Emily looked at her reflection in the full length mirror and smiled, she felt stunning.  The plain black Prada dress was perhaps her favourite of the day's purchases.  Not too low cut at the front, but low enough to keep a gentleman's interest.  Backless and tailored in at the waist to hug her hips and show off her killer figure.  Stopping just above her knees to allow her high heeled Gucci shoes to accentuate her shapely legs.

Sunlight was streaming through the open portholes bathing the cabin in a dreamy yellowy-orange glow.  A glint of light from the diamond pendant around her neck caught her eye.  She absent mindedly ran her slender newly manicured fingers over the pendant and let them carry on downwards over the crisp material of her dress.  As she felt the matching jewel in her navel she felt a hint of excitement.  It was her own little secret.

As she stepped through the door way onto the deck a man in a white jacket stepped forwards and offered her a glass of champagne from his tray.

"My, Miss Emily, you is sure one pretty lady."

"Thank you, David, you're looking pretty sharp yourself.  I haven't seen Mudda today, would you please tell her that the flowers in the cabin are lovely."

"Sure thing, Miss Emily.  She like you, you know."

Emily leant forwards and gave David a small kiss on his cheek.  "Thank you."  She whispered.

She turned and scanned the deck there were several faces that she recognised. A Russian oil billionaire who had recently bought an English football club was deep in conversation with a motor racing team manager.   A tabloid newspaper editor was being pawed by an ex topless model with far too much silicon and nearly as much botox.  An English socialite was telling an awfully funny story to a group of stick-thin catwalk models.

In the back of her mind Emily heard her father's voice, "You never get a second chance to make a first impression, always walk into a room as if you own it."

Taking a deep breath, Emily squared her shoulders and started across the deck to where Henry stood with a tall, rotund man in a white suit.  As she walked she knew that many heads were turned in her direction and the conversation noticeably quietened.

Henry stopped his companion mid sentence.  "Hello, you look gorgeous."

"Thank you, I feel it."

"I'd like you to meet my business partner, Charles Sugar, Charles, Emily James."

Charles took Emily's hand, "Enchanted Miss James.  My friends call me Charlie.  I've heard much about you from this old bugger here."

Emily gave Charlie's hand a firm squeeze.  "Emily, please.  Henry has explained to me your business, while I don't profess to understand all of it, I'd like to think that I'll be of some help."

She tried not to be overawed by the sheer size of this man, she felt like a small child next to him.

"Hey you two." Henry interjected, "Party tonight, work tomorrow. OK?"

"I'll drink to that." Charlie raised his glass.

Emily chinked her own glass against Charlie's and Henry's "Party on guys."

Emily woke as Henry walked into the cabin and placed his phone on the table.

"Good morning, how's the head?"

She squinted against the bright light and rubbed her temples.  "Oh, I was a bit drunk, wasn't I?"

He laughed, "Just a bit!  Do you remember your conversation with the Minister for Sport?"

"I told him to **** off!"

"Yes you did.  His face was a picture.  Charlie thought it was the funniest thing he'd seen in years.  There were tears streaming down his face.

Anyway, talking of Charlie, that was him just on the phone, we are meeting our clients in the F1 Paddock at 10:30.  Charlie will be here at 09:30."

Emily stood up from the bed, letting the white Egyptian cotton sheet fall to the floor.  Henry couldn't help his eyes running down the length of her perfect petite body, stopping for a second at the plain gold stud in her navel.

Standing on tip toe, she kissed him slowly and passionately.  She felt his body responding to her invitation.

"Well, Mr Fox, that just gives us time..."

Charlie Sugar stood bolt upright, hands on hips, surveying the scene on the starting grid.  Emily easily spotted his panama, after all it was six feet and four inches above the ground. She nudged Henry and nodded her head in it's direction.  Talking was pointless all the while that the car they were walking past had it's engine running.  She couldn't help noticing that despite all of the noise and distractions, the racing drivers were sitting or standing at the side of the track, quietly focussing their minds on the gladiatorial battle about to commence.

It was quieter where Charlie was, but they still had to put their heads close together and raise their voices to be heard.

There was none of the joviality of last night in Charlie's face now.  This was purely about money and money was one of the very few things that neither Charlie nor Henry joked about.

"Now, remember, we say nothing about business to these people at all until we are leaving to go back to the boat.  They are very eager to do business with us, and as far as they are concerned, they are not the only people we are talking to.  The longer we keep quiet, the greater will be their desire."

"What if they bring the subject up?"

"Try and stall them, Emily.  If they are insistent indulge them, but only a little.  I want them just about ready to wet themselves with excitement before we strike a deal."

Henry looked over Charlie's shoulder.  "They're here."

He watched as Emily greeted the two gentlemen in blue pinstripe suits.  He could see that they were immediately taken by this pretty little English Rose. 

"Gentlemen, welcome.  My name is Emma Jackson, I am Mr Daniels' and Mr Williams' assistant.  I'm afraid that just at the moment both Mr Daniels and Mr Williams are a little tied up with the media.  However if you would like to come with me, I will show you around a little before we make our way up to our hospitality area, where they will join us just before the start of the race."

A quick glance over her shoulder confirmed to Emily that Henry and Charlie has moved a discrete distance away from her, so as not to be seen by the clients.

Henry and Charlie watched and marvelled as she led them along the grid, pointing to this and that, stopping to admire the cars.  Once or twice she stopped and introduced them to other people.  She had so much confidence about her that whoever she spoke to didn't want to admit that they didn't know who she was, just in case they had met her before and she was someone important.

By the time that Charlie and Henry joined them in hospitality their clients had completely succumbed to Emily's charms.

Emily James took her seat in the first class carriage of the Nice to Paris TGV service.  She was ecstatic, she had pulled off probably the biggest deal of her life.  She watched as through the window a hundred stories were being acted out in mime on the platform.   Her mind wandered to Henry, she smiled.

Henry Fox sat himself in a window seat about two thirds of the way along the aircraft cabin.  The budget airlines were a Godsend to him.  Regular services with relative anonymity.  When travelling alone he preferred to sit towards the rear of the aircraft, the noise of the engines usually prevented anyone next to him trying to engage in conversation.  He closed his eyes and let images of Emily fill his head, he smiled too.

Charles Sugar stood on the deck at the stern of The Conundrum.  The lights of Monte Carlo slowly blending into one as the boat thrust purposefully into the Mediterranean Sea, bound for Gibraltar.  He thought of the two businessmen who they had wined, dined and sucked up to and were now on their way back to London, thinking that they had signed a deal to be major shareholders in a luxury yacht leasing business. The transfer through the five separate bank accounts had started and by the next morning the money would be safe in the Cayman Islands.  He laughed out loud.