Chapter Text
John Sheppard woke up and rolled over, wrinkling his nose at the two bodies still in bed next to him. Apparently, they didn’t get the memo that they were supposed to get up, take the money he left for them, and be gone before he was awake.
Sighing to himself, he slid out of bed quietly and went looking for his clothes, finding them scattered among the pieces from the other two. The woman’s clothes were easy enough to identify, but the guy had a similar body type to John, so he actually had to look to make sure he got his own stuff. He would have liked to shower, but he wasn’t going to risk being here when they woke up. He didn’t do morning afters.
Less than ten minutes later, he was slipping out, taking the key with him. If the maids woke them up when they came to turn over the room, it wasn’t John’s fault. They knew the rules when they let him pick them up last night.
Check out was fast, with no questions asked—one of the benefits of being Patrick Sheppard’s son with Patrick Sheppard’s money. Unfortunately, the downside was that it meant Patrick Sheppard actually got to have a say in his life again.
But it had to be better than dealing with the crap he'd get in the military if he'd stayed. He was honestly surprised he'd made it as far as he did, resigning under duress as a Major. But he had his pension and an honorable discharge—and all the prestige that would get him.
The slight limp in wet weather was the only lasting physical reminder he had to the FUBAR mission that had ended him up where he was. And that, his physical therapist had assured him, would eventually settle.
Sighing, John slipped into the waiting limo, heading for the airport. The two twinks from last night obviously hadn't been good enough if he still had the energy to think about this shit. His brooding was interrupted by his cellphone. "Sheppard here."
"How did the meeting go yesterday?" It was David, his brother and his father's watchdog. "I didn't hear from you afterward."
John didn't bother to fight to urge to roll his eyes. He and David had spent years at odds when he had elected to join the military instead of their father's company. Now that John was back, metaphorical tail between his legs, they were, if not great, at least on speaking terms. "They offered me everything, including sexual favors with their wives and daughters, if we close the deal with them. I forwarded the paperwork to your secretary. Not for the women. If the executives were anything to go by, they wouldn't be my type. But the company is solid, and would make a good addition to the company roster."
David snorted, holding back what John knew would have been a laugh when they were younger. He used to have the same sexual appetite John had—and still maintained. David’s wife, though, has put a squash on that. "You know you're supposed to cc me on stuff like that."
"I didn't realize you were interested in dumpy women, or that Amelia would even let you be interested in them. I'll make note of it, and make sure to pass the offers along next time."
"The paperwork, you bastard, not the….other stuff. Are you still going to Athosian Software today? We're looking at some of their products to integrate them into what Atlantis Corp. is doing."
"Too bad. The women might have been dumpy, but they were at least more interesting than the paperwork. Probably." John let himself smile a little. "And yes, I'm headed to the airport now. I'm assuming the meeting has been set up for when I arrive?"
"Yes. It's not in San Fran, but in Oakland. Try to remember that this time."
"I had a lot more fun in San Fran. The hookers in Oakland are pathetic."
"John, come on, the kids are here."
"If you have me on speaker phone, it's your own damn fault." John sighed. "But sorry. Yes, I'll make sure to go to Oakland, sit in a stuffy meeting and charm the executives into selling us their company. All before I go find whatever entertainment Oakland can provide for the evening."
There was a shuffle of sound on the phone and then Dave's voice came back on, louder and closer. He was off speakerphone. "Look, you know I don't care what you do on your off time, but can you not rub it in—or leave us with paternity suits. That's the last thing we need."
"I always use protection. You know that. I have no desire to breed. I leave that to you. And I'm not rubbing it in. But I'm sure as hell not going to pretend I'm going to go back to my hotel room alone, either. If I'm going to be Dad's go-get-em errand boy, tying up his loose ends for him, I'm sure as hell going to get good sex out of it. Copious amounts of good, filthy sex."
Dave sighed quietly. "You were the one who volunteered for the business travel."
