Chapter 11 #2
“I don’t know, come on,” she said getting an idea from his. “Bring the plans,” she added with a laugh when he started to come after her without them. She tacked them up on the wall in front of her drafting board, looked at them then back at hers and grabbed her pencil.
“What are you doing?” Jordan asked wrapping his arms around her and bringing her down onto his lap as he sat on the stool.
“You’ll see,” she said giving him a light kiss.
He watched as she made changes and smiled into her hair. “Mel, you’re absolutely amazing do you know that?”
“So I’ve heard once or twice,” she teased putting her pencil down and reviewing what she’d done. “You like them?”
“Love them and I think you should show them to Dwight, but make sure he knows they’re not for sale.”
“They’re not that good,” she argued.
“Mel you just took two sets of plans that should have never fit together and created the perfect house for us. Only question is, where do we want to build it?”
“You’re serious? You want us to build this? Now?”
“Absolutely, if we start looking for somewhere to build it now we can hopefully get it finished so we can move into it once we’re back from a very overdue honeymoon and you know what my favorite room on here is?” he asked kissing her neck.
“Our office?” she stated tapping on the large room that they could both use.
“Nope, the bedroom,” he said slipping his hands inside the shirt. “Brave enough for another round on the couch?”
“Mmm how about your desk?” she teased enjoying his stunned expression for once.
“Now I’ve done it. I’ve completely corrupted my sweet, innocent, delectable wife.” Jordan laughed carrying her back to the other room. In the end, they did use the couch but neither complained, not even in the morning when the light streamed in and woke them.
Her birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s all seemed to rush at them as she finished her first semester and prepared for the next.
She was exhausted and it took everything she had to keep it together and not let Jordan catch onto just how much time she was spending up each night working on things for the office.
Tate was doing his best to keep her sane especially with Jordan coming and going so much helping other colleges set up programs through the company like the one at Whitmore.
Mel made her way through the campus stopping in at the construction site to speak with Morris the foreman in charge before heading to one of her business courses.
“Please tell me there’s not a problem that’s going to delay us,” she said accepting the hand he held out as she picked her way over some pipes lying on the ground.
“Nah, just a slight snag with the plans,” he said spreading out the blueprints for the building they were getting ready to start. She glanced over them and had to laugh, apparently whoever had drawn them up hadn’t remembered to continue the staircase on through the next level of the floor plans.
“I see,” she said with a smile as she pulled out her computer. She keyed up the 3D images of the plans to make sure they included the stairwell and that the space hadn’t been earmarked for something else.
“Yo, heads up,” she heard before the sound of something crashing caused her to look up. She didn’t have time to react as Morris and Tate both pulled her out of the way of the bouncing bucket that had fallen from the open area.
“You okay?” Tate asked hugging her to his side.
“I’m fine,” she assured him and Morris as the other man headed over to lecture the worker who’d made the mess. “It’ll take more than a bucket of nails to stop me.”
“Yeah well let’s keep it between us that I didn’t make you put on your hard hat. Jordan will kill me if he knows you almost got hurt,” he said as she went back to the computer.
She finished going through the plans feeling a hard item plop down on her head and she sighed. “Thanks Pete.”
“How’d you know?” he asked with a grin.
“You’re the only other one around here brave enough to put this thing on my head without warning other than Tate and Morris and since Tate’s right behind me and Morris is over there giving his lecture that leaves you,” she said glancing up with a smile before she headed towards Morris.
“So, what’s the verdict?” he asked when they reached him.
“We should be good. On the model it’s a stairwell so there are no concerns there. If you need to order additional steel, I’ll make a note of it in the file,” she told him.
“I think we’re good on supplies; next time you come in here though that thing goes on first,” he stated tapping her head. “I don’t want to be the one to tell the boss that his girl’s in the hospital because you weren’t wearing it.”
“Fine I’ll try and remember. Anything else or any other lectures you’d like to hand out to me before I head to a real one?”
