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At length Trenton said, ‘If it feels right to him, he’ll go with it.’
‘What do you mean exactly?’
‘That’s what Maxim has always said to me … that a deal’s got to feel right. He goes on instinct. Gut instinct. He ignores analysts, reports, valuations, advisers. Gut instinct, that’s what guides him.’
‘Do you really believe that?’ Vale sounded doubtful.
‘Oh yes, I do! More importantly, Maxim believes it. But what he really means, of course, is that he relies on his experience, his expertise, his great knowledge. Plus his instinctive feel for the particular deal, the particular situation.’
Trenton picked up his silver tankard, swigged the last of his champagne, looked as if he was mulling something over.
‘You asked me what my assessment is, John,’ he went on at last, ‘and it’s this. If Maximilian West feels right about making an offer for Lister Newspapers he will do so. And if he feels wrong, or if he has no feeling about it whatsoever, then he’ll pass. That’s the way he is. Very cut and dried. Precise. It’s his nature. Certainly he won’t keep you dangling. You’ll get a decision, and an answer, very quickly.’
‘That’s good to know at least. And by the by, Alan, whatever the outcome is, I’m indebted to you. I don’t know how to thank you for arranging this meeting.’
‘Very easily, old boy. Take me to dinner as you promised. Now. I’m starving.’
John laughed. ‘That makes two of us. I booked a table at Mark’s Club. Let’s stroll over there, and after we’ve dined I’ll leave the papers at Maxim’s house in Chesterfield Hill. He said you’d give me the exact address.’
‘Of course.’ Alan pushed himself up. ‘I’ll clear my desk, then we can be off.’
Vale followed him across the room, hovered about.
At one moment, he remarked, ‘I hadn’t expected him to be such a handsome man. I’ve seen photographs of him in newspapers and magazines and none of them do him justice.’
‘No, they don’t. But then a lot of Duke’s appeal lies in his personal charisma. I don’t suppose you can take a photograph of that.’
‘Why do you call him Duke?’ Vale asked curiously.
‘After Archduke Maximilian of Austria who became Emperor of Mexico in 1864,’ Alan explained. ‘Maxim was being a bit imperious with me one day at prep school, and I dubbed him that. He thought it was hilarious … anyway, the name stuck.’
‘I see. Is it true what they say about him?’
‘They say a lot of things … what in particular are you referring to?’
‘That Maximilian West cares about only four things. The Prime Minister. The United States. Making money. And screwing.’
Alan glanced up, started to laugh. Recovering himself after a brief moment, he said, ‘I know he holds Mrs Thatcher in the highest regard, is a great admirer of her policies, especially when it comes to business. And let’s face it, old chap, he’s flourishing under her regime. She’s just had him knighted. Most certainly he loves the United States, he’s been straddling the Atlantic for a decade or so. He spends as much time there as he does here, you know.’
A mischievous gleam entered Alan’s eyes. ‘And for as long as I can remember, Maxim’s been very intense about making money, and making love to the ladies. Oh yes, he’s a bit of a lady-killer, our Maxim is. As for the ladies, they, of course, find him quite devastating. Drop like ninepins at his feet.’
‘All those wives, all those mistresses,’ Vale murmured, a hint of awe echoing. ‘How on earth has he managed to juggle them, and apparently with such adroitness?’
‘I wouldn’t know.’
‘Haven’t you ever asked him?’
‘Good Lord, of course I haven’t! I’ve never had the nerve,’ Alan lied. He had no wish to discuss Maxim’s unorthodox personal life any further with John Vale. He had said enough as it was. Certain things must always remain private. There had been a great deal of gossip about Maxim over the years and he was hardly going to add to it. That would be the worst kind of betrayal.
I know far too much, Alan thought, dropping his eyes, locking the top drawer of his desk. All those confidences Maxim has shared over the years. And continues to share. But his secrets are safe with me. And he knows that, knows I will take them with me to the grave.
Chapter Two (#ulink_b2cbbee6-1909-5b70-9228-5dada4cfcb03)
For the second time that evening Maximilian West found himself shaking off a feeling of heaviness as he traversed Berkeley Square, heading back in the direction he had walked earlier.
