Real Love Ch. 19

Writer's Notes:

'Real Love' is my personal tribute to JJ's (JammyJimmy) story, 'Threads: The Island'. I give JJ credit, because credit is due, for this story and for my own inspiration and entrance into writing. 'Real Love' is actually the first story I wrote, even before 'Tale of Two Teens', my first published story.

As I was writing this story way back when, I was hoping JJ would be a co-author and editor. Having been unable to make contact with him, I've been reluctant to release it. Some say JJ has passed away, but I don't know. JJ, if you read this and want this story removed, please contact me. Several readers have relayed to me, both publically and privately, that they would like it released.

Therefore, 'Real Love' is an unauthorized, re-imagined rewrite and sequel to JJ's story, 'Threads: The Island'. The general storyline in JJ's story is embedded in this story. Several of the character names have been changed because this is my story. Anyone who has read JJ's story will identify the characters quickly, starting with my main character, Bradley Weber, formerly known as Kyle Watson in JJ's story.

This story is long, but tolerant and filled with several emotions. If you stick with it, you will experience euphoria, happiness, sadness, sorrow and it will make you horny. You'll be disgusted, pissed off, scared and you'll grieve, cry, frown, smile and sometimes, you'll laugh, I hope.

'Real Love' starts off slow, but gains speed with age. Feel free to leave comments about what you like and what you dislike about the story. Feedback is a good thing for those writers who want to know what reader's like and dislike about their stories.

Please don't be mean in the comments because those that put in many hours of thought into designing and writing these stories don't appreciate it, nor do they deserve it.

I do hope you enjoy the 'Real Love' series. Just don't forget one important detail -- it's fiction. Please do give us 'not so professional' writers a little slack.

JJ, wherever you are, whatever you're doing, fair winds and following seas my friend.

Let the saga of Bradley Weber continue...

MDSW

* * * * *

They land in LA in mid afternoon and take a limo to the mansion they own. Brad is impressed with the residence as Kelly gives them a tour while the staff puts their clothes away.

As Brad and the team get use to the residence, they glide out to the pool and relax as the staff brings them refreshments. He closes his eyes as he thinks about the many reasons he's in LA and the companies he will visit in the coming week.

The staff prepares dinner for them and Brad said it's as good as the food on the Island. All to soon, they're getting tired and head off to bed. No sex tonight for Kelly, or Brad, a new record for the books. He also senses the Charles incident is behind them, but it has been a challenge for them the last couple days.

* * * * *

It's Friday morning and the business fun begins. In a way, Brad is looking forward to meeting with the companies, and in another, he's not, but he does look on the bright side of all scenarios he can possibly expect, but what happens on his first visit isn't on anybody's radar, as luck would have it.

As Team Brad arrives at Packard Records, they face the first challenge, getting inside the record company. When Brad, Kelly and Debi disembark from the SUV, guarded by their security detail, they're greeted by the CEO, Mr Larry Strait, and the VP, Mr Chuck Little, surrounded by local TV stations and the paparazzi. Not understanding how they knew he'd be here is one for the books, but he moves on, focusing on the present.

"Brad Weber," he says as he greets Larry, then Chuck. "May I introduce my staff, Ms Kelly Miller and Ms Debi Gilbert," he says as his hand points at them.

As they greet them, Larry tells Brad to call him Larry, but Chuck doesn't do the same so Brad thinks that's either unprofessional of him or something else is brewing. How unusual is it for Chuck to be that way.

They make their way inside the Packard Records building amid the mass of reporters and paparazzi yelling questions and asking for poses. They're also blocking the way and the doors, but the security team quickly clears the way. Entering the building, Team Brad notices how nice the decor is.

Normally, in this meeting with the CEO and VP, they exchange information about the company finances, business projections, absenteeism, work production and other details relating to the feasibility of the company to stand on its own two feet. This is the information Brad is expecting here and all other Packard Empire companies they visit.

As they make their way to the top floor, they make small talk, but Brad notices Chuck appears to be mad about something. He hasn't said a word, other than introduce himself, and maintains a serious, approaching a pissed off expression on his face the whole time.