"Well, it's better than being there where Dad can disapprove of me in person. At least on the road, he limits it to once a week or so." John shrugged, even though David couldn't see it. "But as long as I do the job, and do it to his standards, he can disapprove of me all he wants, he'll still let me do what I want. It's a truce that seems to be working for the moment at least. Until the next time he decides it's time for me to get married, probably."
"I don't think he's going down that road again."
John snorted. "You mean he doesn't want a repeat of me publicly humiliating the latest crop of brainless beauties half my age? I can't imagine why not."
"Look. I'm not calling you to argue with you about this. I just need to know that you're going to be on time for your appointment today. I'm trying to schedule another meeting for you in San Fran tomorrow."
"I know. Sorry." John ran his free hand through his hair. "I'll be there on time and I'll be wherever you need me to be tomorrow. Just forward the schedule changes to my calendar, and I'll get them."
Dave sighed again. "Look, I know this isn't what you wanted for your life, but you're making a difference for us—and it matters to us. Okay?"
"Yeah. I know." It wasn't enough, not really, but John knew he didn't have a choice anymore. The doors he had planned for himself were all closed now, and he was damn lucky he had this one left at all. "I'll get Athosian to sign. Are we still willing to back off full acquisition if they'll sell us some of the software patents?"
"Right now we're just looking at integrating some of their software into one of our ongoing projects. Let's see how it goes before we spend the money. Maybe a licensing agreement short-term."
"Sounds good. I'm at the airport now, so I'll talk to you later."
"Call me after the meeting like you're supposed to and I won't haunt you."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll call." John signed off and hung up, sliding out of the limo and heading toward the plane. He nodded to the secretary that his father had assigned to him. He didn't ask where the man went after the meetings, and Kyle, the secretary, didn't ask about John's whereabouts, so they got along fine. "David might be routing us to San Fran tomorrow, so keep an eye on the scheduling."
"I thought so," Kyle nodded, gesturing for John to enter the Gulfstream first. "There was some talk last week about it."
John headed for the back, ignoring the familiar twinge pulling him toward the cockpit. His father had decided that pilots were employees, and John had to uphold the family image, and no amount of fighting about it had changed things. Not even that John had more flight hours logged in more aircraft than all of his father’s staff pilots combined.
For the sake of keeping the peace, David had begged him to just drop it already, and for now, John had conceded defeat. One of these days, he would just buy a plane for himself, although he was back at the house where it would be stored rarely these days, so he didn’t know if he’d ever even get to fly it.
The flight itself was uneventful. John took care of the small amount of paperwork he hadn’t managed to get out of—simply by either never doing it so it got delegated, or outright refusing to do. After that, he dozed for a bit, and by the time they landed, he was ready for Athosian. They were a quirky little company, and neither his father nor David had managed to get anywhere beyond the polite misdirection their executives seemed so good at. Apparently it was John’s turn to try.
He had two contact names: someone named Halling—who knew if that was a first or a last name—and Teyla Emmagan. Both were listed as executives, but neither had the official president and owner title. John hoped he wasn't just getting the low executive-level brush off.
Pasting on his carefree smile, John headed up the stairs, spotting the secretary at the desk. He headed over, and leaning against the desk. "Hi there. I'm here to see Mister Halling, and Miss Emmagan. I'm John Sheppard."
The woman was sickeningly sweet and upbeat. "Of course, Mister Sheppard. You're on the schedule for today. They're running a few minutes behind, so if you can take a seat, they'll be with you shortly. Can I get you something? Tea? Water?"
"Coffee if you have it." He switched to his charming smile, hoping to learn more about the company. "So how long have you worked here?"
"I have to admit that we don't serve coffee here, but we have a tea that's pretty close if you'd like that." She tilted her head and looked up at him through her lashes.
He leaned in closer, flirting a little. "I'd love to try it then."
She smiled and picked up the phone, her eyes not leaving his face. "Hi, it's Emma. Can you bring a cup of the morning mate tea to the front? I have a client here who'd like a cup."
He wondered if she was the kind of girl who tried to tie emotions to sex. If not, she could make Oakland worth it after all. "So Emma, I bet you get all kinds of interesting people passing through here. Where do you send them when they're finished with business, and are looking for a little relaxation?"
