Satisfied With Love Ch. 04

Author's Notes: It will behoove the reader to start with Satisfied With Love Ch. 01 to get all the background information and the beginning of this novel.

Keep the comments coming. I read each one. I do hope you enjoy the novel.

MDSW

********

As Brad and his sisters approach the balcony, the assistants stand up as Brad's sisters break away from him and walk off to their suite with their assistant. When Brad gets close to his assistants, he raises his arms to embrace them with a huge hug. They hug him back real tight, smile and relax. As a team, they are feeling good. The girls have smiles on their faces because of the greeting. Then Brad escorts his staff into his suite and they get comfortable in the living area.

"I'm glad we got the response we did from the trip to LA. I am totally elated by it. Thank you ladies for doing a great job with the planning... What does the schedule look like for the rest of the day, ladies?" he asks, feeling full of life.

Jeni looks it up and said, "Just some time at the bullshit session after dinner and with your sisters at 9 tonight. Scott is sorting through the paperwork as we speak so it will be a while before we have work to do along that front."

"So the time until then is up for grabs?"

"Yup," Kristi said.

He stretches one arm out in front of him and added a couple fist pumps.

"I love down time!" Brad yells, causing his team to laugh.

"So, Jeni, how do you feel about our team relationship at this point? Brad asks.

"Overall, I feel great about it," she said smiling. "There was only two times when I felt a little left out, but I was able to handle it. Like I said, I don't want to interfere in your relationship. What you two have is a good thing and it would be selfish and stupid of anyone to try to weasel in and screw it up. I respect both of you too much to do that," Jeni said factually.

"However, I do like the hi-fives, hugs and pecks you guys give me and all the other stuff you do for me. It makes me feel good inside and I feel like I'm part of this team. I want to stay and work with both of you, sooo you have to keep doing those things for me."

"Have to?" Brad asks.

"Yes, have to," Jeni said frankly.

"We have to?" Kristi asks.

"Yup."

"You're absolutely sure we have to do that?" Brad asks, smiling.

"Yup, absolutely sure," Jeni replies with confidence, smiling, knowing they are playing with her.

Both Kristi and Jeni like it when he plays with them in that manner. Anita does too.

"Kristi, think we can do that?"

"Yeah, I think we can, but we may have to force ourselves."

Brad stood expecting to get a hug from Jeni. Just as he thought he had the best of the conversation, Jeni stood, embraces him and places her head on his chest.

She looks at Kristi, winks and said, "If you don't, I'll have to beat you to a pulp while Kristi watches," she said smiling, as she lifts her head to look at him.

Brad is surprised, to say the least. Kristi burst out laughing. Jeni releases Brad from her hold, satisfied she shocked him. She did surprise him as Brad laughs with them.

"Good one Jeni!" Brad said as he continues to laugh.

Brad has found the reward he's been looking for. He is happy Jeni reacts positively to the affection. Now he wonders if that will work on other people as well. He also wonders if there is some other form of affection she would appreciate as a reward.

"Hmm. Beat me. Wait, no, don't beat me. I have something else I need to figure out. That is - which one of you gives a better hug," Brad said.

"Kristi, give me a hug pleeease." She did.

"Jeni, your turn, pleeease." She did.

"Kristi, back to you." She did again.

"Jen, back to you." She did again.

"Kristi, back to..."

"Oh, stop it Brad. You just want us to give you hugs," Kristi said just before she burst out laughing again. "That's so fucking corny."

Jeni joins her laughing as both gave him a hug together.

"Busted," he said, laughing with them.

He does like the hugs they give him, though.

"If you really want a hug from us, just give us a hug and we'll do the same," Kristi said.

"Ookkaayyy! Do it often pleeease... But, getting back to the subject, I'm not yet convinced, Jeni. One aw shit is one to many," Brad said still smiling. "What do you think Kristi?"

"I think we should trust her judgement, Brad. She knows she can talk to us at any time she sees fit, so if things change, she will say something."

"Will she? She didn't that time."

"Good point. Jeni will you tell us when you feel left out again?"

"Okay. But in my own defense, we said we were going to talk about this again after we get back to the Island. We're back on the Island, and..."

"Kristi, I just hate her when she's right. Don't you?" a smile appearing on Brad's face.

"Yup," a smile appearing on Kristi's face.

"You guys are picking on me again."