Helen, Larry's secretary, escorts them into Larry's office with a smile and a pleasant persona. They get comfortable with Brad sitting at the end of the coffee table, Debi sitting to Brad's left, and Kelly next to her, in a curve. Chuck sits opposite Brad, just a little off line with Brad's view of Larry's secretary through the office window, favoring Larry's side. Larry sits off to Brad's right, on the opposite side of the coffee table from Debi and Kelly. There's plenty of space for everybody to stretch out and get comfortable. Helen has already placed water bottles, hot coffee and coffee cups on the coffee table in the middle of the circle of chairs.

Kelly gets her personal phone out, turns it into a voice recorder and lays it on the empty chair next to her.

Chuck opens the conversation by saying, "Okay girls, step outside so us men can talk."

A chill goes through Kelly and Debi as they become uncomfortable and nervous hearing that. Brad experiences the same chill, not to mention being pissed at the contents of his opening statement.

"Excuse me Mr Little. Larry, I should have done this before we started, but would you mind if I speak with your secretary for just a second before we continue?"

"Not at all, Mr Weber. Go right ahead."

"Thank you."

Brad stands and moves between his staff and Chuck, turns to face Kelly and Debi and mouths 'I'm sorry', then he says, "Wait here for a minute, please. I'll be right back."

They nod and Brad goes out to Larry's secretary, Ms Helen Cole, as she stands, introduces himself and shakes her hand. She tells him to call her Helen.

"Call me Brad, Helen, and please have a seat... What do you think of your VP? I'm looking for the honest truth as you see it, and a quick answer. I'm sorry to do this to you, but give it to me straight as I don't have a great deal of time here."

Helen responds immediately, bluntly saying, "He's killing the morale in this company and he has no respect for anyone, not even Mr Strait."

"That's what I thought. Thank you. After I get back to my seat, call security, get a two man team and have them wait here with you until I wave them into Larry's office, please," he says, and winks at her and she smiles back.

Back in the office, Chuck says, "Okay girls, you're minute is up. Wait outside and don't give me any lip about it."

Kelly replies, "With all due respect Mr Little, we will stay here until Mr Weber tells us to relocate."

As Chuck stands, he says, "I wasn't asking, I'm telling you to..."

Larry interrupts saying, "Sit down, Chuck. They will stay there until Mr Weber says otherwise. And that will be another warning in your file."

Chuck sits back down, fuming and annoyed he didn't get his way. He isn't even phased one bit by the warning.

"Yes sir, I will do that for you... Brad, sorry," Helen says as a grin creeps to her lips.

Brad thanks Helen, gives her a fist bump, then returns to Larry's office, oblivious to what happened in his absence.

As he's returning to his chair, he wonders if he's ready to do this. Brad decides to get into a bad cop/good cop role by playing a dumb leader, yet a nice person. Eventually, he knows he's going to have to deal with the VP, but he doesn't know how far Chuck is willing to take this, so he mentally prepares himself to be assertive, then begins speaking.

"Sorry for the interruption everyone," Brad says, then speaks with a stronger voice. "Mr Little, there are very few people on this planet that are allowed to order my staff around and thankfully, you're not one of them. They're not leaving this office because they go where I go, whether you like it or not. If you can't say what you want to say in front of them, you should consider not saying it at all. And, if you have any brains at all, you will choose your words carefully from here on."

Brad sees Helen make the call as Kelly and Debi ease some of the fear they're feeling, making a mental note of his strong take control mentality, and they feel better for it.

Kelly is thinking this will be his first real challenge as an owner and wonders if he has enough conviction as an owner to handle the situation. She hasn't specifically trained him how to handle this type of situation, nor does she know if he needs to be trained. Debi is also concerned he may not handle this well, but for different reasons. He's looking good to them right out the gate, which allows both of them to relax, somewhat.

"Okay, your decision," Chuck says and continues. "I find it difficult to believe that a 23 year old kid will be telling me how to run this business."

"Chuck, what the hell are you doing? That's enough!" Larry blurts out, his anger very evident.

"Relax Larry. Let him answer my questions."

"I will not let him answer Chuck, and I've had enough of your stupidity and lack of respect. You're..."

