I pulled at the collar of my tux, irritated by its tightness. Usually, I avoided formal parties every chance I could, but I couldn't skip this one since Grant Construction was constructing the civic center.
My father, having founded our company, usually gave these speeches, leaving me to run the day-to-day activities. I'd always preferred the arrangement. But now that he was a little older, he had begun passing more and more responsibility to me; someday I would take over as the public face of our company as well.
Most of the time, I loved my job, but not on days I had to dress up in an expensive tux and act as if I cared who had cheated on whom, or about whatever current scandal was plaguing Spring's business community. On nights like tonight, I had no choice but to pretend I actually gave a shit.
I would have much rather been suffering through the night with Gavin, who'd texted me that he was over by the bar and that I should join him after my presentation. Knowing Gavin, he'd already found some beautiful woman to take home; I, on the other hand, would not be taking anyone home with me.
Not after last weekend.
When I'd burst into Lena's house, I'd had every intention of letting her have it after she'd reneged on our deal. But the moment I saw her, stone-cold sober and clearly cleaning up after those slobs, I couldn't help but wonder if there was more to the story than I had assumed. Despite my better judgment—or perhaps for a stupid reason I would refuse to examine—I pushed her, just a little, to see if her reaction would be as fiery as I remembered.
And hell if it hadn't been.
I'd been useless at work this week. At the absolutely worst moments, I'd remember the sound of her cries as my tongue stroked hers; how tightly she'd gripped my waist with her toned thighs. She'd absolutely exploded at my touch. I still recalled the way her hands had twisted in my hair and tugged erotically, as if she'd been fantasizing about doing it for ages. How she'd pulled me closer into the heat of her.
I'd been gripped by an almost delirious need to thrust inside her. Lena's lips had tasted so delicious, I'd spent most of the week wondering what the rest of her tasted like, instead of doing my actual work. No woman had ever taken me by such a surprise, especially one who, until the moment our lips fused together, I had detested. Still detested.
Lena had been addictive, and fuck me for wanting another hit.
But I was beginning to think the entire encounter had been a figment of my sex-starved imagination. I hadn't seen Lena the entire week, not even in the mornings, when she usually went out running. Not in the evenings, when I usually saw her coming home. The only sign of life came on Thursday and Friday, when she'd thrown yet another two parties. I'd knocked on her door both nights, but no one had answered despite my pounding fists. I'd eventually slunk away, her accusation of me being a creep fresh in my mind. I couldn't exactly fault her for avoiding me after I broke into her home, messed with her electricity, and then kissed her senseless.
But her disappearance didn't jibe with the way she'd responded to my touch. I simply could not get an accurate read on the situation. The entire thing had become untenable, making me an absolute bastard at work. I suspected Gavin knew what had happened, but he'd left me alone about it—for now, anyway. Who knew when my irritation would finally force him to beat some sense into me. As for my other employees, they'd quickly learned to stay the hell away.
I shook my head, mentally rehearsing my speech yet again. Now was not the time to be mooning over Lena. The entire town was waiting to hear a reasonable explanation for why we were now three weeks behind schedule. So far, I'd failed to come up with one.
Mostly because I was the problem.
The sleep deprivation had been keeping me from performing at my usual level. A project of this scope required careful planning and even more careful monitoring, to ensure my employees stuck to the schedule. But my employees weren't the issue.
When we'd gone to dig the foundation, it had become clear that runoff from the river half a mile away had eroded the soil to the point that the whole area would be unstable if we continued.
It was something I should have, and usually would have, caught when I did the final site inspection, but I'd already been sleeping terribly by that point, and I'd simply missed the signs. Having to bring in rocks and a different kind of soil to stabilize the area had put us behind. I dreaded what future problems would arise, as they always did on-site.
I was in charge of this project, a project which the waiting people beyond the curtain had donated ten million dollars to create for the betterment of our community. I had donated two hundred thousand dollars of my own money, in addition to Grant Construction's portion.
This project mattered to me, more than any other before in my life. I loved Spring; I'd grown up here, and had watched as slowly, year by year, little by little, people slipped away, robbing this town of its literal life force. I wanted to fix it; I had sworn to do so when I took on this project and vowed that my company wouldn't make any profit from the endeavor.
