Just One Surprise
Book Eleven of the Billionaire Barons of Texas Series
Chapter One
“How did it go?” Cooper Baron’s assistant Katrina crossed into his office.
“Same as always. I present the city with perfectly detailed plans and they want more.”
Chuckling softly, Katrina shook her head. “Like you didn’t know that was going to happen.”
The woman was right. He’d been overly optimistic when he submitted the plans for the permits. “After all, I’ve only helped Rachel gut and rebuild more houses than the pencil pushers at city could count on all their hands and feet.”
“I know.” She crossed her arms. “How bad is it?”
He shook his head. “Not terribly. They want an additional cross beam. I know it’s not needed. You know it’s not needed. And I suspect so does city hall, but nowadays it’s all about CYA.”
“We have become the most litigious society in the world.”
“Lucky us.” Tilting his drafting table another inch, he finished making the changes that city hall wanted. Thankfully, Rachel didn’t have the demolition on her latest project scheduled to start for another couple of weeks. That would be plenty of time to get city hall on board. Things were much easier before Chuck Nelson retired. After more than a decade working together, they’d developed a streamlined rapport. Now it looked like Cooper was going to be starting all over.
It also struck him that in this case, his last name had worked as a strike against him. Every once in a while—okay, more often than not—the Baron family named opened doors and cut through red tape. But every so often, the name stirred resentment in folks who felt life had come too easy to anyone with the Baron last name. He’d be an idiot to argue there weren’t perks to being a Baron. The biggest perk had absolutely nothing to do with power or prestige and everything to do with the love and support of a very large family. Despite Baron Enterprises having its fingers in everything from hotel resorts and restaurant chains, to sports teams and venture projects, the family’s best benefit was just that, family. Even though there were enough Baron grandchildren to form a small city, they all knew each other, played with each other, worked with each other, and loved each other. And more importantly, had each other’s backs, no questions asked.
Of course, having a surly retired Marine for a grandfather posed its own challenges, but in the end, love and respect trumped it all.
“Any updates on the new project manager?” Katrina picked up a stack of folders from the outbox on his desk.
Yes, nowadays everything was electronic, but he believed in paper backups for almost everything. Probably his grandfather’s fault. “Well, she hasn’t changed her mind and run for the hills, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Last I heard she was either reporting for work this Thursday or next Monday.”
He bobbed his head. “Right. Not sure if her replacement might need a few extra days of support to handle some upcoming deadline, Tess wasn’t sure when she could start, but apparently, she will be able to start Thursday.”
“Tess? I thought her name is Teresa?”
“Yeah.” He couldn’t stop the smile from crossing his lips at the memories of the strong willed, confident, and oh so stubborn sophomore who tutored him through Physics. One of the smartest kids he’d known. After being laid up with mono for over a month, he’d fallen woefully behind in classes and Physics was the only teacher that refused to give him a lick of assistance in catching up. Tess had come to the rescue. Though he had no idea if she still used that nickname. “Teresa. That’s right.”
Katrina nodded. “Also, Gibbs from the Dallas hotel has been blowing up voicemail. Something about a new concrete supplier.”
Immediately, Cooper checked his cell phone. “Dang it.” Somehow, he’d switched his new phone to silent no vibration. The list of people who had been calling or texting him had him scrolling frantically. Words like ‘honeycomb’ and ‘cracks’ had Cooper biting down hard on his back teeth. All indicators of sub-par concrete. “I’ll call him now.”
"You’ll also want to call your grandfather.”
Cooper blew out a sigh. “Did Gibbs reach out to the Governor?”
Lips pressed tightly, clutching the folders to her chest, Katrina bobbed her head.
“Great. I’ll call Gibbs first, then the Governor.” And then he’d deal with the other texts pinging his phone. No matter what else was going on, this just became a priority. Nothing with the Baron name attached to it will be ever be done by cutting corners to save money. Nothing. Not. Ever. That was not, nor would it ever be, the Baron way.
* * *
“Knock knock.” One of Tessa Gordon’s associates rapped on the non-existent door of her corner cubicle.
That was just one of the small things she was looking forward to in her new job, a real office with a real door. “Hey, come on in.”
Smiling, Nancy strolled in and came to a stop by Tessa’s nearly empty desk. “Looks like you’re almost done packing.”
“Pretty much.” Officially, yesterday had been her last day, but she’d opted to come in today to pack the rest of her things, just in case her replacement had any last minute questions. So far, the replacement seemed to be more than efficient enough.
“Remember, if there’s a spot for me at Baron Enterprises, don’t forget your friend.”
“You know I won’t.” Fully aware that she was the object of envy for many of the people in her office, she actually liked working with Nancy and wouldn’t mind having that privilege again.