"Most of us go into the city, but we're generally pretty low-key."
"I haven't spent much time here, myself. What would you recommend?" He lowered his lashes a bit, and let a little sex ooze into his smile. Depending on how she reacted, he could usually tell whether the person he was talking to was a good target for a little nighttime fun, or was the kind of girl who would show up on his father's doorstep claiming he had proposed.
She offered a shy smile and a shrug. "It depends on what you like to do, I guess." But any further questions were cut short when another young woman walked into the lobby sporting a hot mug. She handed it carefully over to him.
"Sorry to interrupt, but Teyla said she's ready. I can bring Mister Sheppard to the back."
John straightened. He could continue this later, if he decided it was worth the risk. "Thank you for the tea, and if they're ready, then so am I." He threw a wink back to Emma as he followed the new girl out of the reception area.
"Sorry about the delay, Mister Sheppard. The morning conference call went a little longer than they anticipated."
"No worries. I know how that goes." He sipped the tea, surprised to find it was actually pretty good. He made a mental note to ask again what it was before he left. "So do Miss Emmagan and Mister Halling run the company?"
"Yes, they do," she said with a nod.
Good, so at least he wasn't being shunted off to people with no decision-making powers. "I'm looking forward to meeting them."
"Good," she said with a smile as they approached what looked like an executive conference room. "Teyla's ready for you. Please let me know if you need anything else." She opened the door and ushered him inside.
He stepped inside, immediately spotting a beautiful woman standing to greet him. Nice. John slipped on his charm, and took her offered hand, bowing over it slightly instead of just shaking it. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Emmagan."
She smiled at him, open and welcoming, but quickly removed her hand. "Mister Sheppard, you've made quite a long journey to visit our company. How can I be of assistance?"
He smiled, straightening up. "This tea is amazing. If you'll tell me where I can get a supply for myself, no matter the outcome of our meeting, I'll consider this a successful trip."
"We work with a local grower," she said, not elaborating. "You still haven't said why you wished to have this meeting and your…assistant was not forthcoming on the phone."
John gave her a rueful smile. "You probably talked to my father's assistant, not mine. He can be a bit secretive. I'm here because we'd like to license some of your software patents, with the aim of eventually buying them, if we're both satisfied with the partnership down the line."
She was quiet for a moment before gesturing toward a chair. "Why don't you have a seat?"
He nodded, and slipped into the chair she had indicated. The Halling person was nowhere to be found, but John assumed he would be along eventually.
"There are many companies that produce software," she said, pinning him with her eyes. "And yet, your company continues to pursue us. Why is that?"
"You're the best."
"Flattery will not help you."
"It's not flattery." John shrugged. "Trust me, there are plenty of other companies that would be a lot less work to acquire. But they don't have the same level of quality that you do. We have some projects that require precision, and it will be faster and easier for us to start with a solid software base, rather than try to do it from scratch. If you won't sell us your company, which is the way my father usually prefers to handle things, then we want to license your patents. I think he hopes that eventually he'll wear you down to the idea of working with us, and he can buy you without your noticing."
"Our company is not for sale."
"I get that. Right now, I'm here to license software from you. The rest of the fight I'll leave for other people, at another time."
"Our company will not be for sale in the future. I do not want to mislead you, but I do not even know you. Other representatives have been here before as well. You do not know how to take 'no' for an answer."
"I'm not my father. And while I won't pretend he won't try to buy you again in the future, that isn't why I was sent here today." John leaned back in his chair, finishing the last of his tea. "I'm here to offer you money to let us use your software."
Teyla eyed him carefully, giving John the feeling that she was sizing him up—and finding him lacking. "And why should I trust you?"
He had gotten used to it, so it didn't bother him. He shrugged again. "You have absolutely no reason to, whatsoever, and nothing I say here is going to make you trust me. So really, it comes down to whether you trust the lawyers you have going over the contracts I brought for consideration, and whether they'll tell you if there's anything hinky."
"Hinky."
John raised an eyebrow. "Yes, hinky. It's a technical term."
