Romancing the Sale

Dani sits there nodding with a smile on her happy face.

"I had no desire for him to escape me either," Dani says.

"When did that happen?" Jack asks.

"Last Saturday night when we went out to dinner," Dani replies. "He gave me the surprise of my life because I didn't see it coming."

"This requires a toast," Rick says, excitedly.

So, they take a break and toast their engagement. Dani tells them the story behind the ring, the fact they feel at ease with each other and Bill sees wetness in her eyes as she speaks. Each of them give her a hug, but when Bill gives her a hug, she damn near breaks a rib, and he grunts.

"Dani. It would be nice of you to let me breathe, please," Bill says, looking at her with a smirk. "Dani is much stronger than she looks, as I have learned," Bill says and they laugh again, then slowly get back to business.

Bill continues, "At that point, our personal and professional relationship was standing in the way of our success. Because we are a team, we decided to tell each other what we perceive our job to be, just to get on the same page. That, I thought, was a good way to start, even though we already knew what our job was. It's one thing to think it and know it, but another to say it and hear it."

"Good point, Bill," Rick says.

"Once we got that figured out, we decided there cannot be two people calling the shots, so one of us needs to be the boss. But boss no longer sounded right to me. A boss barks or dictates orders, something I'm quite familiar with, as Dani has learned. We do not need to be told what to do, but we do need cohesion to our madness."

"So, we decided this team needs a leader and we both agreed it should be me. A leader's job is to listen, lead, guide and direct. I feel much better in that role, but I'm still learning how to be a leader. It isn't as easy as I was thinking. Dani will agree with that I know."

"Very true," she says as she nods.

Bill continues, "I'm a very driven person with an alpha personality, very results oriented. Failure is not in my vocabulary and I do not accept defeat. I study and work to avoid that thinking. Dani also has an alpha personality and as you know, that can be a devastating combination, but so far, it hasn't been a problem for us."

"We put our heads together and figured out what we have to do and what factors affect us so we can be a team. That caused us to discover a team has two important elements that binds it together."

"First is respect. I treat Dani with respect because I want her to do her job every day and above all, I want her to be happy as she does it. Every team member brings a specific expertise to the team and happy people willingly work their butts off to reach a goal that makes us successful. I also use humor and hi-fives to maintain a happy team, many times hugs, for some reason."

Dani, Jack and Rick chuckle.

"The second is trust. The team must be able to trust the other members to get their portion of the job done. As you know, Dani exemplifies that."

Dani continues, "Another is something we feel is common sense, but is rarely spoken of as part of a team, and that is not to have secrets between team members because it can do more damage than good. All team members need to be on the same page so the team can be as efficient as possible. Making assumptions will have a similar affect on a team as secrets. All these things led us to our relationship as we know it today."

"It's important for us to know what the other is doing, so again, based on a more educated plan, he took me to a couple sales calls. Reciprocating, I took him to a couple client installs, training, and call-backs, so we can get a handle on what the other is doing in the process of performing the service," Dani explains.

"His sales presentation has changed so much I was impressed because he took me on a couple sales calls my first week on the job. Now, each of us knows exactly what the other faces everyday. In addition, I know his schedule and he knows mine."

Bill breaks in, saying, "We made several more team rules and we agreed to all of them so today, this team is firing on all cylinders and we only get better with age."

"Bill, Dani, you are quite the couple. I'm proud of both of you, both personally and professionally," Rick says.

"So am I," Jack replies, jumping into the conversation. "I can't believe what you have gone through to get where you are today. It's an amazing transition in such a short period of time... Dani, does Bill still act like a boss at all?"

"He slips every once in a while so I have to get him back in line by reminding him who the boss is, but we still work well together," she says as they laugh. "It's not really a problem anymore because he apologizes when he realizes he does it."

"So, I get the impression you want happy people working for you?" Rick asks. "Is that true?"

