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“You got the job at Upstart?” Gigi crowed, before lowering her voice. “I would be happy to review that contract for you at a time of your convenience, Ms. Ullo.”
Tess rolled her eyes. “See you in a few.”
Tossing her phone on the seat, Tess pulled away from the Upstart office, nestled next to the den they’d built from an abandoned grain storehouse in the 9th Ward. Her life had been turned entirely upside down. But she might as well go to lunch with Gigi. She hoped wherever they went had ice cream. Suddenly, she felt like she needed a double scoop with chocolate sauce.
GRAHAMHADSPENTall of Monday and Tuesday in meetings with the team at Ullo and in impromptu lunches or cocktails with board members and captains of various krewes. Tess’s leaving had stunned the team at Ullo and many of the major players who wrote the checks for the krewes were nervous about a new person taking charge of one of the oldest float builders and decorators in the Crescent City. Graham had smiled so much his face hurt.
Frank had given him an empty office that had been used for storing files and supplies. His new assistant, Billie, had grabbed one of the full-time painters and had him clear out the boxes and bring in an unused large wood table and chair. The rest had been left to Graham, but much like his new apartment, the space remained spartan.
He’d just sunk into his chair when a knock sounded at the door. “Come in.”
Frank stormed in like he owned the place… which Graham supposed he technically did. “I’m going to kill her.”
“Who?”
“Tess. She went to work for your old company.”
“Wait! What? Tess is working for Upstart?” Something heavy dropped in his stomach. Tess had gone to work for Monique? “Why?”
“To punish me, of course.” Frank leaned across the desk and knocked his knuckles against the calendar blotter that was still pristine. “To punish you.”
“Shit.”
“You can say that again.”
“Shit.”
Frank rubbed a weary hand over his face and stepped back. “Already got a call from Edward Mendez’s office. Tess has her claws in him and has subbed a bid for outfitting and renting most of Pan’s floats. She knows what we charge and she’s going to undercut us. She’s also friends with Edward’s daughter-in-law. This ain’t good. The Krewe of Pan is a big account.”
Graham straightened. “We can deal with it. We have your reputation, and I have inside knowledge of how Upstart works. Two can play at this game.”
“We gotta take a meeting with Ed. Whatever he wants, he gets. Understand? We gotta make sure we keep the super krewes before even considering harvesting some of the smaller krewes around the metro area. We have the talent and workforce they need here. Gotta move and shake.”
“What about you?”
Frank sighed and sank gingerly into the folding chair. His face fell as if he just grasped the ramifications of his former VP and daughter working for the competition. “I won’t be here much.”
Graham sighed before he could catch himself.
“I know. I had hoped to have Tess to ease you into this, to be your guide, but with things the way they are in my personal life…”
“Can you clarify for me?”
“You’re a perceptive man.” Frank looked at the closed door, his thoughts obviously drifting away. Graham gave him space and sat quietly as the older man gathered his words. “Thing is, I have pancreatic cancer.”
“Jesus,” Graham breathed, reeling back so that his chair butted into the wall. He’d known something was up with Frank’s health, but pancreatic cancer was almost always a death sentence. “What is… How…”
How did you ask a man something like how long you got?
“Three to six months, depending on the success of the chemo. I actually start this week over at Oschner. It’s gonna make me sick and I won’t be able to do much other than puke my guts up for the next few weeks.”
Graham had no words. How could he?
Frank stared down at his clasped hands. “Everything’s pretty much screwed. This whole thing with Tess. I don’t know what to do. I never thought she’d be this mad. Never thought she’d turn her back on family and quit the business.”
“But you knew she’d be hurt,” Graham noted.
“Sure. She’s like her mother. She don’t like when she has no say so I knew she’d be ticked, but I thought eventually she’d see things my way. This,”—he waved a hand in the air—“ain’t a one-person job. You gotta have someone to be your right hand.”
