exotic goddess with black hair and green eyes. Val called to every male cell in his body and put them on full charge in her direction.
Chapter Six
Val was able to put a couple of hours in at the office the next day before she had to drive out to the suburbs to oversee the recording of the radio spots. After grabbing an early lunch, she fetched Doug from his office. On the car ride over, they went through his various scripts to be sure he was comfortable with everything. When they arrived, she introduced him to the station manager, who personally escorted them to a production room. Then he only left the room briefly to get the doctors who would be part of the spots, and even ran the board once they were recording.
After finishing, she drove them both back to the hospital and, after Doug made a few phone calls, they were able to get him down to the auditorium to record the infomercials. They’d be adding the scientists in, one by one, as they made time that day. Having their own television production equipment was a boon, and not only made this sort of work easier but kept it more within their control. As Doug wrapped up his piece of the first spot, Nate walked in and stood next to Val. He leaned over and whispered in her ear. “When he’s done we need to talk. Doug’s secretary said she tried his cell and yours, so she called me with some news. You’re not gonna like it.”
Val glanced at him but didn’t say anything. Turning her attention back to Doug, she tried not to speculate on what Nate’s news might be. When Doug finished, Nate gathered the three of them together. “Word is that Morris Refrigeration is putting their money into another non-profit project.” Doug swore under his breath. CCC had been courting Morris for over a year to put together an endowment fund for research into the potential societal effects of smoking electronic cigarettes. They’d known a different charity in the area had been working with Morris as well, but CCC had been the frontrunner and they’d been counting on this money. “Apparently they got cold feet when they found out about Godlowski.”
Nate glanced at Val and she bit her lip. This was probably only the beginning. Others were no doubt considering pulling their support from the hospital’s programs too. Nausea welled up inside her gut. How much worse would it get? And what could she do to help the situation? Helpless. That’s how she felt. In her heart of hearts she knew she wasn’t, but every time she turned around more things blew up around them.
Doug reached up to rub his temples, sighing. “I’m going to finish taping these and then go talk to the board. They’re meeting in a bit. We’ve got to do something more than what we’re doing now. This is even worse than I thought it would be.”
“Would you like us to go with you?” Val asked.
Doug nodded. “I’d appreciate that. You might be able to make them understand our options better than I can.”
“Not a problem.” She paused, considering, and then said, “Nate, can you watch the next segment?” Val needed to find out a little more about the latest events before she felt comfortable going in front of the board.
“Of course.” Doug went back to the stool set up on stage, and Nate turned and said in a low voice, intended for her ears only, “What am I looking for?”
Val shrugged. “Just make sure he doesn’t flub or look too nervous, fidget a lot…” Nate nodded and Val continued. “I’ll be back in a bit. This shouldn’t take long.” Slipping out of the auditorium, she went to a house phone and dialed Doug’s secretary. After a brief conference with the woman who seemed to know everything that went on within the hospital’s campus, she returned to the auditorium to watch Doug finish taping his spots.
When Doug concluded, he joined Nate and Val. “How do you think that went?”
“You did well,” Val assured him. Maybe it was time to look into some professional coaching on
Chapter Six
Val was able to put a couple of hours in at the office the next day before she had to drive out to the suburbs to oversee the recording of the radio spots. After grabbing an early lunch, she fetched Doug from his office. On the car ride over, they went through his various scripts to be sure he was comfortable with everything. When they arrived, she introduced him to the station manager, who personally escorted them to a production room. Then he only left the room briefly to get the doctors who would be part of the spots, and even ran the board once they were recording.
After finishing, she drove them both back to the hospital and, after Doug made a few phone calls, they were able to get him down to the auditorium to record the infomercials. They’d be adding the scientists in, one by one, as they made time that day. Having their own television production equipment was a boon, and not only made this sort of work easier but kept it more within their control. As Doug wrapped up his piece of the first spot, Nate walked in and stood next to Val. He leaned over and whispered in her ear. “When he’s done we need to talk. Doug’s secretary said she tried his cell and yours, so she called me with some news. You’re not gonna like it.”
Val glanced at him but didn’t say anything. Turning her attention back to Doug, she tried not to speculate on what Nate’s news might be. When Doug finished, Nate gathered the three of them together. “Word is that Morris Refrigeration is putting their money into another non-profit project.” Doug swore under his breath. CCC had been courting Morris for over a year to put together an endowment fund for research into the potential societal effects of smoking electronic cigarettes. They’d known a different charity in the area had been working with Morris as well, but CCC had been the frontrunner and they’d been counting on this money. “Apparently they got cold feet when they found out about Godlowski.”
Nate glanced at Val and she bit her lip. This was probably only the beginning. Others were no doubt considering pulling their support from the hospital’s programs too. Nausea welled up inside her gut. How much worse would it get? And what could she do to help the situation? Helpless. That’s how she felt. In her heart of hearts she knew she wasn’t, but every time she turned around more things blew up around them.
Doug reached up to rub his temples, sighing. “I’m going to finish taping these and then go talk to the board. They’re meeting in a bit. We’ve got to do something more than what we’re doing now. This is even worse than I thought it would be.”
“Would you like us to go with you?” Val asked.
Doug nodded. “I’d appreciate that. You might be able to make them understand our options better than I can.”
“Not a problem.” She paused, considering, and then said, “Nate, can you watch the next segment?” Val needed to find out a little more about the latest events before she felt comfortable going in front of the board.
“Of course.” Doug went back to the stool set up on stage, and Nate turned and said in a low voice, intended for her ears only, “What am I looking for?”
Val shrugged. “Just make sure he doesn’t flub or look too nervous, fidget a lot…” Nate nodded and Val continued. “I’ll be back in a bit. This shouldn’t take long.” Slipping out of the auditorium, she went to a house phone and dialed Doug’s secretary. After a brief conference with the woman who seemed to know everything that went on within the hospital’s campus, she returned to the auditorium to watch Doug finish taping his spots.
When Doug concluded, he joined Nate and Val. “How do you think that went?”
“You did well,” Val assured him. Maybe it was time to look into some professional coaching on
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