“So go. And if you love it, I'll fly out to meet you on Friday. I'm off again this weekend.”

“How'd you manage that?” She looked intrigued, and touched by how open he was to Cal's offer. It was obvious Steve wanted what was best for her, and he was willing to make sacrifices himself, even big ones, to help her achieve that.

“I sold my soul to get the weekend for us, Merrie. Sounds like it was lucky I did. Maybe we can talk to some hospitals while I'm out there. He must have some connections. And I know a couple of guys at Stanford. They trained here.”

“You're incredible, baby,” she said, reaching across the table to hold his hand. He was even more wonderful than she had told Cal he was.

“So are you. So go home and call him.”

“I can call him tomorrow.” But in the end, she didn't. She called him as soon as she walked into the apartment, and he was thrilled to hear her.

“So what did Steve say?”

“He wants me to come out and see you. He's incredible. He isn't even opposed to relocating.”

“That's because he's smart and knows a good deal when he hears it. And besides, he loves you.”

“I love him too. He has to be the most decent man alive to be willing to do this. He said that if I want him to, he'll fly out to meet me over the weekend, and take a look around. He knows some guys at Stanford.”

“I can help you with that, Merrie. I know plenty of people in hospitals. He can have any job he wants here. And you can be my CFO, and we'll all live happily ever after.”

“You make it sound so simple,” but they both knew it wasn't. It wasn't easy to transplant two careers across a country, or maybe he was right, and it wasn't as complicated as she thought. She didn't know what to think now. The obstacles that had seemed so huge to her at first seemed to be dissolving one by one, and she really had to decide now if this was what she wanted. But before she could make that decision, she had to talk to Cal.

“It can be simple, if you want it to be, Meredith. If it's right, it will be,” he said confidently. “So when are you coming out? What about tomorrow?”

“I have to meet a new client,” she reminded him.

“With any luck at all, you could be wasting his time. At least I hope so.”

“We don't know that yet, do we?” she said firmly. She still had responsibilities to her partners in New York, and she had to respect that. “What about Wednesday? I could spend three days out there with you, if you like. The rest of my week is pretty open.”

“That sounds perfect.” He sounded delighted about it, and she was too. Everything was happening so fast it was a little bit terrifying. “I'll pick you up at the airport, just let me know when you're coming.”

“Are you sure you're not making a huge mistake, Cal? Just because we did a successful IPO together doesn't mean I'd make a good CFO for you.” She had never done anything like it. But she knew a lot about Dow Tech and she loved it.

“Trust me, Meredith. I know what I'm doing. One thing I do know is talent when I see it, and I haven't been as impressed in years. If I'd known you'd even consider it, I'd have kissed Charlie when he resigned. This is the biggest favor anyone's ever done me.”

“Well, don't get too excited. Let's talk first.”

“We'll do lots of that, I promise. Ask me anything you want to know when you get here, Merrie. I have no secrets from you.” She loved that about him. He was an honest man, with integrity and a brilliant mind. It was a terrific combination, and she already knew they worked well together. But still, it was an enormous decision, and she couldn't let Steve risk his career for her either. She had to look out for his best interests, even if he was inclined to be kind to her. She wanted him to be happy too, that was vital to her. “I can't wait to see you,” Cal added.

“I didn't think I'd see you again this soon.” She laughed. This was all so new and so unexpected. She had never dreamed anything like this would happen as a result of his public offering and their road show. It seemed almost providential to her. But she was still worried about it. She wanted to make the right decision for all of them, and it was an awesome responsibility to do that.

“I was afraid I'd have to start another company just so I could take it public and see you again. This is great news, Merrie. And you and I do such great work together.”

“We do, don't we,” she smiled. She was still so pleased with how his stock was doing. “Well, let's see what happens when I come out to California.”

“I'm going to start burning candles, Meredith … or doing rain dances or something. I'm going to do my damnedest to talk you into this. I hope you know that.”

