Chapter 18 He Was Wrong
HE WAS WRONG
“Ican’t believe all this paperwork,” Jayce said on Monday.
“All employees need to fill it out,” Jocelyn said. “Stop being a baby.”
“I’m not being a baby,” he said, typing into the laptop. “I’m not sure why I couldn’t do this all yesterday at home and then I could get right to work.”
“Because Mom and Dad told you that you couldn’t answer until after the weekend and I wasn’t working this weekend and neither was anyone else. Get over yourself. If you think you’re getting special treatment here, you’ve got another thing coming.”
His sister was riding his ass exactly as he knew it would happen, with a wide grin on her face.
He missed these interactions for the years he hadn’t lived at home.
Not that he’d ever admitted it. Not when he’d boasted for years he was going to make a name for himself outside of the family business.
But here he was, ending up where everyone said he’d be.
He didn’t want that to burn so much, but it kind of did.
“No one treats anyone else special,” he said. “I know.”
He finished the rest of his paperwork, then submitted it. They’d had a laptop set up for him already that he was using, and his new office had a fresh coat of paint on it. He’d told them a soft blue would be fine and that was what they’d done.
It was crazy to him how bare it was and yet felt so much more comfortable than the bigger one he’d had in Charlotte that was surrounded by sports memorabilia and pictures of him with players hanging out.
Almost like trophies of his own.
Sad that he’d felt the need to do that.
His brother’s office had a few pictures of Elise and Hunter in it. Not much more. Not that Gabe was around much.
Jocelyn’s office was more designed and cozy, pictures of Chance and Mav, artwork on the wall, some carefully arranged vases and plants.
Just like her house. Easy and modern, welcoming and comfortable.
“What’s wrong?”
He turned his head to see his father standing in the doorway.
“Nothing. Trying to figure out how to have this place feel more like Jocelyn’s does.”
His father smiled. “It took her years to do it, but you know she loves to shop. She’d help you.”
“I can handle it,” he said.
“I’m sure you’ve got a lot of things from your old office.”
He snorted. “I do, but not anything I want here. It felt right there. Here, I’m not so sure I’m ready.”
His father shut the door. “Are you regretting leaving?”
“Not at all.” He shouldn’t have said what he had, but if he didn’t or couldn’t talk to his parents it’d only be worse. They wouldn’t judge. “I probably stayed too long.”
“Why did you? Because it’s what you wanted or you didn’t want anyone to think you couldn’t make it?”
“I’d sound like a dick if I said the second.”
“But there was some of that there,” his father said. “We know. I’m not insulted if you’re worried. We’ve always told you kids to do what makes you happy.”
Gabe had an awesome voice and for years his parents encouraged his brother to try it as a singer, but his brother said he didn’t want to. He sang for pleasure, not for a paycheck.
“You did. And I have for years. When it stopped making me happy I should have looked at it more from the outside and instead ignored what my gut had been telling me.”
“Your gut was telling you to slow down or you were going to get sick. At least you listened.”
“After I got sick. The sad part is, if this shit with Levi didn’t happen, I might still be there having daily headaches and chasing it with more meds to eat a bigger hole. For the most part, I ate healthy.”
“Which could be why you didn’t notice it right away. For what it’s worth, we are glad you’re home.”
“I’m glad to be here. I just need to figure out where to live. I don’t want to disrupt your life too much, but I talked to Jocelyn. I think I might want to buy her condo.”
His father smiled. “That’s a good plan, but no one is forcing you out. My best advice to you is don’t jump. You might not want to be there in a year. Offer to pay her mortgage for her, she’ll hold on to it.”
“I’m positive she needs that money down that she’d make on the sale for her new house,” Jayce said.
“No,” his father said. “But you didn’t hear it from me. She’ll have her mortgage before she even puts the condo up because she didn’t want to rush.”
He hadn’t thought of that, but Jocelyn had mentioned it.
“We’ll work it out the best for her.”
“And don’t think for a minute your mother is trying to push you out, she’s not. You’ve been gone for a long time and she enjoys having you in the house.”
“I might enjoy it a little.”
Except for their knowing when he was coming and going. It wasn’t as if his mother asked him what he was doing, but he was positive she suspected something. He just wasn’t used to volunteering anything.