"Close. I want happy people to work with me. And yes, that is fair to say, but it's not the only expectation."

"What are the other expectations?"

"I expect my team to be exceptional at performing their part of the job and their evaluations are based not only on their performance, but also their attitude plays an important part."

"Interesting," Jack says. "You learned all this just since Dani began working with you?"

"Yes. We both learned it together actually," Bill responds.

"Unbelievable... Lunch time," Jack says. "Where do we want to go for lunch?"

They settle on sub sandwiches so they walk to the nearest store, about ten minutes away, order and sit down to eat. They make jokes and small talk while there and when they finish, they walk back to the apartment and continue. On the trip to and fro, Dani holds Bill's hand and has no desire to let him go. When they arrive back in the apartment, the conversation continues.

"Dani, why do you want to make it your mission to change the manual?" Rick asks.

"For me, it's because it will reduce the confusion with the software. The software is designed to make the business side of the business easier to tolerate, not make it harder for them to be successful. That is what the software does, but the user manual should not cause problems, it should eliminate them. If the client can solve their own problem from the manual, I have more time to spend with new customers, which in turn, allows Bill to sell more product. It also reduces the negative effect the manual has on our clients."

"Another reason is the company can become more efficient as far as selling the product because the manual is the source of the low sales number for all salesmen, not just Bill alone. That is why Bill and I studied the problem and determined the manual needs a face lift. Another thing I would like to do is make the software more intuitive, but we can talk about that later."

"But you don't know if it will fix the problem yet, do you?" Rick asks.

"We discussed our idea with several clients and they are all in favor of it."

"I knew it! You did research on your research. No wonder you and Bill are so confident about the results," Rick responds.

They smile, then spend most of the day talking about the manual, spending hours discussing the new concept and both Rick and Jack are impressed with how they want to do it. Bill and Dani have to admit they don't have all the answers yet because they have tons of research to do toward that end.

They go out to dinner and make more jokes and small talk. When they return to the apartment, they talk more about the manual before Rick decides to call it a good day's education.

Chapter 27 A Very Special Meeting, Day 2

The next morning, they finish with the manual, then start on the software and both Bill and Dani spend lots of time telling the bosses how they can improve the user interface. Jack and Rick are not withholding any praise for their ideas.

"Okay, let's move on and talk about the team you will need to get this project off the ground and completed," Rick says.

"Bill and I have recently discussed that as well," Dani starts off. "To start, because neither of us qualify as a writer, we need a senior level tech writer to write the manual as if that person is the user who is using the software to complete a task. Bill or I will be guiding the tech writer through that process if need be."

"Second, we need a senior level, innovative programmer who can take this from flow charts and algorithms to the end product and fix problems as we find them along the way. Our hope is we can edit the existing software and just make it more user friendly, or intuitive, but that will be determined by the programmer."

"Third, Bill and I will be providing research, direction, answers, guidance and corrections along the way. We have to be flexible, hoping one of us will always be here to keep the team on track. So, right now, we see a four person team. Anything beyond that we have not contemplated."

"Fourth, we will spend four days a week developing the product and on the fifth day, we stop and review all that has be accomplished so we work with minimum errors and not go off track. Weekends will be non work days unless all team members agree to work."

"Sounds like a good plan. Can you see that number growing at all?" Jack asks.

"Not at this time. We're thinking the four of us will be able to get it done," Bill says.

"Where will your team meet and work?"

"We have to be here in Atlanta so we can do referrals, installations and call-backs, so we would like to make this apartment work central for the team. That way, we can be comfortable, like we are now," Dani suggests.

Bill adds, "We also need time for Dani and I to get our thoughts together, put them into algorithms and flow charts for the programmer and flow charts for the writer, giving them direction before they arrive so they can get right to work. Hopefully, they can stay here in the complex. I expect we will be working long days so we don't stretch this out too awfully long. By the time the project concludes, I'll be ready to get back to my clients and sales."

