Chapter 9
"Are you on your way there now?" Minato's voice rang through her car system as Ayane drove through the airport traffic to find a parking spot.
"I'm there already. Just parking and then heading in." Ayane replied as she turned into the closest spot she could find.
She was on her way to pick up Mr. Chen, a client from China who was the CEO of one of the biggest hotel chains in Asia. They had agreed to meet with Minato to discuss a possible future collaboration in which Uzumaki Tech would be in charge of their cybersecurity as well as setting them up with the newest technology available in their hotels.
On the way there, Minato had called to check in despite the fact that Ayane was well ahead of schedule and knew precisely where to go.
"You know, you should really get back to work." Ayane scolded as she grabbed her bag and slipped the phone between her shoulder and neck. Using her free hand, she closed the door and watched as it automatically locked.
"I know. I'm just nervous, that's all. This sales is huge." Minato replied, the anxiousness in his voice was evident even over the phone as he showed his vulnerability to his assistant.
"Listen," Ayane's heels clicked along the parking lot as she made her way to the arrivals. "You have a meeting to attend to in ten minutes. Afterwards, we will go to the office and present as planned. We'll go have lunch with the old man, and then all is done. It will go well, don't worry."
"Easy for you to say," Minato groaned. "Did you know they're hearing multiple offers while they're here in Japan? This is only stage one! What if we mess it up?"
Pausing in her steps, Ayane let out a deep breath. "Mr. Namikaze- Minato, listen. The only real competitor you have is Akatsuki Inc., and I already know for a fact that our tech beats the shit out of theirs and their sales team sucks without me."
She could hear Minato chuckling on the other side from her self-confident speech. A smile also appeared on her face knowing that she was able to cheer the man up a bit. "I promise you, it will go fine. Just concentrate on what you have to do, and then I'll meet you back in the office in an hour."
"Okay." Ayane couldn't help but grin because she could hear the pout in Minato's voice. The older man, though chalked full of charisma in front of others, was unusually open when speaking with her. "Drive safely."
"Thank you. Good luck with Hiashi." Another chuckle escaped her when Minato groaned dramatically on the other end. "Bye."
"Bye."
As Ayane hung up and continued toward the building, she couldn't help but have a little extra bounce in her step. Her mood lightened drastically after her call with Minato in a way that she couldn't even explain. It was then that she knew it was going to be a good day.
On the way back to the office, she made small talk with the Chinese CEO and his assistant, even utilizing the Mandarin that she had taught herself during her time as a sales associate. She thanked the heavens that she was sitting in the front seat while the other two were in the back because she fought desperately to hide the scowl that was on her face.
Mr. Chen was an older man, in fact, probably old enough to be her father. From the moment that she picked him up to the entire time spent in the car, Ayane could feel his stares lingering on her body, often in places that made her the most uncomfortable.
Though his looks left her with a bitter taste in her mouth and venomous words that were threatening to escape, she was well acquainted with the business world enough to ignore it and move on. Afterall, she knew fully well that each and every one of her actions represented Minato, whether it was negative or positive.
"Mr. Chen! Welcome to our company!" Ayane watched as Minato shook the man's hand and spoke with absolute fluency. He was clad in a navy suit which was tailored perfectly to his body, emphasizing his long legs and well-built body. Professionalism oozed from his smile and posture, making Ayane wonder how on Earth the CEO could carry such perfection with him.
"Thank you for inviting me," the older man accepted the gesture. "This is my assistant Zhou Jie."
Minato turned to offer a polite handshake to the assistant who must have still been a couple years older than himself. "Nice to meet you, assistant Zhou. Now please, if you would follow me this way."
Ayane shivered when she felt the old man's eyes on her as he extended a hand forward. "You first, milady," he said.
Suddenly alert, Minato turned to take a quick glance between his client and the look of disgust Ayane was struggling to hide before he extended his own arm behind her. His hand hovered lightly on the small of her back as he guided her forward to walk next to him.
