Driving south on Cicero Avenue, Beth hit a coffee shop for her morning jolt of caffeine. This should last me until I get on the train at airport, she thought. About 20 minutes later she pulled into the Park and Ride lot at Midway Airport, just in time to catch the 8 am train downtown. Once she got to work there was a coffee shop in the building where she could get another large cup to help her get through the rest of the morning.
Beth had been at Prudential Life for almost 10 years now, and had worked her way up to Executive Accounts Manager. Walking into Two Prudential Plaza gave Beth a sense of security and comfort. No one really got into her personal life here; it was mostly all business all the time. That was the front she was presenting to everyone now, but three years ago things were a little different....
It was at a conference in Boston where she met Bill Norris. He was a Human Resource manager for the Star Electric Company of Greater Boston. Star provided most of the installation and maintenance for a large percentage of the public buildings in the Boston area. His company was shopping around for a new insurance carrier, so he was attending a public forum put on by Beth's company to recruit new corporate accounts. Beth was presenting at the conference that was being held at "The Pru" in downtown Boston. Bill approached her after her presentation and asked if they might get together to crunch some numbers.
It was late in the afternoon by then so Beth said, "Bill, I don't know that I have the time right now. I have a flight back to Chicago tonight; I just came in for the conference."
"Miss Shannon, I was duly impressed with your presentation, and I am leaning towards Prudential Life as my company's new carrier. We have over 700 employees. If you can cancel that flight and meet with me tonight, I am confident that we can do business."
Beth quickly weighed the implications of landing a new account of this magnitude. She had been "this close" to being named Executive Accounts Manager last year, but she had not been able to land a "Platinum" account, one with over 500 employees. If she could close this deal with Star, she would almost certainly get that promotion.
"Let me make a couple of calls Bill, if you're serious about this then one more night here in Boston will be no problem."
"Ok Beth, I'll be down in the lounge. This is almost a done deal as far as I'm concerned. After your presentation, I'm almost sold on ‘The Rock'."
"Give me 10 minutes Bill, then I'll see you down there."
He smiled and walked toward the elevators. Beth was feeling something inside. She didn't know if it was the excitement of the deal or something else. She cleared things with her boss in Chicago, and then contacted the airline to rebook her return flight. After a quick stop in the ladies room, Beth made her way to the lounge, prepared to make the biggest deal that she had ever made. If this didn't get her that executive position, then nothing would.
"Miss Shannon, did you cancel your flight home?"
Bill was seated at a table near the windows. He was sipping a glass of red wine and had removed his suit jacket. Beth couldn't help but notice that he had a lean, athletic build on his six foot frame. His tailored shirt fit snugly against his body; his five o'clock shadow was a striking contrast to his brilliant white shirt. He was stunningly handsome, with his sandy hair and blue eyes, almost to the point of looking like a male model straight out of one of the fashion magazines that she always read.
"Yes, it's all taken care of," she said; "we have the whole night to nail down the details on this matter."
"You sure you don't mind spending this much time with me," he replied, while looking directly into her eyes.
Beth felt that feeling inside again, this time she knew that it wasn't anything to do with the deal.
"I'm positive Bill, and please, call me Beth."
"Beth is a beautiful name."
"Actually my full name is Bethany. My folks chose it; they're big-time into the Bible."
"Well, I'm not much of a Bible guy," said Bill, "but that name suits you."
"Well, thank-you. I go by the name Beth most of the time... seems less formal."
Running his hand through his hair, Bill said, "Where are you staying while you're in town Beth? This place isn't exactly suitable for discussing the details that we need to get into."
"Actually I'm over at the Intercontinental."
"That's one of the best hotels in downtown Boston," he replied.
"Tell you what...they have a great restaurant there and it's getting close to dinner time. Let me buy you dinner, then afterward we can use one of their business rooms to iron out the details. How does seven o'clock sound?"
It sounded like a fantastic idea, Beth thought. After all, it was a business dinner and she did have to eat anyway....
"That sounds good Bill. I'll meet you in the lobby around seven. In the meantime I need to get back with my colleagues upstairs before I leave."
"Okay Beth, I'll stop by my office and get some figures on what we are paying with our old carrier. See you tonight; I'm looking forward to our dinner!"
He stood and pulled her chair back as Beth got up from the table. Taking her hand into both of his to shake it, Beth felt excitement at his touch and his closeness. She smelled his cologne as he turned and walked out of the lounge. She couldn't help but watch him leave, almost enchanted now by his persona.
She was feeling anxious now, a bit uncertain about what she had just felt towards him. She reminded herself that she was happily married to Pete, and that this was just another business meeting. But something deep inside told her that this night would be a test for her in many ways.
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