Page 2 of First Impressions (Passion and Perseverance #1)

“John! How could you not tell me that’s what you wanted to discuss?

! Who are you going to sell the firm to?

Are you going to sell it to Bill Collins?

Did he approach you about it already? I always knew he was just waiting for you to give the slightest hint of retiring so he could swoop in and take everything.

And what about Jane? What is she going to do?

Is he going to let her stay on? Who is she going to work for?

” Mrs. Bennet bombarded her husband with question after question without a moment for him to answer or for her to breathe.

“Irene, please. If you would just let me finish —”

“You’re right. I’m sorry, I’m just very concerned about our Jane because she is your paralegal, and when you are gone what is she going to do? How—” Mrs. Bennet started to pick up her last train of thought when Jane interrupted.

“Mom, can you just let dad finish, please? I’m sure I will be fine with whatever happens. I’m 31 years old; I’m capable of finding another job at another firm,” Jane interjected.

“Of course you are, Jane. Thank you. Now, what I was trying to say is that I think it’s time for me to transition into retirement and look at selling the firm.

I’m well aware that Bill has been trying to weasel his way into managing partner for some time now, but I’m not confident in his abilities to effectively direct the firm which is why I’ve been looking into an outside purchase or merger with another firm,” continued Mr. Bennet.

Bill Collins had been a senior partner at their firm for over ten years and was a distant relative to her father.

He was initially given an associate position in the firm as a personal favor to a family member but had worked his way up to senior partner on his own merit.

Superficially, Bill was a nice person and a decent lawyer, but he had very strict and uncompromising personal and religious beliefs that got him into trouble with co-workers as well as clients.

After his promotion to senior partner, it became clear that his ambition was to take over the firm as managing partner when her father retired.

He assumed he had an inherent advantage being related to Mr. Bennet and knowing that the firm had stayed in the Bennet family for four generations; that assumption was further fueled when it became clear that none of John Bennet’s daughters had an interest in becoming a lawyer or owning the law firm.

Initially, Mr. Bennet had entertained that idea as well; however, once Bill was put in that senior position of authority, it became clear that his leadership skills were not where they needed to be in order to run the firm successfully.

He could follow directions but he didn’t know how to navigate the ship and his awkward personality didn’t garner much respect or trust from his fellow employees.

Unfortunately, Bill was blind to his deficits and had turned down her father’s multiple attempts to evolve his leadership skills by inviting him to personal growth seminars by the likes of Tony Robbins and John Maxwell.

At one time, his persistent refusal had deeply frustrated her father because he had held high hopes for him, but quickly realized that his efforts were fruitless; Mr. Bennet admitted long ago that he could never hand over the firm to Bill in good conscience.

He had tried to bring down Bill’s hopes gently over the years, but at that time, with no immediate plans to retire, he felt it was pointless to tell him bluntly that he would never own the firm.

Maybe her father had hopes that Bill would change, or maybe, like Jane, he just disliked confrontation and so put off what was bound to be a difficult conversation.

“Well, Bill is not going to be happy about that. Have you contacted any —” inserted Mrs. Bennet.

“Yes, my dear. I was just getting there. Unfortunately, Bill is out of the country on vacation until the end of the month, right before the Charity Ball, so we will have to proceed without informing him until he’s back.

I’m not going to call with what I know will ruin his holiday.

In the meantime, I’ve been in contact with a few firms for some time now and I’ve narrowed it down to a buyer who is extremely interested.

They are a very large firm out of Boston and are looking to expand into New York City. ”

“From Boston? Wouldn’t it be nice if Bingley Charles was also very well-known for being one of the most eligible, elite bachelors in the country.

As a publicist, it was part of her job to monitor the tabloids, so she knew it was a big story a few months ago that the show, the Bachelor , had tried to recruit Charles for their next season, but that he had graciously refused, claiming he wanted to focus on some big changes in his law career.

While he hadn’t elaborated on what the ‘big changes’ were, her father’s information shed some light on what he was alluding to.

“Well, what did he say?! Did you meet him? What do you think of him? Is he single? Would he be interested in Jane? Did Jane meet him?” Mrs. Bennet prattled on, again, not bothering to wait for an answer.

