Chapter Fourteen - Pizza and Beer - Tuesday evening Escala
"Welcome home, Mr. Grey. May I take your things." Mrs. Jones greets me.
"No, thankyou. I think I'll change."
"Would you like a cold drink?"
"What do we have?"
"Alcohol or not?
"Not." I'm going to have beer with Elliot. I don't do drunk. I hate what it does to a man… the loss of control.
"I have iced tea, lemonade or soft drinks."
"Bring a lemonade to my office."
"Right away." … "Do we have an ETA for your brother, sir?"
"Nothing more definate."
She looks uncomfortable. "I have some business to discuss with my brother, first. We can eat when it's ready."
"Very well, sir."
"I'll be in my office. Let me know when he arrives."
I remove my suit in my dressing room… I notice my suit from yesterday has been taken care of and returned to its hanger. I remove the hanger to examine the suit… it's perfect. Nice. Very nice indeed.
I empty the messenger bag of my exercise clothes into the hamper. I put on comfortably worn soft blue jeans and a polo shirt…
In my office, I find a tall cold lemonade waiting on my desk on a fancy coaster. Who uses coasters these days? But then my desk is the finest wood… modern finishes shouldn't water spot but Mrs. Gail Jones is showing she appreciates and respects the quality of my furnishings.
I close my office door. My photos have been in the back of my mind all day and now I have the privacy to look at them. I retrieve the sealed envelope from my briefcase and open it with a single slice of my letter opener. The photos are exquisite… showing Brandy to her best advantage. There are multiple prints with varying exposures which affect the focus, clarity and highlights. Matt and Mari are truly artists of the photographic art. The enjoyment of looking at them is nearly sexual. I pick the best couple to share with Brandy next weekend. I slide the prints back in the envelope. I put them in my desk drawer for now.
First business for tonight will be Grey Construction. Elliot and I can talk business while Mrs. Jones prepares our dinner. After we talk, I'll email the reports to him.
I print and read a hard copy of Grey Construction's latest Profit and Loss report. Everything is in order. Solar panels are making advances. I send a memo to our energy tech division head for more details… I want to be pre-positioned to utilize them as advances come to market.
I'm deep in thought when the intercom makes me jump.
"Mr. Grey. Your brother is on his way up, Sir."
"Thank you, Mrs. Jones."
I set my laptop on a table while I welcome Elliot. He's wearing well worn jeans… but they look clean… and a solid color T shirt. His work boots are unlaced. He puts a paper bag on the floor. He plants his hand on the wall to steady himself while he kicks his boots off beside it. I feel like hidden eyes are watching us. The hidden eyes of my conscience… revealing Mrs. Jones who will clean any hand print off the wall. Am I suddenly paranoid? I glance around the room. We are quite alone. Elliot looks like he showered before coming. Did he wash the steering wheel in his truck? I think not!
Elliot gives me a jab in the shoulder… at least he doesn't try to hug me or commit some other violation of my personal space. My mind comes back to the here and now.
Elliot hands me the paper bag with the six pack when I direct Elliot to the lavatory. It is the first time he's been to my penthouse.
I sit at the head of my dining table, Elliot to my right. Suddenly Mrs. Jones is at my elbow. She's changed to her professional 'on duty' look with an A line navy skirt, a crisp white blouse with a linen bib apron. Her long blonde hair is pulled back by a clamp showing her diamond earrings, her only jewelry.
"Elliot, this is Mrs. Jones, my chef and housekeeper." She puts two beers in front of us with frosted mugs and then a unique pottery bowl filled with little pretzels. Elliot looks up from pouring his beer, smiling a toothy grin at Mrs. Jones. She backs away. He's making her uncomfortable.
"I'll be in the kitchen. Let me know if you need anything." Mrs. Jones takes the paper bag with her.
"Thanks."
As she turns and walks away, Elliot's eyes are on her ass.
"She's off limits, Elliot."
"Are you?"
"No but she's still off limits."
"Why then?"
"Because it's a condition in her contract." I'm stretching the truth here; the contract is with me. Mrs. Jones is under my protection though. I've gone to a lot of trouble and expense to find her. I won't have her leave because my brother can't keep it in his pants.
"Too bad. She's so fine."
"I hadn't noticed."
"I didn't expect to see you so soon. We were just sailing a couple of days ago."
