me towards the door. I just laughed as I was getting out of his office.
"Have a nice day, Sir."
"Same to you, Valerie."
I walked out of the office, took the files in the office and made my way to the parking lot. As I was in the elevator, I began to think about how this company is actually relying on his deal to keep on being in the market. We got into a huge recession a few years ago, when I was still new, and we had to loan a lot of banks to make sure that we survived in the harsh market during our tough times. We made it out but the loans were just too big for us. Sure we try to fix them, but at this rate, they will get impatient, and this will eventually force us to shut down. We tried to call in new investors and shareholders, but the moment they saw our gearing and debt equity ratios, they'd just get up and leave. What surprised me was that Maxwell actually wanted to do this project with us. I'm sure that he hasn't seen that part of the financial accounts, and I'll make sure that I won't show him either.
I walked towards his Audi R8, and he was casually leaning on it, giving me an intense stare with those stormy grey eyes of his that were making me feel self conscious of the attire I'd chosen for the day. I knew that it was simple and all but I liked it.
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"Ready?" He said with a small smirk on his face. I just rolled my eyes at him
"As ready as I'll ever be."
He opened the door for me. What a jerky gentleman, I thought as he closed the door and went to his side.
The drive to Grant Empire was short and quiet, as he was just driving with his one hand on his lap while the other grabbed the steering wheel. I admired how the car was so alive and it seemed like it was still in mint condition. The seat was just as comfortable and I felt quite at ease in the car. When we got there, we got out of the car and he threw the keys to the guy at the entrance, who ran to his car and got it parked in his personal parking space.
As we were walking towards the elevator, he put his hand at the small of my back, making everyone look at me with curiosity, while some girls had shock registered on their faces. I began to wonder if he'd ever brought a woman here before.
