Free Damage Done by Virginia Duke Page A
Authors: Virginia Duke
pushed her too far outside her comfort zone.
If the world was going to stop coming to a standstill
everytime Rachel was faced with conflict, she would have to establish new
boundaries.
"Mrs. Daniels?"
She looked up from where she sat picking her fingernails,
and smiled at the middle-aged woman standing over her. She had a friendly face.
That was a good start, the Valium wasn’t working yet.
"Hello, yes, I'm Rachel Daniels.”
"I'm Nancy Taylor, I recognized you from the photo in
the Courier," and nodding to her companion, "One of my partners,
Edward Billings."
"It's so nice to meet you both, we appreciate you
wanting to hear more about ReachingOut," Rachel said, reaching to shake
their hands. Her hands were too sweaty, they would know she wasn't confident.
"A pleasure, may I call you Rachel?" Edward asked
politely, removing his suit jacket and placing it gently across his arm.
"Absolutely, please. Are y'all ready to eat? I'm
starving!"
She tried to remember Jake's big pointers on asking people
for money.
Start by disarming them with a trivial admission about
yourself, it makes you more likeable .
A hostess showed them to their table and Rachel's guests
both ordered gin and tonics. It wasn't even noon. Her face must have shown her
surprise because Nancy laughed openly and placed her hand over Rachel's to put
her at ease.
"Don't worry, Rachel, we'll only have one. We don't
normally start with gin at a noon meeting. At least not on weekdays. We're
celebrating, we just settled a year-long civil litigation case we all thought
would drive us to early graves. I hope you don't mind."
"Of course not," Rachel said uncomfortably,
"Work hard, play hard, right? Let's hear about this big case."
And they did play hard. Rachel grew up around Texas
lawyers. Her father, Jameson, all of their lawyer friends worked long hours and
stayed up late boozing, telling war stories and ribbing one another about their
alma maters. It was what killed her father, working hard and playing hard.
"You got it, work hard, play hard," Edward winked
at her, "This one was profitable, but too time consuming, a disgruntled
government organization threatening a billion dollar company, regulatory
oversight bullshit. But I'm tired of talking about it, death to the disgruntled
government! Let's talk about ReachingOut. Our partner shared the article from
the Houston Courier and told us to write you a big check, but I hate to part
with my money unless I know there's a fishing trip or a hooker in it for me
somewhere."
"Edward," Nancy shot him a dirty look,
"Don't be an ass. Sorry, Rachel, he sometimes forgets himself in the
presence of ladies."
"That's because I never hang out with any,"
Edward laughed, "Sorry, Rachel. Let's hear more about what you're
doing."
Rachel smiled and took a deep breath, nervously reaching
for the rubber band on her wrist under the table and snapping it against her
skin. It helped keep her grounded when she was feeling nervous, a trick she'd
picked up during her stay in that pleasant mental health facility Savannah
liked to call, "the extended stay spa and resort."
It had already been a rough morning, and Rachel knew her
lack of enthusiasm would make this a hard sell. She reached over and took a
long pull of Edward's gin, launched into her pitch and lost herself. The Valium
and the gin worked, she explained the concept for ReachingOut, talked about the
fundraiser, outlined her vision for the next few years, and it only took twenty
minutes.
They listened intently while she spoke, Nancy asked a few
questions, Edward asked none.
"So, any assistance your firm may be able to offer in
sponsoring our annual fundraising gala would be a tremendous help," she
concluded.
She reached for her iced tea and waiting for the inevitable
refusal to help because they thought she was neurotic and had no business
managing the organization she'd started herself more than ten years before.
Nancy watched her thoughtfully, Edward picked at his
If the world was going to stop coming to a standstill
everytime Rachel was faced with conflict, she would have to establish new
boundaries.
"Mrs. Daniels?"
She looked up from where she sat picking her fingernails,
and smiled at the middle-aged woman standing over her. She had a friendly face.
That was a good start, the Valium wasn’t working yet.
"Hello, yes, I'm Rachel Daniels.”
"I'm Nancy Taylor, I recognized you from the photo in
the Courier," and nodding to her companion, "One of my partners,
Edward Billings."
"It's so nice to meet you both, we appreciate you
wanting to hear more about ReachingOut," Rachel said, reaching to shake
their hands. Her hands were too sweaty, they would know she wasn't confident.
"A pleasure, may I call you Rachel?" Edward asked
politely, removing his suit jacket and placing it gently across his arm.
"Absolutely, please. Are y'all ready to eat? I'm
starving!"
She tried to remember Jake's big pointers on asking people
for money.
Start by disarming them with a trivial admission about
yourself, it makes you more likeable .
A hostess showed them to their table and Rachel's guests
both ordered gin and tonics. It wasn't even noon. Her face must have shown her
surprise because Nancy laughed openly and placed her hand over Rachel's to put
her at ease.
"Don't worry, Rachel, we'll only have one. We don't
normally start with gin at a noon meeting. At least not on weekdays. We're
celebrating, we just settled a year-long civil litigation case we all thought
would drive us to early graves. I hope you don't mind."
"Of course not," Rachel said uncomfortably,
"Work hard, play hard, right? Let's hear about this big case."
And they did play hard. Rachel grew up around Texas
lawyers. Her father, Jameson, all of their lawyer friends worked long hours and
stayed up late boozing, telling war stories and ribbing one another about their
alma maters. It was what killed her father, working hard and playing hard.
"You got it, work hard, play hard," Edward winked
at her, "This one was profitable, but too time consuming, a disgruntled
government organization threatening a billion dollar company, regulatory
oversight bullshit. But I'm tired of talking about it, death to the disgruntled
government! Let's talk about ReachingOut. Our partner shared the article from
the Houston Courier and told us to write you a big check, but I hate to part
with my money unless I know there's a fishing trip or a hooker in it for me
somewhere."
"Edward," Nancy shot him a dirty look,
"Don't be an ass. Sorry, Rachel, he sometimes forgets himself in the
presence of ladies."
"That's because I never hang out with any,"
Edward laughed, "Sorry, Rachel. Let's hear more about what you're
doing."
Rachel smiled and took a deep breath, nervously reaching
for the rubber band on her wrist under the table and snapping it against her
skin. It helped keep her grounded when she was feeling nervous, a trick she'd
picked up during her stay in that pleasant mental health facility Savannah
liked to call, "the extended stay spa and resort."
It had already been a rough morning, and Rachel knew her
lack of enthusiasm would make this a hard sell. She reached over and took a
long pull of Edward's gin, launched into her pitch and lost herself. The Valium
and the gin worked, she explained the concept for ReachingOut, talked about the
fundraiser, outlined her vision for the next few years, and it only took twenty
minutes.
They listened intently while she spoke, Nancy asked a few
questions, Edward asked none.
"So, any assistance your firm may be able to offer in
sponsoring our annual fundraising gala would be a tremendous help," she
concluded.
She reached for her iced tea and waiting for the inevitable
refusal to help because they thought she was neurotic and had no business
managing the organization she'd started herself more than ten years before.
Nancy watched her thoughtfully, Edward picked at his