“I’ll hold you to that. Especially after Ken and I start a family. Baron Enterprises is the most family friendly outfit in Texas. My sister’s friend is an admin with one of their subsidiaries and she got sixty days paid leave before her due date and another ninety days after the baby. And then, having daycare in the building, she was able to keep nursing.”
Tessa nodded. That was just one of the many reasons she jumped at the chance to apply for a project management position with the Barons. Having Emma nearby would do wonders to ease her guilt at having to work for a living. Not worrying about taking time off when she got sick—not that she got sick that often—but knowing that her job was secure even if she put her daughter first was huge for her. Having a chance to work with the Barons again was just as sweet a part of the deal. Tutoring Cooper Baron all those years ago had allowed her to visit the ranch and meet a good number of the family. She really loved his grandmother; a nicer woman did not exist. Once she got past the Governor’s military demeanor, she found comfort in the frequent sparkle in the old man’s eyes.
“Taking this?” Nancy held up Tessa’s Employee of the Year award from a few years ago.
“Might be the only award I ever get.” She took it from her friend and put it in the box with her other desktop items. How much would get unpacked was debatable, and she was very unlikely to display the thing at Barons. Did Barons even give out awards? Not that it mattered. While she’d definitely give her all to the job, there was a lot less ‘all’ available since she had Emma. She needed to keep perspective.
Checking the drawers one last time, then scanning the room, she wrapped her arms around the small box and straightened.
“So this is really it?” Nancy almost looked ready to cry.
“It’s not like I’m moving to Bora Bora.”
“At least if you were I’d have a good reason to visit.”
The two women laughed.
“Spring is not that far away. We can still meet for lunch or dinner some time. If you’re willing to drive to the burbs?”
“You bet. Who knows, maybe I’ll give up my cute condo and trade it in for a little house with a yard, and stray cats, and a lawnmower, and…” Letting her gaze drift off somewhere beyond the window view, Nancy shook her head. “Or better yet, I’ll drive to have lunch or dinner.”
“There you go.” Walking down the hall, Tessa shifted the box to one hip the way she might carry her daughter, freeing a hand to wave back at a few people before reaching the elevator.
Inside, the trip down seemed slower than usual. She’d been excited about the possibilities with her new job, but right now, thinking about all the changes coming to her and Emma’s world, she couldn’t stop smiling. Life was definitely looking up.
“How did it go?” Cooper Baron’s assistant Katrina crossed into his office.
“Same as always. I present the city with perfectly detailed plans and they want more.”
Chuckling softly, Katrina shook her head. “Like you didn’t know that was going to happen.”
The woman was right. He’d been overly optimistic when he submitted the plans for the permits. “After all, I’ve only helped Rachel gut and rebuild more houses than the pencil pushers at city could count on all their hands and feet.”
“I know.” She crossed her arms. “How bad is it?”
He shook his head. “Not terribly. They want an additional cross beam. I know it’s not needed. You know it’s not needed. And I suspect so does city hall, but nowadays it’s all about CYA.”
“We have become the most litigious society in the world.”
“Lucky us.” Tilting his drafting table another inch, he finished making the changes that city hall wanted. Thankfully, Rachel didn’t have the demolition on her latest project scheduled to start for another couple of weeks. That would be plenty of time to get city hall on board. Things were much easier before Chuck Nelson retired. After more than a decade working together, they’d developed a streamlined rapport. Now it looked like Cooper was going to be starting all over.
It also struck him that in this case, his last name had worked as a strike against him. Every once in a while—okay, more often than not—the Baron family named opened doors and cut through red tape. But every so often, the name stirred resentment in folks who felt life had come too easy to anyone with the Baron last name. He’d be an idiot to argue there weren’t perks to being a Baron. The biggest perk had absolutely nothing to do with power or prestige and everything to do with the love and support of a very large family. Despite Baron Enterprises having its fingers in everything from hotel resorts and restaurant chains, to sports teams and venture projects, the family’s best benefit was just that, family. Even though there were enough Baron grandchildren to form a small city, they all knew each other, played with each other, worked with each other, and loved each other. And more importantly, had each other’s backs, no questions asked.
Of course, having a surly retired Marine for a grandfather posed its own challenges, but in the end, love and respect trumped it all.
“Any updates on the new project manager?” Katrina picked up a stack of folders from the outbox on his desk.
Yes, nowadays everything was electronic, but he believed in paper backups for almost everything. Probably his grandfather’s fault. “Well, she hasn’t changed her mind and run for the hills, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“Last I heard she was either reporting for work this Thursday or next Monday.”
He bobbed his head. “Right. Not sure if her replacement might need a few extra days of support to handle some upcoming deadline, Tess wasn’t sure when she could start, but apparently, she will be able to start Thursday.”