“I kind of suspected you might,” she laughed again. He wasn't the kind of man to take no for an answer. But she was also very grateful to her husband for letting her go out there, he was being incredibly generous to encourage her to do it, especially if it represented a sacrifice to him, which was entirely possible. But for her sake, he was willing to chance that, and she loved him all the more for it.

“See you on Wednesday,” Cal said cheerily as they hung up, and after they did, Meredith sat silently in her living room, staring at the phone, and wondering what would happen in California.





Chapter 9

THE FLIGHT TO California on Wednesday went easily, and Cal was waiting for Meredith at the gate, as she came off the plane carrying the familiar briefcase. He was standing to one side, watching for her, and his face broke into a broad smile the moment he saw her.

“I had a moment of panic while I was standing here. I suddenly wondered if you had changed your mind, and were too chicken to call me.”

“I wouldn't do a thing like that,” she said with a look of surprise, as he took the heavy briefcase from her.

“I know. I used to feel like that when I was a kid too. I was always afraid my father would lose the tickets to the circus. He never did, but I always worried about it.”

“Well, I'm here.” She had done a lot of thinking on the way out, and she still didn't see how she could expect Steve to leave his job in the trauma unit. She was more concerned about him than about what Cal would offer. She knew how solid his company was, and he had already told her about the stock options he would give her. But Steve was still her principal worry. “I can't believe I did this,” she said, still feeling stunned by his entire proposition, and Steve's willingness to let her explore it.

“I should have thought of it before. It just never occurred to me that Charlie would quit.” He was still a little concerned that it would create problems with his shareholders, but there was nothing in Charlie's contract that said he couldn't do that. It would only have been a violation if he'd left during the road show, and Charlie knew that, which was why he had waited till they got back to California. “Meredith, if you do this, it could be the most important decision of your career. And I don't think you'd ever regret it. If I were just your friend, and not involved here, I would tell you you'd be very foolish if you didn't do it.”

“I know. It's just such a big change. Not only a change in careers, but moving to California is a big decision.”

“I know you're worried about Steve,” he said, as they picked up her bag at the baggage claim, “but there are great hospitals out here. I've already made some contacts at SF General for him. And you told me he has friends at Stanford. And there's a UC hospital in the city, and a very good trauma hospital in Oakland. There are a lot of options out here for him. This could be very exciting for him.” But the one who was most excited was Cal. On the way back to his office in Palo Alto, he talked endlessly about how important she would be to him. And Meredith was as enamored of the idea as he was. From a purely business standpoint, it was the opportunity of a lifetime.

At two o'clock that afternoon, they hadn't even stopped for lunch yet. They'd been talking for three hours, and his secretary finally brought them each a sandwich. Both he and Meredith had the same kind of work ethic, the same drive and passion about their work, their love for what they did was not only creative, it was almost obsessive. And they spent the rest of the afternoon talking about new diagnostic tools and new products.

“Meredith,” he said, looking intensely at her late in the afternoon. “I can't do this without you.”

“Yes, you can,” she said quietly, but she had loved everything she had heard since eleven o'clock that morning.

“The point is, I don't want to. I want you here to share all this with me.”

“And the truth is,” she sighed, “I want to be here. But I don't know if I have a right to do it.” She felt incredibly torn between an important career decision, and her personal life. She was still worried about Steve, no matter how good Cal said the local hospitals could be for him. He was already firmly entrenched where he was, as the number-two man in an internationally known trauma unit. And there was no question in either of their minds that he would be the number-one man someday, and probably sooner rather than later. Harvey Lucas had been talking about retiring from trauma work and going into research for years, and Steve had been convinced recently that Lucas was getting closer to it. He was tired, he'd had problems with his heart, and the trauma unit was getting to be too much for him. There was a high burnout rate in trauma, you just couldn't live with that kind of pressure forever. “I have to give Steve a chance to think about this seriously,” she said to Cal. “He's a major factor in this decision.”

“I'll find him a job if I have to, Meredith. I don't want to lose you.”