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“I hadn't really thought about it. I have to finish my grant first, and then we’ll see. Meantime, I need food and a good night’s sleep,” I said as I moved to the side so he could pass. “It was good to see you, though,” I added.
“You too,” he said and took a few steps. He stopped and turned looking back at me.
“It'll be good to work with you, Emmy. I always did enjoy having you around.” He winked and then walked away.
Chris had been in my life for as long as I could remember. I think a few pictures of us together in preschool were even floating around somewhere. I had always considered him a friend, but when I went away to college, we lost touch. He had flirted with me all through high school, but I was always the girl that had my eyes on the sky and never looked toward anything that might change my goals. I remember he had tried several times to hold my hand and had even tried kissed me once. It wasn’t until my grandfather hired Chris that I saw him again. We had interned together the summer of my junior year in college. Since then, I’ve seen Chris on occasion when I’ve visited Granddad at the office during my trips home, but we still never kept in touch. In recent years, though, Granddad has talked about how good Chris has been for business. Something I supposed I’d need to know if Granddad expected me to take over sooner than I had anticipated, but that was something I would concern myself with later. Right now, I needed food.
I pulled out my keys, climbed into the truck, then checked my phone. A few missed calls and several texts from Rachel. It was late on the East Coast, so I shot her a quick text to let her know Granddad was alright and I’d call her tomorrow with details. Then I cranked the truck. Part of me wanted to text Luke just to see how the competition went, but part of me didn't. He didn't know what was going on, and I didn't want to tell him at this point. So, I shoved the phone back into my purse and headed for Mimi’s house.
***
“Good Morning, Emerson.” Samantha said as I walked into the office on Friday morning.
“Hey, how are you?” I pulled her into a hug. Samantha had worked for the company for many years and had become a staple at our family outings. My grandfather was big into family support with cookouts, vacations, and other family-oriented business adventures, so I knew most of his long-time employees very well.
I sat at his desk after saying hey to everyone and looked over the file of work that was due from the desk drawer. He had many upcoming jobs and several in progress. I called John in to get me up to speed.
“Hey, Emmy.” He smiled as he walked into the room and pulled me into a hug. “How’s the big man doing?”
“Same as always—ornery.” I smiled and then pulled back and sat down pushing the folder between us. “Catch me up.”
He pointed to the first two listings. “I've got a crew on this one and another one out at this job. This one should start next Wednesday and be done by Saturday.” Then he ran his finger down the paper almost to the end. “All of these should be wrapped up by the end of the month.”
“Do we have others set up for next month?” I asked.
“We do.” He stood and walked over to the file cabinet behind me, pulled another folder out, and laid it in front of me. “These we start the first of next month and finish by the end of it.”
I let out the breath I had been holding without realizing it. Looking at these, I could see that the business was doing well. I busied myself figuring everything out, not that I would be staying on indefinitely, but eventually I would need to know this information. My grandfather still kept hard copies of his paperwork, and he was organized, which made all of this incredibly easy. Everything was also in the computer system, but Granddad was old school. I pulled the file with the financials. He didn't plug all of this into a computer, but I was certain Samantha had. His system was solid, but having to scan everything in had to be a pain in the ass for Samantha. I grabbed the phone and called her into the office.
“Yeeeees?” She said as she came in the room, a huge smile across her face.
“Really?” I laughed.
“Just getting used to you being here.”
“Well, it's just for a few days.” I waved her over to the chair in front of the desk. “So, when he sends this stuff out, you have to scan it all in and then attach it to emails?”
“Yeah. He is totes against everything being paperless. He thinks it will get lost in cyberspace.”
I sighed audibly. “Hopefully that will change soon.”
“I hope so,” she chuckled. “Meantime, John and me, and pretty much everyone else in the company, puts our stuff in the system. When the boss asks for anything, we just print him a copy and bring it in.”
After we talked for a few more minutes, she left, and I found all the files I needed and made sure anything was addressed that needed to be followed up on. When I was done, I pulled my phone out to check to my emails since I was expecting one regarding my research. There was nothing—no email, phone call, or text. Even stranger, when I started messing with my phone, I couldn’t get it to do anything other than play Candy Crush. That explained why I hadn’t had any phone calls since Wednesday. I’d been so focused on what was going on at the hospital, I really hadn’t paid it any mind. Besides, the people who normally would have called me were there, aside from Rachel.
Eventually, after several restarts and a few feeble attempts and pulling out the battery, I called my provider, and they walked me through forty-five minutes of tech support until we got to a point I had to hard reset my phone. The tech guy explained that any calls or messages sent while the phone wasn’t working may have been lost but I should still be able to get any emails that were missed. When I hung up with tech support, my phone dinged with dozens of emails coming in that I’d missed. I didn't want
to deal with them at that point, so I locked the screen and made my way back to the hospital to check on Granddad.
***
That night, I fell into my childhood bed and closed my eyes. My phone dinged, and I reached over seeing a number I didn’t recognize on the screen.
How are things at the office? Your mother gave me your number.
Chris
All is good, very organized.
