Trust in Advertising (41 page)

There was no way for Lexi to have any idea what the apology was for exactly.

He had said and done so many upsetting things that she had lost count. She was furious at herself for being a coward, for not telling him what happened with Jade, but that didn’t excuse his behavior. She was mad at him for everything, but mostly for being Vincent.

It seemed like a lifetime ago that she was sitting on that swing with him, her stomach filled with butterflies as she wondered if he was actually going to kiss her. And then later, when she was wrapped in his arms, sharing the most perfect kiss she would ever know, the world seemed like a much different place. But now, in this office with Jade lurking in the shadows, she found herself growing tired of his hot and cold treatment.

“Which time, Vincent?” Lexi shook her head sadly as she took the file and walked out of his office, slamming the door shut behind her.

Not even bothering to stop at her desk, Lexi walked right to the restroom and locked the door, needing just a few minutes to clear her head. There was far too much Vincent Drake rolling around in her brain for her to get anything done. The man was the master of mixed messages. He pulled her into his office and they had a discussion over a tiny phone incident, but the big topic of them kissing was completely dismissed. Then, right when she was ready to punch him out, he apologized. A girl could get emotional whiplash around this man.

Could Lexi survive that?

She let the cold water run into the sink, chilling her hands as it flowed between her fingers. She splashed a small amount on her face in an effort to shock Vincent from her system. The mirror loomed in front of her, revealing a tired, weary woman that Lexi hated looking at.

“Get over it, Lexi,” she lectured herself out loud. “You did it once, you can do it again. Move on, find out where you really belong in the world.” She glared at herself. “And if you let Jade treat you like gum stuck to the bottom of her shoe again, I’m kicking your ass!”

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Rejuvenated after scolding herself in the bathroom, Lexi grabbed the file and made her way to Elizabeth’s office. She’d only been down to Elizabeth’s office a few times. It was nestled back in the corner of the floor, away from the daily ruckus of the office. Behind the large, ornate desk, Laurence, Elizabeth’s secretary, greeted her with a warm smile. He was an older gentleman with salt and pepper hair. He had been with Hunter for over twenty-five years and was a wonderful story-teller with plenty to share from his years with the company.

“Miss Lexi, how wonderful to see you. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

The area outside Elizabeth’s office was very similar to where Lexi worked, with print ads lining the walls. The clients and products in the ads here, however, were very different. The work Elizabeth did was always so classically done, her attention to detail apparent in every shot. While Vincent was more about the big picture of a campaign message, Elizabeth tried to evoke emotion, not only with the things they said in the ad, but in the setting and body language.

“Good morning, Laurence. Vincent asked me to give this to Mrs. Dee. How are you today?” Lexi sat down in a chair and set the file on her lap.

“I’m very well. Thank you for asking. Mrs. Drake is just finishing up an overseas phone call and then she’ll be right with you.”

“That’s fine. I’m in no rush.” There was something about the tone of her voice that caught Laurence’s attention.

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“How’s Mr. Drake?” he asked cautiously. Lexi’s eye roll response made him laugh. “That well? You know by now not to take his ranting personally, right?”

“Oh, this one was very personal,” Lexi said under her breath.

“There’s no excuse for poor behavior, but there might be a reason. Did you hear he lost the Walker account? With all of these clients choosing other firms, Elizabeth’s afraid he thinks he’s losing his touch.”

“When did Walker tell him? He just had his meeting yesterday.” Lexi slouched back in her chair.

“From what I heard, it was at the end of the meeting. He said Vincent didn’t impress him enough. Whatever that means.”

The door to Elizabeth’s office opened, and she poked her head out. “Laurence, I need to speak with … Lexi. Just the lady I was looking for. Come in, dear.” Her warm smile made Lexi temporarily forget the awful start to her day.

“Vincent wanted me to give you this.” Lexi handed the file to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth flipped through the pages and smiled. “Yes, we’ll definitely need this. Laurence, hold my calls please.”

Lexi was awestruck each time she walked into Elizabeth’s office. The huge panes of glass that intersected at the corner gave a breathtaking view of the city.

