“The percentage varies, depending on the type of negotiation.”
“So if you did negotiate this deal-which you’re not going to do-how would you get your cut?”
“Vegetables. Next summer.”
“I see.”
He leaned back on the heels of his very expensive loafers. “Just to clarify. You don’t want to move in with him?”
“That’s right.” Moving in with him would mean acting as though they were nothing more than sex pals. Before the first day was over, she’d be begging him to fall in love with her. Just the thought made prickles of sweat break out all over her.
“Then make a counteroffer,” he said.
“I don’t have to make any kind of offer!”
“It’s a negotiation. That’s part of it.”
His exaggerated patience made her want to leap over her desk and throttle him. “My counteroffer is for him to get out of my life.”
He had the gall to appear disappointed in her. “That’s not a counteroffer. That’s an ultimatum. In my experience-and I have a lot of it-these things go better when both parties negotiate in good faith.”
She’d stepped smack into the middle of Crazy Town, and ironically, that finally steadied her. She remembered her first meeting with Heath, when Coop had tossed her contract at him and Heath had negotiated more money. For her. These two didn’t have a normal agent-client relationship, and they wanted to suck her into their nutso world. Fine. Fight crazy with crazy. This was something she could handle. “A counteroffer? How about this? If he gets out of my life, I promise to send him all my Bears T-shirts.”
“I can guarantee he won’t accept a few T-shirts in lieu of life in a luxury condo. Surely you can do better.”
All she wanted was for the misery to stop, and that wouldn’t happen until Coop left her alone. She glared at the Python. “If he gets out of my life, I’ll personally fix him up with Deidre Joss.”
“You’re still not taking this seriously.”
She was taking it more seriously than he imagined. Why was Coop putting her through this? She should have talked to him yesterday. She should have stood in the cold and let him say what he had to say without uttering a word in return. But she’d been too big a coward. She still was. “I’ll do one free month of IT work for the club. But I’ll only work with Tony, and only if Coop forgets I exist.”
“Three free months.”
“Two months.”
“Reasonable.” He pulled out his phone. “Let me check with him.”
“You do that,” she said.
He headed outside into the parking lot. Through the window, she saw him talking on his cell. She watched him pace between her car and his SUV. Finally, he pocketed his phone and came back inside. “No dice. He wants a face-to-face meeting.”
She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t. “No.”
“I thought you wanted to get rid of him?”
“More than I’ve ever wanted anything.”
“Then offer him something he can’t resist. Other than yourself.”
She exploded out of her chair. “When did I get to be so fricking irresistible? Will you tell me that?”
“I’m not the person to answer. Not that I don’t find you charming.”
She bared her teeth. “I don’t want to talk to him!”
“I understand. But this is a negotiation.”
It was madness was what it was. “Two free months of IT, and I’ll do his employee background checks for a year. One full year!”
“Now you’re talking.” He slithered out into the parking lot again. She sank behind her desk. They’d made a pact to torture her.
On the other side of the window, Heath was talking. He braced a hand on his hip, pushing back the front edge of his sports coat. Talked some more. Finally, he came back inside.
“He turned you down.”
“Of course he did,” she said bitterly. “He hates to lose so much he’ll do anything to win, no matter how unconscionable.”
“Not the kindest assessment coming from a woman in love.”
She stared at a point right above his eyebrows. “I’m not in love. And you need to leave.”
“I could do that, but… it seems Annabelle’s stuck her nose in this whole affair, and she’s decided you and Coop need some kind of closure. I don’t know what it is with women and closure, but there you have it. I should warn you that dealing with me is easier than being forced to deal with my wife. I know she seems decent, but inside, she’s a desperado.”
“Annabelle wants me to do this?”
“She’s real big on that ‘closure’ thing.” He sounded regretful. “If I screw this up, I promised I’d call her, and she’ll be over here right away.”
Piper collapsed. She could fight the men, but not Annabelle.
A wave of weariness came over her. “I’ll meet him, but only in public.” She slumped back in her chair. “Big Shoulders Coffee tomorrow afternoon. And only if he gives me his word of honor that he won’t try to contact me again afterward.”
Somehow she’d pull herself together enough to get through it. The coffee shop was well lit and small enough for conversations to be overheard, so he couldn’t get too heated, and she’d be guaranteed to keep her clothes on.
“Hold on.” Heath whipped out his cell.
She wanted to scream. Or cry.
This time the Python stayed inside. “Coop, she’ll meet you, but only in public-Big Shoulders Coffee tomorrow afternoon-and only if you agree not to contact her again after that.” Heath listened, tapped his foot. “Uh-huh… Uh-huh… All right.” He hung up and looked over at her. “It has to be today. And not at Big Shoulders. He has a meeting at city hall, so he’ll see you in Daley Plaza right afterward. Two o’clock. It doesn’t get much more public than that. I think you should take the deal.”
How could winning matter so much? He already had her heart. Now he wanted to stomp it to death.
“Agree?” Heath said.
Her shoulders slumped. “Agree.”
“I’ll never complain about livestock again,” he muttered as he crossed to the door and let himself out.
She shot across the rug, flung the door back open, and yelled into the parking lot. “I hope you choke on your blood vegetables!”
He turned and gave her a thumbs-up, whatever that meant.
23
Piper marched toward the Daley Center as if she were heading to her execution. Anger would have been a more useful emotion than the panic that held her in its grip. She needed to get through this with at least a shred of dignity intact. No matter how much she loved him, how much she’d yearn to fall into his arms, she’d have to hang tough.
An alien-like Picasso sculpture dominated the large plaza in front of the thirty-one-story Daley Center building. Picasso himself had donated the sculpture to the city, and once an artist of his stature handed over such a thing, nobody had the nerve to return it. As Piper approached, the sculpture’s two metal eyes glowered at her, and she glowered right back. Glowering was better than running away.
The wind cracked the American flag, and women’s long hair blew backward. Her zippered sweater wasn’t warm enough for such a cold, damp day. She should have worn her puffy coat, but that would have required thought.
Coop was already there. He stood in the shadow of the Picasso with his head down, unrecognized by the people scurrying past. For a moment, she forgot to breathe.
He saw her, but he didn’t approach. Instead, he waited for her to come to him. He wore a dark, formal suit, white shirt, and repp-striped necktie. She stopped a few steps away, far enough to keep from curling into his chest. “You win,” she said stonily. “Say whatever it is you want to say, and then leave me alone.”
He gazed at her as if he were memorizing her face. She waited for something profound to come out of his mouth, but it didn’t. “What have you been up to?” he said.