“What can I do for you?” I asked as I closed the door and motioned towards one of my seats. If it was business, I’d sit behind my desk. Personal, and I’d sit in one of the guest chairs.
“I’m buying Nora a car for Christmas,” he started. I grabbed two beers from my fridge, handed him one, and sat across from him in a guest chair.
“Any chance you have someone in your bike shop who can look one over for me, once I find something suitable in my price range?”
“Yeah. We’re set up to work on cars. We don’t advertise it, but we have two bays for them, and the software access for most manufacturers. What kind of car are you looking at?”
“If it were my choice, it’d be a full-sized truck, but she wants something cute. I’m thinking maybe a Jeep Wrangler, preferably a low mileage one that isn’t too old.”
“I approve, and I think she’ll like it. I’ll tell my people to keep an ear out for one that might be for sale, and I’ll give Gears in the bike shop a heads up to expect a call from you. Ask for him, and he’ll take care of you. I’ll try to make it by if I can.”
“Shy said the family portion of your Thanksgiving would’ve been fine for the kids. I guess I just want to tell you that I knew it would be, but I didn’t personally want to go, and I wanted to spend the day with them. The same will be true for Christmas, but for other parties, I’ll be open to letting them go in the future.”
“I’m sure they’ll enjoy themselves. We have organized paintball wars, and I have a feeling all three of your kids will have a blast.”
“I’m planning to bid a few of the jobs coming up. If you have any information that will help me figure the cost, I’d appreciate it.”
He wanted me to tell him what to bid in order to win, or how to word it in order to beat the other painting firms. He wasn’t going to like my answer — I was comfortable with the painting firm we usually work with, and I wasn’t planning to change that.
I tried to be tactful. “I was pleased with the work you did on the old-folks home, but you know the only reason you won the bid was because we needed someone capable of handling those murals and the other faux specifications.”
“I’ve apologized for my actions on the jobsite. It was unprofessional and it won’t happen again.”
“Water under the bridge. We’re past that. You understand that I’m the manager here, not the owner. It’s true I’m on the board of directors for the corporation, but I have to act in the best interests of the company.” I sighed and gave it to him straight. “You didn’t win a lot of friends the one time you came to our clubhouse. You acted like an elite pack wolf. No one said anything to you about it because they knew I was happy you let the kids come. If you’re the low bidder, I’ll award it to you, but I can’t help you get there.”
“And if Cheyenne asks?”
“Same answer. The club knows you handle the crews and she works on her own. It’s no secret we help a particular electrical firm out because the owner is related to one of our members, and because they do an excellent job. We can depend on them.”
He sat back. Putting distance between us. “I hope we proved we’re dependable. I’ll work on the rest.”
“There’s plenty of work out there right now. You don’t need us, do you?” Every contractor and subcontractor I knew was turning away three times as much work as they could handle.
“You paid on time. The site was safe and orderly. Neither of those things can be said about most of the other general contractors.”
“What’s unsafe?”
“Looters and thieves are a real problem on many sites, but scaffolding is being put together from pieces never meant to be put together, and with so many sites and so few inspectors, it’s easier to ignore OSHA rules.”
“You’ll let me know if you have concerns about Cheyenne’s safety?”
Everything about his expression spoke truth when he said, “Absolutely.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Frost
Cheyenne’s house looked like something out of a magazine, with a different themed Christmas tree in nearly every room, lots of evergreen boughs used as decoration, and who knew pinecones and candles could