All The Ways We Touch [BxB]

fifty-eight - heaven is a place on earth pt. two

Melissa Harvey was an accomplished woman who, unlike her peers, preferred to stay behind the scenes rather than leverage her success into business advice books that would sell well but be mostly useless to the average business owner. There were a couple of podcasts that had hounded her until she relented and agreed to interviews, but it was exceedingly rare, and typically not focused on business specifically. Instead, they were character pieces that drilled into who she was before her success and the steps that she had undertaken in order to prepare herself for an industry still overwhelmingly dominated by men. Mostly, though, she was willing to go and speak in person at events held for young people who were going to be fighting for their place in the business world.

Harvey—as she most often went by to trick people into thinking she was a man—had been in New York when Elliot had called, both on business and to speak to a group at a women's college. Fortunately, she had already done her speech before he'd called, and when she heard that he wanted to meet with her, she promptly rescheduled her remaining meetings and returned to Astoria.

When her assistant opened the door to her office, she sprang up and hurried across the room, throwing her arms around Elliot's shoulders. She was a good eight inches shorter than him, but her heels helped make up a little bit of the difference. "Oh, Elliot, it's so good to see you."

"I missed you, too, Harvey," he said softly, taking a deep breath. She smelled like Chanel No. 5, just the same as she always had, a "classic for a reason," she'd once explained.

"I was thrilled to hear from you," she said, pulling away from him and gesturing to a seat on the other side of her desk. "It's been sin—" The last time they'd seen each other had been at Rose's funeral but upon looking closer at Elliot, she could see the stress that she'd heard in the hurried way he'd spoken to her on the phone, and decided he didn't to be any more reminded of such upsetting affairs. "A while," she said, smiling warmly. "How have you been?"

That was a complicated answer, one he wasn't ready to get into yet. "I've been alright." Shrugging, he offered a smile but doubted he sold it when her eyes narrowed in on him. Part of Harvey's job was to read people, and it was clear she could see right through him. "Why were you in New York?"

"Oh, just miscellaneous business," she said, waving her hand as if to brush it away. "I was the keynote speaker at a conference held at Sarah Lawrence College yesterday."

"I hope that I didn't inconvenience you," Elliot said with a frown. "I'm sorry for interrupting your trip."

"Nonsense," she said, her tone wholly serious. "I will always make time for you, Elliot."

With his cheeks flushing at her sincerity, Elliot fiddled with the zipper on his jacket to try and quell his nerves. "I appreciate it."

"Would you care for something to drink?" She asked. "I can have Griselda bring in some water or a soda."

"I'm okay," Elliot said. "Thanks, though."

Harvey took a seat in the chair across from him and, despite wearing a pantsuit, crossed her ankles together politely. "Not that you ever need a reason, but would you like to discuss why you called this meeting?"

"I need your help," Elliot said, rubbing his hands over his face. "I'm going to do something that's arguably actually crazy, and I need you to help make sure it goes well."

"Anything," she said, and she truly meant it. There was no wrong that Elliot could commit that she wouldn't help him fix. She'd promised Rose that much. Not only at her funeral, but also when Elliot was born.

"My father is going to officially announce his run for the Senate on Thursday," Elliot said, sitting up taller. There was no room for a lack of confidence in his plan, and he knew that she would rightfully call that out as a problem. "I would like to call a counter-press conference on Thursday."