Smokescreen Read online

  Copyright © 2015 by Ahren Sanders

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, locations and incidents are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, locales or events is entirely coincidental.

  Smokescreen

  Edited by: Anna Gorman Coy with AGC Editing

  Proofread by: Missy Borucki

  Photography by: Jordon Legault

  Cover Model: Jordon Legault

  Cover Designer: Letitia Hasser | RBA Designs, designs.romanticbookaffairs.com

  Print Layout & E-Book Formatting: Deena Rae | E-BookBuilders.com

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgements

  Other Books By Ahren

  For The Reader

  My legs burn, but I keep my pace, trying to clear my mind. Nerves and anxiety have consumed me the last two weeks and today’s the day. In a few hours, I’ll be presenting a proposal that could change the course of my professional life.

  I don’t know why I thought it was a good idea to throw my small firm’s name into the Request for Proposal process with Hurst & McCoy. I highly doubt they’ll look at a boutique firm to help them rebuild their image after the shit storm that was created last month. I’m not totally confident they can save their reputation, but if I could be a part of the process and bring the organization into a positive light, it would be the pinnacle of my career.

  Slowing down when I get close to my house, I see a familiar black BMW in my driveway. Laci Barnes, my best friend and assistant, leans against the car with a drink carrier full of Starbucks. She smiles widely at me and waves with her free hand. She’s the only person I know with the energy and enthusiasm of a cheerleader this early in the morning.

  “Hey, Lace, what are you doing here?”

  “I knew you would be running! How the hell do you stand this heat and humidity? I’m melting just waiting for you.” She exaggerates by fanning her face but smiling as well.

  “It’s a bit early for the dramatics. Seriously, why are you here?”

  “Stella, I know how important today is. I’m here to help. I’d bet you have all the proposals laid out from reviewing them one more time and you haven’t even thought of your outfit.”

  She knows me so well.

  “Right, so let’s get inside and get you showered. I brought a variety of caffeine choices.” She turns and walks toward my small, cottage style house.

  Once we get inside, I pick the first drink my hand touches and head to the shower. Before I shut the door, I see her organizing my notes and shoving them in my oversized laptop case.

  For once, I’m thankful for her unexpected visit. We’ve been best friends for twenty years after my family moved next to hers when we were both eight. While she drives me crazy, I wouldn’t change anything about her

  When I’m done with my shower, she’s waiting for me on my bed with two dresses laid out. Neither of them are classic business suits that would impress the VP of Global Marketing.

  “Before you dismiss these choices, let me tell you why I chose them. Both are extremely professional and at the same time give the impression of confidence.”

  For once, I don’t argue, but nod and start on my hair and make-up. We decide on a red and white print dress with a black patent leather high belt. I grab a black blazer as a precaution and follow her downstairs.

  “Let’s go over a last minute idea.” I reach for my iPad and sit down.

  “I’d rather talk to you about something else.” She grabs the iPad and searches a few seconds before shoving it back in my hands.

  The image on the screen causes my jaw to drop. There’s no caption, but the most gorgeous man I’ve ever seen is grinning with a super model on his arm. She’s leaning into him with a dazzling smile. He’s wearing a tuxedo that has to be custom made for his tall frame. His stare into the camera is intense and the deep blue of his eyes look almost grey.

  “That is Maxwell McCoy, Stella, as in the McCoy in Hurst & McCoy.”

  “Why are you showing me this?”

  “I needed to prepare you in case he’s in your meeting today. You deserve this project more than anyone, and I don’t want you to be tripped up by him. Rumor has it that he’s hard as nails—his looks are the only nice thing about him.”

  “Laci, I’m meeting with Brian Claxton, VP of Global Marketing. I highly doubt the president of the company has time to listen to these proposals.”

  “Maybe so, but you fluster easily so I wanted to warn you.”

  “Can we go over my notes now?” I ask annoyed. It’s one thing for the entire professional business world to look at me different because I’m a woman. But for my best friend to think I’d let my guard down because of a handsome face pisses me off.

  After an hour, she gives me a hug and wishes me luck. “Time to be spectacular,” is the last thing she says, giving me a boost of confidence.

  I drive downtown to the large sky rise building and make my way to the thirty-fifth floor. The receptionist greets me and announces my arrival.

  A few minutes later, she leads me into a conference room. A large man with graying hair watches me with an impassive look and stands. Another man turns from the floor to ceiling window and faces the room. My breath hitches and my skin prickles. Maxwell McCoy stares back at me with complete indifference. He’s taller than I imagined, at least six foot two. His dark hair is shaved close on the sides, but longer on top with a slight spike. The black suit he’s wearing fits his body perfectly showing off a firm physique. My mouth goes dry at the sight and my heart starts racing. When our eyes meet, something passes between us and his pupils widen. The energy in the room changes as we stare at each other.

