by Ali Vali
“I thought these were on you?” Bubba asked.
“I’m paying for your fun, Bubba, but your vindictive bad decisions based on your ego are on you.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means you might get a lesson on thinking before you act, especially if it’s to cause others problems because they don’t fall for your little pity party. That’s all the helpful hints I’m giving up today.” Tucker left, and knowing she’d be done with these people on a daily basis was a weight off her shoulders. It would have been nice to have someone to celebrate with, and she briefly thought of Willow but pushed that aside. No reason to invite more crazy in when she’d just gotten rid of a load.
* * *
Willow yawned as she pressed her hands to the coffee cup she’d just prepared as she sat to watch the noon news. Her schedule of tests for the last two days had been from midnight to noon, but the raging storm outside with an impressive lightning display had brought the crew back in early. If it calmed down later, she could finish and move to the next platform. With any luck she’d make it home for Grady’s graduation from Tulane.
The job really was beneath her experience level, but she’d decided not to give Mann any ammunition to torpedo her future. She’d finish his list and give it a hundred percent so there’d be no way he could give her a bad reference if anyone called him from her job search. It seemed that the oil industry was run by spiteful small-minded men who didn’t take rejection well.
Three guys joined her in the television-game room carrying plates of food in with their coffee. She nodded in their direction and noticed the logo on their shirts. What were some Delacroix guys doing on an exclusive Suntrust platform?
“You guys get lost?” She smiled to show them she was kidding.
“We’re heading to oversee the installation of some new safety equipment on the Stella III, and fifteen-foot seas aren’t something you want to ride out in a crew boat,” the youngest guy said. “Your operations manager offered us a room and lunch until this blows over.”
“I’m surprised you’re on the water.”
“Stella is a platform that’s pretty self-sufficient, so it’s a small crew and no helipad.” The older guy didn’t seem as friendly, but he was far from being rude. “It’s either crew boat or swim. Do you mind if we eat in here? We want to watch the news and find out what our future is.”
“Something’s going on?” She hadn’t talked to Monique in the last couple of days, but she had gotten an email from her with some pictures of Grady. That’s all their conversations revolved around these days, but at least they were talking, and the conversations weren’t forced or awkward. For the first time in forever Monique actually sounded upbeat. Something had changed and she couldn’t wait to get home and find out what.
“We’re fixing to find out,” the third guy said. “We got a companywide email telling us to watch the news.”
She turned the television up when she saw Tucker standing at a podium with her company’s logo on it. There was something about Tucker that made her want to touch her every time she saw her, and she wondered if it was the same for Monique when she saw Jim Bob. There really needed to be some sort of mental test as to why the Delacroix siblings were so alluring.
“Thank you all for coming out today as we honor my brother’s life and the new direction we’ll be charting since his passing,” Tucker said into the microphones on the podium. “As of today, Delacroix Oil and Gas Company will remain a family owned and operated business, with me as the sole owner.”
“Thank all that’s fucking holy,” the older guy said, sounding incredibly relieved. “I loved Jim Bob, but I couldn’t work for his kids.”
“Be quiet, she’s not done,” the young guy said.
“Jim Bob Delacroix will be remembered as not only a good businessman, but also as someone who loved the environment, so I’m establishing a trust in his name that’ll fund coastal issues, as well as the conservation of our fisheries. We make our living pumping oil and gas out of the ground, but there’s no reason we can’t care about the place we love and call home.”
“Will this change mean anything to your employees?” the anchor for the NBC affiliate asked. “You’re the second largest employer in the state.”
“Employees are our greatest assets, and nothing will change in that regard. We have leases we’ll be exploring, and contracts to evaluate.” Tucker smiled and took a deep breath. “The only change will be that Jim Bob won’t be at my side in the physical sense. I’ll strive to make him proud, and to grow the company that has meant so much to our family. But New Orleans is our home, and home to many of our employees, so the only change is at the helm.”
Tucker took some more questions before the coverage cut away, and the news anchor gave a recap of what had been said.
“This is good news, fellas.” The young guy along with his pals seemed happy.
“I wonder why Jim Bob’s family didn’t want ownership of his share?” Willow spoke the question out loud, but she hadn’t meant to.
“That’s an easy one, and don’t take this as me talking out of my ass about my employers,” the older guy said.
