Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
A ntonio was never late for work, and he never overslept. Until today. This morning had been thrown off from the start, and he hadn’t even been able to get his run in. Surprisingly, he didn’t care about any of that now. Today he was a man on a mission, but first, he needed to catch up on some work.
He smiled as he exited the elevator on the top floor of Jenkins & Sons Construction where the administrative offices were located. Nothing could get him down today. Spending time with the most amazing woman in the world yesterday had been just the boost he’d needed. Add that to the fact that he planned to propose marriage in a couple of days, and he felt like he was floating on air.
As he ambled down the long hallway, muffled chatter sounded behind closed doors, but thankfully no one was around to see him sneaking in late. He’d never hear the end of it. His family always found something to harass him about, and him deviating from his usual schedule would give them too much ammunition. That was the problem with being predictable. Everyone noticed when you changed things up.
I need to be less predictable .
Antonio approached the last door on the left and unlocked his office before strolling in. His work boots sunk into the thick carpet as he headed across the room. This was his happy place. A space that was calm, yet conducive to getting a ton of work done.
Setting his laptop bag on the desk, he went about his usual routine. Turn on his desk lamp. Open window blinds. Check voice messages and unlock the filing cabinet. In that order. He was pulling out files when a sound came from the opened door.
“What’s gotten into you?” his cousin Nate asked.
Nate was a few years older, but they were around the same height and size. He was the chief financial officer for J & S, and it was clear he had meetings today if his stylish, three-piece suit was any indication. The brother looked totally professional except for a small handprint on his pants leg. Clearly, one of his twin boys, preschoolers, had tagged him.
“You might want to wipe that off before your next meeting,” Antonio said, nodding at the small powder-like handprint.
Nate glanced down. “Damn, I didn’t even notice it. Powdered sugar,” he said, trying to brush it off, but it was taking some effort. “I can’t believe Martina or Nick didn’t say anything,” he said of their cousin and his twin brother. “But anyway, what’s going on with you?”
Antonio frowned. “What do you mean?”
“First of all, you’re late. Secondly, you missed a meeting and didn’t call. And lastly, you’re whistling. I’ve never heard you whistle. Ever.”
Whistling? Antonio hadn’t realized he’d been whistling, but what was the big deal?
“So, what? People can’t whistle? It’s a gorgeous day.” He gestured to the windows where the sunny spring day was on full display, then shrugged.
He took the files back to his desk and set them next to the telephone. He’d go through them shortly, but first…
“Ahh, let me guess. It’s Scarlett, isn’t it? Y’all did look pretty cozy on the dance floor at the reception. I take it that things are going well. Does this mean we’ll have another wedding to attend soon?”
Apparently, Martina had kept her mouth closed. Otherwise, Nate’s questions would’ve included something about the kiss that Martina had interrupted.
“Everything is fine with Scarlett,” Antonio said without elaborating.
He had no intentions of discussing his marriage plans with any of his extended family, at least not yet. Except he planned to get Martina’s help with a little project, but he’d have to swear her to secrecy.
“Did I miss anything important at the meeting?” Antonio asked. He was totally off his game today because he hadn’t even noticed the meeting on his calendar.
“Yeah, we wanted to run a staffing change by you. Do you have time now to talk?”
“Sure. My first appointment isn’t for another couple of hours.”
“Okay, let me see if MJ and Nick are available,” Nate said.
Nick oversaw operations of the entire company, and if he needed to be a part of this conversation, they were looking at making a major change.
“Where were you this morning?” Martina asked as she barged into the office. “Since when do you come in late without giving notice at least months in advance?” she joked.
“Since today,” Antonio growled, and Nate chuckled. “What do you want MJ?” he asked, even though Nate was getting ready to call her.
“I want to know where you were this morning.”
“See, you can’t just up and change your routine without everyone noticing. Otherwise, folks will worry,” Nate said as he typed something into his phone, probably a text message to his brother.
“Like either of you would worry. So where are we meeting?”
Nate’s phone buzzed. “We’ll meet in here. Nick is on his way.”
A few minutes later, Nick walked in with a file folder. Unlike his twin, his casual attire—a T-shirt, jeans, and work boots—fit in with how most of the people in the office dressed. A sheet metal worker by trade, Nick preferred to be in the field, but his responsibilities kept him in the office most days.
Small talk traveled around the table before Nick started explaining what they were thinking as far as changes to the administrative roles.
“Since Nate is playing a more active role with the property development company, he needs to relinquish some of his responsibilities around here. So we’re working on creating a couple of new positions,” Nick said.
Nate might be the CFO of Jenkins & Sons, but he was also part owner of a property development company he started with Antonio’s dad. The business was several years old, and Antonio was glad he’d gotten in early on as an investor. Already he was reaping the financial benefits.
“One of the new positions will be VP of operations, which I think you’d be perfect for,” Nick continued. “Responsibilities will include some financial tasks, as well as tasks on the builder side of the business. Basically, the role will be in line with your business and engineering background. Martina’s new role will comprise some of the estimator’s responsibilities.”
