Pretty Woman (TomHiddlestonFanFic)

Chapter 11

Karly and Tom eat breakfast at the dining table. Karly is dressed in one of her sexy nightgowns. 

"So, what do you do all day while you're gone?" She asked taking a bite from one of her bacon strips. 

"Meet with lawyers and stockbrokers. Read financial reports. It's pretty boring." Tom replies drinking some tea.

"What's it for?" 

"I'm acquiring a company." He reaches for the newspaper and begins reading.

"What kind of company?"

"It's called Kross Enterprises. It used to build ships. Nowadays it doesn't do much of anything."

"Why would you want it?" She questions, biting into some toast.

Tom takes a sip of his tea and looks at Karly over his newspaper. 

"Are you really curious?"

"Yeah. I'm curious about everything. Abby says it's gonna kill me someday." She chuckles. 

"All right. Warn me if I bore you. Twenty years ago Kross was a huge corporation, and even though they're almost bankrupt today, they still have millions in assets. Real Estate, equipment, inventory. Things that can be liquidated to generate cash. You understand?"

"Yes." Tom smiles at her, enjoying the fact she is listening to him talking about his job. 

"Anyway, we figure Kross is worth about 400 million. We hope we can acquire it for between two and three hundred million. No matter what, I'm going to make a profit. The question is how large?" 

Karly thinks for a moment. "If it's worth that much money, why doesn't somebody else try to buy it?"

"Try is the keyword there. People have tried. But not everyone can raise a few hundred million to toy around with. And I know of assets the corporation owns that other people aren't aware of. It's worth more than most people think. Besides, the company management isn't particularly happy about being sold, because they'd be out of a job."

"Oh." 

"I wouldn't lose any sleep over them. They got the corporation into the mess it's in now."

"So you can make all that just by buying it and then selling everything?" She asks intrigued.

"Well, something like that." Tom chuckles.

"Wow, sounds so easy," She says admiringly.

"It used to be easy. The market crash and a few scandals have made things tougher. And management has got smarter. I have to be more careful about my targets now."

"So that's how you got rich? Buying companies?"

"Mostly. Sometimes the companies would pay me not to buy them." 

"But now that you're rich, why do you keep doing it?"

"I guess... to get richer." Tom pauses. "I'm going to have to get dressed, I have a meeting at eight-fifteen. Tomorrow I'll give you a lesson on short-selling." 

"Okay." She smiles at him.

"You're a good listener. I like that." He stands up and gives her a kiss on the cheek. He walks into the bedroom to change.

Tom, full dressed, puts on his suit jacket as he crosses from the bedroom to the front door of the suite. He pauses for a moment, smooths the panels of his jacket and turns to Karly. She is still dressed in her nightgown.

"How do I look?" He poses with his hands out to the side.

Karly smiles. "Like a suit."

"Like a suit? Very apt. I feel like a suit. Remember, we have a dinner tonight at The Rex with Kross. I'll meet you in the lounge at seven sharp." He grabs his briefcase and leaves. 

Karly opens a large cabinet in the wall that conceals a television. She switches it on and lies down on the couch. 

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In the late afternoon, Mr Martin is working behind the desk when a soft voice startles him. 

"Mr Martin." He looks up and sighs. 

"What is it, Miss Karly?" 

"Tom is taking me to some fancy place for dinner. The Rex. Ever been there?"

Mr Martin chuckles, "It's a bit beyond my... range, shall we say."

"Yeah, mine too but is it like, you know, normal?"

"I think you'll find it normal enough." He was somewhat ignoring her questions as he typed on the desk computer. 

"Will I like it?" 

"You'll like it fine."

"Okay, Thanks. You're the best." She says as she turns away. 

"Just mind which fork you use." Karly turns abruptly back, a horrified look spread across her face. 

"Fork?" Mr Martin smiles and glances around the lobby. 

"Alright, come with me, young lady. I can teach you everything you need to know to dine with the queen."

They both enter Mr Martin's office. His desk is laid out with two opposing sets of silverware. He shows Karly the correct piece from his side and she mirrors his actions from the other. 

"And as you pick up the knife you shift your fork to the left hand." Karly copies his action.

"Hey, I knew that one. I always do that," She says excitedly.

"You were brought up good then. Actually, some of the richest people I know have the worst table manners. Of course, Mr Hiddleston, being of old money, knows his way around a table. All right now, pay attention, please. Salad fork."

"What if they serve soup?" Karly interrupts.

"They will serve salad."

"But what if they serve soup?"

"Then you use your soup spoon." He points to the soup spoon. 

Mr Martin continues teaching Karly about the correct utensils for fifteen minutes. 

"Now when the main course is served, you pick up what fork." Karly thinks hard then picks up the correct utensil.

Mr Martin smiles at her. "I think you are ready."