“Believe me, you don’t want nothing to do with anything coming out of his ass,” the young guy said, making everyone laugh.
“Don’t listen to this smart-ass,” the old guy said. “What’s your name, curious lady?”
“I’m Willow,” she said, smiling.
“I’m Jerry Lopez,” the young guy said. “That’s my buddy Chuck Turner, and our old boss there is Travis Boudreaux.”
Travis got up and shook her hand. “Call me Trout. To give you a simple answer to your question, all I can say is Jim Bob and Tucker started coming to the office when they were toddlers. They loved it, but once they were eighteen, Bart, their daddy, had both of them working out here doing the shittiest jobs the old guy could think of giving them. I came up with Jim Bob, the both of us were in the same boat since my daddy worked for Bart. Tucker though, came after me, and she outworked all the other runts out here.” Trout seemed emotional as he reminisced about the early years of his career.
“Wow, it really is a family business. Tucker spent every summer out here?” Standing before her was her golden chance to ask questions about Tucker and her brother without anyone getting pissed.
“Do you know Tucker?” Trout asked, sounding suddenly suspicious.
“We’ve met, and I was actually the engineer who was heading the Apache Delta project for Suntrust until recently.” She crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair, wanting to get back to that relaxed vibe they’d had going. “I resigned from the project, and my boss punished me by shipping me out here for a couple of months of grunt work.”
“Can I ask why you quit that project?” Trout asked. “You look like you graduated about five minutes ago, and it doesn’t sound like Mann would’ve trusted anyone so young with something that major. No offense.”
“I’m older than I look, and I am a little offended.” She raised her eyebrow but smiled.
“You’re in deep shit now, old man,” Jerry said, laughing.
“He’s not there yet, but the afternoon is young and I’ve been up all night, which tends to shorten my fuse. To answer your question, I objected to some shortcuts they wanted to make, and now I’m the mud the totem pole sits on.” Trout smiled at that and gave her a nod so she continued. “My penance is to stay out here until I see the error of my feeble, female-minded ways.”
“Uh-huh, and how do you know Tucker?” Trout asked.
“She approved my initial design, and we had dinner once.”
Trout chuckled for some reason. “She wasn’t an ass, was she? It doesn’t happen often, but she can be. She’s got a good heart, though, as well as a good head on her shoulders. Tucker was a roughneck until she graduated from college, and I think it took her a year after graduation to get all the oil from under her fingernails. Then she alternated between the office with Jim Bob and Bart and being a d
riller on their first deepwater rig. Tucker is badass and she’s got the business in her blood.”
“And Jim Bob’s kids?” Her exhaustion seemed to disappear with this live version of a soap opera.
“They’re the generation we like to call genetically lucky. The boss didn’t make them work for it, even though they’re only about five years younger than Tucker.” Trout sounded like a man who had no patience for anyone who didn’t know what getting their hands dirty was. “If there’s a job that’ll let you goof off all day, they’d be good candidates. In the end their main career path was to become heirs.”
“I’m glad it’ll be Tucker running the show then.” She wondered if she’d be able to get Tucker on the phone. Now the comment about Tucker not having to do anything about the contract with Suntrust made sense. “Nice talking to you, fellas.”
“Hold on there,” Trout said, sounding like an old cowboy. “We dished like some old hens at a beauty parlor. Tell us what you meant by changes to Apache Delta.”
Trout and the quiet guy appeared old enough to know Big Earl, and she really didn’t need this to come back and chew her left ass cheek off, but she didn’t want to blow them off, either. “I met with Tucker when my team’s design was done, and she wanted changes to strengthen the structure, but TPT Construction did away with those and then some. I didn’t agree, and I didn’t want to be part of the project going forward, so I quit.”
“Have you told Tucker that?” Jerry asked.
“I did, but it won’t hurt to remind her. You guys might want to mention it again if you talk to her.” She stood, needing some time to think, but Trout stood along with her.
“You actually quit because of that?”
If she was wrong, and Fish Guy was a fan of Big Earl’s, she’d screwed up royally. “I quit for the same reasons you’re stuck on Stella III for the next week. Sometimes change is good, like letting women vote, but sometimes it’s bad, like watching people die because you want to save money.” Hell, if she was going to screw up, she might as well make it a spectacular show so Mann would get his money’s worth.
