Fate Had Brought Them Together

Matt walked up to Jenna's table and wordlessly placed her Blackberry on the table a minute or two before seven.

"Matt, what are you doing here? How did you....you checked my calendar on my PDA?"

"Uh, huh. You didn't check mine?"

"No, I feel funny about getting nosy and digging through someone else's Blackberry. As soon as the opening screen came up I knew it wasn't mine; I just turned it off. I remembered that I'd used your charger in the kitchen."

"Go ahead; you have my permission." Matt said, sliding his own unit across the table.

"Matt, I don't really have time for this; I'm supposed to be meeting someone here for breakfast at seven. Thank God I remembered the time and the place at least. He's obviously late, but..."

"Maybe your secretary loaded a cell phone number with the appointment and you can call him? Work with me here, at least check your own appointment calendar."

Jenna turned on her PDA and quickly spun to the appointment screen. What she saw almost caused her to drop the over priced appointment book.

"I suppose your given name is Matthew? Matthew Stevens?"

"Uh, huh, but only my mother still calls me Matthew but you're welcome to. Think about it. We could have had breakfast together...in bed. Plus, now we've got to drive all the way back across the causeway because that's where the customers we are going to visit reside."

"So I guess my seven o'clock wasn't late after all?"

"I'm always punctual."

"I suppose you're going to try to convince me that this is another example of fate, some grand scheme?"

"Uh huh."

"Do we have time for breakfast?"

"Sure. We can discuss why I've had success with your company's products before you meet the customers that buy them from me. Then we can chat about us."

"Us?"

"Long distance romances can be difficult."

"Romances?"

"I've previously chatted with your boss about the need to decentralize your marketing efforts while consolidating distribution to a single channel---my company. I'm confident that our two companies are very close to, 'getting in bed' together. I'm actually flying to Chicago tomorrow on an 'in and out' to participate in a conference to finalize the deal. We want regional marketing directors; your people see the wisdom in that. Since we jointly have the strongest market penetration in the Southeast, particularly in Florida, it makes sense to kick off the regional marketing director program down here. I'm already on record with that recommendation."

"In bed together?"

"Uh, huh."

"An in and out? Those can be so exhausting. Wouldn't you rather fly up tonight and get a good night's sleep so you'll be fresh for such an important meeting?"

"I do have a lady that can stay with Fergus but I guess I'd need to get a hotel room..."

"Oh, I don't think you need to do that."

"A good night's sleep would be nice. Do you think I'll be able to get a good night's sleep?"

"Not very likely."

"Let's order! I'm starved." Matt said, grabbing a menu.

"You are considerably younger than your peers in the company."

"Peers...hmmmm. Okay. I came to this company five years ago after the Army. I have an MBA from a top business school. Everyone starts in sales. The CEO and every officer below him, 'carried a bag'. We're a sales rather than a marketing company. I assumed I'd sell for a year, make plan, get on commission and then go to management. The asked me to do exactly that but by then I was making too much to afford the cut in pay as a manager. I liked the freedom and I didn't really want to leave this part of the country. I figured out the game quicker than most folks do. I also came in at a good time; both the market and the company were in an explosive growth phase. I'm number one in any categories you'd care to measure east of the Mississippi and number three overall out of three hundred. What's the official poverty line right now? I seem to recall that it's $45,000 a year for a family of four. I make considerably more than that in a month and all I have is Fergus."

Matt sipped his coffee and continued. "It's not going to last forever; the company wants to become more management driven but they can't get the people who really know the business---people like me---to leave a serious six figure sales territory for $75,000 a year, a bonus, expenses and a company car. The only ones that do take the management offer tend to be the ones that wouldn't have made it in sales in the long run. My, 'boss' is a nice enough guy but he doesn't have a clue---nor does he get in my way. He keeps busy 'training' the new reps out of college. Ultimately they'll force us to take a management job. They'll have to dramatically increase the comp in order to come close to, 'keeping us whole' which means they'll have to pare back the sales comp to pay for it. They won't be able to match what we make now even backing out expenses; we pay our own. They'll sweeten the deal with stock options and outright stock grants and a title. We are a bunch of arrogant pricks---but never with our customers. Fortune did a cover story on our CEO and called us, 'Mercedes warriors'. Most of us drive them for two reasons. Under the current tax laws, and that's going to change, you can write a business car off in no time and most of us need every tax break we can get. Secondly they're extremely reliable and roomy and make the perfect, 'road warriors' office."