I refused to be the reason it failed, the reason our town failed. It just wasn't fucking going to happen.
Schmoozing with a few people who'd graciously donated their own money and expertise was a small price to pay for such an honor. Even if it meant giving a stupid speech. I paced back and forth while I waited for the person speaking before me to finish.
When I finally stepped out onto the stage, I paused, blinking at the bright lights. The hotel ballroom was packed, everyone dressed impeccably. While everyone had been talking among themselves before the first speaker went on, by now they had all given the stage their full attention.
This had to be the first time that everyone had gathered together after their various summer engagements. The hall buzzed with a curious kind of repressed energy. I idly wondered what it was. Even as they all stared at me, some of the women whispered to each other. Something had distracted them.
Well, all the better for me. Perhaps if they had other things on their minds, they wouldn't pay much attention to what I said, and I could go back to my construction site in peace.
I raised the champagne glass someone had put in my hand.
"Well, I see you've all returned from your summer vacations. Seems like me droning on about boring construction is a bit of an anticlimax." A few gracious laughs echoed around the room. I nodded genially, taking a small sip as if I, too, had been pissing away the summer.
"Anyway, I hope you all had a wonderful summer and are looking forward to the fall. I'll keep this brief, as I'm sure you would love to get back to catching up with everyone.
"First, I want to thank you all, from the bottom of my heart, for joining Grant Construction and myself in revitalizing our town. It is so encouraging to see a community band together to bring new opportunities and hope to its citizens." This time, a round of applause sprang up, much more enthusiastic than the response my lame joke had elicited.
"I'm sure you're all wondering how the construction of the civic center is going, so I'll cut to the chase. In short, we're about three weeks behind schedule. Laying the foundation turned out to be a little trickier than we suspected, because the soil wasn't stable enough.
"That being said, we've been able to stabilize the area, and construction is currently proceeding as planned, although now a few weeks behind. I believe it is possible we'll be able to catch up a bit so that we can still open in time for Christmas. I know that all of you are looking forward to celebrating this revitalization during the holiday season. I assure you, Grant Construction is doing everything we can to make it happen."
I glanced out at the crowd, noticing that they had all fallen silent and still. Not exactly a ringing endorsement of my leadership abilities, but not a mutiny either. I continued, "I want you all to know that I take this particular job very seriously and have every intention of ensuring that the project is a complete success. I know that many of you may be concerned by this turn of events, which is why I want to let you know that you all are entirely welcome to stop by my office on-site at any time during the construction. In an effort to maintain full transparency, I am making myself available if you have any questions.
"While we want to complete the civic center as quickly as possible, I will not cut corners, or endanger my men. I'm sure all of us would prefer that our community's new space was built safely. There shall be no doubt that the civic center will be the new face of Spring, Arizona, a place we will all be proud of.
"I believe I still have a few minutes here, so if you like, feel free to ask me questions while you have me now, before I head over to Gavin at the bar. You know how he needs me to stay out of trouble."
A rumble of laughter echoed in the hall. I knew Gavin would give me shit for that later, but I also knew he wouldn't mind taking the hit if it helped our company. I squinted out toward the crowd, trying to see better, with little success.
"Is it likely you'll be able to get back on schedule?"
I cleared my throat, trying to maintain my aura of calm. "Well, we usually include a cushion of a couple weeks for problems such as this, so at this point, we're mostly about a week behind. I would have liked to keep that cushion a little longer, but one week shouldn't be too hard to pick up here and there."
"What is the likelihood that we'll still be able to use the center as the new location for our annual Christmas markets?"
"That's hard to say, as there are factors out of my control, such as whether the new tenants of the center will set up their stores quickly. I anticipate the outdoor market section, at least, will be in operation."
I squinted again at the crowd. Someone had been pushing through everyone in an effort to get closer to the stage. I took another sip of champagne, some instinct telling me that whatever question the person asked would probably be a doozy.
"Where is your father in all of this? And do you believe you are competent enough to lead a project of this scope?"
I willed my face into an expressionless mask, only for my jaw to drop in shock when the person finally pushed to the front and into the light. My eyes landed on none other than John Masterson, my father's long-time business nemesis, his arm linked with Lena fucking Douglas, who was staring at me in outright horror.
