The characters in this story are all over eighteen and the age of consent, sex if it happens is consensual. UK English is the rule: if the spellings Mum, arse or colour annoy you, don't go any further, for the rest of you enjoy.
*****
"Uncle Peter?"
I turned and faced a blonde vision of loveliness, pearly white teeth set in a huge grin, slim attractive body and holding her arms out towards me.
"Pam?" I offered, watching her grin ignite.
I stepped forward and felt her small breasts mash against my chest, her taut body melding to mine, her arms around my back. I touched her cheek with my lips.
"How are you?"
"All the better for seeing you." I stepped back grasping her hands and surveyed her beautiful figure. The blue dress, clinging to her elegant willowy form, dropped casually to her knees, the sleeves ending just below her elbows. A simple gold chain at her throat and plain stud ear rings, noticed in a brief flash of gold from the rooms lighting.
"How are your Mum and Dad, I hope they're well?" I offered as I let her hands free, she grinned.
"They're great, Mum and Jim are finally retired and Dad and Sally are sunning themselves in Spain at the moment."
I knew Anne and Joe had had troubles, but since moving ten years ago, had lost track of their marital problems. So they'd divorced or separated at least. It happens all too often with our age group. I felt her hand touch my arm, I smiled and looked into her clear blue eyes.
"I was sorry to hear about Aunt Jane, at the time I wasn't sure whether to contact you. Mum and Dad said they would do everything, but..." she said in almost a whisper.
"It's OK, I can't say I'm over it but, well life has to go on." I didn't add, no matter how meaningless and empty it is. I had lost my wife to a stupid, stupid car accident five years ago
Jane had been driving home from work, the car must have failed since she had pulled onto the hard shoulder of the motorway and as she went to get out to phone for help, an HGV had ploughed into the car's side trapping her between the car and the lorry. She had been dragged along the side of the car then dropped onto the ground in front of it, the torn and mangled door just beyond her.
She was dead almost instantly, suffering massive internal and external injuries and severe blood loss.
The driver was distraught and after the coroners court reached a verdict of accidental death, had sought me out on the court steps and apologised over and over. In the end I just hugged him and we cried together. The picture made the national press. I heard later he'd quit his job and become trapped in his home, unable to leave. He had been tired and had agreed to the extra job as a favour to the boss.
I had been to the doctors and had counseling, I found his address and with his Doctor's blessing went to see him. We talked, we drank, we sobbed, but I like to think in the end we parted as friends, I was at pains to tell him I didn't blame him for the accident. Three months later he hanged himself, found by his daughter hanging from the bannister in the hallway, a stool lying just in front of him. His employers, who had denied all liability for the accident, were less than enthusiastic in helping with the funeral or afterwards. I heard his daughter sold up and emigrated.
I looked at my grief and realised I had more to live for. Believe me I had thought about his option many times. We had no kids, no immediate family. It would have been easy, but somehow I knew I could never do it, I knew that would not have been what Jane wanted, or would have done herself.
So after a six month sabbitical I went back to my job, throwing myself into a whirlwind of work. I got involved so much that I was the 'Go To' guy. Head fixer, the snake man, the magician, resolving the connundrums, easing the way, oiling the links. I sat in on so many committees, panels, advisory's, I had become the committee guy who was required at every meeting.
I had no official job now, I was just available as and when required. In our field that meant I had a stack of work and was very much 'in demand'. It was the reason I was here today, stood in the lobby of the Hotel, waiting to meet my co-worker and the clients. We had a deal set up, very lucrative, very hush hush. But, and ain't there always a but, we had a sticking point, the client wouldn't give, we felt we couldn't give. But for this, the deal was done.
"So what are you doing here?" I asked with a grin.
"I'm here to meet clients to discuss the options we have on a very secret, but very special deal." She said conspiratorially.
I thought hard, and grinning said,
"I work for Collins and Danning," watching her lips twitch, suppressing her smile.
"I'm with Cormands," she said instantly, her smile breaking out over her face, damn it was infectious.
"Bingo!" I said, grinning, we hugged again.
Geoff Danials appeared, I shook his hand and introduced Pam, they shook hands, very professional.
"So, who's to come on your team?" I asked, noting the time.
"I'm it, there's only me, shall we get this show on the road?" She gestured towards the business suite behind me.
Well if they'd sent Pam on her own, they were either very stupid and unprepared or she was a very powerful woman who had the full backing of the Board. I followed her gesture and walked along with Geoff at my side.
"Can you believe this, they sent a little girl, we got this sewn up mate, she's sunk before we start." He whispered, a huge grin on his face. I raised an eyebrow.
This was the same little kid next door, who had such incredible strength and determination in her young body. She had taught herself to ride a bike at four. We'd watched fascinated as she got on, fell off, got on, fell off, until an hour later she was cycling up and down as if born riding one. After that we often heard her older brother's cry that his bike had been taken again by Pam. She had excelled at school, winning a scholarship to a top local independent Girls School and then a bursary to attend Oxford University. When we had moved somehow we lost touch, and now here she was about to sit opposite me. Go head to head and make her pitch. I knew this wasn't first man to blink, but this was a make or break meet.
At the business suite she steered us into a meeting room, her bag and papers on the table. The room contained the table four chairs, two sofa's and a seperate smaller table at one side with tea coffee, danish pastries, biscuits, milk dispensers and cups, saucers and mugs set out. She indicated the empty side for us to sit, then took her seat with a swish and rustle of her dress.
"Gentlemen, firstly can I reaffirm that I have board approval to negotiate with you, the werewithal to commit and the blessing to beat the shit out of you to get this deal done. We don't leave til the ink dries on the paper." She grinned.
"Okay, likewise, we're full empowered to get this signed and we too intend to browbeat you into submission on our terms." Geoff said.
"Well looks like being a long and lively day folks, so go, give me your best shot."
"Well Pam, I can call you Pam?" Geoff said, she nodded, "We looked long and hard, at the sticking point and we feel we have little room for manouvre this time, we can't really negotiate down on this."
"Fine, we respect your position, but this deal will make both of us a shedful of money, can you really afford to be so intractable that you don't have some wriggle room."
"We do in some areas but not on this, this is our marker."
"Okay, so if this is a non-negotiable for both of us, can we backtrack and find a way somewhere else to maybe give ourselves some room to negotiate?"
"What do you have in mind?" I asked, knowing she would have pre-prepared a number of plays here.
"Well pricing is key, but the deliverables could be massaged to help us, and not hurt you."
"That would mean we take a hit on the initial costs, since we'd be covering the delay on the deal."
"True, but what if we agree to peg our base price, and we cover any delay costs or finance charge increases."
"Can you do that without hurting the bottom line?"
"Geoff, would I have suggested it unless I'd done my homework?" she chided him gently.
"This is too easy, you're making a sudden and big concession so early, how come."
"The honest truth, we need this deal, we are at a point where we go on and up, or we end up swimming in a small pond with minnows." she shrugged.
"And little chance of making the big money?" I offered,
