WLUV Box Set: Ignited, Consumed, Burned (33 page)

Brick

Brick had
made progress with Fawn, major progress. Sure she’d put the brakes on things
last night, but he’d held her, kissed her, touched her soft skin, all the
things he’d been dreaming about since the last time they were together. This
was only the beginning. She just needed to see that he wasn’t the same arrogant
asshole he used to be.

Today was
the big day. Though the jaguar project with the zoo would be incredible, he had
no doubt, this deal with Belize Cane Sugar Energy was key to starting his
mayoral term off right. If he pulled off this deal, it meant jobs, pure and
simple, and jobs were where it started and ended for Grand City.

He was all
business, but that didn’t mean he’d forget Fawn for a second. Whether she liked
it or not he’d remind her of their moments together. He had to keep throwing
her off-kilter just a bit to get her to bring her guard down.

Fawn,
Chud, and a slightly less green-looking Doug were waiting in the courtyard for
him. Fawn was stunning in a crisp white blouse and tight skirt. Were her high
heels meant to drive him crazy? No, probably not. They were just part of her
television anchor look, but boy did she look good in them.

“How you
doing there, Doug?” Brick put a hand on his shoulder.

“Better…not
100 percent yet, sorry. But better.” Doug was a good numbers guy, and it was
important that he was there so that that if the CEO had a question about taxes,
costs, logistics, the answer would be at the ready.

“Mr.
Mayor, will you give us a quick interview before we head out, in case it gets
busy during the day?”

“Certainly.”

Chud had
his camera on a tripod ready to go. Fawn angled herself close to the lens.
“Just look at me, not the camera, if you look at the camera you’ll look like a
weasely politician running for office. Oh, wait…” Brick remembered the line
from the first time they met. He also remembered she had winked at him.

“No wink,
eh? No problem… looking at you is the best view I’ve had in my life.” Brick saw
a glimmer in Fawn’s eye. He knew she secretly loved his flirting with her.

“Tell me
why this meeting is so important,” Fawn asked into her WLUV mic and then she
directed it to him.

“Well,
jobs are key for Grand City. We need new industry and at the same time we need
to ensure that our key employers continue to call Grand City home. Bringing
Belize Cane Sugar Energy’s Midwest refining operation to Grand City does two
things. First, it will instantly employ 200 construction workers, and then
after that it will bring in another 500 permanent good paying positions to our
town.”

Brick
forgot he was being interviewed and let his excitement at bringing opportunity
to his hometown overtake him, “Every single job creates exponential opportunity
in our community. Those 500 employees need homes, groceries, clothes— jobs are
the threads that hold the tapestry of our town together.”

“What
about the tax incentives? Do you think you’re giving away too much?” Fawn
wasn’t going to let him off easy.

“It’s true
that we’re extending a year-long tax abatement to the company. They will be
realizing a savings of 30 million dollars over a period of ten years. In
exchange, they’re going to contribute fifteen-million dollars to the Grand City
public school system. In addition, they’re going to fund infrastructure
improvements. Our main highway arteries in and out of the metropolitan area
will be maintained at levels we’ve never seen before.”

“Great,
that’s perfect.” Fawn put down the mic and gave the cut sign to Chud. “Let’s
get him hooked up to wireless before we get going. Do we have a second?”

“Sure do.”
Chud stepped forward and helped wire Brick so they’d have his sound recorded
during the meetings.

Fawn

A
commotion from the hotel lobby area caught Fawn’s attention.

“No, no,
no!
”
It was Gloria with a tray of coffees she’d made. Paulo tried to keep up with
her. He held two large paper bags “Come on Paulo, move it!”

She was
slightly out of breath when she reached them, but immediately opened the door
to their vehicle, situating the coffees in its cup holders. Paulo placed the
bag – which was filled with pastries – in the back seat. “You will not be going
to the big meeting on an empty stomach.”

“Thank
you.” Fawn had to admit, despite Gloria’s tendency to want to pair her up with
Brick, the couple was incredibly charming.

