Chosen for Power (Women of Power, #1) (21 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Three months later . . .

Drake sat next to Elle on her office couch as they went over plans for the resort with Reid. Drake’s computer junkies had taken to the project with vigor, and he had the first rough sketches of their plans. Elle placed her hand in his and squeezed. They were getting married in two months and hadn’t planned a thing. Their mothers and Shirley had taken over. Instead of fighting it, Drake and Elle just went along with whatever they planned. Neither of them cared if the wedding colors were navy, yellow, or hot pink. They just cared about living happily ever after.

“Oh, I forgot. We closed on the house this morning and will be moving in over the weekend. We took the last load out of Elle’s condo last night. Here are the keys to Elle’s place, well . . . your place now.” Drake took the keys out of his pocket and tossed them to Reid.

“Thanks. I know I could have stayed at a hotel for these past two weeks, but Mom was so excited to have me at home. It’ll be good to move into my own space.” Reid snagged the keys out of the air and put them in his pocket.

“Your mother loved having you. You’re a good son.”

Drake, Elle, and Reid looked around and saw no one. Soon they heard the sharp piercing squeal of a hearing aid and then the walker appeared at the office door.

“Wanted for felony sexiness,” Reid read off the bumper sticker on the front of Shirley’s walker.

“Like it? Damien gave it to me. Such a nice man.”

“Who’s Damien? Do you have a boyfriend?” Reid asked, amazed.

“Oh no. I’ve done enough laundry for men in my life. Nope, I’m a use-‘em-and-leave-‘em type.” Drake choked on his drink and Reid’s eyes grew as large as saucers while Elle snickered. “Nope, Damien is Mallory’s beau. He’s a grade A specimen, but what else would you expect from the Secret Service?”

Reid snorted. “Mallory is dating a Secret Service agent? Yeah, right. He must be a trust fund brat looking for something to amuse him.”

Elle jumped to her best friend’s defense. “He’s no such thing. And Mallory wouldn’t date someone like that. Besides, you’re a trust fund brat. What happened between you two? Why don’t you like her?”

“Nothing. Back to these plans. The airstrip has been started and looks good. My pilot, Troy, is overseeing it and working with the builders to make sure we have everything we need. I also looked into the arena. I don’t think it will work with so many sporting venues available in the area, but I do think we can do a concert hall. It will be big enough to draw top names for ‘intimate’ performances. We could also do boxing and a few other smaller events.”

Elle shook her head at his change of subject but went with it. Whatever happened between them was bad enough to last fifteen years and was still between them. No more asking, Elle swore to herself. “That sounds good. Then we won’t have to worry about selling it out constantly.”

“Exactly. I’ve also built a dock, a white gazebo, and bought some boats for the lake. It will make a beautiful spot for weddings. The only thing still needed in that area is a lakefront restaurant and banquet hall.”

“I really like that plan. Good job, Reid.”

“Thanks.” Reid looked at Drake and put on his overly excited smile. “Wanna help me move in? I’ll pay you in beer.”

Drake laughed. “Sounds good."

He’d never had a brother before. But over the past couple of months, he and Reid had grown close. There was a serious side to him that his sisters didn’t want to, or simply couldn’t, see. They thought he was such a playboy. But he spent many nights hanging out with Drake, talking business or sports without a woman in sight.

Drake leaned over and kissed Elle on the lips. It was the best thing about being with her—those simple kisses. The emotion they could convey was amazing. They could have whole conversations without saying a word. This kiss told him she’d be waiting for him tonight with nothing on. He wondered how fast he could move all of Reid’s things.

“I love you.”

“Love you, too.” Elle smiled and he knew for certain he could be home by six, even if it meant carrying every box himself.

Elle watched her brother and her future husband head out of the office, talking and laughing. Shirley scooted over and took the seat Reid just left.

“You knocked up yet?”

“Shirley!”

“What, it’s an easy question.”

Elle rolled her eyes. “Did my mother bribe you with an apple pie to ask me that?”

Shirley didn’t bother blushing at being caught. “You’d be crazy to turn down one of her pies. So, what do I tell her?”

“No, I’m not knocked up. Can we at least get married and enjoy being newlyweds first?”

“Have you met your mother?”

Elle let out a long-suffering breath. Oh God, she was turning into the old Mary. As if on cue, Mary walked into the office with Allegra, Bree, Finn, and Jessica. Mary had blossomed over the past few months. She was more confident, dressed beautifully, and even managed to cut out the hourly phone calls with her mother.

“Mary, another beautiful dress.” Elle smiled up at her cousin who blushed at the compliment.

“Thank you. It was a gift.”

“A gift? From whom, because I need to hire them,” Allegra teased.

“Humph. Where have you all been?” Shirley asked. “It’s from her boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend?” they all asked together as Mary’s face turned a deeper shade of red.

“Who are you dating?” Bree asked.

“How long have you been dating?” Allegra added.

“Do you all know nothing?” Shirley shook her head. “She’s been dating Drake’s assistant, Phillip, for a little over three months.”

“What?” Elle was shocked. Drake had said nothing about it, which meant he probably didn’t know either.

“We’ve been keeping it quiet. I didn’t want my mother interfering.”

“Good call, dear,” Shirley clucked. “He’s a hottie.”

“Wait, four months.” Elle thought back to the Secret Service’s accusations of Mary. “Did you go out with him sometimes for lunch when you first started dating?”

“Yes. It’s how we met. He asked me out for lunch after the press conference.”

Elle looked around the room and saw disbelief, but happiness on everyone’s faces as she laughed privately. No wonder Mary didn’t say anything.  No one would have believed her back then. It just went to show how much she had matured.

“Wait, what about Dean?” Allegra asked.

