Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 63469 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 317(@200wpm)___ 254(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63469 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 317(@200wpm)___ 254(@250wpm)___ 212(@300wpm)
“Go on.”
“So apparently, they have a corporate visit next week, and Gillian wanted the HR people to come talk to us.”
“Why?” I was confused.
“So they could pretend we’re part of the resort and they could use our team to satisfy their diversity quota.”
That made no sense. “That’s the stupidest thing I ever heard. All they have to do is see we’re not affiliated with the hotel to know that’s crap.”
“She’s hoping they won’t look beyond the fact that we’re on their property. And she did say that if the suit goes forward, they might cut us loose, as we’re not part of the regular businesses that comprise the entire chain of resorts,” Kevin explained.
“Mitch Powell owed Rand, and for that, we’re in.”
“But if it’s bigger than him, if it’s Mr. Powell’s board voting to overrule him, we could be off the resort property and would need to find new digs for the Bronc.”
It was odd, but neither he nor Callie or anyone else in the room looked particularly concerned over the news that we might have to move. It was disconcerting, to say the least.
“For crissakes, Kev. It’s like pulling teeth.”
He grinned at me. “But last night, after Mr. Joss called over to the Bronc, Bailey got on the phone with your doctor and then called Mr. Joss back because she was told he was in here with you, and she wanted to know how you looked.”
So much back and forth with the explanation, but I had to hand it to Bailey, she was very thorough.
“And they got to talking, and she told Mr. Joss about the situation with the hotel since he’s the one who worked out the original tenant agreement with Mr. Powell, and he told her that if the resort evicts us from the property, then they are contractually obligated to pay to relocate us, including building us a new Bronc if no suitable structure can be found.”
“Really?”
“According to Mr. Joss, yes. And you know, even though he’s a college professor now, it doesn’t mean he wasn’t an acquisitions manager at one time. He still knows his stuff.”
He did, yes.
“But he gave me the name of his attorney in Chicago, the lawyer for the Red Diamond, Knox Jenner, which I thought was one guy but is actually a whole firm, and—”
“I will kill you, Kevin, if you don’t get to the point.”
He cleared his throat. “So I talked to Mr. Richard Jenner this morning, and he told me that if they shut us down at our current site, then they do, in fact, have to pay to relocate us.”
“Okay.” I sighed. At least everything would work out.
“He said you should get in contact with him first thing tomorrow—Monday,” he clarified for me.
“I know what day today is and what that makes tomorrow,” I groused at him. “What I can’t believe is that Mr. Jenner answered the phone for you on a Sunday.”
“Well, it’s like Mr. Joss said when I mentioned the same thing to him. I told him that no fancy Chicago lawyer would pick up his phone on the Lord’s Day for a restaurant manager from a town in Texas that he’s probably never heard of, but he pointed out that he’d sure as shit answer for the Red Diamond, no question.”
There was that.
“I guess that ranch is kind of a big deal, ya reckon?”
“I suspect so.”
“And Rand Holloway might be a good man to have on your side.”
That was true. “Well, whatever, at least we know we’re covered.”
“Exactly,” Kevin said, then continued on. “And there’s more.”
“What?”
“Well, Mr. Joss wanted me to tell you that if we get booted, you should consider moving the restaurant out across the road from the Red Diamond.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah, he said that the restaurant could go on that beautiful piece of property next to the petting zoo and—did you know that technically the land for the Red isn’t just stockyards and grazing land?”
I nodded.
“Some of it is farmland where they raise alpacas and goats and bees and such?”
“Yeah, I know.”
“They don’t have sheep, though.”
“No. Most ranchers don’t.”
“But there’s some sheep at the petting zoo.”
“Is this going somewhere, Kev, or—”
“I’m not gonna yell at you ’cause you’re hurt and all.”
God.
“So we could put the Bronc right next to the petting zoo.”
The location would be perfect. Kids could go to the petting zoo, and then it would be time to eat and drink.
I nodded. It did sound perfect. There were a lot of ancient shade trees out there that we could hang fairy lights in, and it would be beautiful.
“We could build us a beautiful place, and our parking could be tripled, and that way we could all work within the safety of the ranch,” Kevin summed up for me.
All this, everything my manager was explaining to me, was a dissemination of what he’d learned from Stef. What was interesting was that Stef knew Rand’s mind so well, he could speak to Rand’s intentions at any given moment. The level of communication they must have had between them at all times was staggering. Those were relationship goals right there.