Chapter 12
GINNY
I really like Sofia Romero.
A lot.
She’s smart, funny, and very into what IES is doing. And she’s a fantastic cook.
So is her father. Actually, her father is all of those things as well, but he’s especially a great cook.
The Romeros welcomed me, Graham, and Jack into their gorgeous home, and we’re now seated around a huge dining room table with Eduardo at the head of the table and Sofia directly across from me.
The table is laden with food, including thick steaks, potatoes, grilled vegetables, a crisp lettuce salad, and fresh-baked bread. Everything looks and smells incredible and, I don’t know about the guys, but I’m starving.
We make small talk about Sapphire Falls and how much nicer the weather is here compared to at home, as we all dish up, but I’ve only taken two bites before Eduardo jumps into business. Which I appreciate. Except I really want to eat until I’m ready to pop.
“I understand that you are the scientist and Everett is the businessman,” Eduardo says, lifting his wine glass. “I had hoped Everett would come. No offense to you, Graham, but my concerns are not about the function of the farm or the technology.”
“What are your concerns, exactly?” Graham asks, setting his silverware down. “Everett and I try very hard to understand all aspects of the business. I’d like to try to assuage any of your worries.”
“It feels safer to start smaller. Slower,” Eduardo says. He looks at Sofia and says something in Spanish.
I catch most of it, but I let the other woman express her father’s thoughts to us.
“He’s been talking with his friends,” she says, shaking her head at him as if she doesn’t fully agree with him doing that.
“The ones that we’d like to work with as well?” I ask.
Like Jack, Eduardo has agreed to serve as an ambassador to other local farmers, helping bring them on board with us.
We’re hoping to contract with four more farms in this area this year.
We could bring on only one or two more, but then we will need to find farmers elsewhere who are as excited about what we can do.
The goal is ten farms in the first half of the year.
Bringing on five here and five in Sapphire Falls felt easy a day or so ago.
Sofia nods. “A couple of them. But the group he has lunch with is a larger group. At first, I thought maybe the others were jealous about not being asked to participate, but I think maybe they truly are concerned we’re getting in over our heads.
” She looks from me to her dad, to Graham.
“They just don’t understand the project. ”
“That’s the point of partnering with you,” I say to Eduardo.
“We want someone who is widely respected in the community. Someone everyone knows is smart, a fantastic businessman, and an exceptional farmer. Someone who people look at as a community leader and a role model in agriculture. You don’t need their approval.
They should be looking to you and wanting to follow in your footsteps. ”
Eduardo frowns.
Oops.
I thought appealing to his role as an icon in the community would work.
He’s clearly successful and, I would think, proud of that.
I didn’t do the background work on him, but when Sofia contacted IES, Graham and Everett did thorough research.
They didn’t jump at partnering with just anyone who expressed interest. Eduardo’s family has been farming in this area for three generations, and he is well known and well liked in town.
He’s served on the city council and several committees, and Sofia is following in his footsteps, currently serving in her second term as a city councilwoman.
“I trust my friends,” he says. “For years, we’ve worked side by side here. We share knowledge and ideas.”
“Of course,” I say. This is exactly why we want him working with us. I need to switch gears a bit. “And I’m sure they’re all exceptional businessmen and women as well. They must see how wonderful this will be for you and your community.”
I meet Graham’s eyes, and he gives me a look that says, ‘Go ahead. Good luck.’
Graham isn’t a cheerleader, nor is he effusive about anything other than a successful science experiment and, now, Margot.
He’s more outgoing and warmer than our father, but he inherited the Riley trait of getting easily irritated when questioned.
He doesn’t understand why people don’t just trust his knowledge about the topics he’s passionate about.
I wonder briefly what Everett would do in this moment.
I’m guessing he’d be very charming. He’d figure out what Eduardo really needs here and find a way to give it to him.
Everett is the other side of the coin, and that’s why he and Graham have been successful. Graham makes the actual project work, but Everett sells it.
Why isn’t he here?
He should be here.
Clearly, Eduardo agrees.
But he’s not. I am. And I can absolutely sell this project. I believe in it, in Graham and Everett, and I can make Eduardo trust them.