Jeni joins them in a group hug, holding one another tight before Jeni broke it.

"Thank you so much for being so considerate of me and my feelings."

"Kristi, don't you think we should properly respond to her being right all the time?" Brad asks.

"I do. What do you have in mind?"

"Is she ticklish?"

Hearing that, Jeni ran toward the door while laughing her ass off, but stops because they aren't chasing her.

"No. I'm not ticklish so don't even try," she said continuing to laugh as if someone is tickling her.

"Okay. Just checking," Brad said. "Now come back here."

"Why?" she asks, still trying to control her laugh.

"So we can give you a hug for a job well done, silly," Kristi said.

"You just gave me a hug. You're not going to tickle me are you?"

"You just said you're not ticklish so what good would that do? We're going to hug you again, so get your ass over here," Brad said laughing. "You're laugh is so contagious."

She returns, apprehensively, while biting her lower lip. Kristi and Brad took her into their arms and sandwiches her between them, facing Kristi, and held her tight. Jeni relaxes as her apprehension disappears. Brad and Kristi kiss each other over the top of her head.

Jeni is in a comfort zone. She begins to cry tears of joy as they hug her. She has never had a great deal of respect for a boss, then came Brad. She is happy. She is proud. She has appreciation. She has protection. She is part of the team. She feels like she is at home.

A while later, Jeni gave both of them a kiss on the cheek. Then Kristi broke the silence.

"Jeni, I don't know what we'd do without you."

That made her feel good as well.

"This is the first time I have ever seen you laugh and cry within minutes of each other, Jeni. That was amazing," Kristi said.

"Yeah, it was... Jeni, you do realize you just told us your ticklish, right?" Brad said.

"Unfortunately I do and down the road, I'm probably going to pay for it, knowing you guys," Jeni said.

Kristi said, "You're right about that girlfriend!"

"Are you happy Jeni?"

"I'm very happy Brad. It has been a fun day today. I lost count of the things you and Kristi have done for me. Sometimes, I wonder if I'm worth it."

"Glad to hear you're happy and take it from the two of us - you are worth it. Every bit of it," Brad said, picking her off the floor as she squeals, "and stop doubting your worth or I will throw you in the pool!"

Then set her back on her feet.

Laughing, she said, "Okay, I'll try. Brad... Will either of you complain if I give you additional hugs for no reason, at any time?" Jeni asks.

"Not at all. You can give us hugs anytime you like," Kristi replies, smiling.

"Go for it Jeni," Brad said.

She group hugs them and squeezes them hard as Brad and Kristi return her tight squeeze. They stay like that as Jeni is feeling at home with her bosses, then Brad broke away.

"Jeni, is there anything else I or we can do for you that will make you feel good about your job and the team?" Brad asks.

After thinking, Jeni said, "Let me think on that for a while Brad. Nothing is popping out at me at the moment. But I really like the hugs and hi-fives."

Brad said, "Okay... Do you want to talk about the times you felt left out?"

Jeni thought about what Brad asks of her and she finally spoke up and said, "I don't Brad because I'm a little embarrassed about it... But, it's only fair that I tell you. I owe you that much, whether I like it or not."

"It's okay Jeni. You don't have to tell us if you don't want to. And you don't owe us an explanation either, but you know you can talk about it anytime, if you wish," Kristi said.

"I know, Kristi. But it is only fair to you and Brad that I tell you because I don't want secrets between us either. The only time I really felt left out was when Brad came back from the Missy date and gave you one hell of a hug and kiss. For some reason, I wanted a big hug too. You were very emotional at the time and I did not think it was a good time to give you a hug, so I didn't, but I really wanted to. Other than that, all I felt was Charles spying on me in my room, but that went away when we got to LA. I got plenty of hugs during the day to make up for it, so I'm good. Other than those incidents, I was perfectly fine."

"I'm not sure what to do about that Jen. Any suggestions?"

"I dealt with it Brad and I don't expect a recurrence so I think I'm okay at this point," Jeni replies.

"Okay. Let us know if things change, if you wish... One more thing," Brad said, talking to Kristi, "Would you get with Stacy and verify our plans to go back to New York for a family visit on Thursday? We should spend two full days at each location. I will have info for you about my folks soon."

Then Brad turns to Jeni.

