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This was a foolish mistake. One I feared we’d all suffer the consequences of.
10
DOMINIC
Jordan Altair Jr. was nothing like his father. Not in appearance at least.
Grease-streaked jeans, a beat-up leather jacket over a black shirt. Steel-toed work boots that at one point might have been tan. His hair a shade darker than Perry’s light blond. JJ’s was also longer, down to his chin. He raked his fingers through it, pushing it out of his face. He was clean-shaven, not even stubble on his chin and cheeks.
It was his eyes that got me though. Deep blue and sharp. He might have appeared like he was nothing more than the mechanic East Dremest knew him to be, but he was way more. Growing up with a mafia boss as a father would do that.
Last night, Greer, Peyton, Perry, Renee, who was Perry’s attorney, and I sat around the large dining room table at the fortress and poured over the contract Renee put together. I didn’t need to be there, but Perry insisted. Said he needed my attention to detail. Nothing was to be missed in the document.
JJ received ten percent of PJS. He was to be the vice president of R&D but reporting directly to Perry. That would piss Stefen off; however, Perry wanted to take full responsibility for JJ, not have it fall to Stefen. JJ didn’t have any power over the company’s decisions. Basically, he was there in title and partial ownership only. If he wanted to actually do the work, Perry would welcome it.
I’d learned JJ was a damn good mechanic. He could have been doing more than he was in his shop, but he didn’t want to. JJ liked what he had. Jordan didn’t give him much of a choice. When his father could literally burn JJ’s world to the ground, JJ was backed into a corner.
The addition of JJ as an owner meant the contracts between Perry and Greer and Perry and Peyton were amended. Perry didn’t want JJ owning more stake than them. So, both Greer and Peyton got their shares upped to eleven percent each, leaving Perry with the majority share at sixty-eight percent.
The name Perry, Jordan, & Sons Auto was coming back to what Perry Sr. originally wanted. Both brothers, their sons, working together. Except Jordan wasn’t involved. It was strictly Perry and JJ now. While Greer and Peyton were partial owners, they didn’t have anything to do with Perry and how he ran the business.
It was confusing and had I not been around Perry for the years I had, my head would spin from it.
What it boiled down to was Perry was in charge, end of story. No one could throw him out, remove him as owner and CEO. It was his private company to do with as he wanted.
Now I was escorting JJ through the building to Perry’s personal conference room. Peyton was at my back, not wanting me to greet JJ alone. Greer was up in the conference room with Perry. Both brothers were armed, not that I blamed them. JJ entering Altair Plaza was a big deal, and he wasn’t a stupid man. His life had been threatened before, thanks to being connected to his father.
The elevator ride to the twelfth floor was like slow death. No one spoke. Peyton and JJ had a stare off in the mirrored interior elevator doors. I stood off to the side, not wanting to be collateral damage when the two of them threw down. If they did, I wasn’t sure who’d win. Peyton was trained well, thanks to Dexen’s brother. But JJ, he had muscles born from need, from survival.
When the elevator dinged, announcing our arrival at the executive office level, I hightailed it out of there like my ass was on fire. Fuck those two and their testosterone. Jesus. I needed to stick my head out a window to clear my body of it.
Eyes followed us as we wove to the back where Perry’s office was, the conference room around the corner from it. Perry stood looking out the floor-to-ceiling windows while Renee sat at the table, copies of the contract in front of the chairs of those who would need it.
Perry turned as we entered, his hands firmly in his pockets. “JJ,” he greeted but didn’t move from where he stood.
“Junior.” JJ took a seat across from Renee.
It wasn’t that I expected them to hug but a handshake maybe. Something. Nope.
The door shut with Peyton leaning against it on the inside. Perry took his seat between Renee and Greer. I sat on the end, far enough away not to be noticed, close enough to take notes if needed. My planner was already on the table. I put a new notepad in the back of it this morning. I preferred paper to technology.
“Did you have a chance to review the contract?” Perry asked.
JJ nodded. “I have.”
“Do you have any concerns? Any changes you’d like to make?”
His hard gaze leveled Perry, but my boss didn’t flinch. Perry wasn’t new. He was used to holding his own. His father made sure of that. Prepared Perry in every possible way so when the day came that he had to take over, he could hit the ground running.
“The change I’d like to make is to have nothing to do with this. I don’t want a seat at the fucking Altair table. I like my life the way it is.”
“This was the deal your dad made,” Perry reminded him.
“Yeah, I get that, and I hate it. I don’t want this, Junior. The amount of shit I’ve seen…” He shook his head. “If I don’t do this, he’ll make my life a living hell. He said it was to help the family, to help you. What he meant was how this would look for him. The bastard finds new ways to come for my throat. And this one? I’m going to have to put a tie on mine, like a goddamn noose.”
“You’re smart, JJ. I wouldn’t agree to it if I didn’t think you’d help the company.” The level of calm Perry was exhibiting floored me. He hadn’t even snapped the pencil I left on the table for him, in case he wanted to make changes to the contract.
“You agreed to this because you need the investment. It doesn’t have fuck all to do with me. But hey, at least I’ll make some money out of it, right? When the company creates new shit. That’s the only thing I’m happy about. I’ll finally get to take the ideas I’ve had in my head and have the backing to do something with them.”