Directly opposite Alan Trenton’s office building, on the other side of the plane trees in the park in the middle of the square, was number forty-four. This was his destination. Here, in the basement of the beautiful old house, was one of the most exclusive nightclubs in Europe – the famous Annabel’s.
Founded in the summer of 1963 by Mark Birley, and named after his wife Lady Annabel, from whom he was now divorced, it was the chicest of watering holes for the rich and famous, where the international jet set rubbed shoulders with movie stars and magnates and members of the British royal family. For the past twenty-six years it had remained very much the in spot, yet it had now gone beyond being merely fashionable. It had become legendary. And it was Maxim’s favourite place to dine in London.
Within minutes of leaving Alan’s office, Maxim was nodding to the uniformed doorman who hovered outside, ducking under the green awning and hurrying down the flight of steps into the club.
A bevy of familiar, smiling faces greeted him as he entered, and after shedding his trenchcoat he went over to the reception desk where Ted was waiting to welcome guests, as he was most nights of the week.
Maxim accepted Ted’s quietly-spoken congratulations, exchanged pleasantries with him, signed the book, sauntered through into the bar-sitting room. Glancing quickly about, he saw that it was still relatively empty, and he took a small table in the corner, to one side of the brightly-burning log fire.
A waiter was instantly by his side, and he ordered vodka straight with ice and a chunk of lime, then settled into the squashy sofa, enjoying the comfort and warmth and the sense of ease that always came to him here.
He had been a member since the club had first opened its doors, and he liked the atmosphere, the intimacy that sprang from the blazing fire, the soft lights and deep sofas, the cheerful feeling created by the masses of fresh flowers in antique containers, the dark-red Oriental rugs and the pumpkin-coloured walls covered with a diversity of paintings. Wonderful dog portraits, cartoons by Landseer, Munnings and Bateman, oils of elegant women, some nude, some clothed, hung cheek by jowl, and at first glance seemed to have been put together with some sort of careless abandon. Yet there was nothing haphazard about their placement, if one looked a second time and a bit more carefully. They never ceased to delight his eye, to amuse him, and they were a source of constant pleasure, frequently brought a quick smile to his face.
To Maxim, Annabel’s was more like an extension of Mark Birley’s own house than a restaurant and nightclub, and perhaps this was the key to its enormous success. The bar area had the feeling of a country drawing room in a manor house, could never be mistaken for anything but an English drawing room at that, what with its mixtures of chintzes and paintings and flowers, its mellowness and charm. Quite aside from the inimitable and inviting ambience, there were the gracious staff to be thankful for, the excellent service they gave, and finally the type of unpretentious food Maxim preferred to eat. For the most part, English cooking at its best with a few continental dishes thrown in.
In his opinion there was nowhere in the world quite like Annabel’s, and it was one of the things he sorely missed about London when he was away. He had not been in town for some weeks and he was glad to be back in his special haunt. Invariably, the tensions of the day left him the instant he stepped through its portals. He felt insulated against the world when he was at the club, cocooned within the familiar, pleasant surroundings, attended to by the discreet and congenial staff. A home from home, he thought, then added sardonically to himself: Except that I prefer this place to home. But I don’t have a home any more, do I?
Reaching for the drink, he took a quick swallow, leaned against the cushions, forced himself to focus on the meeting he had just had in Stubby’s office.
He was curiously ambivalent about going after the Lister newspaper empire, and he wondered why. Before he had a chance to focus on this properly, ponder the reasons further, he saw Louis, the manager, coming through the bar-sitting room, heading in his direction. Louis’s face was wreathed in smiles. They were old friends, had known each other for over thirty years, ever since the days Louis had been the maitre d’ at the Mirabelle Restaurant in Curzon Street, just around the corner from the club. There was a camaraderie between them that sprang from the past, many shared experiences, the genuine affection they held for each other.
Maxim jumped up, beaming.
They greeted each other warmly, shook hands. Louis congratulated him on his knighthood, and they stood chatting, catching up with each other’s news. After a few minutes, Louis was summoned to take a phone call in the dining room, and he excused himself. Maxim sat down on the sofa and picked up his drink, but no sooner had he done so than he found himself rising once more as his personal assistant came floating into the bar-sitting room on a cloud of perfume.
