Catering to the CEO Read Online Free PDF Page A

today at the office.”
    “You think?” She liked the fact that her tone had him arching an eyebrow at her.
    “Yes, I think,” he said with equal sarcasm.  “The thing is, you were right.”  Dammit.   “If the tables were turned I would not break the terms of my contract for any client and that was what I was expecting you to do.”
    Cassie stood in stunned silence unsure of finding her voice.
    “Your company has done nothing but a good job for mine, Cassandra, and I respect you as a business associate.  I think that you are a fine cook; nothing that you’ve ever made for any of my events has disappointed and I would very much like it if you would continue on with the Fall Retreat plan and just maybe…forget what happened earlier today.”
    Adam stood and waited…patiently, for Cassie to say something.  He became quickly irritated when she, like earlier, did not immediately respond.  Taking a deep breath, he was ready to speak when…
    “Alright, Adam, I’ll continue on with this project.”  He released the breath.  “But there are some things that need to be said if we’re going to move forward and work together again beyond this event.”
    When he nodded, she continued.  “For starters, I can’t speak for your staff but I can tell you that I, personally, do not appreciate being spoken to like I’m an idiot.”
    “I’ve never…”
    She held up a hand to silence him.  “You do.  All the time.  To everyone.  As you can see here, I own my own business and I know how to run it.  I’m not operating out of the back of a van so clearly I know what I am doing.  I would trust you if I hired you for some sort of security thing because that’s what you do for a living.  As an act of simple common courtesy, I expect you to trust me when it comes to event planning and catering because this is what I do for a living.”
    “Now just a minute…”
    “I’m not done!” she snapped, pleased to see his mouth snap shut.  “I am damn good at what I do, Adam, you’ve said so yourself.  I appreciate you wanting to give your input, I honestly do, but I expect it to be given in a respectful tone; I’m a grown woman not a child.”
    She stood tall and crossed her arms over her chest and heaved a sigh of completion.  “Now, do you have something to say?”
    Oh, man, did he!  Adam’s first instinct was to blast her for speaking to him that way and then reigned himself in.  Clearly that would not be the way to go and he had a feeling if he thought that dinner was awkward, dessert would be just plain painful.  Mentally counting to ten, he leaned on the island in front of her.  “I did not realize that the way I spoke was so offensive; no one’s ever said anything to me before about it.”
    “That’s because you would fire them,” she said blandly.
    He gave her a look that showed that she was grating on his patience.  “I was not allowed to interrupt you; I’d expect the same courtesy.”  Throwing her own words back at her, Cassie merely nodded and let him go on.  “In my line of work, in my position, that is the way that it’s done.  I demand perfection from the people around me because it is my reputation on the line, not theirs.  I realize that while you are not a full-time employee of mine that maybe I can be just as demanding on you.  For that, I apologize.”
    Cassie nearly fell where she stood.
    “I would like for us to continue to work together, Cassandra, and maybe now that we’ve talked this through and know where we’re each coming from, we can do so with no hard feelings.”  Adam held out his hand to seal the deal and watched as Cassie eyed him warily.  Mentally he was kicking himself for having to apologize because it was beneath him.  She was his employee and there was no way that he would have given in and admitted to being wrong if he didn’t need her to finish this damn event.
    When Cassie finally reached out her hand to his and shook, Adam was temporarily