Page 99 of 7 Days and 7 Nights

It was time to follow her own advice.

She nodded to Simms and his VPs. “Thank you very much for the offer. I’m flattered.” She smiled. “And very tempted. But razor blades notwithstanding, I’m afraid I have to decline.”

And then she was riding the elevator down twenty-two floors with her stunned agent beside her. Karen, who talked like others breathed, held her tongue until they exited through the revolving door onto Fifth Avenue.

“Olivia, think what you’re doing here. Syntex will putThe Way We See Itin every major market in the country. If you want to counsel patients, you can build that into your schedule. You’ve done great withLiv Live, but the most TLK can do is put it on the twenty stations in their group. Why don’t you let me go back and—”

“No. When T.J. asked me to do the food bank remote, I told myself they’d be holding the Winter Olympics in hell before I said yes. And then I gave in and did it. This time I mean it. The Devil will be doing a double axel on ice before I doThe Way We See Itwith Matt Ransom."

Turning, Olivia strode up Fifth with Karen, the Syntex limo trailing behind them. She was trying very hard not to think about what she had just turned down. But she wasn’t having much success.

Her feet pounded on the pavement as Olivia stared unseeing into the shop windows they passed. She had just turned down the biggest offer of her career, said no to the thing she wanted most. No to becoming a household name, no to reaching the pinnacle of syndication. No to more money than she’d thought to see in a lifetime.

And she’d done it because.,. ?

Olivia stopped in front of a display of Coach handbags as she examined the question more closely. She’d said no because she couldn’t keep sacrificing her emotions in order to advance her career; because the quality of her life was more important than what she achieved professionally. Tired and out of time, she slid into the back of the limo beside Karen for the ride to JFK.

If she forced herself to work with Matt, given everything that was unresolved between them, what did that say about her? That she had learned nothing; that she would always subjugate and deny her feelings in order to succeed.

Life was too short to torture herself that way. And much too short to be manipulated. Taking her seat in the first-class cabin for the flight to Atlanta, Olivia realized how “off" the whole thing felt. If Matt Ransom was such an important part of the Syntex equation, where was he?

She sipped from the glass of wine the flight attendant pressed on her and thought about that for a while. If the 'Bachelor of the Year' wanted to do a show with her, he was going to have to tell her so himself. And he was going to have to tell her why.

???

Friday morning’sLiv Livewas chock-full of women dealing with unpleasant surprises, something Olivia could relate to after her own in the Syntex boardroom. For most of the morning, she worked at ironing out the creases that wrinkled her callers’ lives.

Sometimes those creases came in unexpected forms, like Melissa’s husband, who had evidently been faking an interest in power tools.

“I just don't get it, Dr. O," a throaty-voiced Melissa said. “Every year since we got married, I’ve given my husband a power tool for his birthday.”

“And?” Olivia asked.

“And the other day, while we were cleaning out the garage, he told me he’d rather have lingerie.” Melissa’s voice warbled. “From Victoria’s Secret.”

“And how do you feel about that?” Olivia asked.

“How would you feel? He used to rip my panties off at every opportunity. I didn’t realize he was checking for a style number.”

Olivia bit back a smile. She could hear the shock and confusion in Melissa’s voice, but she detected no revulsion, which meant Melissa might be able to come to terms with her husband’s predilection.

“Cross-dressers are almost always heterosexual,” Olivia said. “If you love him, and you can live with the lingerie, it doesn’t have to be a problem.”

“But he’s six feet two. His friends call him Bubba,” Melissa pointed out. “And I already bought the table saw.”

Olivia was well into the third hour ofLiv Livewhen JoBeth called in, her voice vibrating with excitement. She too had experienced a life-altering surprise, but hers hadn’t been at all unpleasant.

“You won’t believe it, Dr. O. I’m getting married.”

The rush of envy was completely personal and totally unprofessional. Olivia quashed it immediately. “Congratulations,” she said. "That’s fabulous.”

“Thanks. I still can’t believe it. Two men proposed to me in one night. It was the most incredible thing.”

“Wow. Two proposals,” Olivia marveled, unable to ignore the irony. The person she’d advised had received two marriage proposals, while the man she loved had put a monkey wrench in her career plans and was too busy dating to admit to any feelings at all.

“Was one of them Dawg?”

“Yes,” JoBeth gushed. “It was so romantic. He came right into the ladies’ room of La Parisienne to ask me. We’re going to get married in the fall.”

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