The Deal (closed)

[BeachBum25]

Timothy Roberts 32/m.... 6'1"..... 175 lbs..... brown hair... hazel eyes

Timothy had inherited an advertising agency in New York City when his parents were killed in a plane crash as they returned from a vacation in Europe. Timothy wasn't crazy about getting the business. He had really wanted to go out on his own after earning his degree in Graphic Design. His father's agency had become rather stale. Their ideas were old.. just like the men that he had working for him. Their ideas were old like the people.... Timothy wanted to start fresh. The plane crash changed all of that.

After finishing with the grieving process Timothy went to work trying to change the mindset of the agency. It wasn't working though. The people just were not willing to change..... they were stuck in their ways, and clients were going elsewhere. He tried to change people, but it was too late... the business was in deep trouble. There were a couple of clients he was able to keep. He worked with those clients individually, and he downsized the agency in hopes of saving it, but it was inevitable that he was going to have to sell, or close the doors.

There were several other advertising agencies that were interested in buying the Roberts Agency. The clients they still had were profitable accounts. Timothy began to entertain offers. His lawyers had narrowed it to three possibilities. Timothy met with two of them and came away unimpressed with their offers and their agencies as a whole.

This afternoon Timothy was meeting with the third suitor. Hopefully, this one would be better than the previous two.

 

[zydrate]

Mikayla Watson waited in the lobby of the Roberts Agency. The receptionist, who was probably older than dirt, told her that she let higher ups know about Mikayla arriving for her appointment.

Wearing a silk green top with a black pencil skirt, Mikayla placed her business bag next to her and took a seat to wait.

She knew that the Roberts Agency was to be expecting a different person for the meeting but James had been called away because of a family emergency and that left Mikayla on her own for the first time since being employed with Fullerton Advertising.

If she could pull this off, then not only would it mean a big commission for her but also a big investment for the company.

She could not screw this up.

 

[BeachBum25]

Timothy moved into the conference room. He laid his paperwork out on the table. He had information on the person who he was meeting with. Their paths had crossed a couple of time in the past. He knew James had a reputation for being hard-nosed in his dealings. Timothy was going to drive a hard bargain for his family's agency.

He told his secretary to tell the receptionist to send the representatives from the Fullerton Agency up. The secretary was instructed to lead them into the conference room when they got in.

Timothy sat down in the leather chair at the head of the long conference table. He waited their arrival. He wondered where his plan had gone wrong. Then thought about his parents.

The door to the conference room opened, which jolted him from his daydream. In walked a woman.. alone. He stood and looked at her... questioningly. "Hello, I am Timothy Roberts. Where is James?"

 

[zydrate]

As she was escorted to the conference room, Mikayla calmed the butterflies in her stomach by remember the encouragement she received from James the day before...

Remember Mikayla, this guy is going to be a hard ass. And he has every right to because this is his company. Of course I don't have to remind, just stick to what we discussed and you'll be all right.

He believed in her and she had to too.

"Mr. Roberts, I'm Mikayla Watson, I'm sorry, I know you were expecting James but he had an emergency to attend to." She reached her hand out to shake Timothy's hand and didn't flinch when he didn't take it.

Mikayla kept her composure about it all and took a seat only until after Timothy took a sit himself. She was about to ask if it was OK if he dealt with her instead of James but she didn't want to give him a choice. He might say yes, she'd lose not only the account but also his trust in the Fullerton name. "So, Mr. Roberts, let's get started."

 

[BeachBum25]

Timothy did not take her hand when she offered it. He was thinking about what this meant. Did they send this young, attractive woman as a way of throwing him off? Was she some hard line negotiator that was sent to make a better deal than they attorneys had discussed?

He sat back in his chair and watched as she sat down and said they should get to it. He thought for a second. "Well, I am not sure we should continue. I was led to believe that one of the top people in the Fullerton Agency were going to be here to meet with me. Now, no offense to you, but I have never heard of you and I have no idea who you are. Is this some kind of negotiating ploy being employed by the Fullerton Agency?"

He leaned back in his chair to look at Mikayla Watson's reaction. He was not happy, and this stunt was going to make the deal that much harder to consummate. "I'll tell you what.... I will listen to what you have to say, but, if there is a substantial difference between what you present and what my attorneys told me to expect, these negotiations will end quickly."