Page 87 of Marry Me, Right Now

“Do you want to tell me about it?”

“I’d just bore you and stress you out as well. It’s a bunch of people behaving like idiots because they don’t want to admit that they don’t know what’s going on.” He sighed heavily. “There is nothing wrong with saying you don’t know something, and going to look it up. We’ve provided them with all of the research, and a list of outside resources for confirmation. All they have to do is skim it, or have their assistants skim it and give them a synopsis if they don’t like the one we provided. It would take them a few hours, tops. Instead, they rant about things they don’t understand, and make it painfully obvious that they aren’t just stupid, they’re stubborn and childish.”

He looked over with a little grin. “Sorry. Most of our clients are wonderful, but this one group is a pain in the ass.”

“So fire them.”

Jacob gave me that flat, weird stare. “Are you joking? You can’t fire a client.”

“Actually, you really can. I just read an article about it. If one difficult client is taking up far more energy than they should be, you tell them that you are sorry that you cannot meet their needs, and you cut them loose. Then you have more time and resources for your existing, reasonable accounts, and getting new clients.”

“Wow.” He reached for his drink again, taking a big swig. “I’d never thought of that. I guess it makes sense, but my father always said that every client is important.”

“If one person is sucking time away from eighty people, they’re not worth it. One client isn’t some precious sacred thing that can’t be replaced.” I took a drink, then set it down. “Well, you know. If you have a large group of clients. If you only have three, you might have to suck it up and work through it. But you seem to be pretty well established.”

Jacob laughed. “Mia, you’re a genius. It would never have occurred to me to cut them out. Just knowing that is an option is a huge relief.”

He reached over and began rubbing my back, seemingly without thinking. I loved the way he had been touching me more and more. It was comforting.

“How was your day?”

Now it was my turn to make a face. “In any group of people, there is always going to be a lazy one that brings the rest down. I had to politely suggest to a band that they replace their bass player.”

“That sounds like drama. It’s not just business with bands, is it? They all get very attached to band members.”

“Yeah. It becomes a pretty tight team, in most cases. But if he doesn’t show up for rehearsals, doesn’t text, and they’re actually worried before shows that he’s going to show up at all, that puts everyone on edge. And it’s not my place to say it, but he’s not really that good. The rest of them have great energy on stage, and he sort of just stands there, looking like he’d rather be doing his taxes.”

He laughed. “Oh man, that’s lousy.”

“Yeah. I told them flat out at the meeting he didn’t bother attending, that they’re only as strong as their weakest link. If they’re stressed about a problem, solve the problem. Don’t just limp along letting him drag them down.”

“How did they take it?” He seemed genuinely fascinated.

“They all agreed. I think they just needed to hear it out loud, from an outside source. They’d never had band meetings before, and that’s important for getting everything out in the open.”

Jacob’s hand slid from where he was gently rubbing between my shoulder blades down to my lower back. “I love the way you call things like you see them,” he said gently.

“Some people tiptoe around desperately afraid of hurting anyone’s feelings, while screwing themselves over. A lot of things can be fixed with one awkward conversation.”

I looked over at him and realized our eyes were locked. We both knew at some point we’d be having an awkward conversation about our relationship. But it was my turn to be a child. I didn’t think that I could deal with it today.

“So,” Jacob asked, “Should we have dinner? Or do we drink our troubles away?”

“I don’t think there are enough martinis in the world right now,” I laughed. “And I don’t have time for a hangover.”

“I could order a masseuse to come over.”

I couldn’t help but shake my head at him. “Throwing money at a problem?”

“We have the money. We have a problem. Why not?”

“Have you ever thought about how you would solve problems if you didn’t have money?”

“Um, no.”

I couldn’t help but feel a bit exasperated. “Jacob, can you even imagine having a lung infection, curled up in bed with no orange juice, no money for antibiotics, no cab fare to get to the doctor, and if you miss your shift at work tonight you’ll miss rent?”

His face was a mixture of horror and pain. “

---