“Nah, you’re the real boss we all know that,” Pete stated before stepping between her and the group of new arrivals from one of the trade programs.
“Man oh man, didn’t know there were going to be hot chicks working the site,” one of the teens said exchanging high fives with another.
“I’d like to see her without a shirt,” the other replied.
“Calm down,” she told the three who were starting to turn red at the comments.
“I think I’ll cool them down,” Tate stated.
“No you won’t, step aside,” she said making an opening between Tate and Morris to squeeze through. “Larry, good to see you,” she stated as the teacher stepped forward. “This must be your new class.”
“Sorry about those two. They think that they can get by saying anything they want because there’s no one at home to tell them otherwise. Their foster parents don’t really pay attention to what they do,” he warned.
“I think I can handle it,” she said before turning to the class.
“Good afternoon everyone, my name is Melinda Holmes. Yes, as in Holmes Construction and Architecture,” she added at a few of the curious looks.
“My husband Jordan and I are the ones running the show around here; he’s out of town at the moment and I have to run to class, but I will leave you all in the very capable hands of these three gentlemen.
By the time the semester is over you all will have a first rate education and hands-on experience at building and hopefully some of you will learn some manners. ”
She gave a pointed look at the two before continuing, “And if you think I’m kidding I should warn you that this guy right here happens to be Tate, my best friend from the time I was seven, as well as the lead engineer on the part of the project you’ll be working.
The other two here are the foremen of the crew, so unless you want to be picking up trash or lugging boards all day, I’d suggest you keep your mouths closed and your ears open.
If you look around the crew you’ll find workers with varying degrees of experience, some are current students here at Whitmore, earning their spots after they started where you are right now.
Others decided to forego the college route and took full-time jobs with us.
You’re looking at a wonderful opening for your future if you play your cards right,” she finished glad that they’d settled down.
“Okay,” she added turning back to the others. “I’ve got to get to class so I can finally be done with my masters. Jordan should be home tomorrow or Thursday; if you need anything else just give me a call. I’ll be in the office most of the evening.”
“All evening you mean,” Tate countered as she grabbed her bags and headed out. He dropped a kiss on her cheek and took her hard hat to put back in the trailer they had onsite. “Slow down Mel, you’re going to burn out if you don’t.”
“I’ll be fine and besides, once I’m done in May I don’t plan on doing anything other than relaxing.”
“Yeah? Has Jordan mentioned anything about this new crew he’s trying to put together? He hasn’t said what it’s for, but he wants the best from here on it, though he didn’t give us a time frame either.”
“We’re thinking of building a house. I have the plans all worked up, we’re just waiting to find the perfect spot to build it.”
“Now it makes sense. Okay go or you’re going to be late,” he said giving her a light push.
She laughed giving them a wave as she continued across campus towards her lecture.
Thanks to spending all summer on campus she only had three classes left for her MBA and she’d fit them in around her others.
She’d taken extra classes last year and the prior summer for her masters in architecture and it didn’t hurt that Dwight had allowed her into some of his upper level courses during her last year of undergrad.
Unfortunately, the class she was headed to was her legal and ethics course regarding business and so far, it had been mostly the others ripping apart this company or that.
She’d stayed away from the conversation because she didn’t agree with them and wanted to simply let it go.
As she slid into her seat, she noticed several glances from her classmates and wondered what was up with the attention.
When she thought she couldn’t take any more of their stares, Anna turned towards her and asked, “Is it true you’re only here because Whitmore’s paying you?”
“What?” Mel said with a laugh.
“Whitmore’s paying you to get your MBA so you can work on the construction project.”
“Whitmore’s not paying for my MBA nor for my master’s in architecture. I work for Holmes,” she said putting emphasis on the name.
“Wait, Holmes as in the construction company?” Nick said glancing at her differently.
“Yeah, I’ve worked for the company for six years.”
“So your family owns it?” Anna asked.
“My husband and I do,” she clarified. “So I suppose in a way Whitmore is paying for my MBA, but I’ve worked for the company a lot longer than I’ve been coming here.”
