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“I’d ask if you were busy with something, but I already know the answer to that.”
Vaughn smiled. “Work smarter, not harder. That’s my motto.” He smiled wider before looking over Wilder’s desk. “You need to learn that lesson, big brother.”
“Ah… you call it nepotism in one breath and then say I work too hard in the next.”
“Working hard isn’t always the key to being a good leader,” Vaughn said. “Being able to see the big picture is. If you’re so bogged down with day-to-day tasks, it makes it hard to stand back and see where we are as a company.”
He hated to say his brother had a point. In his attempt to learn every aspect of his new position, Wilder took on too much responsibility—often unwilling to delegate certain tasks. Maybe he needed to reconsider his workload.
“So what’s this board meeting about?” Vaughn asked.
“It’s a simple quarterly meeting. Reviewing completed projects, new ones on the schedule, etcetera.”
“What about the Arc Project?”
“It’s too early to bring that up,” Wilder murmured, shocked his brother had already got wind of it. He’d worked hard to keep it under wraps.
One corner of Vaughn’s mouth hitched up in a half-smile. “It would be a huge gem in your crown, now wouldn’t it?”
Wilder refused to bite. “We’re still working on getting the initial meeting. I don’t want to jump the gun and say we’re in the game when we’re not and get the board’s expectations up.” He paused. “Yet.It’s only a matter of time, of course.”
“You’ve already had a team working on research into the Green Trust.”
Wilder eyed his brother, stunned the man knew so much. The Green Trust was the company planning the Arc Project—a new community to be begun amid No Man’s Land. Outside the walls of the province and the provincial laws. It could potentially become a new province, if handled properly. Land was becoming a premium inside the walls. There was talk of adding another ring outside the province to add more land… but a brand-new city? That offered all kinds of opportunities for the company.
Construction of the outer walls alone would set them up for years to come. Working on other projects within that barrier could send J&A into the stratosphere. They’d have to hire all new teams—from architectural to engineering to construction. It would almost be as if they’d be creating a whole other company from the ground up just to handle the Arc Project.
And winning the contract would prove he was just as capable of his father.
“When I get that meeting, I won’t show up empty-handed,” Wilder said. He paused, sizing his brother up. “How are you so well informed?”
“I pay attention,” Vaughn replied. “Instead of worrying about every minor aspect of the day-to-day operations, I can see that big picture. The Arc Project is huge, from what I hear. It deserves attention.”
“Indeed. If we could get so lucky, it would be our largest build to date, and it might spark new projects within if done well. The Green Trust has holdings in multiple provinces—which could open doors there, as well. It’s a chance to grow and take us from a regional entity to an interprovincial company. There are only a handful of those.”
Vaughn grinned as he traversed toward the chairs across from Wilder’s desk. “But we’d need massive investment and board support to move forward. Why wait? You should bring it up now.”
“It’s too soon,” Wilder snapped. “I want to meet with the Green Trust and find exactly what their needs are and what direction they want to move before I bringanythingto the board.”
Vaughn lifted his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. You’re the boss.” His brother strolled toward the door before turning to stare at him one last time. “See you this afternoon.”
Wilder watched as his brother exited his office. He returned to his computer, a sudden sense of dread hitting him.
His brother was up to something. What it was, he wasn’t sure.
* * *
Later that afternoon…
After a very latenight of studying, Avery stifled a yawn. He sat down in the seat beside Brett, ready for the first of his exams to be over with.
“Late night?”
Avery turned to Brett. “It should’ve been forallof us. Please tell me you studied for this?”
“I’m ready,” Brett murmured. “Tax liability laws are my wheelhouse.”
“Oh? Then remind me to get you working on the tax reporting for Lambeau’s tomorrow.”
