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“Why not?”

“Because if you want my assistance, I’m going to insist upon it. There’s no way that I’ll invest in a company that doesn’t have an effective way of keeping track of inventory and product costs or effectiveness of advertising and sales promotion. This is the age of computer technology, Mara, and you can’t expect to run a competitive company the way it was run ninety years ago—”

“Wait a minute,” Mara said, interrupting him. She held her palms outward, as if to push aside any more of his arguments. “You’re getting the cart before the horse. Before you make any further decisions about the company, don’t you think it would be a good idea to tell me exactly what you have in mind, in terms of investing in Imagination?”

A grim smile cracked his features. “Fair enough.”

“Well?” she asked anxiously, and pushed aside the impulse to bite at her lower lip. Instead she studied the sharp planes of his rugged face, his thick black eyebrows, his brooding lower lip that protruded slightly, and the thin shadow of a beard that appeared even in the morning. In a dark blue business suit, striking burgundy tie, and crisp, white shirt, he bore an arrogant but somehow intriguingly masculine presence. He tapped his lips thoughtfully with a pencil as he spoke.

“I told you before, that I had no intention of giving Imagination the benefit of my assistance without something in return. And since you refuse to sell out to me, I’m willing to invest in the company.”

“How?”

“I’ve done some research. You don’t own a majority interest.”

Mara’s stomach tightened. “That’s true,” she admitted.

“However, I know that it’s impossible to buy up enough shares of the company to take over. For one reason, June Wilcox would never sell her interest to me.”

“That’s probably true, too.”

“So I’ve decided to buy up as many shares as the family is willing to sell to me—and then I’ll offer to loan the toy company some money, at prime interest rates, for the purchase of some necessary pieces of equipment.”

“Such as a computer from Delta Electronics?”

“For starters, yes.” Mara stiffened. “Along with some equipment to start converting the factory.”

“Into what?”

“An assembly line for computer components. The reason I want a part of Imagination so badly is that I want to start a new line of video games that would, for the most part, be built in Atlanta. The components, partially assembled, would be sent up here to be used for the inner workings of video games and small learning devices for educational toys.”

“Can’t you do all of that from Atlanta?” Mara asked, wondering aloud. “Do you really need Imagination?”

“Let’s face it. Other than what I’ve read, I know very little about toy manufacturing and sales. On the other hand, Imagination has a sizable list of sales outlets; it has, for the most part, a reputation for making durable, reliable products and a fair amount of name recognition. Besides which,” he added in a more ominous tone of voice, “you need me more than I need you.”

“You’re that sure of yourself?”

Shane leaned back in the desk chair and cradled his head in his palms, rumpling his black hair. “I know that you’ve had your share of bad luck, whether it was deserved or not.”

“Deserved?”

“Face it, Mara. Much of Imagination’s problems stem from the fact that for the past ten years, ever since Peter took over the company, profits have plummeted—aside from the one shining spot in the past few years—those funny-looking plastic dolls from that hit space movie.”

“Interplanetary Connection,”Mara said with a sigh, knowing that although she hated to admit it, Shane was right.

Shane seemed to sense her change in mood, and the look of defeat that paled her intense blue eyes made him feel inwardly guilty, as if he had been the cause of all of her problems.

“I understand that the movie production company has decided upon another manufacturer to handle the toy products for the movie sequel.”

“That’s right,” Mara said, avoiding his gaze and looking out the large window at the towering Blue Ridge mountains in the distance.

“Why?”

Mara tightened her lips and swiveled to meet his inquiring gaze. “Several reasons,” she began. “First of all, the production company didn’t like the packaging, which I told them we would change, at our expense. Then they were unhappy with the advertising campaign, and I agreed that we would use an independent firm of their choosing.”

“Then what was the problem?”

“It has something to do with a few of the more exotic extraterrestrial beings from the sequel. It seems they’re much more intricate than the aliens inInterplanetary Connection,and the production company feels that a more malleable plastic for the action figures would make them appear more lifelike.’ ‘