“Tess? I thought her name is Teresa?”
“Yeah.” He couldn’t stop the smile from crossing his lips at the memories of the strong willed, confident, and oh so stubborn sophomore who tutored him through Physics. One of the smartest kids he’d known. After being laid up with mono for over a month, he’d fallen woefully behind in classes and Physics was the only teacher that refused to give him a lick of assistance in catching up. Tess had come to the rescue. Though he had no idea if she still used that nickname. “Teresa. That’s right.”
Katrina nodded. “Also, Gibbs from the Dallas hotel has been blowing up voicemail. Something about a new concrete supplier.”
Immediately, Cooper checked his cell phone. “Dang it.” Somehow, he’d switched his new phone to silent no vibration. The list of people who had been calling or texting him had him scrolling frantically. Words like ‘honeycomb’ and ‘cracks’ had Cooper biting down hard on his back teeth. All indicators of sub-par concrete. “I’ll call him now.”
"You’ll also want to call your grandfather.”
Cooper blew out a sigh. “Did Gibbs reach out to the Governor?”
Lips pressed tightly, clutching the folders to her chest, Katrina bobbed her head.
“Great. I’ll call Gibbs first, then the Governor.” And then he’d deal with the other texts pinging his phone. No matter what else was going on, this just became a priority. Nothing with the Baron name attached to it will be ever be done by cutting corners to save money. Nothing. Not. Ever. That was not, nor would it ever be, the Baron way.
* * *
“Knock knock.” One of Tessa Gordon’s associates rapped on the non-existent door of her corner cubicle.
That was just one of the small things she was looking forward to in her new job, a real office with a real door. “Hey, come on in.”
Smiling, Nancy strolled in and came to a stop by Tessa’s nearly empty desk. “Looks like you’re almost done packing.”
“Pretty much.” Officially, yesterday had been her last day, but she’d opted to come in today to pack the rest of her things, just in case her replacement had any last minute questions. So far, the replacement seemed to be more than efficient enough.
“Remember, if there’s a spot for me at Baron Enterprises, don’t forget your friend.”
“You know I won’t.” Fully aware that she was the object of envy for many of the people in her office, she actually liked working with Nancy and wouldn’t mind having that privilege again.
“I’ll hold you to that. Especially after Ken and I start a family. Baron Enterprises is the most family friendly outfit in Texas. My sister’s friend is an admin with one of their subsidiaries and she got sixty days paid leave before her due date and another ninety days after the baby. And then, having daycare in the building, she was able to keep nursing.”
Tessa nodded. That was just one of the many reasons she jumped at the chance to apply for a project management position with the Barons. Having Emma nearby would do wonders to ease her guilt at having to work for a living. Not worrying about taking time off when she got sick—not that she got sick that often—but knowing that her job was secure even if she put her daughter first was huge for her. Having a chance to work with the Barons again was just as sweet a part of the deal. Tutoring Cooper Baron all those years ago had allowed her to visit the ranch and meet a good number of the family. She really loved his grandmother; a nicer woman did not exist. Once she got past the Governor’s military demeanor, she found comfort in the frequent sparkle in the old man’s eyes.
“Taking this?” Nancy held up Tessa’s Employee of the Year award from a few years ago.
“Might be the only award I ever get.” She took it from her friend and put it in the box with her other desktop items. How much would get unpacked was debatable, and she was very unlikely to display the thing at Barons. Did Barons even give out awards? Not that it mattered. While she’d definitely give her all to the job, there was a lot less ‘all’ available since she had Emma. She needed to keep perspective.
Checking the drawers one last time, then scanning the room, she wrapped her arms around the small box and straightened.
“So this is really it?” Nancy almost looked ready to cry.
“It’s not like I’m moving to Bora Bora.”
“At least if you were I’d have a good reason to visit.”
The two women laughed.
“Spring is not that far away. We can still meet for lunch or dinner some time. If you’re willing to drive to the burbs?”
“You bet. Who knows, maybe I’ll give up my cute condo and trade it in for a little house with a yard, and stray cats, and a lawnmower, and…” Letting her gaze drift off somewhere beyond the window view, Nancy shook her head. “Or better yet, I’ll drive to have lunch or dinner.”
“There you go.” Walking down the hall, Tessa shifted the box to one hip the way she might carry her daughter, freeing a hand to wave back at a few people before reaching the elevator.
Inside, the trip down seemed slower than usual. She’d been excited about the possibilities with her new job, but right now, thinking about all the changes coming to her and Emma’s world, she couldn’t stop smiling. Life was definitely looking up.
E-Books
|
|
|
|
|
|