“I just met with Bingley this morning. He came with a close friend of his from Harvard – an investment banker, who is going to evaluate the details on his end and make sure that we are as good a company as we say. Overall, I was very impressed with Charles and I believe he will take the firm in the right direction. He was very amiable, much more so than his friend that he brought along. He tried to be very open about what they are looking to do and what his goals are. He was adamant that I knew everyone would be taken care of, that everyone at the firm would maintain their current status – a very generous concession to be included in the contract. He wanted to go into specifics but his advisor wouldn’t let him offer up too much information until they learn a little bit more about the firm.

If all goes well, I would like to make the announcement to everyone at the Charity Ball next month. ”

“I think Jane should meet him. When are you seeing him again? We should have him over for dinner. Or what about inviting him to the firm’s Summer Charity Ball?

Oh! Is he going to be at the New York Bar Association Gala tomorrow night?

That would be perfect! He must meet Jane immediately,” insisted Mrs. Bennet.

“Mom, you need to stop forcing every eligible bachelor on Jane. She’s —” Beth was cut off as Jane gently elbowed her.

“Don’t worry about it Beth. It’s fine. You know she won’t stop, no matter what you say.” Jane tried to placate her.

By this point, the three youngest siblings had all tuned out of the conversation and migrated into the kitchen for a snack.

With the serious family matter finally addressed, Beth decided it was time for her and Jane to head home before their mother’s matchmaking plans spiraled out of control - for Jane’s sake.

Mr. Bennet reassured his wife that he was seeing Charles again in the next day or two when he stopped by to pick up some paperwork and would invite him for dinner and to the firm’s Charity Ball next month.

Only moderately appeased, but still fueled by her excitement over the business and personal prospects of such a relationship, Mrs. Bennet let her oldest daughters leave for the night without too much fuss.

“How can you stand it when all mom wants to do it set you up with some random person? You’re only thirty-one.

You have a great career and tons of time to find someone.

It’s not like it’s the 19th century anymore; women have careers and lives and goals that extend beyond marriage.

” Beth couldn’t resist broaching the subject one more time as they got out of the Uber that brought them home.

“It’s just how she is, Beth. For her, marriage is the most important part of her life and that’s how she sees the world.

I try not to blame her. I know it’s frustrating, but I’m not like you; I want a husband and a family.

I’m ok on my own, but I want to meet people and try to find my soulmate.

It just hasn’t worked out for me so far and, as crazy as she is, I don’t mind when she tries to set me up with someone because it’s one more opportunity to fulfill that portion of my life,” Jane tried to explain to a disbelieving Beth.

She always defended their mother, no matter how hard she pushed or how deficient she made either of them feel for still being single.

“I know. She’s just so pushy about it. I don’t even want to think about what’s going to happen when you do find someone and all of her energy is focused on me.”

Jane laughed. “You will be ok. Just think, maybe by that time you’ll have found someone too!”

“Yeah, right. I have no time, Jane, to even think about that. Everything is going so well at work…I didn’t even get a chance to tell you, Phil was just approached by Mrs. DeBourgh this week, of the DeBourgh Diamonds, because she needs a new publicist and I think he’s going to put me on their account.

It’s going to be huge for my portfolio if everything works out. ”

“Oh my gosh, congratulations, B! That’s going to be awesome for you.” Jane gave her sister a quick hug.

“So, if we land DeBourgh, there’s no way I can focus on dating anytime soon; this account would be too important to my future.

Not to mention, I just can’t seem to come across a man who truly appreciates a woman with ambition and intelligence and who wants to not just support that but, more importantly, push me to be better.

Especially all the men mom tries to set me up with - they are all too rich to want a wife who enjoys working for her success. ”

As they got ready for bed, Jane tried to reassure her that in New York City, there is at least one male who will appreciate her personality.

Beth knew though that it was pointless to insist any further; Jane had an unwavering tendency to believe the best in everyone and every situation and Beth simultaneously loved her and hated her for it.

Not that Beth didn’t want to get married and have a family, she was just too proud of her accomplishments to diminish them in order to secure a husband.

For Jane’s sake though, she went to bed hoping that their mom was right this time and that there would be a partnership with Bingley in more ways than one.