She tilted her head down, looking at him across the conference room table. "Technical terms, I know. That is not one of them." She paused, seemingly to consider her next words. When she started again, the pace was slow and careful. "Why should I believe you when all the other men from your company talked down to me and assumed I would simply…bend to their desires?"
"Like I said, I'm well aware that nothing I actually say will change your mind." He shrugged again. "But I'm not my father, my brother, or a company man. In fact, I'm sort of the black sheep, and the accounts they've been sending me on are the ones they're pretty much sure they won't get, so they figure, why the hell not? I can't make it any worse, right?"
"Flirting with the secretary is not exactly the best first impression you could have made."
"It was something to do to pass the time, and if you'd rather I leave her alone, I will. I'm not looking for anything more than a night, anyway."
She didn't comment on his admission, but her lips pressed together in a thin tight line. "I will look over the papers you brought."
He nodded. "You have our number when you make a decision."
Teyla pressed a button on the conference room phone and started speaking once the green light lit. "Mister Sheppard is leaving. Have Jinto see him out."
John gave her a grin. "I said I wouldn't hit on your employees, and I won't. But for full disclosure, I'm an equal opportunity guy; so assigning a man to escort me out doesn't really mean much. Not that I will do anything, just trying to be honest here."
"Jinto is fifteen. I would hope you would be able to hold yourself back," she said as the door opened and a young fresh-faced boy poked his head in.
John made a face, making sure the boy couldn't see. "Ah, yes. I do have some limits. Well played." He grinned at her.
Teyla rose, holding out her hand to shake his. "Have a good day, Mister Sheppard. Enjoy your time in Oakland."
"Thank you, I will." He rose as well, and shook her hand. "I hope I'll get to talk to you again. It's been a pleasure."
She smiled, but did not return the sentiment. Apparently her parents had taught her if she had nothing nice to say, not to say anything at all. Jinto was standing quietly in the hall waiting for him, but vibrating in the excited way boys did when they got to do something they considered important.
John followed him out, smiling. He considered the meeting a success. If nothing else, it had been entertaining.
"So you work for Sheppard Industries," Jinto said quietly, looking at him with something close to awe. "What's it like to be that rich?"
John looked down at him. "To be honest, it was... constricting. I left home when I was eighteen, and only came back about a year ago. It was hard growing up with all those expectations of what I should be and do with my life. The best advice I can give you is to follow your own heart."
"But you're rich! You can do anything you want."
John snorted. "No, my father is rich, Jinto isn't it? I have my own money, and not nearly the same amount. And money doesn't buy anything of importance anyway. Especially when it means you have to give your life over to someone else's ideals."
"I don't know," he said, sounding wistful as they reached the main lobby.
Chuckling, John reached down to shake the kid's hand. "Trust me on this one. I've lived both ways, and I much prefer to have less money and more freedom. Just don't let the idea that money is the be all and end all of life drive you to do anything you don't believe in, and you'll be fine."
"I guess," he said with a sad little shrug, his eyes scooting past John to the outside door where the limo was just visible.
John sighed to himself. He knew the kid would have to learn the hard way, just like he did. But he had always been a sucker for helping people—it was that "hero complex" as his commanding officers had put it, that had ultimately gotten him kicked out. Apparently it now extended to teenagers he just met. John reached out to shake Jinto's hand again, and gave him a small salute before heading out and getting in the limo.
Kyle was waiting for him, sitting across the way from him in the rear-facing seat. "That was quick."
"Whomever my father has been sending down here has royally fucked things up. I don't know that they'll even license us anything at this point. They don't trust us not to stab them in the back at the first opportunity."
"That would have been your father and brother," Kyle said with a wry smile.
"Figures. Get David on the phone."
"You want it on speaker?"
"Yes."
Kyle worked a few buttons on his phone and then a few second later John could hear the ringing in the built-in speakers. Kyle glanced up and spoke quietly and quickly. "We'll head to San Francisco for the night, sir. I have a room at the Ritz already booked."
"Fine." John waiting until his brother picked up, not even letting him get past the first few words. "What the fuck did you do to Athosian that you neglected to tell me about before sending me here? Because these people distrust us on a level I haven't seen outside of civilians in a fucking combat zone."