During the final day together, they take breaks for lunch and dinner, and time for snack breaks as they advance the mission. The last two topics the big guns bring up they were not expecting.

"When you and Dani sell your last product in this area, what are your plans?"

"Good question... I don't have a good answer either. We haven't thought that far ahead. I guess we'll cross that bridge when we get to it," Bill says and continues.

"Since we last met, two weeks ago, I have done nothing but referrals so Dani has more installs and training to do. Next week, I can start combing the market again, but I have to control my urges to sell so as not to overload Dani again. Word of mouth is getting out in this area that this product can't be beat. I fully expect companies will be calling us, instead of me calling them. That's my new goal. However, that may be a ways into the future so, for now, I still have to work for a living," he says and smiles, the rest laugh.

Then Rick asks, "Dani, I'm a little confused as to how you and Bill got together. My curiosity is piquing and I just want to know for my own edification. You are not required to answer if you don't want to so you can decline without repercussion. I will not hold it against either of you, but would you be willing to fill in the blanks, please?"

Bill looks at Dani and she looks at him.

He says, "Dani, it's personal to you so I will let you decide if you want to tell your story."

Dani looks at Rick and says, "I don't mind telling you as long as it doesn't appear as a headline in tomorrow's news."

"I guarantee anything you tell the two of us will stay in this room," Rick says.

"Okay... As I previously explained, when we met, I was depressed, not coherent, dirty, penniless and jobless. I just ended a bad relationship with an ex and traveled to Atlanta to visit a friend hoping to get my life back together. When I arrived, she was not home and that's when I met Bill," she explains with glassy eyes. "From here, I would rather Bill tell the story because I'm not sure I can get through it without breaking down."

She reaches for and squeezes Bill's hand. He nods, squeezes her hand and doesn't let it go.

"Okay, Dani. Any time you want me to stop, just say so..."

She nods again so he collects his thoughts and begins the story from the time they met in front of Karen's door to the time she accepted the job as his support specialist, including many of the details, but nothing too personal. It was informative for Rick to understand what happened and he admits it.

"That was awesome you two. You deserve each other and I can tell you are happy. I'm personally glad you met each other no matter what the circumstances. When this project gets approved, you two are going to have a major impact on this company, believe it or not," Rick says.

"It's been a pleasure talking with both of you. Your ideas, your drive, your focus, your brain storms and your determination will help you complete this project. I have total confidence we picked the right team to get it done. Now I have more information to take to the BOD so I will be calling a special meeting for this purpose, which I will do next week. Wish me luck!" Rick says as he and Jack leave for their hotel.

"Good luck!" both Bill and Dani tell them as they leave.

Dani turns to Bill and says, "I think we have the support of the big guns to get this project done, don't you?"

"Yup, I think you're right, Little Miss Sunshine, and I feel like eating you alive about now."

"So, what's taking you so long, slow poke?"

Moments later, more happy sex follows.

Chapter 28 The Maui Trip

Bill has come to grips that cupid's arrow has landed solid in his butt and it will never happen again. He finds himself committed to his fiancée more and more as each day passes. As their life goes on, their relationship continues to blossom.

As if they had a choice, Bill and Dani decide to attend the company meeting in Maui, but they also decide to stay an extra week as their honeymoon so they make plans to get married in Bill's hometown three days prior to the Maui trip.

Bill's family falls in love with Dani and he knew they would, even though Dani was a bit nervous at first. It wore off soon enough and they had a great time with his family and friends. Bill has never seen his mom and dad so happy. They spend lots of time getting to know his fiancée and everyone has a great time.

Because Dani has no family, she invited Karen to their wedding because she is her only friend from her previous life. Bill's dad escorted the bride down the aisle and gave her away. She looks so beautiful in her wedding gown. It turns into one great, happy wedding with his mom sobbing through the whole ceremony. The reception was a happy one and she gets more hugs from people she doesn't know than she has ever imagined.