  The intensity of his gaze sends chills up and down my spine. The blue of his irises darken and his lip twitches slightly. As hard as I try, it’s impossible to turn my head. I’m paralyzed by the dominant powerhouse standing in front of me. He finally breaks the spell and I’m able to think clearly again.

  My first thought is, what the hell just happened. Then I realize Laci’s right, one look at Maxwell McCoy in all his glory indeed has me flustered.

  My vision is spotty as soon as our eyes lock. The woman in front of me is like a shockwave to my system. I break the stare and look down her petite frame. Long dark hair flows over her shoulders landing right above the black belt that hugs her small waist. Her hips flare slightly, leading to a sexy pair of legs that look a mile long in those black heels. My eyes rake back up and lock with the most gorg
eous eyes I’ve ever seen—a mix between caramel and amber. When she smiles, it’s like a thousand lights have been flipped on. Her beauty illuminates the room. Hearing her breath hitch again spreads warmth through my body. For the first time in years, I feel something in my dark soul.

  “Miss Sullivan?” Brian asks.

  “Ye-ye-yes,” her voice stutters a bit then regains composure. She walks straight to him and shakes his hand.

  “Miss Sullivan, this is Maxwell McCoy, President and CEO of Hurst & McCoy. He’s joining us this morning.”

  “Absolutely, of course. Nice to meet you, Mr. McCoy.” She reaches out to shake my hand. When our skin touches, heat runs through me again. I may hold on a bit too long because Brian clears his throat, indicating it’s time to start.

  She steps back and he motions for her to sit. She pulls binders from her bag and distributes them. Brian pushes his to the side and sits up, placing his elbows on the table, lacing his hands together. This is his signature intimidation move and it instantly pisses me off.

  “Miss Sullivan—”

  “Stella, please,” she corrects him.

  His eyes widen at the interruption but he continues, “Stella, Hurst & McCoy has been in the news recently and I would like to know what you know about our situation before we proceed.”

  She looks between the both of us and sits back slightly, crossing her legs. My eyes travel to the skin now exposed on her thigh.

  “How frank can I be?”

  “I can see through bullshit as thick as it comes. I want honesty and grit. Our situation is not pretty and it will piss me off if you try to sugar coat it,” I answer her and Brian looks at me annoyed.

  “Well then, Mr. McCoy, to be blunt. Your public image on the JOS Athletic Apparel is shit and has the ability to hit the bottom line of your other businesses. People are not happy with the deception uncovered, and if it hasn’t already, I believe, JOS could come close to bankruptcy.

  “I obviously don’t know the inside information, but the news reports are saying they uncovered several ‘sweat shops’ producing your clothing in South America. The poor and deprived communities are so desperate for the work, they lied to federal officials during an investigation for payoffs. It has been reported some of your profits went to illegal activities within the area and a portion went to building used as a whorehouse for local officials.”

  “All of those are allegations,” Brian snaps.

  I almost laugh out loud when her eyes dart to him in anger. When I heard how Brian was conducting the presentations with other RFP’s this week, I decided to get involved. I’m sick and fucking tired of sitting back and letting my family legacy go downhill.

  “Stella, there’s still an investigation, so we can only say that Hurst & McCoy is looking at every allegation seriously and that is why we have decided to hire a public relations firm to help. We have a very talented Marketing and PR department, but the Board of Directors agreed we need an impartial company to handle this,” I tell her and cut my eyes to see if Brian is going to argue.

  “Can you tell us about your ideas?”

  She points to our binders and we spend the next twenty minutes outlining her stance on repairing the damage we have done to our reputation. My head snaps to her when she tells us the major selling point to her presentation.

  “JOS Athlete Apparel may not have really broke any international laws with the wages and ages of workers, but the local perception will kill you. I’m no expert, but—”

  “I am,” I say. “I’m an international lawyer and can look into anything that needs legal approval.”

  She grins. “Well, that may make it easier then. Your factory pulls workers from three communities with significant poverty issues. My stance would be to build a non-profit that would push some of the profits back. Provide clean drinking water, medical assistance where needed, school supplies—the options are endless. It would also be advisable to raise wages. JOS stands for ‘Just One Shot,’ correct? In my opinion, that’s a fitting name because you have one shot to get this right.”

  “Miss Sullivan, Stella, can you tell me other examples of your damage control? Image re-building? As you can imagine, this project will bleed into our other companies. Your lack of experience with a project this size worries me. Talking to your other clients may help me with my decision,” Brian replies.

