She was here to design houses and build her career and prove that she was more than a cautionary tale about trustinghandsome men with nice hair and wives they conveniently forgot to mention.
She was saved from further navel gazing by the sound of the office door opening.
A man walked in with the energy of someone who expected to be the most important person in any room. He was mid-forties, stocky, with a broad face and thinning blond hair combed back from a high forehead. He wore khakis and a blue Pippin Lake Development polo that strained slightly across his midsection.
He carried a clipboard and wore an expectant expression that put Meredith on alert.
“I’m looking for Eli Lawson,” he said before they could greet him, scanning the room with a quick, assessing glance that landed on Connor, who was closest to the door. “That you?”
“He’s out at a meeting with the site team, actually,” Connor said, straightening up from the filing cabinet. “Can we help you?”
“And you are?”
“Connor McCarthy. I’m the admin support for the project.”
The man’s eyebrows lifted a fraction—processing, recalculating. His gaze swept to Meredith, then back to Connor. “So you’re not one of the architects?”
“No, I’m a one-armed dental student who’s passable at filing.” Connor said it with a straight face. “The architect is right there.”
He gestured toward Meredith, who stood and extended her hand as she got closer.
“Meredith Lawson. I’m the project manager for Acacia Architecture on Lakeside. How can I help you?”
The man shook her hand with the brief, minimal-pressure grip of someone who considered the gesture a time-wasting formality. “You’re Eli’s kid?”
“Among other things,” she joked. “And you are…”
“Vance Brennan. I’m the new project liaison between Pippin Lake Development and your firm. I’ll be the point of contact for change orders, contractor coordination, schedule updates—pretty much everything that moves through this building comes through me.”
“Good to meet you, Vance,” she said warmly. “We heard a new liaison was coming from corporate. I actually have some questions about the permitting timeline for Phase One, if you have a few minutes.”
Vance glanced toward the empty third desk. “Is Eli going to be back soon? I’ve got a change order here that needs architectural sign-off.” He held up the clipboard.
“I handle all change orders for Lakeside,” Meredith said evenly, gesturing toward the paperwork. “Let’s take a look.”
He made a face. “Actually, it’s just that this one’s got some wonky structural implications, and I figured Eli would want to?—”
“If it has structural implications, wonky or otherwise, then it definitely comes to me. I’m the architect of record on all Lakeside residences.” She held out her hand for the clipboard. “May I?”
He handed it over with a hesitation so brief it was almost invisible. Almost.
Meredith scanned the change order. Lot 112. The homeowner wanted to convert the standard upstairs hall bath into an expanded laundry room with a utility sink, which meant relocating the plumbing stack and adjusting the load path for the floor joists above. They also wanted two additional windows on the east-facing wall of the primary bedroom, which would require recalculating the shear wall requirements.Anda new permit.
“This is straightforward,” she said, picking up a pen to make a note in the margin. “I can have the revised plans ready byend of week. The plumbing relocation will need an updated mechanical drawing and a permit amendment, but I don’t see any issues with the structural load. I’ll confirm the shear wall numbers once I run the calcs.”
Vance nodded but didn’t look particularly impressed. “We’ve got a contractor lined up for the plumbing work—Bayside Mechanical. They’re already on the Phase One schedule. They can work without a permit amendment.”
Meredith glanced up, trying not to overreact to skipping a permit amendment on an egress or exit.
“Well, we can’t,” she said simply. “And I don’t remember seeing Bayside Mechanical on the approved vendor list. New sub?”
“They will be,” Vance said, with a confidence that felt more like dismissal than assurance. “I’ve worked with them before. Good outfit.”
“I’ll review everything and loop you in once the revisions are done,” she said, handing back the clipboard. “In the meantime, I’d love to set up a weekly check-in so we’re aligned on the Phase One schedule. Connor can coordinate calendars.”
“We’ll have regular status and progress meetings once things get rolling.” Vance tucked the clipboard under his arm. “Eli should be at all of them.”
“I’ll be at all of them,” she said without the slightest undercurrent of resentment.
