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“Ms. Lee?”
She snapped to attention, then searched her mind, trying to remember what the interviewer had asked. “Was my decision to start Future Trends influenced by my father’s appointment of Robby Robriquet to run Lee Polls?” she prompted.
“Yes,” Derrick returned. “Was it?”
“Of course not!”
“You’re sure?”
“Absolutely. I’m very happy here. Who wouldn’t be?” She waved a hand to call his attention to the surroundings. She’d revamped a two-bedroom apartment in a brownstone, the same one she’d initially shared with Susannah when they’d first arrived in New York nearly a year ago.
Since then, Susannah had reunited with J.D. and Ellie had retooled the place into an office. New gray carpet, simple black lacquer desks and classic plum window treatments had made the apartment look trendy and upscale.
“But it was assumed you, not Robby Robriquet, would have that position?” Derrick Mills prompted.
Silently, she damned the reporter for rubbing salt in the old wound. “Not really,” she denied. “Or, to whatever extent I assumed that, I’m not sorry.” She offered a wry smile, hoping Derrick would fill in the blanks.
“Not sorry that Lee Polls has trended downward in sales and contracts? Some of its oldest customers have jumped ship since you left, you know.”
“Sometimes it’s either sink or swim.”
“And you’re swimming while Lee Polls is sinking?”
“You said that, Mr. Mills, not I.”
“But where do your ultimate loyalties lie?”
“With myself.” She arched a brow. “I mean, do you think I should retain family loyalties merely because Lee Polls has been run by Lees for so long?”
“I wondered.”
“None whatsoever. Business is business, Mr. Mills. We all know that.”
“Clearly, you do. No wonder you’re so successful. Many might have experienced the Robriquet appointment as a setback, but instead, you opened Future Trends within a week of your father’s decision. There have even been rumors, saying that you now intend to sell your new business already, for a hefty profit, once more proving your lack of sentimentality. ”
“Quite the contrary. I’m looking for acquisitions, although not for sentimental reasons.”
“Lee Polls?” He eyed her. “Are you considering buying your family’s company and merging it with Future Trends?”
“Again, you said it, not I.” She laughed lightly. “Although nothing’s in the works quite yet.” But if she was quoted in the newspaper, Robby might start to sweat, she thought. And after what he’d done to her, she wouldn’t mind making him squirm.
“People might take such a move as vindictive.”
“Well, I’ve never cared what people think of me.”
“Fair enough.”
“But as I said, I’ve got no feelers out right now.” She smiled once more. “I’d need to find more office space first, anyway.”
“Three rooms could be cramped after a merger,” he conceded, glancing from where they were seated to what had been the living room a few months ago.
Following his gaze, Ellie tried not to grimace. Her only employee, Angelina Carrella, had seemed excellent on many levels, at least initially. She was neat, prompt and efficient. However, love had entered her life, and now the girl was ruined. An engagement had followed, and ever since, Angelina was distracted and absentminded. Yes, in only a few short months, she’d transformed from a demure assistant into a brazen spitfire who spent half the day on the phone with her fiancé, Antonio, or the various relatives from whom she was soliciting funds to pay for an absurdly lavish wedding.
Each day, Ellie was treated to the very last thing she needed to see—pictures of gowns, flowers, cakes and bridesmaids’ gifts. One minute, the wedding would be black and white, then pink and blue, then red and green. Plans had begun for Valentine’s day, then Christmas, then Antonio’s birthday. Every step in the direction of finalizing a decision caused lengthy phone fights.
Even worse, despite Ellie’s clear instructions to behave while Derrick Mills was on the premises, at least, Antonio had now arrived to take his sweetheart to lunch. By the looks of it, and the very loud smacking sounds, if the two didn’t leave soon, they might well wind up making love on Angelina’s desk.
Ignoring the trajectory of her interviewer’s gaze, Ellie continued, “Well, most of the analytical work is done by computer here, and I often meet clients in their own offices.”
Derrick Mills was still watching the couple. “Looks like you’ve got lovebirds around.”
So much for ignoring them. “She was an excellent assistant before the engagement,” Ellie quipped with a wry smile.
“A wedding can be so exciting,” Derrick said on a sigh.
Great. He was a romantic. Ellie couldn’t help but notice he began toying with his wedding ring. “A newlywed yourself?” she guessed.
“Almost a year ago.”
About the time Ellie was leaving Robby. “I’m happy for you,” she managed, very much doubting she sounded sincere.
Not that he seemed to notice. When his eyes found hers again, they held that dopey dazed look of the truly loved. “No man in your life at the moment?” he prodded.
She tamped down the images the words conjured…Robby’s hot body slick with soapsuds in the shower, asleep on his back with a sheet draped over his hips like a loincloth, lifting her off her feet and whirling her in a circle. “Afraid I have too little time.”