Graeme Longdon was an American, thirty-seven years old, tall, bean-pole thin, with curly brown hair shot through with a hint of auburn and the brightest of green eyes. Not classically beautiful in the given sense of the word, she was, nonetheless, a lovely young woman, very arresting, with a broad brow, high cheekbones above rounded cheeks, and a full, wide mouth that was forever smiling. She was from Richmond, Virginia, was independent, feisty, and outspoken.
Maxim considered her to be one of the smartest people he had ever known, and she was his good right hand.
Tonight she was dressed in a superlative black velvet suit, which to his discerning eye was most obviously an haute couture number from Paris. The excellently-styled jacket above the pencil-slim skirt was trimmed across the shoulders and yoke with jet-bead embroidery and silk tassels. Her long, shapely legs were encased in sheer black hose, her feet elegantly shod in a pair of black satin pumps. The only jewellery she wore were large diamond earrings shaped like flowers, and, on her wrist, a narrow diamond watch designed by Cartier in the thirties.
Maxim went to meet her, took hold of her elbow, guided her over to the corner table.
‘You look lovely,’ he said, forever appreciative of a pretty woman, always full of genuine gallantry, ready with a compliment.
‘Why thank you,’ she said, turning to him, widening her smile. It lit up her face. ‘I always feel I must get myself done up in my best fancy duds to come to this place. So I dashed back to the Ritz to change. That’s why I’m late. Sorry, Boss,’ she said with her usual breeziness and casual style.
‘There’s no need to apologise,’ he replied, returning her smile, as usual faintly amused by her irreverent manner, her persistence in calling him Boss. When she had first come to work for him and had started to address him in this way, he had been irritated, had tried to make her stop. But she had ignored his protests, or they had flown over her head, he wasn’t sure which, and Boss it had remained since then. He had grown used to it by now, no longer minded. It was of no consequence to him, really. And he admired her for being herself, for not compromising her personality to suit somebody else’s idea of the proper corporate image. She was honest and forthright and rather blunt, unnervingly so at times. He laughed to himself. Graeme had nicknames for everyone in the company, at least those she dealt with on a day-to-day basis. Most of the names were highly appropriate, and some disconcertingly so.
‘What’s a few minutes between us,’ Maxim remarked as they sat down. ‘In any case, you’re worth the wait, Graeme. You’re positively blooming tonight. Let’s settle down, relax, have a drink before dinner and you can tell me what happened after I left the office. What would you like? A glass of champagne, as usual? Or something else?’
‘Champagne, Maxim, please.’ Graeme put her black velvet evening purse on the table, made herself more comfortable on the chair opposite him, crossed her legs, adjusted her skirt. There was an air of expectancy about her; it was as though she could hardly contain herself.
Once he had ordered her drink, she bent forward, her manner suddenly grown confidential, her vivid eyes more alive and eager than ever, her intelligent face aglow, flushed pink with excitement. ‘I’ve come to a conclusion about the Winonda Group, after being on and off the phone with Peter Heilbron in New York for the last couple of hours,’ she exclaimed, her tone rising slightly. ‘I think we should go for it, Boss, make a bid! It’s a cinch for us. The perfect company for a takeover despite what appear to be certain problems. I’ve studied the last two faxes I received from Peter and –’
‘If they’re sensitive, I presume you’ve shredded them,’ Maxim cut in swiftly.
‘Of course! How can you think otherwise!’ She sounded astonished, looked at him askance. ‘Am I not your clone, Boss?’
Maxim bit back a smile, made no response.
Graeme rushed on, ‘Winonda has a number of unprofitable divisions, but these would be easy to liquidate. We would keep the profitable divisions, of course, and simply reorganise them, give them a bit of the West International streamlining.’
She paused when the waiter brought the flute of champagne to her, waited until they were alone before continuing, ‘What makes the deal so attractive to me is the real estate Winonda owns just outside Seattle. It looks worthless at first glance, and especially so on paper. Undervalued, actually. It’s run down, and it’s in a very bad area. However, I know it has great value, that it’s a big asset.’
Maxim raised a brow.
Graeme explained. ‘It’s an asset because a Japanese company wants to buy it. They’re in the process of buying up the entire area, actually, and they want the Winonda real estate so that they can tear down the existing buildings, redevelop the land by constructing a hotel, a shopping mall, and offices on it.’
