Unlikely Venture (The Venture Series Book 1) (26 page)

JAMES RECLINED IN the plush leather chair. He shuffled through the reports on the table. “Great work, guys. Interest in these new games is huge. Investors love to see this kind of activity.”

“So Jay, speaking of investors, when do you think we’ll hear back from Blue Coat?” His project lead Ron voiced the question on everyone’s minds.

James regarded the hopeful faces staring back at him. He smiled and mustered up as much confidence as he could. “I’m sure the call will come in soon, guys. Chris and I feel really positive about our meetings with Blue Coat. They’re probably just taking some extra time to finalize the details around the offer.”
I hope that sounds more convincing to them than it does to me.

“Do we have a Plan B?” Ron cleared his throat. “I mean, just in case they decide to pass?”

Before James could answer, Chris barged into the room, a big smile plastered on his face. “Gentlemen, let’s take a break!”

James furrowed his brow. “What’s going on, Chris? Everything okay?”

“I have some big news to share. I just got a call from Blue Coat offering us two million dollars in funding. They’re
in
! We did it! Congratulations, everybody!” Chris punched his fists up in victory.

James jumped. “Are you serious? Don’t screw with us, Chris. Is it true?”

“Yes! It’s true! Two mil, baby!”

“Holy shit!” James ran his hands through his hair and sank back into the chair. They were on their way now. Blue Coat wouldn’t have invested if they doubted the future success of LazerShark. It was almost a guarantee that there would be a profitable IPO in the future.

Everyone in the room cheered, clapped, and hooted. The rest of the employees ventured in to join the festivities.

“Guys, we are headed for a fat payday! Come on, let’s get out of here and celebrate! Go round up the troops and we’ll meet downstairs in five.” Chris clasped his hands together and grinned at James. “I told you not to worry.”

“I just can’t believe it. It’s what we wanted, what we worked on for so long. We’re finally
here
.”

“Things are going to happen, Jay! Do you know how much more growth we’ll see from this?” Chris shook his head. “It’s ridiculous to even think about. Jesus, this is unreal!”

James laughed. “And here I was, fooled into thinking you were so confident about LazerShark’s future.”

“Dude, I had complete faith.
Always
. Now let’s get the hell out of here! It’s been a long road. We really deserve a break before we crank it into high gear.”

“Okay, okay. I just need a few minutes. Tell me where to meet you.”

“No way, Jay. We are united from here on out. Call Jessica to give her the good news, then we’ll all go together. And move fast, I’m starving!”

James chuckled. “Fine.” He headed back to his office as the rest of the team geared up for the impromptu lunchtime celebration. Collapsing into a chair, he dialed Jessica’s cell phone number. Voicemail.
Maybe she’s in a meeting.
He shrugged, a little disappointed he had to wait to share the news.
Oh well, she’ll see I called and get back to me when she’s free.

Chris appeared in the doorway and let out an impatient sigh. “Come on, man! Did you tell her yet?”

“Nah, she’s probably with a client. I’ll call later.” James packed up his laptop bag. “Everyone’s ready to go?”

“Oh yeah. Myself included. Let’s roll!” Chris clapped his hand on James’s shoulder. “This is our ticket, Jay. The friggin’ golden ticket! You really needed to have more confidence in us. Think of all the sleep you lost worrying. And we won’t talk about sleep you lost due to
other
factors.” He flashed a wicked smile. “Tonight you can rest easy. Or…maybe you won’t.”

Chris pulled out his phone as the ringtone blared. “Blakely! Long time, how’s it going, man?”

James shot Chris a questioning look.
Blakely? Why do I know that name?

“Get the hell outta here! Where are you now?” Chris turned to James with wide eyes. “Yeah, we’re heading out that way. Why don’t we meet up later? I’ve got some news, too.” He paused, waiting for a response. “Okay, yeah, see you then.”

He turned to James. “Holy shit, Jay.”

“What was that all about? Who’s Blakely?”

“Guy I went to college with, remember? You’ve met him a couple of times. The one who built Secure Transact?”

“Oh yeah!” James registered the name, remembering their last run-in with Rich Blakely. Arrogant prick. He never understood why Chris associated with that guy.

“He just told me he got rid of his top two executives. Said Secure Transact is moving ahead under his name only. Something big happened there. I told him we’d meet him later. You okay with that?”

James grinned. “Yeah, so long as Jess doesn’t get back to me first. Then you’re on your own with that asshole.”

Chris chuckled. “Yeah, he’s a piece of work. Whatever. Never hurts to keep a network. I mean, look at Emerson. There’s a world class dickhead and being in his good graces just made us the hottest new company in the Valley!”

“Easy, killer. Don’t get ahead of yourself.”

“Aw, come on Jay, be a
little
overzealous, would you?”

“I’m just fine.” James laughed. “I’ll feel better once we have the check in hand.”

“Well, we have some time to finalize everything with our lawyers and get back to them with an answer. Should be a no-brainer. They’re messengering over the contracts tomorrow.”

James stopped before they reached Scotty’s Bar. He saw their rowdy group in the window, raising toasts to the future of LazerShark.

“Chris.” His voice turned serious. “Thanks for being my partner. I couldn’t have done this without you.”

“Don’t get all sappy on me, man. Tonight we celebrate, tomorrow we keep kicking ass. Together.” Chris winked. “Think Avery Hunter is still in town? Think I have a shot with her now?”

James laughed, holding the door open to the bar. “No, and most definitely
no
. But I wouldn’t worry about it. I’m sure you’ll find several others that’ll turn your head.”

JESSICA LEAFED THROUGH some printouts on her desk, searching for potential companies to contact. Now that Paul probably blackballed her in the elitist venture capital circles, she needed to develop a new client list. Charlie would come looking for it sooner than later, although he was probably still stewing over her meeting with Justin in New York.