Ayane, who had been cautious of her proximity to her boss ever since the rumours began, suddenly felt at home in his arms, even if it was the slightest of touches. As she stuck by Minato's side and listened absentmindedly to his tour of the building, she imagined herself tucked in his arms, loving the way her body fit perfectly against his longer, lean figure. The image of them together made her heart flutter and a secret smile to appear on her face.
The meeting went well with the Chinese CEO. Danzo and his team had prepared the presentation and in their usual manner. The conference room was packed with sales representatives along with the two CEOs themselves. Mr. Chen seemed impressed throughout the entire sales pitch, often nodding and even smiling at the words being said. It wasn't until the end of the presentation though, that Minato finally seemed at ease with the results of the meeting.
"Everything looks good! Mr. Namikaze, your team put together a superb presentation." Mr. Chen exclaimed, his expression pleased. "I would love to work with your team, of course, I need to listen to a few other offers first while on this trip, but if we could, I would like to invite you to Shanghai so we can discuss this with our board of directors and other executives as well."
Minato's face lit up at the opportunity. "Yes I would love to!" Turning to his assistant, he spoke. "Ayane, when is our first availability?"
Ayane paused to look up Minato's schedule. A frown was prominent on her face as she scrolled through, looking for the first available set of dates that would work. "It would have to be in about a month's time," she said hesitantly.
She knew that Minato wouldn't be pleased as the longer the gap, meant a higher chance of losing the offer to another company. To her surprise, Mr. Chen smiled, and turned to his own assistant, speaking in Mandarin. "Great! Zhou Jie, make a note to contact the directors to set up a date. Afterwards, contact Ms. Higashi here to make arrangements. We will accommodate them at one of our hotels. Make sure they get the best of the best."
"Yes, sir."
While the rest of the room seemed lost in translation, Minato and Ayane exchanged looks of shock, but at the same time, glimmering excitement. Perhaps it was the fact that the old man was clearly smitten by her, or maybe the sales pitch truly seemed desirable to him, but regardless of the reasoning, they were grateful for the special treatment.
After the conference and having lunch with Mr. Chen himself, they bid their goodbyes and headed back to work. Minato called together the same group of sales members to discuss the next part of the business plan.
"Thank you all for your hard work," Minato started, looking around the conference room at his employees. "I know this presentation was last minute, but you guys blew me away, and Mr. Chen let me know during our lunch together that he was impressed with our company's products and hard work."
"It's not over yet though. As you all heard during the end of the meeting, in a month's time, we will be heading to China to present to their board of directors and executives. That presentation is especially important because it means we would be going up against other top competitors who Guang Xing Company is also considering."
Minato paused and took a glance at his assistant who looked back at him with confused eyes. He then turned to look at Danzo who held a smug look on his face after being complimented on his team's efforts.
"In a month's time, Ayane will be the one to present the sales pitch to Guang Xing. She and I will be the ones to go to China to meet their board of directors."
Ayane felt her body go numb as she took in Minato's words. Her head started spinning as the room suddenly became a riot around her with displeased sales managers and an equally enraged Danzo. With panicked eyes, she turned to Minato who struggled to calm the room despite his usual dominance.
"You can't do that! Mr. Namikaze! With all due respect, this is our client and our presentation!"
"Her again? What good is she?"
"She doesn't know anything about our sales and products!"
"Shouldn't Mr. Shimura be the one to go?"
"Minato!" The room suddenly fell silent as Danzo slammed a palm onto the table. He glared daggers at the CEO in front of him. "What is the meaning of this? Our team worked their asses off to prepare for today's meeting. They are the one that knows this proposition best. How can you suddenly entrust this to her?!"
Minato, who had sat back and took all the shots with his eyes closed, finally looked up when the room had died down. His blue eyes were rimmed with intensity as he looked at the VP of External Affairs.