"Nothing," Dave said calmly. "We talked to them like we talk to any potential acquisition."
"If that's the way you treat acquisitions, then it's no wonder we lose more than we gain. Fuck. These people are looking to be stabbed in the fucking back, David."
"It's not my fault they're a bunch of tree-hugging hippies who don't trust anyone," Dave said as the limo started to pull away from Athosian headquarters. "You're new to the business, John. You don't know what it takes to make these kinds of deals happen. And besides, what happened to the John Sheppard charm? You couldn't get in Teyla's pants?"
"Fuck you, David." John reached over and hung up the line.
Kyle was smart and kept his head down and didn't say a word.
John waited until the limo stopped at a light and got out, tossing his cell on the seat before Kyle could stop him. "I'm going for a walk and I'm unavailable."
"Sir, wait!" Kyle scrambled out after him. "This is not a good part of town. At least wait until we're in San Francisco."
John didn't slow down, just headed in the direction he had gotten out facing, lengthening his stride enough to make it near impossible for the smaller man to keep up.
It didn't take long, however, for the limo to pull up alongside him, pacing him as he walked down the street.
John abruptly turned down a one-way street where the car couldn't follow. He wasn't in the mood to play nice, and if he had to, he would use his urban combat training to lose them.
Three turns later he was certain he'd lost them—and had made himself completely lost in the process. Ground movement was so much more complicated than the air.
Sighing, John picked a direction and started walking. He wished he had better shoes on—a run would have been better, but he didn't particularly want blisters.
And in all honestly, it would look rather strange for him to run anywhere in a suit and dress shoes.
While he walked, he let his mind wander. He hated this kind of business, and hated that he was being dragged into it. Hated that this felt less honorable than killing people had. He had more guilt over this.
He hated that his brother thought that he was only a little better than a cheap hooker.
And that he was being used that way, thrown at problems with the expectation that he would charm people into signing their lives away where brute force didn't work. But he was done. He had been feeling a little sick about it for a while now, but this open distrust had just driven the point home.
But he had nowhere else to go. That was the kicker and what made it worse. He was stuck and his father and brother knew it.
At he walked, he eventually found himself at the stretch of water that separated Oakland from Alameda Island. He found a sidewalk that ran alongside it, and changed direction to follow that, not ready to give up. He had a small savings account he kept apart from the company and his family. It wasn't much, but it might be enough to get an apartment somewhere. He had the flight hours in; he could probably get a job flying for someone. Maybe a charter company.
"Sir?"
John whirled, body falling into old patterns preparing to defend himself before he saw who it was.
Kyle held up his hands, trying to be as non-threatening as possible. "Sir, are you okay?"
John let himself relax slowly. "I'm not going to San Francisco tonight, and I'm not playing this farce of a role for my family anymore. Tell them whatever you want, but I'm done pretending this is all okay with me."
"Sir, Miss Emmagan is on the phone for you." He gestured behind him where the limo was idling. John vaguely wondered how the stretch had actually been able to sneak up on him and find him.
Growling, John debated just turning and continuing to walk. Instead he held out his hand for a phone. There was no way in hell he was getting back in the car until he decided what he was doing. He wasn't getting trapped that way, not yet.
"Mister Sheppard?"
"Yes, this is Sheppard. Miss Emmagan, what can I do for you?"
"I have some changes to the paperwork you gave me and a single condition. If you cannot meet my condition, we will not proceed."
"What's the condition?" He hoped it was something that would seriously piss his father off. In his current mood, John would pretty much agree to anything she wanted.
"I will deal with you and only you."
At that, both his eyebrows went up. He had gotten the impression she didn't much approve of him. But knowing what she had probably faced in the rest of his family, at least John was honest about who and what he was. So that probably explained it. And maybe this would be a way out of playing family whore. "I'm not usually allowed to have much to do with our business partners after signing the contracts. I'm fairly certain my family believes I'll manage to screw things up if they let me have too much access. But I'll make sure they understand your condition when I send over the changes. I'd be more than happy to work with you."