“Don’t
worry, my brother’s going to love you. He’s got a weakness for blondes.”

They
hustled into the car. Brick drove and the other men had insisted Fawn sit in
the front.

“Wait, so
Gloria’s brother is the CEO of Belize Cane Energy?” Fawn had underestimated
Brick Cooper. He knew exactly who he was dealing with at all times. He knew the
owner of last night’s restaurant and had made friends with Gloria and Paulo,
who just happened to be immediately related to the CEO of the major energy
company in Belize.

“I’d be in
love with them either way. But they do say it’s not
what
you know,
Fawn...”

“I’m starting
to get that you’re more than just a pretty face there, Mr. Mayor.” And then
Brick flashed his All-American, Robert Redford smile at her and it was very
apparent how he could charm both men and women. She felt her heart flip around
in her chest. His charm was dangerously wearing at her defenses.

The Belize
Cane Energy Corporation was a quick five-minute drive. The headquarters sat
surrounded by its main export, sugar cane. The cane was green and straight and
swayed in the breeze. The factory itself was made up of three huge buildings,
the main offices tucked behind one of them.

They
parked, and as Chud unloaded their gear Fawn watched five trucks filled with
the cane pull in. It would be packed and loaded onto a cargo bin and then
shipped to a BCEC refining facility. Currently, they had one in Europe and
another in Mexico. If Brick was able to seal the deal, BCEC’s first American
operation would be in Grand City. It could be a huge feat, as just about every
economically-depressed city in the Midwest was salivating for new investment.

“Chud –
get as much B-roll as you can. This is our only stop here and we’ll be talking
about it for months if the Mayor lands this deal.” Fawn felt her old reporter
instincts kicking in.

The
meeting was in the CEO’s office. Don Novelo’s office was quite beautiful
compared to the utilitarian look of the rest of the plant. The room was still
fairly industrial but every surface was painted steel gray, there was a glass
desk, and modern white Eames-style chairs were scattered throughout the room.
The CEO had good taste. The place was impeccably arranged and accessorized.

So was his
sister’s hotel, Fawn thought. Clearly they’d come from money. It was all so
complicated and interesting to her. She quietly wondered if Brick would be
eaten alive in this setting.

Don Novelo
was slim, tall, and looked European. Belize was a melting pot of Mayan,
African, Asian, and European backgrounds so making assumptions about anyone’s
history was damn near impossible, and generally a bad idea.

“Mr.
Mayor! Congratulations!” Novelo opened his arms and offered a Brick a hug and a
pat on the back.

“Thank
you, Don. Please— just Brick, like always.” Brick never seemed to be faking his
affection for people. Fawn took note, maybe the lines he fed her last night wasn't
lines at all. It was dangerous to think that way. Very dangerous, since her
guard had been down the minute his tongue had gone in her mouth…
Focus on
work Fawn
, she reminded herself.

Chud and
Fawn hung back, awaiting an introduction. “As I mentioned this is the
television crew following me on this trip. We want to show the citizens of
Grand City the beauty of Belize.” Brick indicated for Fawn to step forward.

“This is
Fawn Clawson.”

Don Novelo’s
focus turned to her and it felt like a laser beam on her forehead. The CEO of
BCEC cordially invaded her space, grabbed her hand and lifted it to his lips to
place a courtly kiss on her knuckles.

“Ah, I can
see you are the beauty of Grand City!” Novelo’s eye’s looked Fawn up and down.
He was unconcerned about American notions of non-sexual business interaction,
apparently. To him, she was a pretty lady, not a journalist doing her job.

Few women
could deny the appeal of a compliment like that, especially coming from a powerful
CEO, but Fawn had heard flattery before and it did little to throw her off her
game. “Thank you, I’m flattered. My photographer, Chud will position himself
here,” she directed Chud as she engaged Novelo, “Just pretend we’re not even in
the room if that’s okay?”

“There’s
not a man on earth who could pretend you weren’t in the room,” Novelo replied,
and she laughed.

