Page 65 of Hired Husband

It should’ve been an automatic win, but even with Basel’s support, the board could still decide to go in a different direction. That was what today was about. And why I felt the air whoosh out of me when the doors opened and David fucking Maher walked in.

He wore a charcoal suit with that smug smirk on his lips that never seemed to leave them when I was in the room, and unfortunately, a small army came in behind him. They were equally polished, and since they were carrying blueprint tubes and laptops, I could only assume that he would be entering a competing proposal.

I glanced at Basel but his expression hadn’t changed. It was still completely unreadable as David greeted several of the other board members by name. He shook hands with the rest before taking a seat along the opposite wall, evidently waiting for his turn to present.

Joseph leaned toward me and whispered, “I don’t like this.”

I gave him a nod I hoped was imperceptible to everyone else, then turned my attention to one of the directors who was adjusting his glasses, his gaze suddenly on us. “Mr. Thayer, thank you for coming in today.”

“Of course.”

“Your presentation was enlightening but ambitious,” he said, which was corporate speak for impressive but expensive.

Fuck.

We’d stayed within the upper band of the budget Basel had mentioned, but there were a hell of a lot of ways to get this done cheaper and everyone in this room knew it. “It is ambitious. However, Mr. Osman and I both believe that the long-term benefit of the energy solutions we’ve introduced will offset some of the difference in the initial outlay. There’s also the economic benefit to the city as a whole if we don’t ruin the landscape of an area where the city is expanding.”

Another director shook his head. “That area was chosen specifically because it is earmarked for industrial development. Your projected construction costs exceed our preliminary estimates for this phase of the project.”

“They do, but they’re within range, and the preliminary estimates didn’t account for incorporating as many energy-saving elements as we already have, which means we’ve eliminated costs further down the line.”

“Yes, that’s true,” he said, but his tone indicated there was a big old but coming. “But function must come first, and as pretty as some of these decorative features are, we don’t strictly need them to keep the place cool. We could achieve that without all the fancy bits and still incorporate solar panels and whatnot.”

“They’re not only decorative features,” I said, then cleared my throat when I caught a warning look from Joseph about my tone. “What I mean to say is that they act as passive cooling systems, reducing direct solar exposure and minimizing heat gain. It just so happened that beauty and efficiency could be the same thing for this project.”

“I support the proposal,” Basel said crisply. “I brought him on because I wanted someone willing to challenge conventional design and to build us something GlobalStar will be renowned for in the future. That is exactly what he’s done. It’s not all about the money, gentlemen.”

For a moment, I thought that might settle it, but then they really started in on me, asking question after question. I answered every one and so did Joseph, but by the end, I couldn’t tell if we’d managed to convince them.

Finally, the chairman dismissed us and I walked out after nodding at Basel, not feeling particularly confident that I’d be building this thing after all. Basel wanted it. I knew that. He had the same vision as Joseph and me, but his board hadn’t appeared nearly as enthusiastic.

“I feel like we just took an oral exam,” I muttered to Joseph as we walked out. “Seriously, that was intense.”

“Do you think we’ll pass?”

“No.”

“Same,” he said, sighing as he glanced back at the doors swinging shut behind us. “You can be sure David will present a stock standard industrial complex. Gray blocks. Steel. The cost will be considerably lower.”

“Yeah, I know. I was really hoping we’d skip the surprise competitor part, but no such luck, huh?”

“I suspected there might be someone else. It’s a profitable opportunity for any company and it guarantees hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs over the next few years.” He shook his head slowly. “I just didn’t expect our main competitor to be the Mahers. To my knowledge, they’ve never done anything like this before.”

“Well, as you said, it’s a profitable opportunity for any company, including theirs. If they get this project, it might just be the cash injection they need to stay afloat.”

Joseph grimaced. “Yes, but it also means they will compromise quality to cut costs wherever they can. This does not bode well for us, Isaac.”

“No, it really doesn’t.” We reached the coffee shop at the base of the GlobalStar tower and placed our orders. Then we sat down and waited nervously for the verdict to come in. While we were doing that though, I figured this was probably the time to say what I’d been thinking. “Thank you for everything, Joseph. If we don’t get this bid, it definitely won’t be your fault. You are a true genius.”

He inclined his chin. “Likewise. It’s been a great pleasure, Isaac. I’ve truly enjoyed working with you.”

“Same here. I kind of wish we’d get this project just so we can keep working as a team, but I guess there’s not much chance of that happening.”

He chuckled, leaned back in his chair, and swept his dark brown eyes across my face like he was considering something. I didn’t push him to tell me what, though. Over the last few weeks, I’d gotten to know the guy pretty well, and whenever he got that look on his face, it usually meant he was coming up with something brilliant.

I would just have to wait him out, so I lifted my coffee to my mouth and left him to it, looking around at the modern epitome of success that was the GlobalStar Tower. As could be expected, the lobby was all sleek steel and glass, the space as cavernous as a shopping mall with rows upon rows of elevators along the far walls and a few little cafes and restaurants taking up the front.

Behind a low security wall that allowed turnstile access with keycards only, a massive reception desk spanned a few yards with no fewer than five receptionists occupying it. When dealing with Basel personally, it was often easy to forget who he was, but sitting here, looking at all this and knowing it belonged to him, I was reminded that GlobalStar was much, much bigger than one man’s vision.