His eyes were on Angelina and Antonio again, and when she followed his gaze once more, Ellie realized it was no wonder. The Latin lothario had his sweetie nearly backed against the desk now, his hands on her hips, a huge, lusty Cheshire grin on his face. The hem of Angelina’s skirt was rising dangerously high on her thigh. Heat rose in Ellie’s cheeks. The other day, she’d returned from a client meeting and found the couple nearly sprawled across the couch. Well, maybe that was an exaggeration, but there was definitely a tongue kiss, thus a reminder of the passion she’d once shared with Robby.
“They’re in that beginning phase,” she offered.
Derrick Mills turned his attention to her once more. “It’s amazing how long such a phase can last,” he said cheerfully. “My wife and I hope it will go on forever.”
It won’t, she wanted to ensure. She knew better than these lovesick fools. And between Mr. Hearts-and-Flowers and the two love bunnies in the next room, it was downright hard to conduct this business meeting. “Uh…do you have any more questions to ask?”
Glancing down at the pad on his knee and riffling through the pages, Derrick considered. “Sorry. At any mention of romance, I just…”
Ellie raised a hand and held it up, palm outward. “No need to explain.” Sighing, she prompted, “Your next question?”
“I use the old-fashioned stuff,” he continued absently. “Paper. The electronic devices drive me crazy. So I’ll need just a second to collect my thoughts.”
While she waited, Ellie smoothed her skirt and recrossed her ankles. The rust-orange suit and shoes she’d chosen looked amazing, but weren’t comfortable. Still, a photographer had arrived with Derrick, and she wanted to seem her best. If a picture did make the paper, Robby would see it, since he always read their popular publication.
Robby. Again! Cutting off the thought, she wondered why the damnable man kept invading her mind. The affair was over. Period. And yet she sometimes awakened, more than she wanted to admit, her sleep-hazy mind full of dreams about the raw sexual passion they’d shared.
“Well,” Derrick began. “I believe I’ve got everything I need. I’m struck by your success. So is my boss. That’s why he sent me here. I really wanted to meet you personally, rather than just speak on the phone, and now that I have, I’m truly impressed.”
So the article was going to be a good one. She fought the urge to shout with joy. “Thank you, Mr. Mills.”
“In under a year you’ve built an amazing company. You’ve cut the overhead so much—”
“There’s virtually none.”
“And many of the clients you previously handled at Lee Polls have remained loyal.”
“To me, yes. A lot of…my father’s clients followed me, too.”
“Any idea why? Robby Robriquet is an excellent and talented manager.”
But Robby wasn’t bringing home the bacon. He was best with numbers, she with finding new business. Oh, Lee Polls was doing well enough, but she’d been a third of its lifeblood for years. And as far as she knew, her dad really had retired. Not that she’d spoken to him.
“Mr. Robriquet is skilled,” she admitted. In fact, in her weaker moments, she hated to see him lose business. She knew how hard he worked, what it meant to him. He was every bit as talented as she, too, but…“The stars were with me.”
“Celebrity clients?”
She chuckled. “That, too. On that score, moving to a larger city where I can network more easily has helped. But I meant the stars of fate. I’ve just had a good run lately.”
“You’re too modest. You called a few long-shot elections, one national. In fact, so far this year, your polling data has been more accurate than anyone’s in the political arena, at any level of politics, local or national. Your analysis has constantly exposed glitches in data, where others have missed them. You’ve called new trends, too, and that has allowed you to make particularly accurate assessments.”
“There was the John Lewis campaign,” she agreed, speaking of a senatorial race in the South. “We got lucky there. Then the Wally Willis congressional call. We correctly determined the way Billings Corporation, the pet manufacturer, should drive its new business, as well, which had immediate, positive results for them, and their stock prices soared.”
“Results that were nothing short of amazing,” he agreed. “Do you care to share your secret?”
She laughed. “You want me to divulge the fine print of my pact with the devil?”
“A lot of people would like to know.”
“Just good footwork,” she assured him. “Solid data collection and long hours of analyzing numbers.”
“A lot of people don’t believe that, you know.”
She squinted. “Believe what?”
“That you don’t have a secret. Your predictions can be downright uncanny in their accuracy. People would pay a small fortune to understand how you do it.”
She laughed. “Who? Bookies and weather forecasters?”
“Among others.”
“I could tell you about my crystal ball,” she joked. “Or the cards I throw. Maybe even the special tricks I use with the I Ching. But I’d be lying. And anyway, starting this business hasn’t been a bed of roses.”
“Could have fooled the public.”
