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Must be nice. The wry thought made Tasha raise her eyes and smile at her reflection in the rear-view mirror. ‘It’s an interesting job,’ she said, turning her attention back to both the road and the conversation. ‘And I could see lots of ways of adding value in a relatively short space of time and without too much interference. Rhys basically said whoever got the role would be given free rein.’
‘Rhys, is it? Well, that all sounds very cosy.’
Tasha didn’t like the insinuation in his tone. ‘When did you suddenly start caring about formalities, Mr Willoughby?’
‘Ha! Never afraid to call me on my bullshit, are you, Tasha? So you reckon you could do it, then?’
‘Of course I can do it. What I don’t understand is why you want me to do it.’ Developing the company’s collaboration with the developer who’d built her apartment block was her number one priority, and she was somewhat taken aback that it wasn’t Simon’s as well. ‘It’s taken me months to cultivate my relationship with Atkinsons. I can’t just walk away from that now.’ Plus being sidelined for months in the back of beyond would put Tasha at a serious disadvantage against the other project managers. Simon wasn’t above playing them off against each other, believing it didn’t do good for anyone to get too comfortable and complacent in their role. If you weren’t hustling, you weren’t trying hard enough as far as he was concerned. Was he testing her?
‘We’re going in a different direction with Atkinsons,’ Simon stated, all hint of his earlier playfulness gone.
‘What are you talking about? Since when?’ Tasha glanced down at the infotainment screen as if expecting to see Simon’s face. Something bumped under the front passenger wheel, and she realised she’d drifted off the road and onto the edge of the grass verge. She slammed her foot on the brake, grateful she hadn’t been going very fast. Taking a deep breath, she checked her mirror then continued her journey, keeping her eyes on the road ahead.
‘Since I decided to buy them out. Why take part of the profits when I can have them all? I’ve put an offer in to Rich Atkinson and he’s taking it to the other partners. I’m expecting a favourable answer any day now.’
If things were as far along as making a formal offer, then Simon had to have been working on things behind the scenes for weeks, if not months. The knowledge she’d been out of the loop was a blow hard enough to make her flinch. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’
‘I wasn’t aware I had to run my decisions past you.’ Simon’s voice had grown dangerously flat, a clear warning that she’d overstepped. She was usually better at walking the tightrope of his mercurial moods, but his announcement had taken her completely by surprise.
‘Well, of course you don’t. I didn’t mean to suggest that. If I’d known about it, I would’ve been able to gather a bit more information for you, that’s all.’
Simon laughed, flipping back into his convivial mode. ‘I didn’t want you giving the game away. You’re too nice, Tasha. And before you get the arse with me, I mean that as a compliment. You’re my secret weapon. You get me through the door on deals when I wouldn’t stand a chance otherwise. People trust you and that’s worth its weight in gold to me.’
Which sounded like yet more bullshit. ‘If I’m so trustworthy, then why are you cutting me out of the Atkinsons deal now?’ Tasha protested. ‘Surely you’ll need me on hand to help smooth the transition if the takeover’s successful.’
‘I’ve put Russell in charge of it, effective immediately. It’ll be a load of boring negotiations and arguing over small print. You know he thrives on that stuff.’ Russell was SJW’s Contracts Manager and very good at what he did. Still, she couldn’t help feeling as if she’d been shunted off the project without a moment’s consideration. Simon did what Simon wanted, and it was foolish to think she had any influence over things once he’d made up his mind.
‘And you really think spending the next few months at Juniper Meadows is the best use of my time?’ She still wasn’t convinced this wasn’t part of a plan to sideline her, but then again why would Simon bother? If he didn’t think she was pulling her weight, he’d have zero compunction about sacking her.
‘Absolutely. I’m asking you to do this because I trust you. You’re my number one, Tasha, the only one who’s never let me down.’ Tasha didn’t answer. Nothing about this conversation was going the way she’d expected it to. When Simon spoke again, his voice was warmer, more persuasive than his usual bark. ‘Like I already told you, you’ll stay on the payroll here at your current salary and if you pull this off then it could be the start of a new division for the business. A division that will need a director to head it up.’
Director? Bloody hell, if he was thinking of her in those terms then he must be serious when he said she was the only one he could trust with this. Stepping up to divisional director would not only be an incredible show of support by Simon, it would give Tasha breathing space to evaluate where her life was going. She’d been chasing and chasing for so long, but that was a position she could use to consolidate her career. Who knew, maybe it would even be enough to prove to her parents she hadn’t been wasting her time. She dismissed the thought as soon as it arrived. Nothing short of a white wedding followed by a christening within a year would impress them. Don’t get distracted.
There was still one thing nagging at her. The estate was impressive enough, and the location was clearly a desirable one, but why Juniper Meadows in particular? As part of her research preparing for the interview, Tasha had come across a dozen or more similar set-ups, more than one of which was on the open market. So why was Simon interested in buying up somewhere that, from the impression both Rhys and Hope had given her, was definitely not for sale? ‘I don’t know, Simon, it seems like a lot of time and money to commit to such a big gamble. There’s plenty of easier targets out there.’
‘I don’t want easy, and you shouldn’t either. I’ve got high expectations for you, Tasha, but perhaps you and I aren’t on the same page here after all.’
Tasha felt her cheeks flame at the sharp rebuke. ‘That’s not what I meant,’ she insisted, the words almost tumbling out. ‘I just meant I could spend months helping to improve the business here and they’ll say thanks very much and send me packing. They didn’t strike me as the kind of people looking to sell up.’
‘There’s something going on down there. You know I’ve got a nose for these things.’ Simon had told her he’d first come across Juniper Meadows when he’d brought his wife down for a weekend away last year. ‘And look at the way they suddenly shut up shop last summer. No one can afford to lose that kind of revenue, especially not a place like that. These old estates eat money.’
He had a point. Rhys had been on the defensive when she’d asked him about it. ‘Rhys certainly didn’t seem keen on discussing it when I asked about it.’ It was strange really because he’d been so open about other things. ‘There was one thing that was a bit weird. He mentioned that it’s his grandfather who holds the title, which I assume must means he owns everything, but he doesn’t want anything to do with the place.’
‘See! I told you there’d be something. This is great, Tasha, really great. Oh, I knew you were the one for this! If you managed to find that much out in a couple of hours, imagine how much you’ll have learnt after a couple of months.’
Tasha was saved from replying by a beep on her line that said she had another call coming in. ‘That’s Rhys calling now, I’ll have to take it. What shall I say if he offers me the job?’ She couldn’t think of any other reason he’d be ringing this quickly.
‘Tell him you’ll take it, of course.’ Simon hung up without saying goodbye.
Tasha flicked the control on her steering wheel and accepted the incoming call. ‘Hello?’
‘Tasha? Hi, it’s Rhys Travers. Look, I’m not going to beat around the bush here, the job is yours if you want it. When can you start?’
She took a deep breath. If this was what Simon wanted her to do, then she supposed she had no option. Divisional Director. Swallowing her misgivings, Tasha plunged ahead. ‘I’ve got a few things I need to sort out, but I could be with you by the end of next week if that’s acceptable?’
8
‘I still don’t understand why you’re changing jobs so suddenly, Tash. I thought you loved it at SJW,’ Danni said as they chatted over a glass of wine on their semi-regular Saturday night video call. ‘Can you leave that alone for two minutes and come and talk to me?’