Antonio listened as Nick and Nate explained what they envisioned for both roles—the VP position, as well as the estimator manager role, which Antonio currently held. He had no doubt he could do the new job. He just wasn’t sure if he wanted to. The first few months or maybe even a year in the position would require long days to put systems in place. He wasn’t sure he wanted to commit to that.
There was also the matter of salary. Neither Nick nor Nate had discussed money yet, but Antonio was fairly sure they would meet his financial requirements if he took the job. But it wasn’t just about money. He had others to think about now. Even if he wasn’t a hundred percent sure Scarlett would say yes to his proposal, he was planning the next few months of his life around the fact that she might.
Nate handed him a sheet of paper. “That’s the salary.”
Antonio scanned the document. Jenkins & Sons Construction might be a family-owned business, but their salaries were competitive. The amount was in line with what he’d require from any company he worked for.
“What do you think? We can hash out the details and adjust responsibilities if needed,” Nick said, smiling as if knowing Antonio would jump at the opportunity.
A few weeks ago, he probably would’ve, but things had changed. He didn’t want to be a workaholic anymore or the person everyone came to for help.
“What’s the backup plan if I don’t accept?”
They all stared at him as if he had lost his mind. This was the type of role he had wanted since graduating from college. But like everyone else, he’d had to do his time and prove how valuable he was to the company. Of course, the three of them knew this was what he’d wanted. So, for him to not jump at the opportunity was throwing them off balance.
“You need to take this position because I want your job,” MJ said, humor in her tone.
Antonio grinned. As a master carpenter by trade, like Nick, she hated office work, which was mainly what she was doing these days. Occasionally, if there was a problem on a job site, she’d be the one called to check it out. With the estimator’s job, she’d get the chance to be in the field more.
“Are you saying you’re not interested?” Nick asked.
“I’m not saying that. I’m asking if you have a backup plan.”
Nick and Nate glanced at each other.
“Actually, Royce might be returning to Cincinnati,” Nate said of their cousin, Royce Garrison, who owned a technology company in Chicago along with his two brothers. “He’s thinking about selling the tech company. Or he’s interested in merging with J & S. If that happens, he wants to be over the engineering and tech department, but we could possibly move some of the VP of Operations responsibilities to him. Basically, we’d do some shuffling of tasks.”
“ Again ,” Nick added. He was the least patient of the twins. It worked in his favor, though. He was a get shit done kind of guy and hated delays. More than that, he detested doing something more than once—like shuffling responsibilities.
“Does Liam know about the possibility of Royce moving back?” Antonio asked.
Liam and Royce might be cousins, but they were sworn enemies, and the thought of the two of them in the building at the same time was a disaster waiting to happen. It all started when the guys were in their twenties. Liam had brought his girlfriend to Sunday brunch, and she ended up screwing around with Royce. When Liam caught them together, he went in on Royce and the worst fistfight in Jenkins’s history happened that day.
“Remember, Liam is a freelancer now. He doesn’t get a say in how the business is run anymore,” Nick said.
Liam was an architect by trade and had a waiting list for people who wanted to hire him. He was that good.
“Besides, he’s married. I’m sure his issues with Royce are a thing of the past.”
“I wouldn’t be too sure of that,” Antonio said, “But okay. Let me think about this new position. I appreciate the opportunity. When do you need to know my answer?”
“Today.”
“No later than a week.”
Nick and Nate said at the same time.
Nick frowned at his twin before returning his attention to Antonio. “What’s keeping you from saying yes now?”
“The time commitment mainly. I’ve been thinking about cutting back my hours to a normal eight-to-five. A new role might hinder that goal but let me think about it. In the meantime, is there a job description for the position?”
“We’re working on it. I’ll make sure it’s done in the next day or two and email it to you,” Nick said as he stood. “I hope you take the job, though, because it’s perfect for you.”
“Yeah, it sounds like it, but let me think about it.”
Antonio also stood. The position was perfect for what he once wanted to do. Now? Not so much. He was about to get the family he’d dreamed of, and the job didn’t seem as important.
When Nick and Nate walked out, Martina pounced.
“What’s wrong with you? That job is everything you’ve been working for. Why didn’t you take it?” When he hesitated, she snapped her fingers. “I know. It’s Scarlett, isn’t it? You’ve been different ever since you came back from Florida. What happened?”
Antonio closed the office door, and Martina followed him to his desk. He nodded for her to take the seat across from him, but she remained standing and frowned.
“Why do I have to sit down for this conversation? What the hell have you done?”
It was risky telling her about the situation with him and Scarlett, but he trusted Martina. They’d come through for each other too many times not to. Still, she was a wildcard, which was why most of the family didn’t share secrets with her. Hopefully, opening up to her wouldn’t come back to bite him in the ass.
“I have a plan,” he said. “It’s a secret, and I’m going to need your help pulling it off.”