Every day she had the city to look out at, to dream over, to make her smile. Tiny cars drove past on the network of roads below, and little dots of people scattered around as they moved through their daily lives on the streets of San Francisco.

Elizabeth sat down in a plush leather chair and set her bottle of water onto the tiny table beside it. She beckoned Lexi into the chair beside her and opened the folder, flipping through the contents and pulling out a few sheets before smiling at her.

“How are you today?” A frown suddenly appeared on Elizabeth’s face.

“You’ve been crying.”

“No, I just splashed a little water on my face. I’m fine.” Elizabeth saw everything, noticed every detail about people. Nothing got past Elizabeth Drake, no matter how hard Lexi tried.

Elizabeth sighed. “I know my phone call put him in a bad mood, but there was no reason to take it out on you.” Elizabeth tapped her nails on the arm of the chair. “I’m going to have a long talk with my son.”

“No, please don’t do that. My issues with Vincent today actual y had nothing to do with the phone call. We argued about something entirely different.”

That caught Elizabeth’s attention. “Did he even mention my call?”

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“No, but I might have overheard a little bit of his end of the conversation, and when we were at the end of our
discussion,
he handed me this and told me to bring it to you.” Lexi shrugged her shoulders and glanced out the window where she could see an airplane soaring through the cloudless sky.

“Well, since he was too much of a coward or too pig headed to tell you, I guess I will.”

Lexi felt her nerves kick into high gear. Something was off. Her senses told her this wasn’t an insignificant discussion they were about to have. “O-okay.

What d-do you want to talk about?”

Without hesitation, Elizabeth placed her hand on Lexi’s. “Relax dear, it’s not bad. I wouldn’t lure you into my office and fire you out of the blue. That’s not my style.”

An irrational thought popped into Lexi’s head as she thought back to the angry conversation she’d caught bits and pieces of. “Did Vincent ask you to fire me?”

“No, he didn’t. And for the record,
I
hired you so I’m the only one who can fire you. In the past, I’ve made the mistake of letting him pick his assistants and then he fired them, but your job is actually much more secure than even Vincent realizes, so don’t you worry, dear.”

“I’m sorry. I have no idea why I’m so emotional today.”

“It’s fine, dear. Everything is fine. The reason I wanted to talk to you is I have a proposition, if you’re game. I think it would be a great opportunity, and I hope you will consider it.”

The hint of excitement in Elizabeth’s voice was contagious, and before long Lexi found herself on the edge of her seat.

“What you and Vincent did with the Stone account was nothing short of amazing. It would have been amazing even if it was the original presentation, but knowing that you two put that together the night before, it was astonishing.”

Lexi blushed at the praise. “Thank you.”

“I want you to know that Vincent told me just how much of that presentation was your idea.” She sipped her water, watching Lexi’s expression of surprise. “He may be a hotheaded jerk, but he gives credit where credit is due, and to hear him speak about it, you deserve a great deal of credit for that presentation, so thank you. You really helped land an important account for the company.”

After the drama of the morning, Lexi was shocked to know that Vincent had been so honest with Elizabeth, especially when he didn’t need to be. He 249

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could have allowed her to think that all Lexi did were the typical assistant duties: running copies, taking notes, and feeding him while he created the fabulous presentation concepts. But instead, he’d praised her input and made sure Elizabeth knew about it. Of course, that was totally opposite of everything Lexi had overheard him saying that morning.

A frustrated sigh escaped from Lexi. “Your son’s the most confusing man I have ever met.”

“I know.”

“I’m sorry,” Lexi said, shaking her head. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“Let me cut to the chase. I like you. I think you’re a natural at this, and your ability to read people and situations is invaluable. Sean also told me that you did some freelance ad work for Hope’s shop, the Crowbar. I did a little research, and again I have to say am thoroughly impressed with your work. The concept, the style was perfect for what you were trying to achieve and the demographic you were trying to reach.”

Lexi felt the rush of blood to her cheeks as they flamed red. “Thank you,”

she said timidly, “it was no big deal.”