Brad interrupts, "Excuse me Larry, if I may interrupt. It's evident that he lacks professionalism and I understand you're pissed off right now. If I were in your shoes, I would be too, anybody would be. However, allow me to apologize on Mr Little's behalf because he doesn't appear to understand what he's doing. On the other hand, I really want to know where he's going with this. So please, if you would allow me handle this, I'll be forever in your good graces."

Larry, with an extremely pissed off expression, nods before Brad completes his statement. Then he covers his face with his hands and tries to muffle his laugh, realizing what he just agreed to.

Brad is surprised to hear Chuck's statement as his face turns to disbelief, then he answers.

"If you're implying that a 23 year old kid needs to tell you how to run this business, I can hire one off the street if it will make you more comfortable in your position as Vice President," Brad says, ignoring the obvious reference to himself.

"I'm not and I don't need an idiot off the street telling me how to run this business!" Chuck says, suddenly displaying an elevated level of aggravation.

"What would you do if I did tell you how to run this business?"

"I would resign."

"Good choice," Brad says a little too loud.

Chuck continues, saying, "I've learned a lot about this business in the years I've been here."

"Would you feel better if Larry wasn't hired as the CEO?"

"A lot better."

"Did my Father interview you for the job?"

"Yes."

"I understand why he didn't hire you already," Brad says. "That's too bad though. It's not what happened, is it?... You sure have a unique way of starting a meeting, Mr Little. I'm sure Larry will accept your resignation at anytime, if that's the way you feel. I know I will in a heartbeat. We await your decision."

"I will not resign," Chuck says without hesitation.

"Interesting. You will resign, but you're not going to resign. That sorta makes sense coming from you."

Chuck is obviously annoyed by Brad's remarks.

"Anyway, the good news is, I'm here as the owner of the company. I'm not here to run it and I have no interest in running it. But, if that were my intention, I probably don't need you then, do I?"

Larry is hiding a smirk as best he can as Debi and Kelly deal with the same problem.

Shaking his head, Chuck says, "You don't understand business."

"Chuck, I've heard enough!" Larry says with an angry tone in his voice.

Chuck motions for Larry to calm down.

Brad responds, saying, "I'm sorry Larry, but allow him to dig his own grave. He's doing a great job so far so let him finish please."

Inside, Brad smiles at Larry's reaction and continues.

"Mr Little, once again you're confusing my job. Running this business has little to do with me. That's Larry's job. That's why he's the CEO. Now, this business aside, please explain your problem?"

"You don't have the experience to do the job you inherited," Chuck replies.

"Two things, Mr Little. One, I don't need experience at this moment because I'm here to learn about this and other companies in the Packard Empire so I don't expect to be making any life changing decisions just yet. Two, to the best of my knowledge, my job as owner doesn't report to you for any approvals or advice that I'm aware of, unless the company lawyer failed to inform me of such matters. I can call him and ask if you like," he says, reaching to Kelly for his business phone.

"That won't be necessary."

Brad ends the search for his phone with a smirk on his face.

"Just as I thought... Well then, you telling me I don't know how to do my job likens to you pissing into the wind, a totally stupid thing to do. So tell me, how do you want me to respond to your scenario?" Brad asks.

Chuck is getting more pissed the more he puts his foot in his mouth, giving Brad more opportunities to help him do so. Larry is taking mental notes and likes Brad's responses. Both Kelly and Debi have completely lost the fear they felt minutes before.

"You should resign and let professionals take over before it's too late," Chuck says, aggravated at Brad's last statement.

Okay, that does it. No more Mr Nice Guy, Brad is thinking. His stupidity has overwhelming given him the impression he's not up to being an executive.

Appalled, Brad says, "Excuse me? Do you honestly expect someone to resign as owner of a $810B company and give it away? That's beyond absurd, approaching total stupidity," he says, looking at Chuck with an unbelievable expression. "I never thought any of my executives to say something as stupid as that."

"And, onto professionals are we? You want me to resign so a professional can take over Larry's job. Mr Little, that makes no sense whatsoever. To me, that's even more stupidity. Are you telling me Larry isn't a professional?"

"You're missing the point," Chuck says, trying very hard to maintain his composure amid his anger.

"Well, let me see, I guess that's possible," Brad says as he folds his arms in front of him and rests his chin on his raised up arm. "So tell me, since I'm not as smart as you, what is your point?" Brad asks.