“Be that
as it may, I promise to be quiet as a mouse.” Fawn gave him a wink and a smile.
She didn’t want to be mean, even if he was laying it on thick. Sugar was Novelo’s
stock in trade, and she could be sweet if she had to. Dropping her impartial
journalist role, if it helped Brick to pull this off, was in the best interest
of Grand City. It was her home, and its residents deserved a little good
economic news.

“Let’s
talk, Brick.”

Fawn faded
into the corner as Chud captured the negotiations. Details of the incentive
package for BCEC to locate in Grand City were all laid out in a presentation
largely handled by Doug Forrester. It was a bit dry, Fawn thought, but Novelo
seemed intently focused.

 “So you
know it’s between you and a town outside of Chicago. They’re offering me
similar abatements and will take a smaller contribution to the school. You can
see how that could be attractive to me.”

“Sure, how
many executives will you bring into the mix?” Brick asked.

“About a
dozen, including me for about half the year, as we get up and running.”

“Alright,
well let me tell you something. In Grand City you’ll be able to afford three
times the home, there’s less than a fifteen-minute commute, and let’s face it,
there’s no place in the United States as beautiful as Western Michigan,”
Brick’s passion for his hometown was shining through as he explained the
benefits of locating the plant in Grand City. He clicked a slide displaying the
shores of Lake Michigan and the Sleeping Bear Dunes. It actually made Fawn
homesick for a moment. 

Fawn had
skipped just about every one of WLUV’s campaign stories while Brick ran, but
now, in his voice, she could hear the passion he felt for his community. It
amazed her. She’d written him off as just another politician, wanting respect
and a cushy job, but never operating with pure motives. Brick seemed honest,
though, and even idealistic when he talked about their town.

“Furthermore,
our skilled workforce is unparalleled. The men and women of Grand City know how
to get the job done at a level you won’t see anywhere in the country.”

“But it’s
cold there, eh?” Don Novelo was pushing Brick.

“Yes, but
it’s cold
and
windy in Chicago.” Brick gave it right back.

“Miss
Clawson, are all the women as beautiful as you in Grand City?” Novelo had not
forgotten she was there.

“Heavens
no, Mr. Novelo, but they are younger, which can be very nice.” Fawn didn’t miss
a beat and Novelo broke out in a hearty laugh. Brick smiled at her.

“Well,
Brick, Doug, and Miss Clawson, start looking for a villa in Grand City for me.
I suspect I’ll be needing a home there soon.” Brick clapped his hands together
and Novelo came around his desk for a hearty bear hug.

“Mr.
Novelo, can we have a quick interview? A formal one, for our story.”

“Certainly.”
Fawn asked him several questions about logistics and jobs, and then she asked
him what tipped the scale in deciding on Grand City.

“It was
your new mayor, of course. He’s convinced me. Any town who can produce such
passionate citizens well, I’d like to be a part of that town.” It was perfect.

There were
a few more pictures, Doug Forrester made sure he chronicled Novelo signing on
the dotted line with an official picture for the Mayor’s office. Novelo
explained to Fawn that she owed him a dinner in Grand City as soon as he
arrived in a few months. Before they left he planted a kiss on both of her
cheeks and gave her a very tight hug.

When they
got back to the car and the doors closed, Brick hit the steering wheel with his
hands.

“We did
it!”  He looked back to a smiling Doug Forrest. “How ‘bout that, Dougie boy?”

“Congratulations,
Mr. Mayor.”

Brick
punched Fawn on the shoulder, hard. “And thank god we brought
you
. Now
Novelo thinks he’ll be surrounded by movie stars in Grand City.”

Fawn
rubbed her arm. “Glad I could contribute. And ouch.”

But Fawn
couldn’t stop smiling. She’d seen how good Brick was with Novelo and how much
he cared about their town. The terrible opinions she had formed about Grand
City’s fair-haired boy were wrong, and her defenses against his relentless
charisma were rapidly melting in the tropical Caribbean air.