The obnoxious ringing of my phone somewhere in Jesse's house woke me up. After round four, we'd apparently knocked out for the remainder of the night, and Jesse was still fast asleep beside me at nearly nine a.m.

Assuming it was Haley checking in to see if I was okay since I didn't come home last night, I didn't rush to get to the living room. When I retrieved my phone from somewhere between the couch cushions, the missed call was from a number I didn't recognize, and I immediately thought it was either one of those annoying spam calls or my ex playing games. Then a voicemail popped up and my heart sank, expecting it to be some menacing message that ends in a threat. I started to delete it without listening, but some nagging feeling I wished I could suppress wouldn't let me.

"I need coffee if I'm going to deal with this shit," I said to myself, trotting into the kitchen and fishing for a container of coffee grounds in Jesse's giant pantry.

It was mostly filled with vintage bottles of alcohol, to which I pegged him for a collector, as none of them appeared opened.

I waited until I'd located a mug – three cabinets into my search – and some cinnamon dolce creamer before I forced myself to listen to the voicemail. Holding the phone between my jaw and shoulder, I nearly spilled the scalding coffee everywhere when I heard the voice.

It wasn't my ex. It was Eliza Morgan!

"Hi, Vanessa. This is Eliza Morgan from Morgan Taffey. We'd spoken recently about the potential acquisition of Advantage Republic. I'm sorry for the short notice, but I'm in town for a few meetings and wanted to see if we could get together for drinks or lunch to discuss the situation. I'm in New York until Tuesday. Give me a call."

"Oh my god," I mumbled to myself, taking a sip of my coffee. "This just might work after all..."

I'd thought for sure Eliza had ditched the idea of talking with me or working with Advantage when she hadn't called on Monday. It seemed like she'd forgotten all about our conversation, but now I guessed she'd just been super busy. Maybe all hope wasn't lost. Maybe I could still turn this ship around.

I gulped down some more coffee and mustered up the courage to call her back, hoping I didn't sound half asleep or nervous to her. I wanted to come across as totally professional – despite the fact that I was currently standing in my boss's kitchen, wearing his button-up and no underwear. What Eliza didn't know wouldn't kill me.

"Hello?" she answered on the third ring.

I put on my cheeriest voice and tried to sound like I was totally confident in the situation. "Hi, Eliza! This is Vanessa Hamilton returning your call. How are you?"

She sounded equally as cheery, though I knew her tone was real. She'd always been a super cheerful person around the office.

"Vanessa! Great to hear from you! I'm doing well. I guess you had time to think over my invitation."

I smiled like an idiot out the windows overlooking Jesse's backyard. "Yes. I'd love to get together for lunch. When would work best for you? My treat."

"Oh, you don't need to-"

"I insist. You traveled all this way and you're taking time out of your busy schedule to meet with me. It's the least I can do," I told her.

I cringed at myself for offering to pay, knowing I couldn't afford much, and she was probably used to fancy, expensive restaurants, but if schmoozing Eliza over lobster bisque helped to secure a deal for Advantage, it was worth the credit card bill.

"Okay. In that case, how about we meet at Alessandro's over by Times Square? Say about eleven?" she suggested.

That would give me just enough time to rush over to the office, grab the file on the Morgan Taffey proposal, and throw on an appropriate outfit.

"That sounds great! I'm looking forward to seeing you," I said.

When the call ended, I breathed out a massive sigh of relief and then realized how little time I had before our lunch meeting. This sent me into panic mode and I started racing around Jesse's house, trying to locate all my scattered clothing and get dressed without waking him. With no vehicle to get back to Midtown, I arranged for an Uber to pick me up.

Once dressed, I glanced in the mirror in Jesse's bathroom and my bedhead nearly startled the hell out of me.

"A bun will have to suffice," I muttered to myself, quickly trying to fix the mess with a couple hair ties and a finger comb.

Hopefully, Eliza had a good sense of humor.

By the time my ride arrived, I'd downed two cups of coffee and snatched a croissant from Jesse's fridge. My blood pressure seemed to be racing as fast as my mind was. I knew I had one shot at this and I couldn't screw it up. Jesse's company and all my coworkers' fate depended on what happened in this meeting. I had to convince Eliza that Advantage Republic was worth the investment.

I asked my driver to wait for me while I hurried into the Chrysler Building to grab the file. The elevator ride seemed as slow as molasses with a stop at nearly every other floor for someone else to get on or off. When we reached my floor, I sprinted down the hall and right passed Nancy into my office. I regretted leaving a huge pile of paperwork on my desk. It cost me precious time trying to locate the right folder.

A knock at my door had me practically jumping out of my skin. The door opened and Erica poked her head in, a concerned look on her face.

"Everything alright, Vanessa?"