‘Then why hasn’t Charles Bishop sold?’ Maxim’s brow furrowed. ‘That strikes me as particularly odd. He’s extremely shrewd, usually very fast on the draw.’
‘He turned them down flat. Didn’t want to know, apparently. And not because they weren’t offering plenty. I believe they went as high as two hundred and seventy million dollars.’
‘What’s the catch?’
‘There isn’t one. At least, not for us. If we owned Winonda we could sell the real-estate holdings tomorrow. And to the same Japanese company. They’re standing in the wings. Waiting. They’ll wait in vain, of course, as long as Bishop’s the president of Winonda. You see, his father died in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp, that’s why he won’t strike a deal with them.’
When Maxim said nothing, Graeme remarked in a low voice, ‘Put very simply, he’s letting his personal feelings get in the way.’
Maxim was thoughtful. After a moment he glanced at her. ‘You have good vibes about this deal, don’t you?’
‘Absolutely, Boss!’
‘So do I. And I have from the beginning, ever since you put forward Winonda as a possibility for us. Call Peter tomorrow, tell him to get the acquisition team moving at once. And good for you, Grae. I’m impressed. You must have done a great deal of research.’
Graeme shook her head. ‘A little, but not as much as you probably think. By one of those odd coincidences, my cousin Sara lives in Seattle now. She’s with a bank. I asked her about Winonda, after you’d told me to go ahead and analyse the situation. She mentioned that some Japanese company had been sniffing around. She’d heard about their interest in the Winonda real estate through her boyfriend, who’s a partner in an accounting firm. There was a nasty leak from somewhere, I suspect.’
She grinned at Maxim. ‘I guess you’re right about shredding machines, Boss. You can’t be too careful. In any event, I ran with the information Sara had passed on to me and had it checked out. It proved to be correct.’ Graeme stopped, cleared her throat. ‘The stockholders of the Winonda Group might not be too happy to learn that their president passed up millions of dollars for a parcel of real estate that nobody else seems to want. Poor judgement on Bishop’s part, wouldn’t you say?’
‘I can understand his reasoning in some ways. But yes, I suppose in the final analysis you’re right, Graeme.’
‘As the president and CEO of a public company he ought to have put personal sentiments aside,’ she stated in a voice that was surprisingly cold and deliberate.
Maxim gave her a swift look. He knew how tough, even ruthless, she could be at times. But her assessment of Bishop seemed harsh. Fleetingly, a faint shadow crossed his face. He frowned. ‘Yes,’ he said laconically, having no wish to continue this conversation, and reached for his glass.
Graeme sat back, gazed at him through appraising eyes. A muscle twitched on his cheek and he appeared strained all of a sudden and she wondered why. She was about to ask him if something was wrong and then changed her mind immediately. He was a very private man, never revealed much about himself or his feelings, and he hated anyone to pry, to try to winkle their way behind that powerful facade of his.
She lifted her flute of untouched champagne. ‘Cheers,’ she said. ‘Here’s to the Winonda Group. May it soon be ours.’
Maxim said, ‘To Winonda.’
She took another long swallow of the Dom Perignon, began to relax for the first time that day. They fell silent for a short while, both caught up in the complexity of their own thoughts. It was Graeme who spoke first, breaking the momentary lull. ‘How did your meeting with Alan Trenton go?’
‘It wasn’t with Alan. Oh, he was there, of course, but he wanted me to meet his merchant banker, John Vale of Morgan Lane, who had a proposition for me.’
‘What kind of proposition?’ she asked, her eyes instantly lighting up. Like Maxim she was excited by business, and the prospect of cutting a new deal thrilled her. It gave her a high in much the same way it did him.
‘To come to the rescue of Lister Newspapers,’ he said.
Graeme let out a long, low whistle that was audible only to Maxim. ‘My, my, that is something,’ she said in a soft voice. ‘And?’
Maxim began to tell her what had transpired earlier that evening, leaving nothing out.
