Total pages in book: 64
Estimated words: 61248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 306(@200wpm)___ 245(@250wpm)___ 204(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 61248 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 306(@200wpm)___ 245(@250wpm)___ 204(@300wpm)
I cover the phone with my hand. “She’s not happy you’re here.”
He takes the phone from me, and I move out of reach of the cord while he reclaims his perch on the desk. “What the fuck is going on?” he demands, and, yes, what is going on.
“Focus on business, Harper. I’m here. I’m not leaving. Deal with it.”
Ethan looks skyward and scrubs the tension at the back of his neck before he adds, “I get it. Now, what the fuck is going on?”
He listens a minute and then drags his phone from inside his jacket pocket, thumbing through messages. “They sent me the amendment and notes. I see what they did.” He slides his phone back into his jacket and says, “It’s only a bad deal for her if you let it become a bad deal for her. And since it would be a conflict of interest for me to explain that point of view, I can’t tell you what to do. If you’re as good as I think you are, you’ll figure it out.” He listens a moment and says, “Yes. It will, but we’ll make that work. I’m going to give you your client back.” He offers me the phone, giving me a small nod of reassurance.
I accept it and press the receiver to my ear. “Harper?”
“If they sign the Zoey line, they want you to be exclusively theirs for ten years. The only way that works is if they pay you a whole hell of a lot more than the proposed in your mentorship agreement.”
My lashes lower as I ask, “What did they offer?”
“A million.” My knees are weak even before Harper adds, “We need that to be five million. In addition, you maintain ownership of the brand with split profits and auditing terms I approve.”
“That’s a lot.”
“It’s really not, but they’ll huff and puff as if it’s a small fortune. And they’ll want the monetary rewards to be based on performance goals, and won’t want to have it be paid out upfront or in a lump sum, but we’ll push back hard. I’ll insist on a cash payout at five years if you hit certain performance goals. If they won’t do any of this, you need to be willing to walk away.”
At the huge number discrepancy, my gaze rockets to Ethan as I ask, “Is this going to fall apart?”
“No,” he says, at the same time Harper adds, “Doubtful. They’re just testing us to see what they can get away with now that the head legal counsel, David—I swear these dweebs are always Davids—finally read the agreement. The dipshit let someone else handle this and then had buyer’s remorse. He realized they’d left out the standard clause Moore’s requires for this type of partnership, but I think this can work in your favor. They opened the door for further negotiations.”
I press my hand to my forehead and turn to lean against the desk. “I can’t believe this is happening.”
“Every contract I write has a cold feet clause. You have three days to back out. The problem is they have the same, and his lack of attention to the contract has now turned into an after-signature negotiation. Which is, again, why I’ll need to threaten to walk. Do I have the approval to issue that threat should it be needed?”
My stomach roils, but I manage to steady my voice. “If that’s what you think we need to do, then yes.” I drop my hand from my forehead and press it to my leg. “I trust you.”
“Okay, then. The good news is that despite Ethan doing what I advised against by visiting you, he’s there to distract you from the stress of the negotiation. Only that’s not really good news at all, not for him. Because the bad news is he’s put himself in a compromising position with you and the board. He’s supposed to look out for Moore’s.”
“And he’s not?”
“He believes fair negotiation means long term relationships thus he is indeed, looking out for everyone involved. He’s wrong. Send him home. Now. Fast. If you care at all about his future—”
“I do. Of course, I do. And I will.”
“Good. Be forceful. And get your phone charged. More soon.” She hangs up and leaves me with the task of being selfless enough to send Ethan home. Alone. Without me. And he’s not going to take well to me pushing him out of the door.
Chapter Thirteen
Sofia
I’m reeling from the news Harper has delivered and at the idea that Ethan has placed himself in jeopardy by coming here to me when he steps in front of me, his hands settling on my shoulders. “This means that the buy-in to your brand is big, and so is our greed.”
“That’s not a selling point for Moore’s.”
“It’s not about Moore’s specifically. It’s business, and frankly, if you were anyone else, I’d be behind the decision to press for these terms, and David knows it. He knew they fucked up and I’d be pissed when I found out.”