"You get the boat all closed up, OK."
"Sure… after everyone finally went home." I knew it.
"I invited the family for a day sail… not half of Seattle," I grumble.
"Sorry. I didn't think you'd mind. Debbie knew her way around a boat so I thought it would be ok."
"The cockpit was crowded with the extra passengers… barely room to move." My tone speaks my displeasure. "I was afraid someone would do something stupid."
"I only brought Debbie."
"I'm going to have to talk to mom. I know Lilly is Mia's Bee Eff Eff…" B-F-F, Best Friends Forever. "I'm done with her always tagging along."
"She has the hots for you. She's pretty fine."
"Bro, she's the same age as Mia. She's a minor… You know, jail bait!"
"A guy can look."
"I'm not interested. Besides, they are social climbers. She has always felt entitled," … entitled to me. "She should have outgrown this obsession along with her Barbie's years ago."
"You could make her walk the plank."
Like a Pirate. I laugh. "I'm not Captain of the Whydah or Queen Anne's Revenge." (note 3)
"But that wouldn't get rid of her. She'd probably float." … "You know she's still likely at their parties at the house or on G.P."
G. P. is Dad's twin diesel motor yacht Guilty Pleasure. Lawyer jokes, seriously.
"At least I'd have a means of escape."
"It wouldn't hurt you to pop your cherry. You'd feel a lot better. I could set you up."
"No, you couldn't."
"Okay, so what was so important that we had to have this meeting?"
"I don't want to conduct business in front of Dad. I don't want him involved in our business. Unless you'd rather have dear old Dad for a partner, of course."
It's a threat. Elliot needed a partner, a backer… but Dad couldn't just support him to succeed or fail on his own.
I bring up Grey Construction's current P&L statement. Elliot needs to watch his bottom line as much as he watches skirt hems. I wonder if he's still seeing Debbie who went sailing with us… she was pleasant and a knowledgeable sailor. Elliot is at ease around women, I envy that. Maybe it's the thrill of the chase but they never seem to stick around for long.
Elliot's construction quotes seem to be on target the majority of the time… After a quick review, we move on to Elliot's business plan.
"I don't want to build ordinary buildings. Energy costs are skyrocketing! Energy efficiency needs to be built in!"
"Yeah. There are big savings doing it on the initial build."
"I can do retrofitting if I have to but it's a different ballgame. It's all about being creative and thinking outside the box. I'm good at it. I've had success on jobs that others have refused. Retrofitting almost always costs more."
"Do you have a folio?"
"You mean pictures?"
He hands me his phone and swipes through several frames.
"Send these to me. I'll put my publicity people on it. You need to have an 'Inspiration picture book' and a 'Dreams section' on your web site."
"The tech is changing so fast! Look away for a second and there's something new."
"Tell me about it. I have a whole department dedicated to conservation tech and it's still hard to keep up!"
"Let's collaborate on this. We'll benefit from your boots on the ground experience. You'll benefit from GEH's research."
"And you need a make over. You need to project success when you meet with clients."
"Christian, I can't work construction with a suit on. Don't be silly."
"How about a polo shirt or jacket with your logo on it?"
"Well, I guess I could."
"Keep a clean shirt on a hanger in your truck, if you are going to meet after work."
Elliot lets out a sigh.
"Your truck needs an update. It's hardly the picture of a successful enterprise."
"I'm sure you've already researched it."
"Yes, of course. It's what I do."
I show him the lettering, logos & truck ideas my team came up with. Elliot's oscillating between a traditional pickup with tool boxes and the cab and chassis with the custom toolbox bed. He likes the idea of rust free aluminum.
"We can make it work." I look on investing in Grey Construction as priming the pump so Elliot can be more successful.
Mrs. Jones is here with our homemade pizza on a baking sheet. Refills on the beer and fresh frosted mugs.
"Thankyou, Mrs. Jones."
We leave my laptop on the table with the wreckage from our dinner. We take our beers and adjourn to the library to play pool. I win two games in a row. Elliot's had enough. He wants to play some arcade games on the X-box where his victory is certain. I acquiesce.
"Where's your X-box?"
"In the cabinette." I point to the doors under the flat screen.
Elliot opens the doors and is dismayed to find a mover's box full of controls and cables. "I haven't even thought of it since I moved in."