His father stood up. “I came in here to see if you wanted to take a ride with me to the new medical arts building we will be under contract with soon. It’s got some renters in it already.
The other rooms are going to get a lot of work done on them.
I’m meeting Richard, Grant, and Garrett there.
Gabe can’t make it, Royce will stop in. Just trying to get a final number for the amount of work it needs. ”
“Does Jocelyn need to go?”
“She’s been there a few times and knows what is going on from our end. This is more what Richard thinks needs to be done so all the partners signing the contract know. With Elise out, he’s got someone else putting things together for now, but we know it could change.”
He stood up. “Sure. Might as well dive right in. I guess a good question will be, am I doing much work in terms of marketing for these ventures or just McCarthy’s?”
His family business was vast enough to keep him busy.
“That will be a conversation we can have too. We haven’t gotten there yet. This week, I think it’s best for you to just check out all the projects we’ve got going on and go from there.”
“Probably the best way to start.”
And made him realize that maybe he should have had a bigger hand in or at least knowledge of the family business prior.
But it wasn’t as if he worked for them before. He just always thought there’d be no place for him with what he wanted to go to college for.
Guess he was wrong.
“What do you think, Jayce?” Jim asked his son two hours later. Royce and Richard had left; it was just Grant and Garrett remaining with them.
“I think it’s great. I don’t know why I never thought of everything you guys did. I’m sure you all have a lot of contacts to get more renters.”
“We do,” Grant said. “But never turn down anyone spreading the word. Lots of our spaces have been filled that way.”
“I don’t know many around here like I did in Charlotte,” Jayce said. “I had all sorts of connections there, but nothing that fits here.”
“Now it’s time to spread your wings some,” Garrett said. “I remember Drake the first time he started to work for me. Thought he knew exactly what he was doing without my help, but learned soon enough that it takes time.”
Jim hoped his son realized that. That they had all the faith in him, but Jayce just had to unearth it himself.
“I’ve got a lot of time on my hands,” Jayce said. “My father has me viewing everything, even being around Gabe on the sites. My brother is loving bossing me around again.”
“That’s natural with siblings,” Grant said. “Ryder got the worst of it.”
“Jocelyn claims she gets the worst of it,” Jim said. “But she holds her own with her brothers.”
“She’s doing well, and I hear congrats are in order for another wedding soon,” Grant said. “Kind of a bummer we didn’t get to have too much to do with it.”
Jim looked at his son to see if he’d wonder what that comment was about, but Jayce was looking around the room they were in and checking a few offices out.
His son might not have worked with his hands in his past career and wouldn’t now, but he still had the knowledge in there.
“It happens,” he said quietly. “Don’t get any ideas just yet.”
“Diane said Stacy made a comment that she might go to them for help. Does she have anyone in mind?”
He saw Jayce go into another room. “I think something is going on with someone, but I’m staying out of it. He needs to get his feet under him some. Stacy can nose around if she wants.”
“Then she might reach out to our wives,” Garrett said. “Guess we didn’t get lucky with this one either. Could be it’s just dwindling down some with our fun.”
“I’m sure there are plenty of employees in your firm you can involve yourself in,” he said.
“Sure, there are, but it’s more fun when it’s personal like this,” Grant said.
“Let the women do their thing,” Jim said. “Or at least for now.”
“That’s the idea,” Garrett said, slapping him on the back.
“Ready, Jayce?” he asked when his son came back out.
“Yeah. I was checking to see how easily some walls could be moved or more thrown up. Even if it’s temporary ones.
If you’re focused on getting clients for this, I can reach out to some hospitals or offices in the area and see their thoughts.
There is a chamber meeting tonight I’m going to attend.
Might as well get my name out there for McCarthy’s and it can spill out that way. ”
“Digging in the way we knew you would,” Jim said.
“Got to start somewhere, might as well dive in. What’s the worst that could happen? People tell me no?”
“One hundred percent of the questions you don’t ask are no—just think of it that way. You might get a yes,” Grant said. “But getting immersed in the community is the first step.”
Which Jim knew his son might be nervous about. All those people he bragged to that he was putting this city behind him were eventually going to see he was back.
But he couldn’t hold his son’s hand, nor would Jayce want it.
It was time for his youngest son to make himself happy. However that might be.