Matt took a sip of fresh squeezed. "Make no mistake; we are warriors. Most of the guys my age and older are former military, all the way up to the CEO. We take no prisoners and while we just got a notice from legal never to use this expression in written correspondence or in public, we eat the competition for lunch and are devoted to driving them in to Chapter 11 or 13. There are over a dozen manufacturers in our industry that no one every heard of five years ago who are now the unchallenged leaders in their product categories. They got in bed with us. In many cases they modified their products according to our directions---because we understood the customers' requirements a hell of a lot better than they did."

Matt paused again to sample his eggs. "Your company has an exceptional product. Quality and quality control are both stellar. It does what it was designed to do better, safer---and cheaper---than the, 'me too' competitors. It might even be under priced at full list price---because it saves the customer money and virtually eliminates the product liability issues. I've converted more customers to your stuff in the office of the risk manager or the corporate counsel than anywhere else. It's accepted to sell to business customers at what we call, 'Best Quantity Price' which represents a small discount for anticipated quantity. I don't ever do that with your stuff. I sell at full list and can prove to every buyer I have that they're still saving tens of thousand of dollars each year. You are also a consummate marketing company. Your product plus your marketing plus our sales force mean big bucks and a win-win for both of us. Have I been arrogant enough? I didn't want to disappoint."

"Matt...I..."

"You and I are going to be together until three and then you, and now it appears that I have a plane to catch. I am thrilled, tickled and amazed that I get to spend the next eight hours with your perfect little butt nestled into the deep leather seat to my right. I am as totally all business during the work day as I am totally not so when I'm off the clock. Let's do our jobs and we'll get to the, you and me part as I'm sitting next to you on a two hour airplane flight gazing longingly into your beautiful blue eyes telling you that I love you and trying desperately to get you to admit that you love me. But enough of that! Eat your breakfast before it get's cold and I'll give you a run down on where we're going and who we're going to see."

"Time out! You cannot slip in that, I love you' stuff and than switch right back to business mode." Jenna said, pretty much convinced that she had almost lost the battle that she had not wanted to win.

"Okay, I agree, a brief time out is indicated. I told you we are warriors; we hate to lose and seldom do. You are the best thing that's ever set foot in my life, although Fergus is a very close second. I'm warning you, I will stalk you! You are not getting away from me. All of this is not an accident. I don't go to church very often; I may have to start, although my parents dragged me every Sunday. There's a plan. A grand scheme---and it says that you and I are supposed to be together. I get it. I believe you are starting to get it. Let go, Jenna and let me love you."

Okay."

"That was too damned easy!"

"You're one hell of a salesman. Give me a second. I've never said this to anyone outside of my immediate biological family. Here goes...I love you, Matt Stevens."

"Finally! I've never worked that hard to close a deal in my life!"

"Was it worth it?"

"Oh, hell yes!"

Matt and Jenna worked throughout the day together meeting his key customers. He was as good as she had ever seen. His relationships with customers were uncanny. As the day drew to a close she understood exactly what their two companies needed to do.

"Do you need to go home and pack? There's not a lot of time, but..."

"No, believe it or not I keep a bag packed in the trunk. My suit will need to hang out in a steamy bathroom but I'll be fine."

Jenna dropped off her rental while Matt parked his car. He met her just in front of the security checkpoint.

"Here." He said, handing her an upgrade certificate.

"My company definitely doesn't pay for First Class." She said.

"Nor does mine."

Matt did exactly what he had said he was going to do as they sipped a decent glass of red. He told her in every way he could imagine that he loved her. All resistance was gone for Jenna. She reciprocated. Nestled in his strong arms it was all good. She knew that it was likely that there was a new adventure ahead for her...for them.

It was Matt's turn to gape in surprise when he got his first glimpse of Jenna's condo.

"You have got to be shitting me! This is the final straw! What are we going to do with two sofas, two coffee tables and two arm chairs that are identical? Well at least the art work will mesh. Now come on young lady, you already knew about this. Do you still have any doubt that this is all part of a grand master plan?"

"Nope. I decided that further resistance was futile at breakfast. How about a shower; I feel grimy."

"Together?"

"Is there any other way?"