She raised her chin, hoping he’d change his mind.
But Edward looked down the table again and with not an ounce of remorse announced, “I need you in Fraser Hills, North Carolina, on Monday. It’ll be quick, and I promise I’ll give you the next big thing that comes through this door. This has to go right. It’s important.”
Her throat tightened. “Yes, sir.”
Micky leaned forward with a sly grin. “I’ll send you the files on Porter’s.”
She nodded as she sat there trying to hold herself together as the agenda moved on.
When they got to the two projects she’d been vying for, she could barely breathe while her dream projects were assigned. Micky and his brother Gary were assigned the Paris project as a team. None other than McAdo landed Leavenworth.
“That’s it for today.” Edward pushed himself up from his chair.
Vanessa was thankful Micky and Gary, full of enthusiasm, had cornered Edward so she didn’t even have to make eye contact with him. She pasted a smile on her face and headed straight to her office.
“What’s our holiday going to be? Christmas lights in Leavenworth or pastries in Pah-rhee?” Even in the worst French accent ever, Kendra’s enthusiasm was endearing, if poorly timed.
“I need a minute.” Vanessa waited until Kendra backed out and closed the door. She gathered her thoughts. Being a team player was important to Vanessa… usually. She just never was the one who had to change her plans for the team. This had come from left field.
A new email popped up on her computer screen. It was the Porter’s file from Micky. With a sigh, she sat down and started scrolling through the documents.
“A fruitcake factory?” Even worse than she’d thought. She now remembered when they acquired this one. They were already running a pretty lean staff. It shouldn’t take that much time. Get in, get out, and pick up a long-term, big-city megacompany project that she could really sink her teeth into for a while.
At least she’d be closer to Anna for the holidays.
She picked up the phone and dialed Edward’s office.
“Hey, Becky. Is Edward available? I need a few minutes with him.”
“He just got back. Come on over.”
“Thank you.”
She stood, straightening the bottom of her jacket and smoothing her skirt. “I’ll be back in a few minutes,” she said to Kendra with a fake smile. “Have to chat with Edward.”
Kendra looked like she was about to throw confetti.If she only knew.
Vanessa rolled the dialogue over and over in her mind. Becky was away from her desk, so Vanessa knocked and walked into Edward’s office.
“I can always count on you,” he said.
“Yes. Yes, you can, but I was counting on Paris. Or actually Leavenworth. That bonus could help me with the house I want to buy. Instead, I get fruitcake? Really? Someone should have shut that down when we took it on. It’s bringing in a pittance. Leave it to Micky to leave the work on the table and take the easy way.” She sat in the chair across from him.
“I know you’re upset,” Edward said.
“Why can’t I team up with McAdo on the Porter’s closure, then take over Leavenworth when it’s done? I can do both. You know I can.”
“I need you focused on Porter’s. This deal will fall through if we don’t have adequate warehouse space in time. It’s big money.”
“What about Rick Gula or Patsy Jennings? They’re both great at shutdowns.”
“They moved on last summer. No one likes the shutdowns. I get it. I wouldn’t have assigned this to you if I had another option.”
“I gave you another option.”
He shook his head. “I tell you what, I’ll match the amount of the Leavenworth bonus if you get yourself to Fraser Hillson Monday morning and get that fruitcake factory shut down by January first.”
That was unexpected, but it wasn’t what she really wanted.