She smirked, hoping he got chewed out for his little stunt. What a fool he was for thinking he could get away with his little game. Or maybe Benton finally made an offer.
Oohhh, please make it good enough that he’ll take it and be out of my hair forever!

Tapping away at the keyboard, she made some notes for another set of companies in the area. Thoughts of James crept in and a smile spread over her face.

The phone rang, yanking her out of a delicious daydream. A Manhattan area code appeared on the display.
Charlie?
It was getting more than a little strange that she hadn’t heard from him, despite his probable anger.

“Jessica Latham.”

“Jessica, it’s Jake. I’m sorry it’s taken so long to get back to you. Things have been pretty crazy here.”

Jessica perked up. “Crazy, how?”

“You won’t believe—”

Her phone buzzed again.
Call waiting. Manhattan
again
? “Jake, hold that thought. I need to take this call real quick.” She didn’t know who it was, but something told her to answer.

“Jessica, this is Pam Ross, Justin Rosen’s assistant.”

She winced at Pam’s clipped voice.
Does she always need to be so unfriendly? What’d I ever do to her?
“Oh, hi, how are you—”

“I have Justin for you. Let me patch him through.”

Jessica bit off a stray cuticle.
What’s this all about?

A moment later, Justin’s voice came on the line. “Hey Jessica, it’s Justin.”

“Hi there. How are you?” Jessica was a little thrown off by the call. Charlie was the primary interface to Justin and the partners, so why would Justin be calling
her
? Unless…

Justin sighed. “I have some news to share with you. I know you’re out in Palo Alto, but we have had a situation here that you should be aware of.”

“Okay. What’s going on?”

“Charlie is no longer with DMC. He resigned yesterday.”

Jessica jumped out of her chair and danced around the office with glee. “He
resigned
?
Yesterday
?”

“Yes, and he gave us no notice. He’s also taking Derek with him. Unfortunately, the next part is the more difficult news to deliver.” Justin cleared his throat. “He’s going to Benton McCauley as a partner. He’ll be running their newest practice…focusing on technology start-up companies that are working towards an IPO.”

Jessica gasped. “He
what
? How is that possible? He didn’t have—”

“Evidently, he brought the idea to them when you began working on it months ago. They promised him partnership if he could hand-deliver all our research and analysis to them. Benton McCauley saw the potential with this type of business, and they already have a solid team in place. From what I’ve heard, their practice has grown tremendously and they’re adding more consultants to their staff as we speak. It turned out to be a very lucrative proposition, Jessica. Charlie knew from the beginning that it was a winner and he passed along all of the documentation you put together, all of the client contracts,
everything
.”

Jessica’s eyes filled with tears. All her work was finished, just like that?
That’s why he was so dismissive of my efforts out here, why he kept derailing my meetings. That bastard!
She worked so hard to launch this practice, to finally get the recognition she deserved and the opportunity to create a name for herself in the industry. Now everything she’d built was crumbling down around her.

“What does that mean for us? Can’t we take action against him for transferring intellectual property?”

“Regrettably, no. It’s too late anyway. They already have a practice that’s up and running, with a good number of clients who don’t really care how they did it. The clients only care about what they can get for their money, and with the quality of resources Benton McCauley brings to the table, they’re getting quite a bit.”

Jessica slumped in her chair, unable to speak
. What does this mean for my job? Do I even have one any more?

“But Jessica, while I’m sure this is coming as a shock to you, understand that we’re all really impressed with everything you’ve accomplished. You went above and beyond in your efforts to launch this new business, and the partners value your talents. So, we want to try to offer you some restitution.”

Jessica nibbled on her thumbnail. “I’m not sure what you mean…”

“We’d like you to take over Charlie’s area, effective immediately. You’ll run the group as a senior manager and if things go well over the next months, we will officially promote you. I’m sorry that things worked out this way, but we hope this offer will make the situation a little more palatable. We want to provide you with a chance to join the partner track. You’ve got the type of work ethic that sets DMC apart from its competitors, a key reason why we’re the best in the industry.”

Jessica sat in stunned silence trying to focus on Justin’s proposal. This was the end goal. The promotion she worked to achieve was now being handed to her. It was symbolic of her independence and self-reliance, but that didn’t really seem to matter very much any more.

That son of a bitch Charlie took everything she created and made his own partnership opportunity. Those scumbags at Benton McCauley stole her ideas and had the good sense to put focus on an area that obviously showed promise. It was absolutely infuriating. Jessica wanted to kick and scream and throw things, and then numb her aching head with lots of wine.
Yes, that’s exactly what I need.

“So, what are the next steps?” Jessica twirled a pen around her fingers as her mind raced. She’d have to do quite a bit to get up to speed on Charlie’s areas.

“Well, starting next week, you’ll meet with Charlie’s department heads to learn about their ongoing and upcoming projects, create a strategy for your new organization and begin executing on it. I know it’s difficult to walk away from something you’re so passionate about, but there are still opportunities for talented individuals like you. We hope that you’ll seriously consider our offer.”

“Okay. Next week.” She nodded. “I can do that.”

“Great, so plan to get back here on Monday morning. We can let one of the other consultants run the projects out in California since you’ll be occupied with your new role here in New York.”

New York. Jessica did a double-take.
Next week, in
New York
?

Justin continued to comb through the logistics, but all she heard was “your new role here in New York.”
But I can’t leave Palo Alto now. I can’t leave James.

“I’LL MEET YOU inside in one second.” James pulled out his phone and checked the ringer. Still on vibrate. He would have felt it if a call or text came through.
Strange that she hasn’t called back yet.