"Jeni, this is not a trip you need to take. It is a good time to take a vacation, if you desire. I'll leave that decision up to you, but you can travel with us if you like, or go off on your own. Anything else we need to talk about?"

"Yes Brad. You said you want to talk about the CEO's."

Jeni turns to leave.

Brad asks, "Jen, where are you going?"

She stops and faces them, saying, "You said you want to talk to Kristi about the CEO's so I'm leaving to do something else on my long list."

"Come back please."

She returns and stands beside him.

He places his arm on her shoulders and said, "If I need to talk to just Kristi when you are present, I will ask you to give us a minute. You're not requirement to leave unless asked, under penalty of me, and you know what that means," he said smiling. "You are a very important part of this team and therefore, a part of every conversation we have. Okay?"

"Okay. I guess I don't understand all that is expected of me yet, but I'm learning," she said, looking at him with half a smile.

Brad shook her a couple times.

When she didn't respond to his liking, Brad picks her off her feet as she squeals and said, "If you don't smile, I'm throwing you in the pool!"

She starts laughing and said, "Okay. Okay. You win Brad. I'm smiling. Put me down please. No pool."

He did. She is still laughing and gave him a hug, just because. Kristi is getting a kick out of the scene as well and she is laughing with Jeni.

"That's better," Brad said. "Jeni, do you understand why the Packard Records CEO was blind sided by the VP's statements to me?"

"Haven't really thought about it Brad."

He turns to Kristi.

"Kristi?"

"It was because the CEO did not have a close personal relationship with the VP Brad. I jumped on that immediately."

"Would you agree Jeni?"

"Makes sense. The CEO not knowing his VP very well. Yeah, I'd buy that."

"Do either of you think this is a problem that should addressed?"

"To prevent this from happening again, yes, maybe it should be addressed. If we don't, it may bite us in the long run," Kristi said.

"Yes, Brad, I agree with Kristi. It will be in our best interest to do something about this now, as opposed to later," Jeni said.

"What action would you suggest we take?" he asks, already with an idea in mind.

"Time for a meeting with the CEO's and explain the importance of relationships," Jeni said.

"Excellent. Where can we have such a meeting?"

Kristi begins to think about all the places they own, then spoke.

"None of your homes are large enough to accommodate that many people plus the support staff," Kristi said, "so we should consider the hotel/casino in Las Vegas owned by the Packard Empire. Brad can stay in the presidential suite and the CEO's can take the luxury suites. We can have the meeting in the large conference room. There's also additional rooms for the staffers."

Jeni said, "Brad, we could also do this in smaller groups to give you a chance to get to know the CEO's, if you want."

"Good idea, Jeni. Sounds good. Let's talk about this again at the next team meeting. I need to talk to my sisters again, and I just spoke to them a short time ago."

Another idea pops into Kristi's head.

"Speaking of small groups, and because of Larry's interest in our relationship, what do you guys think about making his company the first one we talk to about relationships? Maybe use them as a learning experience," Kristi asks.

Jeni brightens up and responds, "He did like what we told him and expressed a high degree of interest, so yeah, I think we should do that. Good idea Kristi."

Kristi continues, "We can fly them to the Island and train them. They can see us in action first hand and they can participate by asking questions. Then they can go back to their company and get to work. We can visit them in a month or two to see how they are doing."

"Super. Excellent plan," Brad said. "Let's pencil that in for now. That may be the better plan, working with one company at a time, maybe two. That way, they can get to know us and we can get to know them. Kristi, would you create a training plan for this please. Also, when the time comes, tell them to tell their company they are coming for a party, or anything but relationship training. Great idea guys."

"Anything else?"

"You also want to talk about self defense classes, Brad."

"Yes, I do. Do either or both of you have any interest in taking such a class?"

They both respond with a "Yes".

"Good. Let's talk about this at the next team meeting as well."

"I just thought of something else we need to address, which is your business attire. As we have recently learned, we need to be able to move fast if we get into another encounter. The form fitting skirts you guys wear is not conducive to that. I don't mind you wearing skirts, but they should allow you total freedom of movement. Also, hi-heels is another problem if we have to run or move fast. What do you think?"

"Even though I have not thought about it, I agree with you Brad. We should make that change before the next business trip. Good thinking. I'll let Sharon know and Anita as well," Kristi said as she hugs him.

"Refresh my memory please. Sharon is who again?"

