“What is it you want to know?” Jason asked.
“She works on your social media.” Max said before he quaffed the wine. “What does that entail?”
“We had no social media presence until we hired Claire. She built our strategy.” Jason quickly ran down the list of Claire’s duties and realized it was a lot. Somehow Claire managed to put all of the pieces together and create excitement for his business.
“Have you seen any results?” Max asked as he leaned back in his chair. “I’m sure you can’t directly link it to Claire’s work.”
“What makes you so sure?” Claire was all about data and results but he couldn’t remember any of the hard numbers. She was very enthusiastic about targets and reach but Jason’s eyes usually glazed over and he would just watch her animated expressions and gestures.
“She’s told me about some of her projects and...well...” Max gave a shrug and turned his hands up, “She’s young. Raw. She needs a mentor to help shape her if she wants to get any big-name clients.”
“Mentors like who?” Though he already suspected just what Max wanted from Claire. “You?”
Max nodded. “I’m thinking about hiring her as my personal assistant.”
The guy made it sound as if he was doing Claire a huge favor. Jason was sure Max had no interest in developing Claire’s skills. He was looking for employees who would come up with the ideas and do the work while he wined and dined Hollywood.
“Why would she give up her business to work for you?” he asked as dread seeped into his bones.
“Why wouldn’t she choose a big city over this farm town?” Max gestured at the windows.
“She has a life here,” Jason reminded him.
Max chuckled at Jason’s statement. “I know women like Claire. She wants to experience the Hollywood lifestyle she’s always dreamed of. It’s always the quiet girl-next-door types.”
Jason shook his head. This guy hadn’t made any attempt to understand Claire. She might avoid the spotlight but she had a tight circle of friends and she had him. She fought hard to be a successful and independent businesswoman. Would she give up all of that for glitz and glamour? Would she walk away from him and what they had just created?
“Girls like Claire want to work with celebrities but they don’t have the connections,” Max confided as he leaned forward. “At first they think all it takes is hard work but after a few years they discover that they’re stuck. Then they start dreaming about being plucked out of obscurity by experts like me.”
“Claire wants to put her clients in the spotlight. She’s savvy and she has good instincts for what works. She doesn’t need gimmicks or to artificially inflate her numbers.”
The corner of Max’s eyes twitched. “That’s the image she likes to create but we both know she’s not clever,” he declared. “She can’t rely on her brains.”
Jason went very still and he watched Max closely. “What do you mean?”
“She is a packhorse who wants to be a racehorse. All the other girls who have worked for me have been the same. Claire wants to work with the famous people and hope some of the stardust rubs off on her. She can get that with me.”
“You’re wrong.” Or was he wrong about Claire? What if she’d tired of living in the shadows and wanted a taste of the glittery life?
“We’ll see. She knows I’m interested in hiring her and she wanted me to see the party she promoted last night. I might have to sweeten the deal,” Max said with a grimace. “If I could get her to promote events like that for one of my reality TV stars...”
Jason felt the edges of panic curling inside him. That was one thing Max could give Claire. Her work was very important to her. She always had something to prove. To herself, her parents and to those who didn’t believe in her. Would she take this job as a way to prove them wrong? Didn’t Claire realize that Max would siphon off her creativity and energy until she burned out?
Jason had to protect her from that. He had to save Claire from making the biggest mistake of her life. Jason forced a grin on his lips as he considered his options. He had to think fast.
He could prove Claire was much better at social media than Max. The narcissistic man wouldn’t want his clients anywhere near her. But then again, Max was too arrogant to believe anyone was better than him.
What if he suggested Max couldn’t trust Claire? No, he didn’t think that would bother Max. The guy seemed like the type who expected backstabbing and betrayal as part of everyday life.