“Hold on,” Devon said turning around in his seat to stare at her. “You’re married?”
“It’ll be six years in May,” she answered holding up her left hand to reveal the wedding band and emerald ring she always wore.
“So you’ve been working with your husband for longer than you’ve been married?” Anna asked.
“I started working there in October six years ago, Jordan and I immediately connected, and we got married in May.”
“That’s insane,” she stated.
“How old were you?” Devon asked.
“Seventeen, I’d just finished my junior year in high school,” she said hiding her smile at their incredulous faces.
“It might sound odd, but I’d been on my own since I was fifteen.
My mother ran off sometime during the wee hours of the morning of my birthday and I pretended she didn’t.
The only person that knew about it was my best friend Tate and he’d never tell.
Then I got the job with Jordan, we fell for each other though he thought I was older.
He asked me to marry him, I told him the truth, and we moved past it. ”
“You can’t get married when you’re seventeen without permission though, right?” Gail stated as the entire class listened in with interest.
“Jordan found my mother, she signed the papers and the rest…well we’re still blissfully happy.”
“You’re seriously trying to tell us that you found ‘the one’ at seventeen?” Anna asked. “Come on I’m twenty-seven and I’ve yet to find him.”
“I may only be twenty-three, but I grew up fast. I have no doubts about what I’ve done.
I’m married to one of my best friends. I have Tate in my life at home and at work, my in-laws are amazing people, and I know one of the world’s best pool players.
He’s been my surrogate father my entire life.
My life’s great even if I don’t have a minute to spare to sleep. ”
“You’re finishing up your MBA, your master’s in architecture, and you work for the company that’s completing the campus project, and on top of all of that you’re married? There’s no way you’re as happy as you claim,” Nick stated with a pointed look.
“I’m finishing the last three classes for my MBA.
I’m enrolled in three others to finish my architectural studies.
I don’t deal with all of the day to day things at the office anymore but handle the larger things.
We drop everything when Jordan comes home after being away for too long, ignore the phone, and only answer the door if it’s the police or one of our family members bleeding all over the front stoop.
So yeah, I can be that happy,” Mel told them as their professor came in and began the day’s lecture.
After that discussion, people seemed to either give her a wider berth or else they asked way too many personal questions.
For Valentine’s Day, Jordan surprised her with a scavenger hunt that led her to an empty field where he had a table set up and she shook her head laughing as she made her way over to him.
“What on earth?” she asked looking around them.
“Welcome home Mrs. Turner,” he said pulling her into a kiss. He grinned down at her once he pulled back. “I do believe we’re standing in our future kitchen, don’t you?”
Mel sent a curious look at him before glancing around the field again, taking in the ‘for sale’ sign and the expanse that lay between it and the next nearest home, nearly a mile down the road. “Here?”
“You don’t like it?” he asked worry seeping through his tone.
“Jordan, I love it,” she said with a gentle smile as she pictured the house and what the view would look like from the kitchen window.
“Good, I wouldn’t want to be forced to kick Tate’s ass for giving me the wrong advice,” he teased kissing her temple. “Now, what do you say we enjoy this wonderful meal before I take you to our current home and remind you how much I’ve missed you this last week?”
“Mmm…I say yes,” she said against his lips.
By the end of the next week the spot was theirs and they were arguing over the materials to use for the outside of the house.
It was an argument that their crew was more than happy to draw out when she stopped by the worksite and he was there.
It became the running joke as the weeks sped by and the crew began to work on the preparing the plot.
Nicole had the baby, a boy they named Cord, in the middle of March and he joined Alana’s two boys Trent and Sam.
The same day Nicole had her baby Jake and Susan announced they were going to have the next one, a call she’d made back at Christmas and won her three weeks of Jordan taking care of the dishes.
As April rolled around, she was insanely busy between finishing her courses, work and checking on the progress of their house—a house which Dwight had deemed perfection when she’d finally showed him the plans for it.
Everything seemed to be going great…and that’s when it all came crashing down on her.