“On the contrary, it is a very big deal. Those ads were brilliant, and the way you marketed the shop showed great ingenuity. Even Vincent remembered the ads that ran, as did Robert. They stuck with two men who truthfully can’t find the mustard in the refrigerator even when it’s looking them in the face, so for them to take notice is high praise.” Elizabeth laughed then became very serious. “Can I put all my cards on the table and have a very off-the-record conversation with you?”

Without pause, Lexi answered. “I’d never betray your confidence, Elizabeth.”

“I know that, dear. Thank you.” She slipped off her heels and casually folded her legs under her. “I wanted to give you a promotion.”

The suspicions she had earlier were confirmed with Elizabeth’s admission.

She noticed that she said “wanted,” past tense. Rather than saying anything, she simply nodded and let her continue.

“You have amazing potential, Lexi, which I don’t think you even realize.

That presentation I gave you that Friday in the copy room—do you remember?”

Again Lexi nodded but remained silent. “It was a test of sorts. I saw what you had been studying in college, and I wanted to see if you still had it in you after being out of the loop for so long. Not only did you find the errors I purposely made, but some of the rearrangement you did to my final product was so fantastic, I 250

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used it in the actual presentation. Eight years away from your studies and yet you jumped back in the mix and impressed me, which I have to say is not an easy thing to do.”

The compliment overwhelmed Lexi. “I—I don’t know what to say. You’re too kind.” Tears welled in her eyes.

“Be clear, I’m not being kind, Lexi. People adore you. They respond to you. I can’t tell you how many clients I’ve talked to since the gala who have asked how you are doing. They remember you because you have this inexplicable spark. I know Vincent has explained that a good part of what we do is sell ourselves to clients, and you’re already mastering that. The area I think you need to work on is your confidence.
You
need to believe that you’re as good as I know you are.”

There was no point in trying to hide how overwhelmed she was anymore, and for the second time that day, tears fell down Lexi’s cheeks. “You make me feel like I can do anything, Elizabeth. And it’s been such a long time since I thought about chasing my dreams.”

“I want that for you, dear. I want to see you blossom and grow. You’ve waited so long.” Unable to stand it a minute longer, Elizabeth pulled the crying girl into her arms and offered her whatever motherly comfort she could.

A few minutes passed, during which Lexi desperately tried to let what Elizabeth said sink in. Her praise, her confidence meant the world to Lexi. After the emotional rollercoaster she had been on for the last forty-eight hours, Lexi wasn’t sure how much more she could take.

“So where do we go from here? I heard Vincent say he didn’t want me to get the promotion.” She took the tissue Elizabeth offered and dabbed it under each of her eyes.

Out of the blue, Elizabeth chuckled. “That might be how it sounded dear, but I assure you, Vincent knows you’re destined for more than being his assistant forever. He wasn’t opposed to your promotion. He was however, vehemently opposed to where I wanted to send you.”

Now Lexi’s curiosity was piqued. “And where exactly were you going to send me?”

She sat back and sighed. “Productions.”

“Why does Vincent care if I go work in productions?”

“I think who you would have been working with upset him more than where you would have been working,” Elizabeth admitted.

“Tony.”

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“Yes, he was adamant that you were not ready to have Tony as your supervisor.”

Suddenly, Lexi was annoyed by Vincent’s meddling. “I can handle Tony, I assure you.”

The fiery response made Elizabeth laugh out loud. “Oh, I know you can. My nephew can be quite difficult, but I’ve heard that on more than one occasion, you put him in his place.”

“I was just doing what Vincent told me to do.”

“And therein lies the problem. My nephew and my son don’t get along. My brother and I inherited the company when my father died, however, when he married his fourth wife, Billy decided it was too much of a bother to be tied down to one place, so he sold it to me with the condition that his son have a job.

Tony and Vincent were the same age, both out of college and looking to start careers. I accepted the terms and became president of the company. Vincent and Tony never got along because Tony made everything a competition between them. On paper, Tony was a better student, with perfect grades, but Vincent was more well-rounded and creative.”