In fact, she was not a part of many of the new projects Ivan was developing. And he didn’t want to be a part of throwing concerts with Randy & Ralph. He still didn’t trust them. They began asking too many intricate questions about his website operations for them to be trusted, especially since they had their own website. Ivan felt they were trying to duplicate some of his marketing ideas. He figured he could make the same amount of money as he would from concerts by promoting the various club properties he had invested in. He was also more in control of the numbers there. However, Lucina was eager to deal with her old partners.

Nevertheless, without Ivan’s website promotions, Randy & Ralph remained cold to Lucina’s inclusion in their plans. That led Ivan to think of other ideas where he and Lucina could find common ground. He came up with brand-building events where they would focus less on the paying crowds and work more on sponsorship vehicles. They would be paid to create the support of a large section of the population, while being backed by strong product branders. Lucina would then have limited economic risk, and she could continue to earn from fresh ideas and a strong supportive following.

“That’s the wave of new big business anyway,” Ivan had told her. “The bigger companies can afford to sponsor any-and everything now.”

“Yes, but they often take much longer to pitch,” Lucina argued.

Ivan thought, There she goes with her impatience again. She didn’t have a proposal-writing team like Ivan had. Nevertheless, he figured that his team was her team.

He told her, “All we have to do is sit down and explain everything to my guys, just like how we worked on the proposals for the events we did last year.”

“Yes, and they took forever to happen.”

“But they did happen, and they all went over well. We just tap into the same sponsors, like we did with my second birthday network party this year. I mean, do you want to keep making money with me or what?”

Lucina seemed to be fighting against him more than working with him. Ivan couldn’t understand it. She was losing out on major deals and income in the process.

Finally, she told him, “Ivan, you don’t know everything. And I can’t stand that you think you do. You’ve only been out here for a couple years now, and already you think you’re some kind of tycoon.”

Ivan grimaced. He said, “You know what? I went through all this before with you, and it’s the same fucking jealousy over and over again. You do this every year. It’s like you only want to do your own ideas, but business don’t work like that, man.”

“I told you before, I’m not a man, Ivan,” she nitpicked.