"This point is not negotiable. I work with you and you get what you want or you get nothing. I need to know before the end of the day today."
"I'll get back to you before then." John hung up and dialed his brother's office.
It took three rings before his brother picked up. "David Sheppard."
"Athosian will license to us on the condition that I am the only person from the company they have to deal with. And my condition for doing it is that I'm not playing your whore anymore."
"We still need you in the field."
"No."
"That's your job. You work in the field and bring in contracts."
"And I'm telling you I'm not doing it anymore. I'm not going into clients that refuse to work with you or Dad because you lied and bullied them, and you're hoping that I can charm a different result. I'm not doing it anymore."
Dave sighed. "Athosian said they'd sign?"
"On the condition that they deal with me, yes. They had a few other changes to the terms, and I'll have Kyle send them over. But Miss Emmagan made it clear that without her condition being met, there was no deal."
"Fine. You get Athosian all to yourself. Just get me the paperwork so we can get moving on this. Atlantis has been yelling about this issue for too long and I just want to shut them up."
John paused. "Give me control of the entire Atlantis division. It's small, and I know you and Dad both hate dealing with people who actually think for themselves."
"I can't just give you that. It's not my call."
"Then talk to Dad and make it happen. Because I was serious. I'm not doing your mop-up work anymore."
"Fine. I'll talk to Dad later. I need you to go and see Thor Group tomorrow, though. And no, we haven't been there before. This is a new company entirely—and for the Atlantis division. They have some tech we're interested in. Preferably we'd like to acquire the company and all the patents."
John narrowed his eyes at the phone. "If I find out you're lying to me, and you or Dad have been there before and tried to stomp them into submission, I'm going to be pissed."
"I swear. Call Gloria or talk to Kyle. They can testify that we've never approached them before."
"Fine. I'll go. Get me the paperwork signing over control of Atlantis to me by tomorrow. I want to go in knowing I actually speak for the division, and I'm not a mouthpiece. I also want all the files we've got on the division and its various holdings, and the name and contact information for whomever heads operations on the ground there."
"I said I'll talk to Dad tonight. I can't exactly turn everything over to you without doing that."
"You have until the meeting tomorrow. I'm serious, David. I won't do it without the power to actually follow through on my promises. I won't do what you and dad do, and make promises I have no intention of keeping."
"John, come on…"
"No." John looked out over the water. "I'm done pretending I'm okay with trading my honor for money. It's not worth it to me. If I give someone my word, I intend to keep it, and I'm not going to be put in a position where someone else can come behind me and turn me into a liar."
"I'll talk to Dad."
"Good. Have the files in my inbox tonight. I want to start reading up on everything in the meantime."
"Remember, it's three hours later here, John. I'll do what I can. There's a benefit tonight, too."
"If you can stay up all night screwing people over, you can lose a few hours of sleep getting me the information I need to do the job right."
There was a long pause and John knew!—knew!—his brother was trying to hold his tongue. Normally a wise-ass comment about screwing would have flown out of his mouth. Apparently, his seriousness over the situation had finally gotten through to his brother. "I'll do what I can."
"Good. I'll talk to you later then." John hung up before his brother could say anything else. John finally turned back to the car.
"Sir?"
"Make sure we're on track to be at Thor tomorrow, although if my family doesn't come through, we won't be going to the meeting."
"Thor?"
"A new company we want to look at for the Atlantis division. If everything goes the way I want, I'll be taking over the division and all of its subsidiaries by tomorrow."
Kyle was focused on his phone, scrolling and tapping. "I don't see anything about Thor on the schedule, sir."
"It's a change of plans."
"Of course. I'll coordinate with Gloria to get the information on the meeting. Are you ready to head over to the Ritz?"
"Not really, but I need somewhere with an Internet connection, and that's as good as anywhere else. I also need to let Athosian know we accept their condition."
Kyle nodded, heading over to the idling limo. "Do you want the back to yourself, sir? I can make the call happen whenever you need."