Mary wrinkled her nose as if she smelled something bad. “He’s such a player. I just didn’t realize it until I met a real man. Now I understand what you guys have been telling me all these years.”

Elle couldn’t wait to tell her mother. But first she needed to get some work done. Getting back to the reason she called them all to the office, Elle smiled at the full room. “Well, this meeting started off with good news. I hope to expand on it. Finn, I’ve looked over your proposal. I’m following your advice, and with some of the extra money we made on the sale of the Titan-owned newspapers, I’m going to put it toward an entertainment and sports agency.”

A smile broke out across Finn’s face as he looked to Allegra first. She smiled back before he came to shake Elle’s hand. Allegra had helped show Finn the ropes. She had taught him how to look into a company’s financials, assets, debts, and potential. It was hard, but Elle was going to have to admit her baby sister was a force all of her own in the business world.

“Thank you so much. I won’t let you down.”

“I know you won’t. And we’re all here to help. Now, go move into your new office. Shirley, can you do the honors of showing it to him?”

“Of course. Come on, young man.” Finn couldn’t stop smiling as he held out his arm for Shirley to take. They walked out of the room with Shirley telling him everything people try to get away with in their offices.

“Is nothing private?” Elle asked her cousin and sisters.

“No!” came Shirley’s reply from down the hall, and the girls broke out into laughter.

“Mary, can you write up a press release announcing Simpson Entertainment Agency and introducing Finn as the new vice president of operations. Double-check with him, but I think he already has some clients lined up in addition to the list I gave you.”

“Sure thing.” Mary jumped with excitement and headed off to do her job.

“I can’t believe that’s our cousin,” Allegra whispered as she watched Mary stride out of the office.

“Good for her.” Bree grinned.

Elle looked to her secretary. “Jessica, I’m sorry, but you’re no longer going to be my secretary.”

Jessica’s face fell. “You’re firing me?”

“Goodness no. I’m promoting you to Director of Finance. I want you to oversee the financial branch and report directly to me. I’m going to focus on managing our growing company even more. We have so many adventures on the horizon and I can’t wait to enjoy them.”

“Director of Finance . . . I can’t believe it. Thank you so much.”

“You deserve it. Go on, pack up your desk, and move into the empty office next to mine.“

“Yes, ma’am.” Jessica hurried from the room and Elle knew she had made the right choice. Jessica had learned by her side for the past eight years. No one knew more about Elle’s job and what it entailed than Jessica.

Bree waited until the door shut before speaking. “I’m glad it’s just us now. I’m having some issues with the corporate center I’m working on.”

“Did the steel make it on time?” Elle asked as she reached for the project folder.

“Yes. And we were able to finish the foundation and the first ten floors. But the architect has this fancy dome of glass and steel that he wants to put in, but he keeps adjusting it. So we’re stuck until he finalizes his plans. It’s costing us money to keep Simpson Construction on site. I’m moving the guys to other projects, but that’s only going to cover us for a little while.”

“That is a problem. Has the architect been on the site to evaluate?” Elle wondered as she flipped through her notes looking for his name.

“No. He’s from London. I’ve left message after message for him, but he hasn’t gotten back to me yet.”

“Who is he and why does he think he’s so special he can keep everyone waiting?” Allegra asked. “And trust me, I work with divas. They at least get the job done. They know that I’ll take my business elsewhere if they don’t.”

“That’s part of the problem. This center isn’t fully owned by us. We’re the contractors and minority owner. We provide the steel and the construction. Two other companies actually own the majority of the building. They’re the ones who hired Logan Ward, not me,” Bree explained.

“I take it you’ve been playing nice so far?” Elle knew her sister. She always tried sugar first, but when she was pushed, she was anything but nice.

“Yes.”

“Then I think it’s time for you to stop being nice. Get the job done, Bree.”

“Oh, bitchy Bree gets to make an appearance. Poor guy.” Allegra laughed and Bree just looked annoyed. Elle knew her sister had to be tough with the guys on site when necessary, but she always hated it. When she had to stand her ground, it usually involved tears, and not Bree’s.

“I’ll go call him now. If I have to, I’ll have Troy fly me to London so I can grab him by the willy and drag him over here to make a decision.” Bree stood up and stalked from the room.

“You go, girl,” Allegra called after her.

“Is everything going all right with you, Allegra?” Elle had been wondering that. While she was her perky self, she did sometimes catch Allegra looking at her phone with a frown.

“It’s peachy. But, I’d better get to work. I’m looking over the final designs for Bellerose’s fall line.”

“Okay, but know I’m here if you need anything.”

“I know.” Allegra bent down and hugged her. “You’re the best big sis.”

“You’re a pretty awesome little sis. See you at the housewarming on Sunday?”

“Of course. Someone is going to have to bring a little style into your home.” Allegra gave a wink and headed to her office.

Elle sat back and looked around. The last three months had changed her. Her family had stepped up, Simpson Global was growing, and Drake met her at home every night. She couldn’t imagine her life getting any better.

Bree stalked to her office. Stupid man, couldn’t make a decision. She was going to finish this nightmare of a job if it killed her. Normally she only had to visit the major sites once a month, but this one was such a pain it was starting to take over her life. She suddenly felt like a site manager instead of vice president.

“Get me Mr. Ward on the phone, please. If you can’t reach him, then let me talk to his assistant,” Bree told her assistant, Noah, as she walked past his desk.

“I’ll try. Here’s the mail for you.”

Bree thanked him and took it into the office. All the mail was open except one letter. She looked at the envelope and felt her body go still. It was marked “personal,” which prevented Noah from opening it. But she knew what it was before she even opened it.

With shaky hands, she slid the letter opener along the top and pulled out the green sheet of paper.