Chapter 17 HIDDEN FEARS PART 1
Vivienne had been awake since dawn, sitting at her small dining table with a half-empty mug of cold coffee. The microwave's digital clock read 8:07.
Her laptop screen lit up her drawn face, and even though she had finally slept, there were dark circles around her eyes. The email from Jane Sterling came in just before midnight. She had been staring at it for more than an hour, and the words were now burned into her mind:
Ms. Cross,
Mr. Hunt is pleased to hear from you and appreciates your reconsideration. He wants to meet this Monday at 10:00 AM at the Hunt Enterprises headquarters (see address below) to go over the details of the project and the terms of the contract.
Please let me know if this time works for you.
Jane Sterling Alexander Hunt's Executive Assistant
Vivienne's fingers moved over the keyboard and then pulled back for the tenth time. As she thought about sitting across from Alexander in his office, her stomach twisted.
Would he look at her and feel something? Would he somehow know who she was? The surgeon did a great job. Her jawline softened, her nose changed a little, and her cheekbones were less pronounced, but her eyes stayed the same.
And Alexander knew her eyes better than anyone else.
She jumped when someone knocked on the door. Coffee spilled over the edge of her mug and onto her fingers. She quickly wiped them on her pajama pants and carefully walked to the door, looking through the peephole.
Marcus stood in the hallway, moving from one foot to the other. In one hand, he held a cardboard tray with two coffee cups on it, and in the other, a paper bag.
She opened the door and suddenly remembered that she still hadn't washed her hair or changed out of the big t-shirt she had slept in.
"Good morning, sunshine!" Marcus walked right past her into the apartment, giving off enough energy to power the whole building. "I thought you might need moral support and food. There's a chocolate croissant in here with your name on it."
"It's eight in the morning on Saturday," Vivienne said, and then she shut the door. "Why are you here?"
"I couldn't sleep after yesterday." He put the coffee tray and bag on the table, and then he saw that her laptop was open. He looked at the screen, and his eyes widened. "Hunt's people already got back to you? That was quick."
"Yes, last night." She pulled her seat back.
Marcus pulled out the chair across from her and sat down, pushing one coffee cup toward her. "French roast, a little cream, and no sugar, just how you like it. What did you say to them? When's the meeting?"
Vivienne wrapped her hands around the warm cup. "I haven't answered yet."
Marcus's smile faded. "What? Why not?"
"I'm trying to figure out what to say."
"Vee, what do you need to figure out? We've been waiting for this." He leaned forward. "You say 'yes, thank you,' and then you show up."
She drank some coffee to give herself more time. "Yes, I know. I just want to say it right."
"You're thinking too much about this." Marcus reached over the table and turned her laptop around so it was facing him. "Do you mind if I help?"
He was already typing before she could say anything. "We should thank him for the opportunity and show some excitement."
"Don't be too eager," Vivienne said quickly. "Just... professional."
Marcus looked up with a confused look on his face. "Vee, we're excited about this. It sounds fine to me."
"I'd rather keep it short and to the point."
"How about this: 'Dear Mr. Hunt, CrossLight Entertainment is happy to accept your invitation—'"
"No." Vivienne shook her head. "Too much. Just tell him I'll be there on Monday at 10."
For twenty minutes, they went back and forth. Marcus suggested flowery phrases about partnership and opportunity, but Vivienne kept saying no. His fingers flew over the keyboard, then stopped, deleted, and tried again. Vivienne leaned over his shoulder and criticized every word.
"Excited to explore this new venture together? Really, Marcus?"
"What? It sounds professional."
"It sounds like you're desperate." She reached around him and deleted the line.
In the end, they came up with a response that was so short it was almost not communication:
"Thanks for the opportunity. Monday at 10 AM is a great time for me. I look forward to discussing the project details."
With best wishes, Vivienne Cross
"There. Professional but thankful," Marcus said, with his finger positioned over the send button. "Are you ready?"
Vivienne thought for a moment, then nodded sharply. "Send it."
