A Deal on the Brink

Across from Anastasia sat Liam executives including Philip Liam himself, a silver haired man with a reputation for being both ruthless and efficient.

"Ms. Carter", he said checking his gold watch, we are looking forward to your insights on market expansion. Anastasia's spine locked into place, panic was not an option, she was trained for high pressure situations. She could fix this she thought to herself, she forced a smile casually shutting the briefcase like she had not just opened a Pandora's box of absolute disaster.

"My apologies Gentlemen", she said smoothly. There has been a small mix up, if you allow me just a moment, I will retrieve the right documents.Phillip Liam's expression remained coolly neutral, but she caught the faintest flicker of impatience.

"We do have a tight schedule" he reminded her. The room tilted slightly, she had ten minutes at the best before the deal slipped through her fingers. Then suddenly, the door burst open. Not a polite knock, not a quiet entrance, a full blown dramatic and almost ridiculous entrance. Every single head in the room snapped towards the door as it swung wide open, hitting the wall with a resounding thud and there standing in the doorway with an infuriating smug expression, was him, the careless, disorganized, disheveled, inefficient and tardy man from the coffee shop. Stephan Hayes liked like he had just rolled out of bed and decided to crash a Fortune 500 meeting.

He held a cup of coffee in one hand, his briefcase in the other, and had the audacity to smirk. Anastasia saw red." What", she said, voice dangerously calm," are you doing here?". Stephan grinned, strolling into the room like he belonged there.

"Hey,Ana" he casually said like they were old friends. Like he hasn't just ruined her career, like she wasn't just seconds away from committing a corporate homicide.

Philip Liam cleared his throat "Ms Carter, is this someone from your team?" Her team? She nearly choked, no he is not she quickly rasped out, Stephan made a face, ouch that was harsh. Anastasia was going to kill him slowly, ignoring him entirely she said " I'm so sorry for interruption gentlemen"shooting Stephan a glare enough to slice through glass. He put on an unfazed appearance though he was trembling within and then proceeded to set his coffee down on the conference table. Anastasia eye twitched, You.Outside.Now. He on the other hand, held up a hand." Relax boss lady I came in peace, then to Anastasia's absolute horror, he unlatched his briefcase and switched it with hers, there you go, he said completely unaware of the sheer destruction he had almost caused.

You too my briefcase, she hissed, he blinked, I mean, you took mine first. She was going to throw him out the window. Philip Liam cleared his throat, Ms. Carter is there an issue? Anastasia inhaled sharply, pasting on a winning corporate smile, "not at all", she said smoothly. Everything is perfectly under control, except as she reopened the correct briefcase and pulled out her presentation it had become immediately obvious that everything was not under control, her laptop wouldn't turn on, the battery was completely dead, a cold wave of dread crashed over her, she glanced at the foreign investors all of whom were watching her expectantly, the presentation was everything and she had no way to show it, Stephan who had clearly been watching the horror unfold on her face tipped his face slightly, then to her absolute shock he spoke up.

I think what Anastasia is trying to say is that she doesn't need a bunch of slide shows to impress you, anyone can read financial reports off PowerPoint, but Anastasia? She can tell you exactly why this expansion is going to change the game, without a single note.

Anastasia's head snapped towards him, lips parting in disbelief, what was he doing?

Philip raised an eyebrow, intrigued." Is that so?" Stephan nodded, completely confident. "Absolutely".

Then in a move that made Anastasia want to strangle him, he leaned in and whispered just for her to hear. "Back yourself up boss lady". Her pulse roared in her ears. She had no slides, no reports in front of her, all she had was her knowledge, her experience and a man who against all logic believed she could pull it off. She straightened her spine and then spoke. For the next twenty minutes, Olivia delivered the most passionate, razor sharp and compelling pitch of her career, she didn't rely on a screen, laid out every opportunity and risk with precision and owned the room, by the time she was done, Philip was nodding.

Well Ms. Carter he said smiling for the first time that was one hell of a presentation, she, still trying to catch her breath forced a calm nod, I'm glad you think so.

Philip turned to his team, let's discuss things.

She had done it. As the meeting wrapped up, she let out a slow measured breath then she turned to Stephan, you she said dangerously quiet, are a menace. He grinned, you are welcome and despite herself, despite everything she nearly smiled back.