"She is the island fashion designer and seamstress. The one that fitted you for your funeral suit. Remember?"

"Got it. Thank you."

Jeni totally agrees with the plan.

"Would you also discuss this with my sisters pleeease?"

"If you wish, I will."

"I wish please, and thank you. Anything else?" Brad asks.

"Not at this time," they said in unison, then laugh.

"You two just did the exact same thing my sisters did a bit ago. Funny. Okay then. Both of you do what you know you have to do, then take the rest of the day off. Enjoy yourself and schedule breakfast for 8 please Jeni, and see you ten minutes prior."

"Thank you Brad, Kristi," Jeni said as she gave them another hug. Then she gave Kristi the 'I know what you're going to do' look.

"I feel like I'm on a natural high working with you guys. In fact, it doesn't seem like work at all," she said, then left the suite to work on her long list.

Brad is feeling good that Jeni does not feel like she is working. That is exactly what he is trying to accomplish.

********

Kristi went into the bedroom, lays her work on the bed and starts working on it. Brad went out on the balcony, gets his phone out and calls his folks and told them about Sunday. They're looking forward to their arrival and meeting everyone. His Mom wants to meet Kristi because she sounds so nice on the phone.

His Mom asks him how it's going with his work and learning all the stuff he needs to learn to be able to run a multi-billion dollar Empire. It seems to be overwhelming to her. Brad told her he doesn't know everything yet and he is learning. They chat a while longer before saying goodbye.

After he hangs up, Brad is on his way to join Kristi. Just then, she emerges from the bedroom, hoping Jeni has not left the suite yet, but she is not there. Their eyes meet and she stares at him, wondering what he is going to do. A surge went through her as she stares at him. As Brad walks toward her, she wonders if now is the time to spill the beans, then Brad ruins it.

"My folks are on board with a Sunday arrival Kristi. We leave for New York on Thursday, spend Friday and Saturday at Stacy's, fly to Memphis on Sunday, stay Monday and Tuesday at my house, and then leave on Wednesday to return here. Okay Angel?"

"It's a good plan Brad."

"I like it too, Kristi."

As luck would have it, Brad's business phone rang and Kristi answers it.

"Hi Kristi, how are you? It's Larry Strait at Packard Records."

"I'm great Mr Strait, how are you and Helen?"

"Just fine. I have my VP on the job and I'm wondering when we can visit you on the Island for some of the training you offered," Larry asks.

"That is great Larry. We are leaving on another trip day after tomorrow for a week so I will schedule you in for class on the Thursday and Friday after we get back, which will be about two weeks from now. We will fly you here on Wednesday, arriving in the evening so we can hit the ground running the next morning. I'm arranging for you, Helen, and your VP to attend. No business attire required, just casual with bathing suits. We want you to relax while you are here. Also, if your people ask, tell them you are going for a party or something. Don't tell them it's for relationship training. I need you to trust me on that for now. I'm looking forward to your visit Larry. I will get travel details to you as soon as I make the arrangements. See you then," Kristi said.

"Perfect," Larry said, "Thanks Kristi. I'm looking forward to this more than you know. Trust me. See you when we get there. Bye."

"Bye," Kristi said and hung up the phone.

"It sounds like the first training class is on the schedule. This will be a historic event for the new Packard Empire," Brad said.

"I expect it will be. We need a good, solid training plan for this so I need to get busy on it," Kristi replies.

"I will help if you want."

"I know you will Brad, so in the meantime, if you could paint me a picture of how you envision this class going down, that would be a big help," Kristi said, giving him a hi-five.

Brad returns her hi-five, then gives her a peck on her lips.

"Okay. I can do that... Well then, take the day off Kristi," Brad said with a tender voice and a smile on his face.

"Before we do that, we should talk about Jeni for a second," Kristi said, smiling. "I think we need to include her in more of our hugs, especially in emotional times, like when you came back from the Missy date. We can hug each other first, then reach out for her to join us. I think that will make her feel better. We don't need to tell her about this change either. We just do it and make her part of our regular interaction with us. What do you think?"

"Do you really think that will make a difference?"

"Not sure, but let's try it for now and see. If it does not make a difference, no harm, no foul. If it does make a difference, no harm, no foul. Either way, she won't know any difference, I hope. We don't need to quit doing it either," Kristi said. "Either way, it will be more fun for her and us. Another win-win."