John was suddenly exhausted. Apparently staging an unplanned internal hostile takeover was more taxing than he would have thought. And it wasn't over. John knew his father wouldn't let this pass without calling personally. "Fine, thank you."
Kyle held open the rear door for him, waiting until he was seated inside before closing it gently behind him. A few moments later, the front passenger side door opened and John saw Kyle climb in. He turned, looking at John through the open partition. "I'll get Miss Emmagan on the phone immediately and close this for your privacy, sir."
Nodding, John leaned back and closed his eyes. He wondered if he was doing the right thing. He knew he couldn't continue to do what he had been doing. But he didn't know if this was the right choice either. However, the dice had been cast, so now he had to run with it.
"Miss Emmagan for you, sir," Kyle said quietly and John could hear the partition began to close.
"Mister Sheppard?"
"Miss Emmagan. This is John Sheppard. I'm happy to tell you that it looks like we'll be able to meet your condition. If you could send over the other changes to the contract, I'll see about getting everything signed and done by the end of the week."
"I…did not expect to hear from you so quickly."
"You did say you needed to know one way or the other by the end of the day."
"And honestly, I did not think you would be able to meet my demand."
John chuckled softly. "Neither did I. But we're both pleasantly surprised today, apparently."
"I am in meetings this afternoon, but will be in San Francisco tonight. Can I drop off the paperwork to you somewhere?"
"Perfect. I'm staying at the Ritz. I'll leave word that when you ask for me at the desk, you're shown up to the suite. Will that work for you?"
"That would be fine. I will be in town around seven. If you are not in residence, I shall leave the paperwork for you at the front desk."
"Thank you, and I'll look forward to doing business with you."
"I appreciate your honesty and I hope this will be a fruitful endeavor for both of our companies."
"So do I." They both signed off, and John let himself relax back into the seat. He was going to have some cramming to do tonight, so he might as well rest while he had the chance.
There was traffic heading into the city—no surprise there—so they ended up finally pulling into the Ritz around two. After a quick check-in, John made himself at home in the Penthouse suite. He'd extended the reservation over the weekend, leaving on Monday morning. It would give him four nights in the city. He sent Kyle out to buy him a few days worth of clothes and to get them washed as he'd only planned for a two-day overnight initially.
The in-room lunch was perfect if overabundant, but then, all the hotels he stayed in bent over backwards to make sure he had everything he needed.
He moved to the balcony, looking out over the city. If he was able to push through control of Atlantis, maybe he'd move out here, get a condo. It would be far enough away from his family that he would more or less be left alone, as long as he didn't run the division into the ground. In theory at least.
His phone buzzed on the table behind him.
Without checking caller ID, he grabbed it and answered still looking out over the city. "Sheppard here."
"Apparently Kyle is running your errands again."
"Dad." John cringed, wondering what his father was going to go on about now. It was always one thing or another.
"What's this David is telling me? You want control of the Atlantis division? I thought we were doing so well with how we'd arranged things."
"You heard right. I'm tired of feeling like little more than a well-paid prostitute for the company. Athosian made it a condition of agreeing to license to us that they work only with me. I extended that, and want to be put in charge of the entire division."
"Running a company isn't fun and games, John. It takes discipline and cunning. Why don't you stay on the road for a few more months and then we'll see how it goes?"
"Because I'm outright refusing to do the work you've had me at for the last year anymore. I'll leave the company and live on the streets if that's the only option I'm given. And I won't run anything based on cunning, lies, false promises or any of that. If I make a promise, I'll keep it. Period."
His father sighed. Loudly. "I'm trying to stop you from making a bad decision here, John."
"It's not a bad decision when you look at it my way."
"I still reserve the right to pull you off the project."
"No. I want some reassurance that the promises I make to people won't become lies because you or David decide to suddenly yank me out and go back to running it your way. Either give me enough autonomy to do it my way, or let me go."
"It's still my company, John. If the profits are there, I'll leave you alone. That's the only guarantee I'm going to give you."
John knew that was probably about as good as he was going to get. "Fine. But I want your word, and not the bullshit you give clients, that as long as I maintain at least the current profit level or better, you'll leave me alone to do it my way. And I want the power to do whatever I think is necessary to get the job done."