"I'm not talking about Larry. I'm talking about you!"

"Yea, now we're getting somewhere! May I surmise, then, that you want professionals, such as yourself, to replace me and Larry because we're not professionals?" Brad asks, intentionally trying to piss Chuck off.

"No! This has nothing to do with Larry," Chuck replies, raising his voice and showing significant signs of frustration and anger.

"Well then, my mistake. That means you want professionals, such as yourself, to replace me because I'm not a professional?" Brad asks.

"Yes. Finally. I wasn't aware owners can be so stupid," Chuck says, trying to piss off Brad.

Larry slams his hand on the arm of his chair, looking at Chuck with a high tension expression on his face, but says nothing. His face is inflamed with anger, which everyone can easily see it. If it gets any hotter, it may well burst into flames. It's obvious Larry is very pissed, ready to spit nails. You can't deny it if you wanted to. Debi and Kelly are startled when his hand hit his chair, causing them to jump, even though they were looking at him.

"Live and learn Mr Little, and thank you for the insults," Brad says with a smile. "But seriously, can't you find a better way to insult me than that? Why do you hate me so much?"

"Because you're going to destroy this company," Chuck replies.

"Interesting. Two insults in a row. You're on one hell of a roll.... If I'm understanding you correctly, you hate me because of what you think might happen at some time in the future. I have to admit, that's different. I won't buy it, but thank you so much for your lack of brain power and zero support. I will pass on you telling me I'm not a professional, for now, but reserve the right to address this issue in the future, if I feel it necessary."

"To change the subject for a second, just out of my own curiosity, please tell me what job you hold at Corporate."

"I'm the Vice President here at Packard Records."

"That's it? You're making statements about the Packard Empire so I assume you have a job working for the Corporation in addition to being the VP here at Packard Records. My problem being I don't remember seeing you at any meetings I've attended in the last two weeks."

"No. I don't work at Corporate, if that's what you're wondering," Chuck replies.

"Judging from the statements you're making, I assumed, incorrectly, that you are. My mistake. I have digressed so let's move on."

"So how many of your professionals will it take to replace me Mr Little?"

"Three -- a one for one swap."

"So now you want to replace all three of us? All this time, I thought you're talking about me! How greedy are you?" Brad asks.

"I'm not. I'm just trying to help you," Chuck replies.

"Help me? Considering the fact that my Father handled the Empire all by himself, that sounds a bit excessive to me. If it takes three of your professionals to replace my Father, it makes me wonder what a professional is," Brad questions. "Certainly you don't think you fit in that category, do you?"

Brad continues, saying, "Never mind. Don't answer that. There has already been a one for three change in ownership and I have no desire to swap owners again. Personally, I kinda like this job, most of the time, anyway... But again, I've digressed."

Larry, Kelly and Debi are doing their best to avoid smirking. Kelly is impressed with the way Brad is handling himself and she reminds herself that Brad is representing the Packard Empire, as well as himself. He's every bit his Father's son.

"So, let me understand this clearly," Brad says. "You want three professionals, who have no respect for authority, such as yourself, to replace the current owners of the Packard Empire?"

"Yes. That must have been tough for you to figure out."

Brad smiles at his insult, saying, "Another insult. Good for you... Would you be interested in taking one of the three positions yourself?"

"I would," Chuck says.

"Who would the others be?"

"I will let them speak for themselves."

"Are they here? I'd like to meet them."

"No, they're not here."

"But you know who they are and they're ready to do this with you?"

"Yup."

"Okay then. Great news, Mr Little! All your group has to do is come up with $840B and we'll consider selling it to you. How long will it take you to do that?"

"The Packard Empire is only worth $810 billion."

"Be it true or not Mr Little, that's not the selling price."

"That's to much. You need to drop the price."

"The price is now $870B Mr Little."

"I won't even try to raise that kind of money."

"Won't even try? Really? Can't be you're worth much," Brad says as Larry, Kelly and Debi hold back their reaction. "That being the case, it looks like you're stuck with me and my sisters... How long have you been working for Packard Records?"

Brad notices the security team as they come to the outer office and Helen fills them in and tells them to take a seat and wait for further instructions. Larry also notices them and wonders.