Page 19 of A Christmas Negotiation

“Ooh. Anyone I know?” Lizzie was a total sweetheart and Isabel had grown to adore her.

“I shouldn’t say anything.” Duane’s face said that he was dying to tell someone.

Isabel reached out and touched his arm. “Look. I’m very good at keeping secrets. You can tell me. I won’t say a peep.”

“It’s James, one of the salespeople in menswear,” he blurted. “He’s a Brit like Emma’s husband, Daniel.”

As if there hadn’t been enough excitement about the Eden family, Emma and Daniel had decided to get married at city hall last week. With a baby on the way, Daniel was eager to start the process of becoming an American citizen, apparently much to his mother’s disappointment.

“I’ll have to find a reason to sneak down to menswear later and see if I can get an eyeful of James.”

Duane laughed and the elevator dinged. “Have a good meeting.”

“Thank you.” A minute later, Isabel arrived on the executive floor.

Sophie was waiting right outside the elevator bank, pacing. She lunged for Isabel the instant the door opened. “Thank God you’re here. We have an emergency and it’s bad.”

Isabel could hardly keep up anymore. She’d dealt with plenty of panicked clients, but this was turning into an hourly thing with the Eden family. Fortunately, she had a great deal of experience in this arena. “Whatever it is, it’s okay. Did something happen with one of the deals Sam and Mindy were working on? Or something you and your husband were setting up?”

Emma strode out of her office. Her baby bump was now visible. Small, but apparent. “I read the article, Sophie. I really don’t think it’s that bad. I mean, it’s not great, but I’ve seen worse things.”

Isabel was starting to put this all together. “Something in the tabloids, I take it?”

Sophie waved her ahead. “Come on. My office. I’ll show you.”

Isabel was starting to bristle at Sophie’s cloak-and-dagger approach as she found herself marching with Sophie and Emma down the hall to Sophie’s office. Inside, a stack of newspapers sat on her desk. Even upside down, Isabel saw the headline: Eden’s Matriarch’s Secret Affair Exposed.Of course, those words—secret affair—leaped off the page. Isabel wasn’t much for prurient accounts, but anyone would have to be intrigued.“How did this happen?” Isabel took the liberty of taking a copy and began scanning the story.

“We have no idea. I guess the reporter called Mindy last night but she was so hopped up on cold medicine that she barely remembers the conversation.”

Isabel had to hand it to Mindy. For someone on cold medicine, the quote she’d given the newspaper was remarkably smart and diplomatic. She’d said precisely what Isabel would have coached her to say. Mr. Summers, however, was a different case. Clearly Jeremy hadnothad a say in the formulation of his comment. No lawyer would have allowed their client to say such a thing.

“It’s so horrible. The things he said about our grandmother.” Sophie plopped down on the couch. “And right before Christmas, no less. I wouldn’t be surprised if people start boycotting the store. We need to hire a PR person and start fighting this. We need to put our own version of this story out there. We can’t let Gram’s memory be tarnished like this.”

Isabel very pointedly shook her head at Emma, who was the only one paying attention to her. Sophie was dead wrong. “Actually, ladies, this is amazing news. I believe we finally have a leg up in this negotiation.”

Jeremy had reached a new low—he arrived at the office having had no more than ten minutes of sleep. Granted, it was Friday morning and it had been an incredibly long week, which usually left him stumbling into the weekend. With his grueling job, he already didn’t sleep well. but that had gotten progressively worse since his night with Isabel. She was this beautiful dangling string in his life, unfinished business, both personally and professionally. Situations like that had always bothered him.

When Kelsey left him, it was yet another situation where he was left with far more questions than answers. She took off with no warning, leaving only a note that he’d made her deeply unhappy. He never had the chance to ask how or why—she went right to the press and smeared him, telling them their marriage was over. It wasn’t until later that Jeremy learned she’d been unfaithful, but he couldn’t prove it, and the court of public opinion was squarely against him. He’d been painted as heartless, and since it was clear to Jeremy that the situation would not get better if he spoke up, he put his head down and gave in to her demands. Just to get her out of his life. He simply hadn’t had the fight.

If Jeremy had learned anything over the past five days, it was that the Eden family would go down swinging. Isabel had been incredible to work with, and they’d talked every day, but she was doing nothing but push, even from her disadvantaged position. He loved the fight in her. He loved it a little too much. Every conversation with her was a turn-on, precisely why he’d made excuses all week and kept their back-and-forth on the phone.

Of course, last night before he left the office, Isabel had called him on it. “I’m beginning to think you’re avoiding me, Sharp.” She referred to him by his last name when she really wanted to put on the pressure. It was playful and toying and sexy. On some level, shehadto know what it was doing to him. “Why don’t we meet for a drink? Or I’ll come out to Brooklyn. I still haven’t met your cat. Does she have a name yet?”

“I’m calling her Cat.”

“You have got to be kidding me.”

Jeremy had not appreciated the inference. “No. I am a kind soul who took in an animal. But she’s not staying and I don’t want to get attached. Hence, I put only enough time into giving her a name as absolutely necessary. Her next owner can give her a real name.”

“Any sign of the kittens?”

“Soon, I guess.”

“You guess?” Isabel then went on to read him a laundry list of the things he should be looking for in Cat’s behavior. He had noticed nothing she mentioned.

Jeremy’s only response had been to change the subject. “My client refuses to budge, so unless you have a check for me to collect, I guess I don’t see the point in a face-to-face meeting.”

“I think that what you’re really saying is that it’s harder to negotiate with me when you and I are in the same room.”