Chapter 123 - William’s Secret Move

That evening, William waited for Dave in his office waiting room. Dave was very busy, he had an emergency meeting because of a problem at work that he had to deal with immediately. Meanwhile, William needed Dave as soon as possible. So, he was forced to wait for the man even if he had to spend boring hours there.

While waiting for his colleague to leave the meeting room, William went through his business proposal again and made a summary so that the exhausted Dave could still read it even at a glance. The man occasionally took a sip of the coffee latte prepared by Theresa, Dave’s secretary.

There was no time for William to waste the time any longer. He had to do something for a better future. Being unemployed and penniless was no fun at all. He was so embarrassed when Lea came to him for financial help, but he could only make a small donation. Moreover, after that, it was Paula who helped Lea. He felt like a useless man.

“Sorry you waited so long,” Dave greeted William, breaking William’s attention from his laptop. Luckily, the summary was finished a few moments ago before Dave entered the waiting room.

“Ah, Dave! Sorry, I bothered you at such a busy time,” William said sincerely. He felt uneasy when he saw the man in front of him look so exhausted. “I can come again another time if you can’t possibly continue our meeting right now.”

Dave smiled and shook his head quickly. “You can come again in the next two months. Are you okay with that?” Dave joked with his signature laugh, making the tense and gloomy atmosphere in the waiting room a little brighter. “You’d still choose now, wouldn’t you?”

Inevitably, William also laughed. How could he wait patiently for the next two months?

“Okay, don’t feel bad! I’m the one who suddenly broke my promise today because of some urgent business. I’m grateful and flattered because you’re willing to wait a while until the meeting is over,” Dave smiled again at William while adjusting the position of his glasses. The man looked as handsome as Clark Kent even though he had been busy all day without the slightest break. “Do you want to go to the meeting room so you can use the projector?”

.....

William shook his head quickly. “No need. Here is fine. So you can sit back and relax on the couch. I’m pretty sure that all day long your back hasn’t been resting on something soft and comfy.”

Dave chuckled at William’s joke. He then asked Theresa to prepare refreshments for them.

“Alright, let’s start the discussion now!” said William as he handed his laptop screen to Dave.

“Before we continue the discussion, I heard from the gossip that you are now bankrupt because your father fired you. Is that the reason you came to see me?” asked Dave again? He then let out a long sigh. “If only my company wasn’t in financial trouble, I might have helped and invested in your start-up. However, I just can’t do it.”

William just gaped, disappointedly. “And you must not read my emails and proposals properly.”

“Am I wrong? Didn’t you send a similar idea that you offered to Mark and Gaby?” asked Dave again, confused. He had indeed glimpsed the proposal that William had offered. He was very sure that it was William’s old idea that failed to be executed.

“How did you know?” asked William curiously. He didn’t think he’d ever shared the idea with anyone other than his father and Mark and Gaby. Of course, his former secretary, Danica, knows about it. However, no one could tell Dave, could they?

“Ah, I spoke to Gaby at a conference when we were both presenters,” Dave answered casually.

William nodded, thinning his lips into a straight line. No wonder Dave didn’t read his proposal properly. It turned out that he already had his own opinion on the idea. An opinion formed and directed by the person who rejected it in the past: Gaby.

“It’s the same idea, but I clearly said in the email that I didn’t ask you to become an investor,” William replied. Deep in his mind, he laughed a little at Dave. As stupid as William was, he wouldn’t ask Dave to become an investor for a plan as big as he had planned. Dave’s company and his family’s were not much different.

Dave looked awkward and embarrassed. “Then what do you plan to do?” he asked then.

“I just want to ask for your cooperation, holding you who are more experienced with the kind of project I’m offering,” William said calmly. He then told Dave what he meant.

“Oh, so you just want my help with that? Asking my man to join your team?” asked Dave, almost in disbelief. However, he then nodded slowly. “I will consider this matter.”

“I offer an attractive profit sharing. I hope you will check it carefully. Just tell me if there are unclear things,” explained William enthusiastically.

Dave smiled briefly. “To be honest, I was already interested when Gaby told me. Your concept is very good. It’s just that, if your problem is with funding, I certainly can’t help. However, it turns out you asked for something else. Of course, I would be happy to consider it.”

“Thank you very much,” William replied, smiling genuinely. “I truly appreciate it.”

Soon Theresa came with whole grain crackers and a delicious chocolate milkshake. The hungry stomachs of the young entrepreneurs were struggling to be filled immediately. They then quickly ate delicious snacks prepared on their trays.

“Sorry if the food is like kid’s food,” Dave joked. The food was indeed like the favorite food of elementary school children.

“It doesn’t matter, soon I will also get used to seeing kid’s food or even making food for my son,” William answered while chewing his crackers.

“Son? Your son?” asked Dave curiously.

“Oh, crap! Paula will scold me for spilling the baby’s gender!” William forgot that Paula asked her to keep it secret. “By the way, congrats, huh! Your baby is a boy too, right?”

Dave looked at William with a look of amazement. “My baby? A boy?”

William nodded, doubtful and confused at the same time. “Don’t you know it?” he asked as he cleaned the bits of crackers on his red, split lower lip.

“How did you know it?” asked Dave back.

William snorted softly. “Yesterday, Paula and I visited Lea who was hospitalized. She told me that her baby is also a boy.”