„You want him to see you out with me?“ she hazarded as his line of reasoning clicked in her brain.
„By now he knows I’m involved with Brady. Tonight he’ll find out just how much.“
„But why?“
„So he’ll see that there’s no point in trying to subvert me,“ Rand told her carelessly.
„Subvert you! Good lord! Rand, are you telling me he might try buying you off?“
„He already has. I got the call last night after I’d taken you home.“ Rand appeared totally unconcerned. „It’s a logical step. I didn’t talk to Hutton directly, of course, I just received a feeler from one of his higher-ranking employees.“
„My God!“ Kalinda shook her head, unable to believe it. „What… what did you tell the person who called you?“ Somehow she had never envisioned such a ploy on Hutton’s part. She knew such tactics were used but they had never impinged on her world. Kalinda found herself wondering for the first rime if sharks could be bribed.
„What do you think I said?“ Rand muttered gruffly.
She stared at him, assessing, remembering, analyzing and finally came up with the only possible conclusion. „You told him no, of course.“
„Why ‘of course’?“ he demanded interestedly, watching her intently.
„You would never break your word to us,“ she replied positively, relaxing slightly as she realized it was the simple truth.
There was a tension-filled moment as they sat regarding each other in silent understanding and then Rand smiled gently.
„Thank you, Kalinda.“
She shrugged. She trusted him. There was nothing more to say on that subject „So why are we having dinner in the same restaurant tonight?“
„Because he’ll try upping the offer again and again, thinking he only has to find the right price. I want to squash that notion flat I want to start closing doors on him as rapidly and as solidly as possible so that he begins to panic.“ Rand spoke intently, a frown of concentration creasing his forehead. „If we can turn the tables on him quickly enough, I think we can get him to withdraw the offer. He has to know we’ve got a whole series of options and we’ll use every damn one of them until he’s out in the cold.“
„Have we really got a whole series of options?“
„Yes, but most of them are expensive. It would be nice if we can kill his interest before we have to resort to them.“
„What’s the worst possible case?“ Kalinda asked bluntly.
„A friendly merger with another company,“ he told her, not shielding the truth.
She groaned. „I was afraid of that. A white knight?“
He nodded, tossing down the stack of papers he had been reading. „That’s what the ‘friendly’ company is usually called in cases like this. It can be done, Kalinda. I have contacts. We can find a friendly suitor for Brady Data Processing who will agree to merge with us on our terms. It’s better than turning everything over to Hutton!“
„I know. But even in the friendliest of situations, Brady Data Processing will lose some of its autonomy.“
„If it comes to that, we’ll negotiate very carefully. But there’s another option, I think. You have surprisingly good credit for a company this size. Your assets are solid and generally rather understated. I think, with a little fast talking, we might be able to get that line of credit expanded.“
„For what purpose?“
„So that Brady can better Hutton’s offer for its own shares,“ he said quietly.
„A tender offer for our own shares? That would be expensive,“ she whispered thoughtfully. „Credit costs a fortune these days. Interest rates are high…“
„I notice from your records that you’ve been shy of using bank credit in the past, Kalinda.“
„I have an instinctive dislike of being in debt, I suppose,“ she admitted dryly. „A holdover from Dad.“
„But borrowed money is the way big businesses are run these days. Brady is going to have to recognize that if it wants to stay competitive and autonomous.“ Rand spread out a financial report and began talking in detail.
Kalinda listened, fascinated with the expertise she was witnessing. Where would Rand Alastair have been today if he hadn’t dropped out a year and a half ago? The thought crossed her mind that he might be the one trying to take over Brady Data Processing. She wouldn’t have stood a chance!
Properly appreciative of the importance of fighting David Hutton on all levels, Kalinda dressed with care for the important evening. She chose a dinner suit of rich, printed velvet The small, shaped jacket fit over a softer velvet skirt and a silk blouse complimented the chic combination. Over it she flung a dashing sequined and fringed shawl. Hair sleek and held with a glittering comb, she looked sophisticated and elegantly sure of herself. Which was exactly the note she wanted to set in front of David, she told herself.
As she dressed she thought again of how close she had come to confronting him in the little mountain town. Even if Rand Alastair failed to save Brady Data Processing, she would always be grateful for his having put a stop to the ill-advised attempt at revenge. She didn’t even want to think of all the disastrous complications that might have ensued. Somehow, she knew, David would have used the confrontation against her, perhaps to compromise her in front of her own staff. There was no doubt about it, she’d had a close call. What if Hutton had gotten word to Brady management that the company’s president was secretly meeting its biggest enemy?
Her gray eyes were sparkling with inner excitement when she opened the door to Rand that evening. And as she took in the sight of him in a hand-tailored evening jacket and dark trousers, she acknowledged that the excitement she was feeling wasn’t just for the adventure of combating David Hutton.
„We both look dressed to kill this evening, don’t we?“ she laughed as they stood admiring each other.
„Very appropriate,“ he murmured, taking her arm. „That’s exactly what we’re going to try to accomplish. A little killing.“
„How did you know where David would be dining tonight?“ she remembered to ask fifteen minutes later as Rand turned the Lotus over to a valet parking attendant and started her toward the expensive restaurant.
„I’m afraid I made use of your secretary,“ he admitted.
„George?“
„I can see why you hired him. George is a very competent person. He managed to get the information out of Hutton’s secretary without even giving her a clue about what was going on behind the scenes.“
Kalinda had a mental image of George smoothly extracting the information he wanted and grinned. She was still smiling as they were shown graciously to an intimate table for two.
Rand saw Kalinda idly taking in the candlelit scene of white linen, shining silver and fresh flowers and grimaced.
„Please don’t tell me Hutton used to bring you here a lot,“ he ordered gruffly, reaching for the wine list.
„He didn’t The place wasn’t open back then,“ she smiled obligingly. She thought fleetingly of the whirlwind courtship David had given her and
„Good,“ he stated evenly. „I wouldn’t want any misty memories coming forth to mar the image we’re trying to establish tonight!“
„There aren’t any,“ she replied easily, smiling at him across the flickering flame of the candle. She met his eyes with total honesty and he nodded, apparently satisfied.
„But I could use a little guidance on how to play the coming scene,“ she went on determinedly. „Are we supposed to create the impression of boss and consultant holding a dinner conference? Or should I let him think you’re an old friend of the family who stepped in to give me a hand because of a friendship you once had with Dad? Or…“
„I never met your father,“ he reminded her with an enigmatic smile.
„But it would lend a nice touch to the ‘image’, wouldn’t it?“ she suggested seriously, struck with the brilliance of her own idea.
„Just follow my lead, all right?“ he said repressively.
„But what, exactly, is your lead?“
„You’ll see… Ah! Here he comes now. Looks just like his picture.“
Kalinda stiffened, the sense of adventure going out of the evening as reality intruded. She looked at Rand,