Mrs. Jones leaves us fresh beers and leaves us with a bowl of snack mix.
"Will there be anything else?"
"No, thank you. Goodnight, Mrs. Jones."
"Goodnight."
"Goodnight, Gentlemen."
Elliot is busy sorting connecting cables for the game console. He knows where they all go by memory.
"We should fly up to Aspen some weekend… we had a great time last time. That was a great place you found for us to stay, right on the mountain," Elliot suggests.
"It was. That was cool, ski right to the lodge. It really helps if there's snow on the ground." The thought flashes through my mind at how much my life has changed in the months since then. I'm more settled now; not so foot loose. Elliot likes to fly by the seat of his pants, assuming he is wearing pants at any chosen moment. I have my Penthouse to come home to now… my home is organized, my meals ready, my submissive, Brandy, available all weekend. My overnight business trips have all been during the week.
"We could go fishing… or rent mountain bikes in town." Both are enjoyable pastimes that Carrick tried to teach us; until puberty ruined it for me.
"Yeah, that would be fun." Elliot's idea of mountain biking is throwing himself down the mountain with reckless abandon. I am more inclined to the peaceful solitude of fly fishing. I guess, in their own way, both pit man against nature.
"Let me know when you are free."
"I'll check with my pilot." There are commercial flights from Seatac to Aspen's Sardy Field but I have a serious aversion to the lack of privacy flying commercial. I feel like I practically need a disguise to get to the gate. "And I'll get Judith looking into locations." She found the condo at the ski lodge for us. I'll tell her what I want and she'll find it for me.
At the sound of a female name, Elliot perks up. "My assistant, you dumb ass." Elliot is such a horn-dog… yet I envy his casual ease with women, if not his propensity for casual liaisons.
"Find some place with a night life." And there it is. Elliot's planning a night on the town.
"Don't expect sympathy from me, if you come home hammered."
"When have I done that," he demands? "Besides, you need to lighten up. I could have hooked you up with that waitress."
"She was a stewardess, and mind your business 'Lelliot."
"Ta Da!" Elliot has the game console connected and it's powering up. I win the first game of PacMan Champion but Elliot wins several rounds of Uno. He's insufferably pleased with himself. Elliot leans back in his chair… he's asleep.
We're not drunk. We just had a few beers. I know Elliot's spent a hard physical day at work... a few beers and he's down for the count. What a light weight! I put a blanket over him. I take my beer, go to my study and work until midnight. I leave the half drunk mug of beer on my desk when I go to bed.
- Wednesday morning
Light is just breaking through the glass wall of my bedroom… I need to pee. Well, that would be the beer. As long as I'm up, I exchange my PJ pants for my running gear. It's a nice day. Time for a run.
Gail is in the kitchen and puts an ice cold glass of orange juice on the breakfast bar. I drink it down… give her wave of thanks… and am out the door. I'm all alone in the elevator so I stretch… and am out the door. I run through Pike Market this morning… the vendors are out. I find myself grading their signage… I gave Elliot several days of homework.
- 7am . Escala . breakfast bar
"I'm sorry sir. I didn't know your brother was staying over. I'm afraid I woke him when I went in to tidy the TV room. I left as soon as I saw him."
"It's alright."
"He left in a hurry. I thought you might have seen him. I offered to make him breakfast. He had juice, took cold pizza slices and a coffee to go."
"Thankyou for stepping in for me. I appreciate it."
"He was your brother and your guest. It's what I do."
I give Mrs. Jones a smile and a nod. I see the light in her eyes.
"I'll have breakfast when I've had my shower." My glance shows the dining table is all cleaned. Mrs. Jones has been at work early.
"I'll have fresh muffins out by then, sir."
"Bacon, scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast and a muffin."
"Yes, sir."
"Goodbye. Have a good day, sir." I'm off to another day of mergers and acquisitions at GEH. The only thing that stands out is Fred is bringing his acquaintance in to explain his fiber optic fast connector. While I am interested in the invention, I am more interested in hiring the best and the brightest. I wonder if he's under contract to a competitor.
Author's end note (3) Whydah, pirate ship Captained by 'Black Sam Bellany' lost Chatham, Cape Cod, Massachusetts April 1717. Queen Anne's Revenge, pirate ship, Captained by Edward 'Blackbeard' Teach, lost Beauford Inlet, North Carolina in 1718.