I turn to Jack. “Jack is going to be the first in our community to have a fully green indoor farm, and it’s going to be fantastic.
Not just for our town and people—though certainly that—but for him and for agriculture widely.
When someone brings something amazing to a community, people don’t forget who led the way. ”
Eduardo focuses on Jack. “You’re doing the full-scale project?”
Jack nods. “I have a smaller farm than you do, so I’ll have four buildings, rather than six, but I’m doing them all at once. And I actually hope to expand.”
“And we hope to bring other farms into the project in Sapphire Falls, too,” I say.
“But when the project is a huge success, and people in the middle of Nebraska are eating fresh-off-the-vines strawberries at the diner in January, and the market is able to supply super fresh lettuce and veggies year-round, and Jack is sipping coffee at the diner, not worried about drought conditions in the middle of July, everyone is going to want what he’s got. ”
“We want to do it,” Sofia assures us. “We believe in the project.”
“Yes, but…” Eduardo says.
“Dad,” Sofia says with a sigh.
I look at Eduardo. “But something’s making you nervous now.”
“Not nervous.” He frowns. “I just want to be careful. Go slow. One building. One year to see how it goes.”
“One building and one year won’t tell you much,” I say.
“It will get you familiar with the process, but it won’t be enough to really show you or the community what you can do.
” I take a breath…and a chance. “If someone else steps up and does a full farm with us, they’ll see cost savings by the end of the year and make a name for themselves in the area. ”
Is Eduardo competitive enough to want to be first? Will it matter to him that we might approach someone else? Will we approach someone else if he backs out? I haven’t talked to Graham and Everett about the what if here.
“If I can say something?” Jack asks.
I know that Jack believes in this, so I’m happy to have him speak on this. We brought him along so he could see a nearly finished building, but he can also talk to Eduardo peer-to-peer.
“It’s not just being first for me,” Jack says.
“It’s being able to do this right in my community.
With the indoor farm, I’ll be able to supply the local restaurants, the local markets, even do direct sales.
I’ll be feeding my friends and neighbors directly.
” He leans in. “As a farmer, that means something to me. It gets to the heart of what we do. There will be no middleman. I get to shop and eat beside people I care about, knowing that I’m feeding them.
Directly from my farm to their tables.” He shrugs.
“I really like that. I’m guessing you would too. ”
Eduardo studies Jack for a long moment. Then he nods. “I would like that.”
“And we can offer you the chance to give your customers even more variety than you do now,” I say.
Eduardo sighs.
“You’re going to be a hero,” I say. “Everyone will be talking about you. I’m sure your friends are trying to protect you, but new things don’t happen inside the comfort zone, Eduardo.
You have to be bold. Be the one your friends come to for advice when you’re the local expert on green-energy-powered indoor farming.
I know it’s big, but don’t be afraid of change. Be brave.”
He lifts a brow. Then he pushes back from the table. “If you’ll excuse me.”
He stands, takes his glass of wine, and leaves the room.
Oh.
I wasn’t expecting that.
Crap.
I look at Sofia first. “I really thought I’d read him right,” I say. I probably should just say I’m sorry. “I know he’s a leader here. I thought that would appeal to him.”
She nods. “No, you’re right. He is. And being someone others look up to is important to him.”
“I’m sorry that I insulted him.”
“I don’t think you did,” she said. “You just gave him more to think about.”
Damn, I hope so. I look at my brother. He toasts me with his glass. “You get to call and tell Everett how it went.”
My heart does a little flip. I get to call Everett.
My boss.
About my first official business meeting.
And tell him that I might have upset the guy who we need to finish this first farm.
Great.
Well…it’s his own fault. He should have been the one to come talk to Eduardo. Obviously.
I sigh and reach for my glass too.
Thirty minutes later, I settle back against the pillows propped on my headboard at the hotel. I want to call for room service first. We stayed and “finished” dinner at Sofia’s insistence, but I couldn’t eat much.
I kept hoping Eduardo would return to the table, but he never did.
Dammit. If I ruined this because I insulted the man’s ego…well, that’s annoying. Men’s egos are always annoying. But I will feel bad, of course.