Ava sat stunned as the door closed behind Mr. Kravitz. Work with Julian Reed? Was he insane? She turned to face her nemesis, who looked equally outraged. 


"Well, this should be interesting," Julian said, scowling. "I can't wait to hear all your brilliant cookie-cutter ideas."


Ava bristled. "At least my ideas are thoughtful and strategic. Not just flash-in-the-pan nonsense."


"Wow, you really can't handle anyone doing things differently, can you?" Julian shot back. "No wonder your work is so forgettable."


Ava clenched her jaw, willing herself not to lose her temper completely.


"Look," she said evenly. "Neither of us is thrilled about this situation, but Kravitz has made up his mind, so we're just going to have to figure this out."


Julian leaned back in his chair. "What's there to figure out? You boss me around, I ignore you and do things my way, and we probably lose the account. The end."


"Don't be so quick to dismiss me," Ava replied sharply. "I've landed more accounts in the last year than you have in your entire time here. I know what I'm doing."


"Yeah, by playing it safe." Julian sighed. "But look, Kravitz wants us to work together, so I'm willing to try if you dial back the control freak attitude." 


Ava bit her tongue, resisting the urge to put Julian firmly in his place. As irritating as he was, Kravitz had backed her into a corner. Like it or not, she needed Julian's cooperation. 


"Fine," she said slowly. "I can compromise if you can. But we both have to check our egos at the door." 


Julian nodded thoughtfully. "Okay, truce it is. For the Anderson account at least. Where should we start?"


Over the next hour, Ava and Julian hashed out ideas for the bourbon company pitch. Their conversation was strained at first, but slowly they began to find common ground. Julian agreed to do more research and planning, while Ava said she would be open to some unconventional branding approaches. 


By the time they left the conference room, the kernel of a strategy had emerged. Ava was beginning to think they could actually have a shot at winning the account together. As much as she hated to admit it, his out-of-the-box thinking balanced her pragmatic approach well.


Back in her office, Ava checked her emails and found one from Kravitz telling her that Liam Barker would be pitching to the athletic wear company so that she could give her full attention to Anderson. Ava sighed and sat back in her chair while rubbing her tired eyes. She told herself she'd just have to work twice as hard to make sure they landed this account. 


As she gathered her things to head home later that evening, Ava felt the usual mix of exhaustion and excitement that came with her demanding job. Working with Julian was less than ideal, but she had to admit that together they might create something special for the Anderson account if they both stuck to their word to put their egos aside. She'd just have to keep her irritation in check and try to deal with his wild streak. It would be a challenge, but one she was up for. Tomorrow was another day to show what she could do.