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The way he calls me darlin’ makes me weak in the knees. I clear my throat and hustle out of the bedroom, because there is not enough space in this bedroom for the light, airy feeling that fills my chest when he says that word.
Darlin’. I shiver and hurry out to the kitchen. I cook while he showers, and lay out a pile of fresh bread I brought home from Gem's on the table to accompany dinner.
River pads out of the bedroom, wearing nothing but a pair of boxer briefs. When I look at him with a raised brow, he shrugs. "At home, I wouldn't be wearing anything at all."
We sit down to eat. I notice that I have several texts and read them while shoveling salad in my gullet. "Shit." I push the salad away, my appetite deserting me.
River glances over his half-eaten bowl, lifting a curious brow. "What?"
Exhaling a long second, I flip my phone face down on the table and shake my head. "Aunt Delta just texted me that this property is officially distressed. She sent me a bunch of pictures of the forms that the IRS sent her." I slap the table, frustrated. "I can't believe she let that happen. Now we'll have to pay a bunch of fines to the IRS for them to lift the designation. How are we going to pay for that??"
River’s expression is sympathetic. "That's a tough situation to be in."
"No kidding." I scoot out of the booth and pick up my phone. "I should text my mom and my aunt Glory. If you'll excuse me." I hurry toward the bedroom, my head full of anxieties.
Twenty-One
River
"You've got to be kidding me." I give Cole a heavy side eye.
He holds his hand out over the conference table, palm down. A signal for me to shut up, I'm pretty sure.
Sitting across the table from us are several men dressed in plaid button ups, the universal uniform for men in the construction business trying to look dressed up. They represent the company that won the bid for the Jackson property by submitting the best blueprints and guaranteeing the best price.
But now that I’ve actually met them, I am ready to turn the whole deal down. They may have the best ideas, and the ability to execute them by the deadline I set. But that doesn't matter if I won’t be able to stand the people I'm dealing with on a day-to-day basis.
I lock eyes with the man sitting furthest to the right. Bishop sits there looking perfectly innocent. But I can feel his smugness filling up the room.
"So you see," says Carson, the construction company's CFO. "We'll be able to finish the work faster than any other company possibly could."
"And we have several architects who will be on call to handle any emergency changes in the blueprints," Bishop says. He smiles pleasantly at me, which makes me want to punch him in the face. "Coastal Construction is the only real choice for a project of this scale."
Act professional. Play it cool.
I smooth my tie down and lean forward, spreading my hands.
"I will be the primary point of contact for this project. And I'm not confident in your company's management team. To put it bluntly, I don't think I will work well with them."
Carson eyes me for a long moment. "I don't know what you mean."
Cole clears his throat and butts in. "I think what my brother is trying not to say, is that he's had several personal arguments with your construction manager, Bishop. They've almost broken into fistfights."
Carson turns to Bishop, surprised. "Bishop? Is that true?"
Bishop gives him a bland smile.
"Yes. But I'm a professional. I don't bring my personal beefs to work.” He turns to me. “I assume that you are the same."
"Why would I agree to work with someone I actively dislike?" I answer. "That doesn't make sense."
Cole glares at me. "Just a moment, gentlemen. Do you mind if I talk to my brother privately?"
Dale pushes back from the table, eyeing Cole. "I hope we can come to an agreement. There is a lot of money at stake here."
Bishop stands up and follows him out of the room, closing the glass door behind them. I watch Bishop as he leaves, loving how hard he has to work at pretending he doesn’t want to beat my ass.
"I don't want to hear it," I say, raising a hand to Cole once they’ve left. "I brought you here to advise on the project, not to tell me who I have to work with."