As soon as the email disappeared from the screen, Marcus jumped out of his chair with such excitement that it scared her. He yelled, and the sound echoed off the kitchen tiles. Then he picked Vivienne up by the waist and spun her around in a hug.
"Marcus!" she yelled, her feet hanging in the air.
"Do you know what this means?" He was so excited that his voice cracked when he put her down. "We can pay everyone back, Vee. Sarah, Dev, and everyone else. We can pay off the back rent. Get new equipment. We can get everything back on track!"
He walked around the small kitchen, waving his hands around. "Even if they only give us fifty thousand up front, that's enough to keep us going. If we make a good faith payment, the landlord will back off. My loan would give us some breathing room."
"We don't even know what they're offering yet," Vivienne said, trying to calm his excitement. "It could be less than we think."
"Doesn't matter!" Marcus turned to look at her, his eyes shining. "Can't you see? It's not just about the cash. Vee, it's Hunt Enterprises. Clients will line up as soon as they find out we're working with Alexander Hunt on Tyranny. This is our big break."
Vivienne opened the paper bag, taking out a chocolate croissant and broke off a piece, but she didn't look all that excited.
Marcus's face changed, and a sly smile spread across it. "I understand why you're worried about meeting him."
"What do you mean?"
"Alexander Hunt. The man is objectively beautiful. Those cheekbones could cut glass." He moved his eyebrows up and down. "I've seen his pictures in Forbes. If only I swung that way..."
Vivienne's face turned red. "That's not—"
"That jawline? Those eyes? I'd be speechless too."
"Stop it. That's not it." She turned away and focused on her coffee cup. "This is our first project with a big client like Alexander Hunt. And it comes with a lot of pressure. That's it."
"Uh-huh." Marcus took a croissant for himself and smiled. "Say whatever you need to say to yourself."
"I'm not kidding."
"Of course you are." He brushed the crumbs off his fingers. "Hey, if you're really worried about the meeting, we could practice." He lowered his voice to a silly baritone and said, "Ms. Cross, how nice to finally meet the face of my dream..."
"No!" Vivienne's voice came out sharper than she meant it to, which surprised Marcus. She softened her tone. "I don't need to practice. I'm going to be okay."
Marcus shrugged. "Offer still stands if you change your mind."
They were interrupted by the sound of small feet walking on wood. Noah stood in the kitchen doorway, his hair sticking up in crazy tufts and his rocket ship pajamas still on. He squinted against the morning light and looked between the adults with sleepy suspicion.
"Uncle Marcus?" Why are you yelling so early?
Marcus bent down to Noah's level. "Hey, buddy! Your mom just got us the biggest deal ever. CrossLight is going to work with a big company called Hunt Enterprises, and this will make everything better."
Noah thought about this information as seriously as a nine-year-old could. "How much better?"
"Well, we can keep our office, hire back our team, and maybe even move to a nicer place someday."
Noah thought about this and then asked the question that was most important to him. "Does this mean we can get pizza on days other than Fridays?"
The adults' laughter echoed in the kitchen. Vivienne knelt next to her son and smoothed down his messy hair. "Yes, baby. We can probably buy pizza more often now."
His face lit up, and Vivienne felt a wave of love so strong that it almost made her cry. She wasn't doing this just to put herself in danger again and face the Hunts. She was doing everything for him.
"This calls for celebration!" Marcus said, and then disappeared into her refrigerator.
She heard cabinet doors opening and closing, and then Marcus came out with a dusty bottle of Chardonnay that she had gotten as a gift months before.
"It's nine in the morning," she said weakly.
"A little wine won't hurt," he said, taking out the cork. He found two wine glasses and poured into each one, giving one to Vivienne. "To CrossLight's new beginning!"
Marcus raised his glass and then started to dance. He spun around the kitchen while singing at the top of his lungs.
As Marcus danced closer to Noah, he made more and more silly faces with each verse of his made-up song. Noah laughed so hard he fell over.
Vivienne stood apart and watched them. A perfect picture of happiness and relief.
But suddenly, fear coiled like a snake in her chest.