"She gets that from you."
"Don't flatter me this morning."
He picked up his briefcase.
At the door, Diane said, "Richard."
He turned.
"If he kills the contract, don't blame him."
Richard looked at her for a long moment.
"I won't."
Brookstone's headquarters occupied a renovated brick warehouse near the river, not the glass tower Richard had imagined when he first began pursuing the account. The lobby displayed photographs of hotel employees rather than executives. Housekeepers, chefs, maintenance engineers, front-desk clerks, banquet teams.
A brass plaque near reception read: HOSPITALITY IS WHAT HAPPENS WHEN NO ONE IMPORTANT IS WATCHING.
Richard stared at it longer than he wanted to.
At 8:43, the receptionist offered coffee.
At 8:57, Margaret Price walked through the lobby carrying a file.
Richard stood.
"Margaret."
"Richard."
"I didn't know you'd be here."
"I sit on the capital standards committee. Your proposal affects six Ashford-class properties."
Of course she did.
Richard felt the morning become more difficult.
At exactly nine, an assistant opened the conference room door.
"Mr. Whitfield? Mr. Brooks is ready for you."
Richard entered.
Harold was not seated at the head of the table.
He sat halfway down, sleeves rolled to the forearms, reading Richard's proposal with a yellow pencil in his hand. Beside him sat Brookstone's chief operating officer, general counsel, procurement director, and Margaret.
No one mentioned the wedding.
Not yet.
Harold pointed to the chair across from him.
"Morning, Richard."
"Morning, Harold."
"Sit down."
Richard did.
Harold closed the proposal.
"Before we discuss your bid, we need to establish something."
Richard's mouth went dry.
Harold looked directly at him.
"My company does not award work because I like someone, and it does not deny work because I dislike someone. Your proposal will be evaluated on price, safety, capacity, labor practices, references, and performance. If it's the best bid, you'll remain in consideration. If it isn't, yesterday won't save it and Saturday won't kill it. Understood?"
Richard nodded. "Understood."
"Good."
Harold slid one section of the proposal forward.
"Your emergency response staffing numbers are optimistic. Explain them."
For the next forty minutes, the meeting was entirely business.
Richard answered questions about regional crews, subcontractor vetting, warranty exposure, and phased renovation schedules. Margaret challenged his assumptions about occupied-room construction. The chief operating officer pushed him on response times. General counsel asked about worker classification and insurance limits.
Richard slowly realized Harold had meant what he said.
The wedding would not decide the contract.
Competence would.
That should have relieved him.
Instead, it made him feel worse.
Because fairness from Harold removed the excuse Richard had hoped to use if he lost.