The wedding night is obviously a special celebration for them. He carries Dani to his bed and lays her on it, only to start removing her wedding dress, which he needs help accomplishing. Dani giggles as she gives him the help he wants, or needs. When the wedding dress is gone, his surprise is she's not wearing panties and it turns him on.

When he gets the other underwear off, she is finally naked, it's her turn as she takes all his clothes off without much help from him. Bill pushes her to the bed and gets between her legs in a hurry as she smiles. He eats her pussy with passion as she moans her heart out from the pleasure he gives her.

With his boner displaying its hardness, he rolls her to her stomach, her favorite position for sex, and his cock slides it in where she loves it the most. Responding to his lust, her wet pussy gets his cock wetter than ever before. As he pumps his cock inside her, her anticipation is expressed loudly so he gives her a sock to knock her volume down to a dull roar.

They enjoy each other intensely, using multiple sexual positions to keep it real and intense until the finale.

Multiple climaxes and periods of sleep follow as the all nighter continues to add more records to the record books. When morning arrives, more sex follows and it's mid day before they show their faces to the family. Both have a smirk on their face and maybe a little embarrassment from the noise they made multiple times throughout the night.

* * * * *

The time has come for the flight to Maui and the company has purchased first class tickets for their round trip. That surprised them and it included the extra week's stay. At the request of the BOD, they give them their presentation about the sales team concept and it gets them serious recognition so they are floating on a natural high, having many conversations with the company's top brass. By the time the week long meeting is over, Bill and Dani know each board member personally.

At the sales meeting, Rick introduces them as number one in sales. Each receives a plaque and a $10,000 bonus check, then Rick makes the big announcement they are newly weds and this trip will extend into their honeymoon.

The ovation Bill and Dani receive from the group gives them weak knees. They survive and that trip is the most rewarding of their lives, so far. They shake more hands, get more hugs and thank so many people, they are swimming in euphoria.

The last day of the company meeting, Rick and Jack sit down with the Salesman of the Year, telling them they are clear to begin work on the manual and software when they return to Atlanta. Rick tells them he hammered the BOD for a month before, but when they listened to the sales team presentation, they authorized the project immediately after Bill and Dani left the room.

Then they had a mini meeting about what tools and supplies they will need and said the additional personnel will be headed their way when they need them. The company also said they will furnish a large flat screen so all four team members can view as they correct errors and review the flow charts before being printed out and stuck to the wall. What an event for them. Life and work are turning into great experiences.

They stay a second week, as their official honeymoon, after the company left the island. Bill and Dani do everything they can while there, including island hopping to the island of Oahu to see the Arizona Memorial, the battleship USS Missouri, Diamond Point, the blowholes, north shore beaches, some of the many beautiful gardens, the city of Honolulu, Waikiki Beach and more.

They also fly to other islands and visit some of the sites and there is plenty to see like the volcano on the big island of Hawaii, the fern grottos of Kauai and enjoy the tropical weather of the area. They are really impressed with the natural beauty of the Islands. The honeymoon is the highlight of the trip for them and they enjoy it immensely.

But, all good things must come to an end. Their biggest surprise occurs when they check out. Rick paid their bill as his wedding gift to them. Dani cries and Bill didn't expect that. Guess they have more appreciation to thank the big guns for.

Chapter 29 A New Product

When they return home to Atlanta, they're still on a natural high. Elated with their success and honeymoon, they begin the transition to work on the software and manual. First, they take care of some call-backs and referrals, then they put their all into the project.

Bill hasn't been thinking about space utilization within the apartment, but Dani has. She suggests they use the spare room, because there is nothing in it, to post the flow charts, ideas for inclusion in the manual and software, and project rules, plus anything else that may be helpful. Bill agrees so that's what they do. It takes them six weeks to get organized before the rest of the team arrives, but they manage to get done what they planned and post the flow charts on the walls.