Graeme listened avidly, giving him her full attention, not once interrupting him, knowing how he detested interruptions, but at the same time wondering what he would do, asking herself whether he would go after the Lister empire. Her mind raced. He was tough-minded, fearless when it came to business, but not really a gambler. He was too cautious to be that. And Lister might well prove to be something of a gamble. Rectitude and prudence he had in abundance, and she admired those traits in him. Yet, when she looked back over the seven years she had worked for him, there had been times when he had taken chances, and now, on reflection, it occurred to her that they had been rather big chances at that. Would he consider Lister Newspapers worth the risk? One never knew with him. He was so hard to read accurately – and to second guess. He might do anything, jump either way. He called her his good right hand. The problem was, most of the time she never knew what his left hand was doing.
Perhaps it was the contradictions, the unexpected in him that she found so fascinating – and irresistible. She stifled a sigh. She had always been a little bit in love with him, even though he had never displayed one iota of interest in her. Not as a woman, at any rate. Oh, he paid her lovely compliments about her appearance, said flattering things about her work, but that was as far as it went. She was his executive assistant, and therefore forbidden. He was far too involved with his business ever to mix it with anything that remotely smacked of pleasure, sex or love.
And besides, he was married – of course! And there were hints of another woman.
Still, there were times, like now, when they were not in a work environment, when she sat looking at him, listening to his mellifluous voice, enjoying his company, that she fell completely under his spell, became hopelessly vulnerable to him. He was the most dangerously attractive man she had ever met. It was not only his face, his powerful dark gaze, his elegance and distinction, but the enigma of him. For there was something extremely mysterious about Maximilian West.
And of course there was his charm. Maxim had fatal charm, the kind that makes women commit terrible indiscretions. He was a natural born lady-killer who, without doing one single thing, had women flinging themselves at him. Then again, on yet another level, there was the intellect, the brains, the drive, the energy, the ambition and the success. It was a combination that spelled one thing – power. And power was exciting to her, an extraordinary aphrodisiac like no other she had ever known.
‘You look as if you’re drifting off into Never-Never Land with Peter Pan and Wendy,’ Maxim exclaimed somewhat sharply for him, giving her a hard stare.
‘I’m right here and standing to attention, figuratively speaking that is,’ she said, forever swift on the draw and ready with a riposte. ‘If I appear to have a glazed expression it’s only because I’m concentrating on your words, Boss. And truly, I have heard everything you’ve just said.’ She offered him a bright, reassuring smile. ‘Let me sum up for you – John Vale of Morgan Lane wants you to be the white knight for Lister. Everyone involved wants it.’
‘That’s right,’ he said more mildly, sounding mollified.
‘And you’re not interested, are you?’ she went on, hoping to prove to him that she had indeed been listening, had picked up the nuances implicit in his voice. Her eyes held his.
‘No, I don’t think I am,’ he admitted.
‘Are the figures that poor?’
‘On the contrary, they’re quite impressive. In fact, the company’s in great shape.’ He let out a sigh. ‘It’s me, Grae. I’m just not excited about it, I guess. Not enough excited, anyway. No fire in my gut. I don’t believe I want to pick up my sword and go into combat for a newspaper empire. That’s more up Rupert Murdoch’s alley. Come to think of it, John Vale ought to have asked Rupert to be the white knight, not me.’
Maxim stopped, laughed ruefully. ‘Vale is dropping the Lister accounts off at the house later, and I suddenly wish he weren’t. I don’t think I can summon up the energy to look at the wretched things, never mind study them.’
‘Do you want me to do it for you, Maxim?’
‘We’ll see.’
He motioned to one of the waiters, ordered two more drinks, then turned to her, put his hand on her arm. ‘I’m not staying in London for the weekend after all, Grae.’
‘That’s no problem. I can be ready whenever you say. I’m half packed. When are we leaving? Tomorrow or Saturday?’
‘I’m leaving tomorrow. On the morning Concorde.’
From his emphasis on his first word she knew he was leaving alone. He rarely did that when they were together on business, and unable to disguise her surprise she stared at him. ‘Oh,’ was about the only word she could muster.
‘Normally I would say come back on Concorde with me, but I’d like you to stay in London this trip, to follow through on a few things for me, Grae. You should be able to finish up by the end of the day tomorrow. You can fly back to New York on the company jet whenever you wish. Tomorrow night, Saturday, Sunday or even Monday. The plane’s at your disposal.’