  She sits up straighter and looks between us before speaking. A new sense of determination takes over and her voice changes slightly. “Mr. Claxton, there are strong confidentiality agreements in place with all my clients. Your hesitation to hire me because ‘of my lack of experience with a project this size,’ is understandable. However, you should know I’ve worked with some of the largest organizations in Atlanta. You may not have the confidence that Sullivan PR is right for this project, but I hope you have made that assumption based on my project plan and not the size of my company. I assure you, if you choose to move forward, references will be provided.”

  Brian audibly hisses and I make my decision without regard to his opinion. Watching her put Brian in his place is an added bonus.

  “Stella, how soon could you slate a meeting with my executive team? I want to outline this with them and make everyone understand the importance of getting JOS back on track. Brian hasn’t seen the most recent profitability reports, but I have. And we need to act fast.”

  “I could clear sometime next week to give you an extensive outline and proposal. The RFP only scratches the surface of my ideas. It should only take a few weeks once we look at the specifics in and around the factory.”

  “Perfect. My assistant will be in touch.” I stand and hint to Brian to do the same. This meeting is over. She’s hired.

  Stella packs her bag and shakes both our hands. I insist on walking her to reception and watch her get into the elevator. When she turns and smiles, I do the same. It may be the first time I’ve cracked a real smile in years.

  I’ve been waiting for the explosion since this morning, so it’s no surprise when my door swings open and Brian storms in. Pouring a glass of scotch, I raise an eyebrow at him. His face is red and chest heaving. For shit’s sake, he’s had six hours to calm down.

  “You had no right to hire that woman!”

  I stare at him and wait for the rest of his rant.

  “I’m the lead on this project! The whole company is on the line and it’s my responsibility to get us out of this mess! She’s not even qualified to handle our new release information, much less a multi-million dollar clean-up project! I will not put my name and reputation behind her!”

  “Alright, I accept your decision.”

  “Good, I’ll have my assistant call and let her know we are going with another firm.”

  “That’s not necessary.”

  “You’ll have Dana do it?”

  “No.”

  He looks at me with confusion.

  “Your exact words were ‘I will not put my name and reputation behind her.’ I accept your resignation from this project. I’ll be handling the whole thing from this moment on.”

  “You can’t do that!”

  “I can and I did. If you keep yelling at me, I’ll accept another type of resignation as well.”

  “This is bullshit, Max! Just because she has a great pair of tits doesn’t classify her as qualified.”

  My eyes slice to his and I hold the stare long enough to let him know he fucked up. The color starts to drain from his face. “Listen to me, Brian, and listen to me very closely. You’re a chauvinistic dick. You treated her like a piece of shit from the time she walked in the door and I know you did not intend to give her the same respect as the other firms. I had a gut feeling there was something going on when I looked over the RFP list. Several of the companies listed have been trying to claw their way in the door for years. I know what kind of incentives they offered you to give them the business.

  “Sullivan PR has a solid plan. The proposal has a grasp on all issues. Watching you dismiss her before she ev
en entered the room had me pissed, but your display of unprofessional behavior makes me question if you are in the right role in this company. You want to see who has bigger balls here? I will knock your fucking ass to the mailroom. It’s my last name on the door and on your paycheck.”

  His face pales and sweat breaks out on his forehead.

  “I see I have your attention now. Tomorrow you will have your assistant call and let the other contenders know a firm has been chosen.”

  He nods reluctantly and turns to leave. Before he gets out the door I feel the need to drive home one last point. “Brian, I’m not sure where you got the impression you could talk to me the way you did, but if it happens again, your ass is on the curb with nothing but the fucking clothes on your back. No severance. No insurance. No bonus. Nothing. Do you understand me?”

  He nods again and disappears.

  I open the binder and pull out Stella’s business card. With no hesitation, I dial the cell number listed. This may be a business deal, but my thoughts about the brunette bombshell are anything but professional.

  “Tell me again, what exactly did he say?” Laci badgers me for the tenth time.

  I look at my phone and lower the volume because her high-octave excitement is giving me a headache. Lying back on my couch, I sip my wine and retell the story.

  “He called around six and asked if I could free up some time tomorrow afternoon to meet at a lawyer’s office. He has a contract for me to look over and a confidentiality agreement to explain. He suggested I get it to my lawyer as soon as possible so we can get started. He also told me Brian would no longer act as lead on the project, he was stepping in.”

  “I’ll call my dad and tell him we’re coming over tomorrow night with the papers for him to review.”

  “Thanks, Lace. I appreciate that.”

  Laci’s dad is one of the top transactions attorneys in Atlanta. In the business world, he’s feared. But outside of the office, he’s a giant teddy bear. When Laci and I became inseparable, her mom and dad became like a second set of parents to me. Her father helped me set up my small firm a few years ago and even pushed some business my way.