I shuffled the papers around on my desk so she wouldn't see that I was grabbing the Morgan Taffey file. Maybe I was going about this all wrong, and maybe I should've told Erica what I was up to, but I was pretty sure she'd tell me it was a lost cause at this point. I'd noticed Aly packing up her office when I'd passed by in the hallway. Maybe everyone had surrendered to the idea that Advantage didn't have a chance. But I was too stubborn to believe that until Eliza said it to my face. Advantage was the only company that cared to take a chance on me after I arrived in New York, and I was determined to save it any way I could.

"Oh. Yes. Fine." My words came out as a terrible stutter and I knew Erica wasn't buying it. "Everything's okay. I'm just late for a meeting. I spent the night at a friend's house and I don't have time to change and-"

"Say no more," Erica smiled and gestured for me to follow her.

Abandoning the file on my desk, I wondered if my Uber had given up waiting on me as I trailed behind my boss and into her office.

She led me to the bathroom that connected to her office and pulled out one of the drawers under the sink to reveal a neatly folded outfit.

"I always keep a spare set of work clothes here in case I have a coffee spill or some other nightmare before a meeting," Erica explained. "I think we're the same size. Why don't you see if this'll fit you?"

That was probably the nicest thing anyone I'd worked for had done for me.

"I... I don't know what to say," I stammered. "Are you sure?"

She nodded, placing the clothing in my hands. "Of course. Don't worry about it. You can use my bathroom to change."

She trotted out of the room and closed the door behind her. I was left staring at my reflection in the mirror, wondering if I had enough professional skill to pull this off.

"Only one way to find out," I told myself. "I have to try."

Quickly changing outfits, I threw my clothes into a small pile and hurried to fix my hair a little better, having discovered that Erica kept some dry shampoo and other toiletries in her cabinet for situations like this. By the time I was finished getting ready, I looked like I could be Erica's sister.

The outfit she'd given me was stunning and fit perfectly. A beautiful satin wine colored dress paired with a charcoal blazer, her wardrobe had me feeling exquisite. I'd been able to tame my hair into a neat bun that worked with the ensemble, and I was becoming more confident by the minute.

"Thank you so much for doing this!" I said to Erica as I hurried from her bathroom back to my office.

I threw my dirty laundry in a pile in my chair, collected the file and raced back out to the street. To my surprise, the Uber was still there waiting for me, and I must have spent half the ride to the restaurant apologizing up and down for how long I'd taken.

When I reached Alessandro's, the restaurant was bustling with a noisy lunch crowd. It was obvious many of the patrons were there to conduct business. I assumed it was a popular spot for lunch meetings.

The high ceilings and art deco appearance of the restaurant had me in awe as I waited my turn to speak with the hostess.

Eliza was already there waiting on me and I glanced at the time on my phone, praying I wasn't late as the hostess led me to the table.

"Vanessa! Wonderful to see you again!" Eliza greeted me with a big hug instead of a handshake, giving me the impression that we were already off to a great start.

She'd changed some over the years since I'd last seen her. Her hair was longer and now had highlights, and she wore an engagement ring with a diamond that was practically the size of a teacup saucer. You could probably bounce a laser beam off of the stone.

"You're engaged!" I grinned excitedly. "That's great!"

Eliza beamed with happiness, fondly looking at her ring. "Do you remember Jacob Hanlon from-"

"Hanlon and Crowe," I finished her sentence. "Of course, I remember. The firm handled their finances for years. They probably still do."

I remembered Eliza and Jacob dating back when I was in Dallas. Nobody thought they'd last, both being the children of prominent business figures who seemed to already have their lives planned out for them. Hanlon and Crowe was a well-known law firm who represented Morgan Taffey in investment litigation. I'd met Jacob a couple times when he was still in law school, but we never knew each other well. He always seemed nice, though.

"Yes," Eliza smiled brightly. "Jacob proposed a couple weeks ago. Actually, that's the reason I failed to call you back on Monday. A handful of my coworkers decided to throw an impromptu engagement party for me at the office and it ended up messing with my schedule a bit. I'm sorry for that, Vanessa."

I shook my head, waving it off. "No problem at all. I'm really happy for you."

The waiter sauntered over with a flat smile and a couple glasses of water for us.

"What can I get you ladies?" he asked, flipping open his pad.

We both ordered chicken Caesar salads, Eliza's with extra Parmesan and mine minus the croutons. I knew I'd be hungry later, but I was on a budget and I also didn't want to be stuffing my mouth while trying to discuss business.

"I suppose we should get down to discussing what we're here for," Eliza said, taking a sip of sauvignon blanc.

She retrieved an iPad from her leather bag and pulled up the acquisition details. I wished I had the ability to do that, but I didn't have an iPad and I probably wasn't cool enough to do that anyway. Eliza made it look cool.