I pulled at the collar of my tux, irritated by its tightness. Usually, I avoided formal parties every chance I could, but I couldn't skip this one since Grant Construction was constructing the civic center.
My father, having founded our company, usually gave these speeches, leaving me to run the day-to-day activities. I'd always preferred the arrangement. But now that he was a little older, he had begun passing more and more responsibility to me; someday I would take over as the public face of our company as well.
Most of the time, I loved my job, but not on days I had to dress up in an expensive tux and act as if I cared who had cheated on whom, or about whatever current scandal was plaguing Spring's business community. On nights like tonight, I had no choice but to pretend I actually gave a shit.
I would have much rather been suffering through the night with Gavin, who'd texted me that he was over by the bar and that I should join him after my presentation. Knowing Gavin, he'd already found some beautiful woman to take home; I, on the other hand, would not be taking anyone home with me.
Not after last weekend.
When I'd burst into Lena's house, I'd had every intention of letting her have it after she'd reneged on our deal. But the moment I saw her, stone-cold sober and clearly cleaning up after those slobs, I couldn't help but wonder if there was more to the story than I had assumed. Despite my better judgment—or perhaps for a stupid reason I would refuse to examine—I pushed her, just a little, to see if her reaction would be as fiery as I remembered.
And hell if it hadn't been.
I'd been useless at work this week. At the absolutely worst moments, I'd remember the sound of her cries as my tongue stroked hers; how tightly she'd gripped my waist with her toned thighs. She'd absolutely exploded at my touch. I still recalled the way her hands had twisted in my hair and tugged erotically, as if she'd been fantasizing about doing it for ages. How she'd pulled me closer into the heat of her.
I'd been gripped by an almost delirious need to thrust inside her. Lena's lips had tasted so delicious, I'd spent most of the week wondering what the rest of her tasted like, instead of doing my actual work. No woman had ever taken me by such a surprise, especially one who, until the moment our lips fused together, I had detested. Still detested.
Lena had been addictive, and fuck me for wanting another hit.
But I was beginning to think the entire encounter had been a figment of my sex-starved imagination. I hadn't seen Lena the entire week, not even in the mornings, when she usually went out running. Not in the evenings, when I usually saw her coming home. The only sign of life came on Thursday and Friday, when she'd thrown yet another two parties. I'd knocked on her door both nights, but no one had answered despite my pounding fists. I'd eventually slunk away, her accusation of me being a creep fresh in my mind. I couldn't exactly fault her for avoiding me after I broke into her home, messed with her electricity, and then kissed her senseless.
But her disappearance didn't jibe with the way she'd responded to my touch. I simply could not get an accurate read on the situation. The entire thing had become untenable, making me an absolute bastard at work. I suspected Gavin knew what had happened, but he'd left me alone about it—for now, anyway. Who knew when my irritation would finally force him to beat some sense into me. As for my other employees, they'd quickly learned to stay the hell away.
I shook my head, mentally rehearsing my speech yet again. Now was not the time to be mooning over Lena. The entire town was waiting to hear a reasonable explanation for why we were now three weeks behind schedule. So far, I'd failed to come up with one.
Mostly because I was the problem.
The sleep deprivation had been keeping me from performing at my usual level. A project of this scope required careful planning and even more careful monitoring, to ensure my employees stuck to the schedule. But my employees weren't the issue.
When we'd gone to dig the foundation, it had become clear that runoff from the river half a mile away had eroded the soil to the point that the whole area would be unstable if we continued.
It was something I should have, and usually would have, caught when I did the final site inspection, but I'd already been sleeping terribly by that point, and I'd simply missed the signs. Having to bring in rocks and a different kind of soil to stabilize the area had put us behind. I dreaded what future problems would arise, as they always did on-site.
I was in charge of this project, a project which the waiting people beyond the curtain had donated ten million dollars to create for the betterment of our community. I had donated two hundred thousand dollars of my own money, in addition to Grant Construction's portion.
This project mattered to me, more than any other before in my life. I loved Spring; I'd grown up here, and had watched as slowly, year by year, little by little, people slipped away, robbing this town of its literal life force. I wanted to fix it; I had sworn to do so when I took on this project and vowed that my company wouldn't make any profit from the endeavor.
