"How dare you! Liam, are you seriously questioning my ethics? After what you did last year?!?!"
"Yes! You know full well that you're just as ruthless as I am, Mona. Probably more."
"Owww!"
"Mona! Are you okay?" Liam asked, almost in a panic, as he bent over the attractive middle aged woman.
"What happened?" she asked, trying to shake off the dazed feeling, and focus on the blurry world which was slowly coming back into focus.
"Your thick skull just introduced itself to that steel light pole. Luckily the light pole seems to be undamaged," he informed her, grinning with amusement. The momentary lapse in his composure was already gone, years of board meetings having honed Liam's natural business instincts to a fine point.
"Ugh... That really rang my bell," she groaned, accepting the man's outstretched hand.
"Well at least you only hit the two hardest parts of your body - your head and your rear!"
Once Mona was on her feet, she brushed the dust off of her tight mini skirt, and smoothed her suit. When Liam's head was turned, she cuffed him hard on the ear.
"Hey, what was that for?" he asked in surprise.
"That was for your comment about my head..." she said seriously, looking towards the Wadden Bank Skyscraper across the street to hide her grin.
Several minutes later:
"Well this is where I must bid you goodbye, my lady," Liam said with a grand bow, which made Mona chuckle despite herself.
"Ah, but must you? The parting is such a sweet sorrow!" she exclaimed im a theatrical voice.
"You never were into Shakespeare, were you?" he asked, as he walked away with a final wave.
In the boardroom of Limitless Incorporated Marketing:
"Hello, Mona. What happened?" asked the CEO, with a raised eyebrow."
"Do I still have dirt on me, Miss Farre?!?!" asked Mona, inspecting her clothes.
"No. You look fine, I was just curious. You arrived exactly on time, and you are always at least three minutes early," replied the fifty-something professional.
"Sorry, Miss Farre. I fell on my way to work," she admitted, her pale cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
"I hope it wasn't serious. And no need for apologies, you aren't obligated to be early," she said, making it clear with her tone and expression that early was indeed mandatory.
"Alright, everyone. What I'm about to say doesn't leave this room," Miss Farre firmly informed her audience.
She then continued, "Will Grates - yes, the same Will Grates who founded Oranges - wishes to meet with one of my top people. About what, you might be thinking? I don't have that answer. He said it will be for the ears of whomever he meets with. And be aware, he has indicated that you will be expected to sign a non disclosure agreement."
Everyone looked around eagerly, wondering who would be chosen. Miss Farre gave her team time, then said "To make it fair, I will give each of you thirty minutes to create a marketing campaign for a fictitious product. The details are already in your inboxes. You will then email your proposal directly to me - but from an account I am not familiar with. I don't want to know who has created which proposal. After I have chosen, I will match the campaign and its creator. Does anyone have any questions?"
Amidst the tense silence, Miss Farre smiled tightly, and said "Ladies and gentlemen, start your laptops."
Four hours later:
"Congratulations, Mona! I'm so jealous."
"Don't be! Honestly I'm so nervous about this, I wish you had gotten it, Debbie. I mean, what if I freeze up?" she asked nervously as she twirled a jet black lock of hair.
That evening, after work:
"How was your day, Mona?" asked Liam.
"It was fine. And yours?" she asked stiffly.
"It was... Interesting," he replied thoughtfully.
"Oh?" she asked, only mildly curious.
"Nothing I can really talk about." he admitted.
"Must not be that interesting then," she baited, knowing it would annoy him.
"Here, let me get the door for you," offered Liam, successfully changing the subject as they entered a stylish apartment building.
"Always the gentleman," she said mockingly.
"Hey, I got you home! And you didn't even have to attack a light pole this time," he said laughing.
"This is where I leave you - until tomorrow. Never fear, I'll be ready to protect you from malicious sidewalk cracks first thing in the morning," she said, dangling a tiny pink flashlight key chain.
"You mean you trust me to make it all the way down the hall to my apartment unsupervised?" he asked, widening his eyes.
"I'm willing to live dangerously sometimes. Especially when it's not my neck on the line." she whispered, as she slipped into her place, and clicked the door shut.
One week later:
"Hello Mr Grates, it's such an honor to meet you!" said Mona, struggling to keep her composure.
"Please, call me Will," the billionaire replied with an easy smile.
"Then I insist that you call me Mona," she said, extending her hand.
"A pleasure to meet you, Mona. Our table is over there. Oh, I hope you don't mind, I invited Mr. Reddes from Blingo Marketing to join us as well. You're probably familiar with them, they are located right across the street from your offices," he said, at the same moment that she spotted Liam.
"Uh, that's fine. I'm very curious about what you have in mind," she admitted, still in awe - but now completely off balance.
"Well... I want you and your rival here to come up with a proposal for marketing my old Juicy-Tablets, as the three of us have dinner. If I like what I see, you will both be offered an exclusive contract to prepare the advertising for my next product. If I'm not satisfied, you get nothing except the retainer fee."
Two hours later:
"I love it! And do you know what impressed me the most?" Will asked, smiling.
"What, Sir?" Liam asked politely.
"That despite being rivals, you cooperated perfectly in order to maximize your time. A perfect example was when you did some research online, while Mona prepared a chart.
I have interviewed twenty five pairs such as yourselves from various rival agencies. I always chose two agencies that were close enough to have a history of competition with each other. None of the other pairs could bring themselves to do anything other than compete. You're hired!" Will exclaimed, smiling.
"Thank you, but there's one more thing you need to know before you decide. Liam and I are brother and sister," admitted Mona.
"A brother and sister who work for rival marketing agencies, and can also work together? Now I'm doubly impressed! I do have a little sister, you know," Will said with a laugh.
Describe what you see:
I see two people in business suits. They are walking somewhere. One is a man, the other a woman. The woman has a very short skirt, which is tight fitting. Both seem stiff. The man appears to have his right arm pulled in, so does the woman. Her left hand is in a fist. She also appears to be heading directly for a light pole.
Describe what you feel:
I feel tension. Perhaps these two know each other? There must be an interesting story here!