I opened my folder to the page where I'd bullet pointed notes and began my pitch, hoping I came across as professional and knowing what I was doing, despite the fact that I was totally making it up as I went along.

"Advantage Republic has done so much good for small business owners, both in and out of New York," I started, nervously wiggling my toes in my shoes. "We have a fantastic promotional team who works tirelessly to make sure our clients reach their full potential in news and social media, among other aspects. We want our clients to grow and be able to provide a solid backing of job security and healthcare options for all their employees. As you know, it's so difficult for small businesses to market themselves and have time to efficiently run their business, too. For many, it's nearly impossible to do both. The chef-slash-owner of a small restaurant won't have the time to spend advertising and marketing when they finish a sixteen-hour shift, and as a result, the business isn't getting the traffic it deserves. That's where Advantage comes in and takes the marketing reigns for them, so that that blue collar worker gets to go home and spend time with their family rather than staring at a computer halfway into the night."

I paused, taking in Eliza's expression and body language. She seemed to be intently listening and caring about what I had to say, but I knew I wasn't telling her anything she didn't already know. I did, however, hope that I was hitting an emotional chord that could help sway her decision.

Deciding to take a chance in veering out of the safe lane, I continued. "Eliza, I know you're well aware of all the good Advantage Republic does for people and small businesses. I don't need to tell you about the countless times Jesse Reese and Erica Hernandez have worked miracles for a company that would've gone under without their help. I know you're aware of our recent financial difficulties. I'm not going to pretend we're in great shape. That's obviously why we're having this meeting. But I want you to focus not on Advantage's current financial trouble, but rather on all the good the company does on a national level. Yes, we had a few missteps over the last year, and yes, that did cost us dearly; but I am completely confident that with your help, we can turn this ship around and come back better and stronger and continue to provide the unparalleled assistance for small businesses that we're known globally for. I know I'm asking for a lot here, but I'm certain that a partnership between our companies will provide the best outcome for everyone involved."

Eliza was quiet for what seemed like forever, glancing between me and the screen in her hands. I knew she was thinking over her options. Eliza had always been one to fully dissect a business venture before hopping onboard. She never wanted to bring a bad deal back to Morgan Taffey, which in turn had given the company a reputation of never having a failure. It was terrifying to me that there was the chance Advantage could be Morgan Taffey's first failure, but I was sure Eliza wouldn't enter into a deal with us if she thought there was even a remote possibility of that happening. Ultimately, I was expecting her to turn me down.

Maybe I wasn't that great of a negotiator. As I waited for Eliza's response, I mentally beat myself up for not bringing Jesse and Erica into this meeting. They should've been the ones handling everything. It's their company after all. I really had no business meeting with Eliza. Had I just ruined everything?

Finally, she cleared her throat and spoke. "Vanessa, what you're asking me to do is bail out your employer. I'm not in a position to gamble with an account that large. I need assurance that if Morgan Taffey were to go into business with Advantage Republic, the partnership wouldn't fail us."

I fumbled through my papers and handed her a stack of client testimonials. "I don't believe one mistake on my boss's part overrides everything you'll read here. This is a collection of client testimonials going back two years. Not a single one is negative. You'll notice each one testifies to the fact that Advantage Republic singlehandedly saved their business from going under, restored their company's reputation, or provided the resources they needed to succeed, grow, and give their employees an unprecedented level of job security. That's exactly the type of business I believe Morgan Taffey is interested in. Our record speaks for itself."

"That may be," Eliza said, glancing over the papers in her hand. "But how do you explain your company's current status?"

I knew that would be the hang up. Advantage could have the best reputation in the city, but the fact that it was about to go under preceded any compliments.

"As simply as this." I mustered up a confident persona and hoped my words would be enough to seal the deal. "Our fate is on Jesse Reese and his management of our corporate finances. You and I both know that. But you don't know why. The reason we're in this position is because Jesse invested too much of our resources into his sister's venture to help get her dream of running a charity off the ground. She's a cancer survivor who wants dearly to help others who've been in her position, and Jesse desperately wants to give her the world after what she's been through. Unfortunately, there are so many similar organizations, Lillian's charity didn't stand a chance, and Jesse poured tons of money and resources into trying to save it, at the expense of his own business endeavors, but it just didn't work out. I can't fault Jesse for trying to do such a noble thing, regardless of the position it's put us in. And honestly, if working with him has taught me anything, it's that it's okay to stumble sometimes – it's okay to ask for help. There's no such thing as a perfect company, perfect boss, perfect employee... We all have our faults, but that doesn't mean we're without the potential for something amazing. So I'm humbly asking for your help, Eliza. We stumbled along the way. Help us stand back up."