I refused to be the reason it failed, the reason our town failed. It just wasn't fucking going to happen.
Schmoozing with a few people who'd graciously donated their own money and expertise was a small price to pay for such an honor. Even if it meant giving a stupid speech. I paced back and forth while I waited for the person speaking before me to finish.
When I finally stepped out onto the stage, I paused, blinking at the bright lights. The hotel ballroom was packed, everyone dressed impeccably. While everyone had been talking among themselves before the first speaker went on, by now they had all given the stage their full attention.
This had to be the first time that everyone had gathered together after their various summer engagements. The hall buzzed with a curious kind of repressed energy. I idly wondered what it was. Even as they all stared at me, some of the women whispered to each other. Something had distracted them.
Well, all the better for me. Perhaps if they had other things on their minds, they wouldn't pay much attention to what I said, and I could go back to my construction site in peace.
I raised the champagne glass someone had put in my hand.
"Well, I see you've all returned from your summer vacations. Seems like me droning on about boring construction is a bit of an anticlimax." A few gracious laughs echoed around the room. I nodded genially, taking a small sip as if I, too, had been pissing away the summer.
"Anyway, I hope you all had a wonderful summer and are looking forward to the fall. I'll keep this brief, as I'm sure you would love to get back to catching up with everyone.
"First, I want to thank you all, from the bottom of my heart, for joining Grant Construction and myself in revitalizing our town. It is so encouraging to see a community band together to bring new opportunities and hope to its citizens." This time, a round of applause sprang up, much more enthusiastic than the response my lame joke had elicited.
"I'm sure you're all wondering how the construction of the civic center is going, so I'll cut to the chase. In short, we're about three weeks behind schedule. Laying the foundation turned out to be a little trickier than we suspected, because the soil wasn't stable enough.
"That being said, we've been able to stabilize the area, and construction is currently proceeding as planned, although now a few weeks behind. I believe it is possible we'll be able to catch up a bit so that we can still open in time for Christmas. I know that all of you are looking forward to celebrating this revitalization during the holiday season. I assure you, Grant Construction is doing everything we can to make it happen."
I glanced out at the crowd, noticing that they had all fallen silent and still. Not exactly a ringing endorsement of my leadership abilities, but not a mutiny either. I continued, "I want you all to know that I take this particular job very seriously and have every intention of ensuring that the project is a complete success. I know that many of you may be concerned by this turn of events, which is why I want to let you know that you all are entirely welcome to stop by my office on-site at any time during the construction. In an effort to maintain full transparency, I am making myself available if you have any questions.
"While we want to complete the civic center as quickly as possible, I will not cut corners, or endanger my men. I'm sure all of us would prefer that our community's new space was built safely. There shall be no doubt that the civic center will be the new face of Spring, Arizona, a place we will all be proud of.
"I believe I still have a few minutes here, so if you like, feel free to ask me questions while you have me now, before I head over to Gavin at the bar. You know how he needs me to stay out of trouble."
A rumble of laughter echoed in the hall. I knew Gavin would give me shit for that later, but I also knew he wouldn't mind taking the hit if it helped our company. I squinted out toward the crowd, trying to see better, with little success.
"Is it likely you'll be able to get back on schedule?"
I cleared my throat, trying to maintain my aura of calm. "Well, we usually include a cushion of a couple weeks for problems such as this, so at this point, we're mostly about a week behind. I would have liked to keep that cushion a little longer, but one week shouldn't be too hard to pick up here and there."
"What is the likelihood that we'll still be able to use the center as the new location for our annual Christmas markets?"
"That's hard to say, as there are factors out of my control, such as whether the new tenants of the center will set up their stores quickly. I anticipate the outdoor market section, at least, will be in operation."
I squinted again at the crowd. Someone had been pushing through everyone in an effort to get closer to the stage. I took another sip of champagne, some instinct telling me that whatever question the person asked would probably be a doozy.
"Where is your father in all of this? And do you believe you are competent enough to lead a project of this scope?"
I willed my face into an expressionless mask, only for my jaw to drop in shock when the person finally pushed to the front and into the light. My eyes landed on none other than John Masterson, my father's long-time business nemesis, his arm linked with Lena fucking Douglas, who was staring at me in outright horror.