"I understand that your team was the one in charge of putting the presentation together. In fact, they can continue to work with Ms. Higashi on it. However, must I remind you Danzo, no one on your team, not even yourself, is capable of speaking fluent English or Mandarin. How do you propose we solve this problem before our next meeting?"
Once again, Danzo was left speechless. He was unable to come up with a solution, leaving him to hang his head in defeat. "You're right." He conceded, though an apology was far from the list of things he planned to say.
"So it's been decided then. One or two of you will work closely with Ms. Higashi to prepare the presentation in the coming month. Ms. Higashi will now be put in charge of this client's case. If there's nothing else, I would like to call it a day. Thank you for all your hard work."
With that, the room had been dismissed, many of them sending a lingering glare in Ayane's direction before they walked past the glass door. None of them particularly bothered Ayane until she saw the way Danzo was looking at her with contempt on his way out. She felt shivers going down her spine as they made eye contact.
It wasn't until the two were left alone, that Ayane turned to Minato with a deep frown etched on her face. "Why do you always do this?"
"Do what?" Minato seemed genuinely shocked that his assistant seemed agitated.
"Why do you insist on making me a target?!" Ayane exclaimed. Her true fears were coming out now as she faced the CEO in open rebellion, something she couldn't do with others around. "I'm already on everyone's radar because of the rumours about us. Now you want to give me special treatment in front of everyone! I'm not a salesman, I don't even know what to do about the upcoming presentation. Yet instead of giving it to someone like Danzo, who clearly hates me already, you decide to put another target on my back!"
Minato stared blankly at the girl next to him as tears of frustration began to bloom from her eyes. It took everything in his power to respect her boundaries, and not reach out and pull her into his arms in comfort. "That wasn't my intention." His voice came out almost like a whisper.
Ayane scoffed. "I'm sure it wasn't, but have you ever considered the consequences of your actions before you do them? Have you ever thought about my position?"
"I only wanted to give you the opportunity to learn more things!" He insisted. "I knew you would do the job best. I wouldn't give you the job unless I had confidence in you."
Ayane gripped her long hair in frustration, "that's not the point!"
"Then what is?!" Minato was starting to lose his patience now too, in a way that he never thought he would with her.
"The point is that I don't want to be the centre of attention, Minato! I don't want everyone's eyes on me. I don't want people to think that you treat me any more special than others, and I don't want people to think we have some sort of relationship!" She blew up. Her fears and tribulations were all out on the table now. As silence ensued and she caught her breath, she continued in a softer tone, almost begging. "I just want to do my job and go home. I like this job Minato, please don't make me leave it."
The CEO watched as all the emotions washed through her, her warm eyes filled with anger, then fear, and then defeat. His heart wrenched as he observed the way he had affected her, knowing that his own decisions were the cause of it all.
"There's nothing between us, so no one is going to find anything out." The pain in his voice was evident as he reminded himself of the truth.
"But even if they did.." He stepped forward, despite her guarded reaction toward him, and used one hand to brush a stray strand of hair behind her ear. He trapped a tear under his thumb and lightly wiped it aside. "Even if they did, I promise you, I will protect you."
Ayane felt her resolve diminishing at the reassurance of his words. Her body relaxed at his touch, and she cursed the fluttering in her heart and the familiarity of his warmth. Minato was looking at her with the same eyes that he did the first night that they spent together, ones that made her feel loved and important. She felt herself falling for him, despite her greatest efforts.
"Don't do this to me," she pleaded, looking him in the eyes.
"I can't help it, I'm sorry." Minato apologized because he himself couldn't resist her. Despite all the shit that was going on in his life, she was his only light.
Breaking the trance, the CEO dropped his arm and returned to the topic at hand. "So, will you take this client for me?"
With a deep sigh, Ayane gave in. "I'll do it, but no more after this."
A smile, brighter than the sun, lit up on Minato's face. "Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Ayane couldn't help but smile with him, wondering at the back of her mind how on Earth she caved so easily to the man in front of her.