Chapter 18 Spread Your Wings
SPREAD YOUR WINGS
“Is there anything you need me to do before I leave for the day?” Nora asked at four.
“Come in and shut the door,” he said.
Might as well let her know what was going on now. He hated not saying anything earlier, but he needed more information to know if it’d even move any further.
What Blair had gotten back from Griffin, sorted through, and then his meeting with his father and Darin gave him the information he needed to decide.
Then make an offer.
It was the last bit to go through for him to take the next step.
“Is everything okay?”
“I’m going to tell you what is going on. The conversation with Blair earlier that was confusing.”
“It was, but I doubt it will be the first one I’ll get bits and pieces of.”
“It won’t be,” he said. “Did she say anything?”
“That you’re buying a company on your own. I know some of my duties are going to overlap even though I’m paid by Bond Enterprises.”
“That’s right, it will. Here is the deal, or the shortened version of things. There are branches within the company. Eli has one, Egan has one, and so do I.”
“Oh,” she said. “I hadn’t gotten that far yet.”
“My father will own twenty percent of any venture his sons do. It’s just a given. He’ll put the money in and it’s allowed to stay under this umbrella, hence making benefits and payroll and all those HR things easier for everyone.”
Something he was grateful for and he knew his brothers were also.
“And you’re buying something for yourself.”
“It will be seventy percent me, my father his twenty, the other ten split between Eli and Egan. We work those things out depending on the amount of the investment.” He waved his hand.
“Staff here will be delegated or hired, or transferred over from the company I’m purchasing.
That stuff will happen once the sale goes through, if it does. ”
“Can I ask what it is first?”
“Donuts.”
“Donuts?”
“Yes. There is this gourmet donut shop two blocks from here. My brothers and me, we can’t get enough.
Eli thought it’d be great to have one in the casino.
It’s close to the docks. People stop in there for all sorts of shops and small fast food at the courts while they travel to and from the island for many reasons, not only to gamble at the casino. ”
“He didn’t want to just ask them to move in?”
“They can’t afford to do it and it’s struggling as it is. They’ve got three shops and are falling on hard times. Can’t keep their staff, isn’t managed well. Just poor decisions that a bigger company could handle and absorb.”
“And you want to do that or just want free donuts?”
He liked the humor on her face, the sound of it crowding her voice. “Well yeah, I want free donuts for life. Wouldn’t you?”
“Not if I want to fit into the clothes I own.”
“Those clothes look damn fine on you too,” he said. “Especially those pants. Hugging your—” He stopped when she pointed her finger at him. “Monday, got it. Fuck, this is harder than I thought.”
“Glad it’s not just me. As you were saying, free donuts for life.”
“It’s three stores, the fourth is going into the casino as fast as we can get it up after the sale.”
“If it goes through.”
“It should, but I’m not going to be bled any more than they want to be taken advantage of. We are working out what I think is a fair market value offer.”
“What will my role be in this?”
“Blair went through all the security checks I had coming in. Griffin does all of that for most Bond-operated businesses.”
“Blair had told me that. Guess he’s got a lot of reach. Even when it comes to giving someone the slip.”
He picked up his pen and tossed it at her, over her shoulder to not hit, but get her to duck. “It’s Monday,” he said, crinkling his nose.
Her upper lip disappeared into her mouth. “You had it coming.”
“I like it when you c—”
“Alright. That’s enough for me to know there has to be a firm line in the sand. Not even a tiny crack of a joke or you’re off track.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t use to be this way.”
But it wasn’t as if he’d ever dated anyone who worked in the company let alone for him.
It was the one thing he avoided at all costs.
Yet here he was sleeping with the employee he was working the closest with.
“Welcome to the club. Neither did I.”
She turned when the door opened and Blair walked in.
“Sorry. Just wanted to check what you needed from me, if anything, or I’m going to get right back on what I’ve got.
We’ll get it punched out before the end of the day, if not first thing in the morning.
Depends on how much you’re going to change. ”
“I’m good. I’ll give it to Nora if it’s anything, but you work on that.”
Blair nodded and slipped back out. “I can help her if you want unless you prefer I don’t touch anything like this.”
“That’s up to her, but she’ll be here for a few hours and I don’t want you to have to stay late. There is no reason for it this early.”
Nor did he want her to worry it was going to happen often either.
“If I help, then it gets her out earlier, unless I’m in the way, and if I am, I can handle being told that.”
“I’ll let you two work that out,” he said.
He looked at his watch. “Behind closed doors we can slip. I think we should have that window. It’s been bothering me all day that I didn’t talk to you yesterday.
I don’t want you to think I was blowing you off or trying to get even for what you did the first time. ”
“We aren’t tied at the hip.”
There wasn’t humor in her voice over that reply. Not even sarcasm, just a bold statement.
“I know. I was busy working on this, talking to my father and brothers, and getting everything lined up. I want to present a formal offer no later than the end of business tomorrow. They will have twenty-four hours to accept or negotiate. It will take time and then the legal teams will come in, but it’d be nice to get some of this done before Blair leaves. ”
“She’s still going to be around,” she said. “At least part time.”
“She will be, but I don’t want to bug her too much. She has to start her new life. You need to spread your wings just the same.”
“Thank you for that. It’s going to be nerve-wracking, because being the new person already is, but I don’t want to mess up.”
“Everyone messes up,” he said, laughing.
“I know. I’m not perfect.”
She was for him.
Not that he could say that because he wasn’t even sure if it was the truth.
That it popped into his head so freely was scarier than shit, but it wouldn’t have if he hadn’t believed it.
Or maybe it was the way they met.
On the island that his family founded and that carried a heavy dose of legend and lore of love at first sight.
It wasn’t love, but whatever it was, it was powerful enough to have him questioning everything he did.
“Unlike me,” he said.
“Impossible again,” she said. “Is there anything else I can do for you before I go help Blair?”
“I know what I want to say but not what I should.”
“You’re just going to wait until Saturday.”
“Friday night,” he countered.
“Depends on how long and hard my boss works.”
“That night,” he said, his eyes holding her stare. “Both of those things.”
She gulped. “Got to get that last word in, don’t you?”
“Just giving us both something to think about.”