"Is that what it's going to take to get you to stop whining about your job?" Dad seemed more amused by this whole situation than angry, which was probably a good thing.
"I'm not whining, I'm putting my foot down at being whored out for profit, with the company acting as my pimp."
"You're whining about doing the job you agreed to do. I thought you'd have grown out of that by now. Gloria is sending you the files. Don't disappoint me." The call ended with an abrupt click.
John sighed. But at the end of the day, he had what he wanted, so that counted for something. And now maybe he could sleep at night. Well, the nightmares would still be there but at least now they'd go back to being combat-related, and not people in business suits sobbing at his feet as he shot them in the head without mercy.
Dad—for once—was good as his word and Gloria started sending files five minutes after the call with his father ended.
Sitting down at his laptop, he started the process of rapidly bringing himself up to speed on Atlantis, what its goals were, who the key players were, what had been requested, everything. He got so lost in reading, that although he was aware of Kyle moving around, he didn't realize anyone else was in the suite until someone cleared their throat nearby.
"Mister Sheppard?"
Starting, he looked up. "Miss Emmagan. I'm sorry, I didn't hear you come in."
"Obviously," she said with a wry smile. She was no longer in her business suit, but instead some kind of flowy gown—complete with high slits on the sides and a deep plunging neckline.
He raised an eyebrow at her. "I thought there was an unspoken agreement that I wouldn't hit on you, but you'd tempt a saint in that. I trust your business today went all right?"
"Business is business," she said inclining her head. "Tonight I am meeting a friend for dinner."
"Then I won't keep you long." He took the paperwork she held out, glancing over it and putting his signature in a few places. "I've taken over the entire division that your software will be used toward, so please let me know if you have any changes, and once I have a chance to really see what's going on, I'll let you know if we'd like to expand the license at all."
"You see no issues with the changes I requested?"
"No, none. There's nothing unreasonable here." He handed the packet back over, keeping out the second set for his own records. "Out of curiosity, I'll be setting up a meeting with the head of Atlantis, Elizabeth Weir, hopefully in the next week or two. If I think it would useful for you two to talk, would you be interested in a meeting?"
"I have heard much about her—and that is the main reason I am agreeing to this. I would be delighted if you could set up a meeting."
"Excellent. I haven't told them yet of the change of structure, but I'll let her know when I meet her that you'd be interested, and I'll see what I can do."
Teyla nodded. "When can I expect to see an updated copy of the agreement?"
"I'll send it over to our legal team tonight. With luck, we'll have the final, signed copies back in the next few days."
"That seems reasonable. I look forward to working with you," she said, holding her hand out to him.
He stood and took her hand, bowing over it slightly. "The pleasure is all mine."
"We shall see about that, now will we not?"
He straightened up and grinned. "I'll be looking forward to it."
Kyle showed her out, but John watched her the entire way.
When the door closed, he shook his head. "Damn, she is a beautiful woman. I envy whomever she's meeting for dinner in that dress."
"I'm surprised you didn't ask her to dinner."
"She obviously had other plans. And I'd like to have a good working relationship with her. Sleeping with people you work with is never a good idea."
Kyle gave him a weird look, but didn't comment. "Should I have dinner sent up?"
"Yes, please. Thank you." John turned back to his files. He still had a lot to get through if he wanted to not sound like an idiot tomorrow at Thor.
"What did you want?"
He waved a hand. "Anything is fine."
"There is a variety of food available. Did you want Thai, sushi, steak, seafood, Chinese… The hotel will provide whatever you wish."
"Whatever you're in the mood for is fine." John was already getting drawn back into the files.
He vaguely heard Kyle sigh, but ignored it. Soon enough there was a plate being placed on the table next to his elbow featuring a juicy cheeseburger with all the fixings. A beer appeared next.
Absently, John ate while he read, until he realized it was late and he needed to sleep if he wanted to be his best for the meeting. Pushing away from the desk, he stumbled into the bedroom and collapsed on the bed, not even bothering to get undressed.