She frowned. “I had some difficulty when I was first getting started. New work was coming in, but…” Robby was still a constant distraction. “I was busy then, helping my friend Susannah Banner open a restaurant in this neighborhood, a sweet little country place named Oh, Susannah’s.
“My wife and I eat there all the time, and I knew you and Ms. Banner were friends.”
“You’ve heard of Susannah?”
“In name only. Her husband’s famous, and the restaurant’s had great reviews. It’s wonderful, as I said.”
“So is Susannah.” Ellie absently lifted a hand, touching the charm she wore. Now she just wished Susannah was in New York. A few days ago, she’d returned to Banner and J.D., after flying in to check on the restaurant. During the visit, she hadn’t mentioned Robby, of course, but no doubt, Susannah saw him regularly. Yes…she was treating Ellie with kid gloves, afraid any mention of Robby would send Ellie into a funk. At any rate, Ellie knew Robby and J.D.’s previously shattered relationship had been repaired, so they were pals again, and that meant Susannah was probably often in his company.
So she could have asked about Robby, but somehow she’d refrained. She didn’t want Susannah guessing at her heartbreak and doing the worst possible thing—playing matchmaker.
Derrick Mills was watching her. “Would you like to share anything more, Ms. Lee?”
Ellie thought over the past months, and the mystery surrounding J.D.’s supposed death after an explosive device had been detonated aboard his boat, The Alabama. As it turned out, J.D. escaped the wreckage unscathed, but he’d used the opportunity to walk away from his old life and start fresh. By pretending he’d really died, he’d been able to clean up his hard-living ways and win back his wife.
Due to those incidents, Ellie had been forced to return to Banner, however briefly, to attend J.D.’s funeral. It was the last time she’d seen Robby. Even a couple months later, she still felt raw from the experience. He’d looked as good as ever, dressed in a dark suit, and he’d been incredibly kind to Susannah, too, helping her make arrangements, so Ellie couldn’t help but feel touched.
She, too, had put aside past animosities. In the brief time they’d spent together, they were thankfully never alone. And they hadn’t talked business, nor about their affair, only about Susannah and J.D. Maybe they should have, she thought now. Maybe it would have been better for her and Robby to yell and scream, instead of being civil. Maybe that could have healed the ache that plagued her every time she imagined his face.
The vision of it swam in her mind now. The high forehead, straight nose, full lips. His skin was always glowing from a combination of good health and sun exposure. Swallowing hard, she tried to push away an image of his eyes, but she couldn’t. They were sparkling, arresting, deep with knowledge. She and Robby belonged together, Ellie suddenly thought. Every time she thought of him, she knew she’d made a mistake.
Robby was her fate, her destiny. And yet she was powerless to return to him. This office represented her innermost self, too. Even if her parents would fault her for it, work fulfilled her as nothing else could.
Whatever the case, she thought, returning to the topic at hand, Susannah and J.D. were back together, as happy as peas in a pod. “I don’t think I want to elaborate on J. D. Johnson and Susannah Banner any more than I already have,” Ellie finally decided.
“My only remaining question concerns what you see in your immediate future.”
She smiled, thinking the phrase sounded catchy, and making a mental note of it. “The future of Future Trends?” Before he could respond, she continued. “Funny you should ask. I am about to do something totally unprecedented in the history of the polling industry.”
Derrick took the bait, leaning forward. “And you’re going to let me announce this in my article?”
Astute fellow. “Of course.” She flashed a smile. “I’m going to put my money where my mouth is.”
“How?”
She glanced toward the front room. “As you’ve made clear, you’re no stranger to the necessity of passion. And ever since Angelina and Antonio became engaged, I’ve been inspired…”
Now Derrick was beginning to look a little confused.
“By using my polling skills and talents with statistical analysis,” she said, “I’m going to find a mate.”
Derrick chuckled. “You’re kidding, right?”
Slowly, she shook her head. “As you know, today’s marketing strategies include tricks unimaginable a generation ago. Today, there are databases chock-full of information about everyone. With nothing more than my computer, I can access a world of data about you—where you go, what you earn, where you shop, what you buy, what you do for entertainment, who you know, what you read…”
“I get the point.”
She laughed softly. “Scary thought, isn’t it?”
“If misused.”
“Well,” she assured him, “I’m in the process of putting my data gathering and analytical skills together to demonstrate why everyone should use Future Trends. After this, everyone will understand that we can make any correct prediction, right down to what you’re going to have for dinner tonight.”
“You’re already blowing people out of the water.”
“Maybe. But this will be spectacular. Within two weeks, I expect to finish crunching my numbers. In addition to available data, I’ve requested focus groups and questionnaires, the results to which Angelina is entering into our private database now. And from all the existing information in the country, I expect to find the man with whom I would be the most compatible.”