“Feisty, aren’t you?” Trout stopped laughing when she glared at him. “I’m stuck out here for longer than a week because of jumbo shrimp Earl, but how about you give me your number?”
“I haven’t been out here so long that I’m taking propositions, even though you’re kind of cute,” she said, and Trout actually blushed, making Jerry laugh hysterically.
“Behave, young lady, I’ve got daughters your age. What I meant was when I’m done, I’ll call you and talk to you about joining my team. We take our commitment to sending everyone home in the same shape they arrive dead serious, and money can’t buy that back if we fuck it up. We could use someone with a brain and a conscience.”
“You know I’m an engineer, right? I’m not an assistant or flunky.”
“I’ve got an assistant, thank you, and these two bozos are my flunkies. I’m older, not stupid. If you come work for me, I can promise the money will be more than what Mann’s giving you. He isn’t as evolved as we are, so I wouldn’t bring up that letting women vote thing being a good idea. You might find yourself with a mop in your hand.”
“I’ll remember that, thank you, and I’ll be happy to talk to you about what comes next.” Could it be that easy? Could she just walk into a job with people who actually cared about what they did? The thought was buoying.
“I’m willing to gamble if you are,” Trout said, holding his hand out again.
“What do you mean?” She took his hand, liking this guy.
“You call in your resignation and come with us to Stella once that monsoon out there clears up, and I’ll hire you right now.”
“That’s flattering.” It really was, but she wasn’t raised to do something like that. She’d made a commitment, although a sucky one, and she’d see it through. “But that wouldn’t be right. If you don’t mind waiting, I’ll take you up on your offer when I’m done with what I’m out here to do. I see my commitments through.”
“The job’s yours if you want it, and believe me, I’m never this rash, but you look like someone who’ll do a good job for us. That you’re not jumping on board means you’re the kind of person I want working for me.”
The opportunity was a good one, and this was usually how people got hired to companies at this level. It wasn’t some long thought-out process, but a who-you-know situation, and the fact that she knew Tucker might’ve had some bearing on his decision to bypass the normal channels.
“Thanks, Trout.” Maybe this was the best way to make it up to Tucker and get them back on the road to friendship, and if their friendship came with benefits, who was she to argue? “Let me know if I can get you anything until the storm clears.”
“After you take a nap, you can review these plans with us,” Jerry said.
“Sure, but let me get some beauty sleep.” She waved and headed for her windowless room, wondering why the hell she didn’t have Tucker’s cell number. Though, this might be short-lived if she was lying about starting over. It was a gamble. The thought of ending up a ditchdigger was starting to seem like more of a reality if she quit one job only to get physically booted out of another because Tucker hadn’t fully forgiven her.
Chapter Twelve
“Are you sure you want to take this on yourself?” Jefferson asked two weeks later. “Why not let legal take care of it? It’s your call since you’re the big kahuna, but I’m not sure Big Earl isn’t a big nutjob.”
“That was a really repetitive sentence, and please don’t give me a nickname with big in it. I really want to see his face when we hand over the termination papers. The thought of him rupturing something and Mann having diarrhea for months to come just makes me laugh,” she said in a sing-song voice. “From what my friend in the Lone Star State tells me, they poured some serious cash into the project, and they’re blowing twenty-four seven.”
“You think they’ll come back on Bubba?”
“Bubba isn’t my problem.” She stood when Monique came in with Grady. “But this little guy is.” She loved how Grady kicked and gurgled happily in Monique’s arms when he saw her, lunging toward Tucker when he was close enough for her to catch him. “Hey, my friend, you sure you’re up for dinner? I don’t want to sound like an ass, but you look beat.”
“Would you mind terribly if we didn’t go out?” Monique’s relief was plain and Tucker nodded.
“How about you go home, put on something comfortable, and I’ll stop and pick up your favorite.” She kissed Grady before handing him back over. “I’ll take over bath time and give you a break.”
“You’re a saint. See you in a bit. Do you need anything else, Jefferson?” Jefferson shook his head and touched Grady’s head.
Monique left and Tucker faced Jefferson, who was scratching the side of his mouth like he was contemplating what he wanted to say in a way that wouldn’t make her punch him. “Please tell me you’re not interested in Monique,” he finally said.
“Sexually, you mean?”
Jefferson nodded. “From what she said, you’ve been spending a lot of time with them.”
“Jefferson, you really need to consider medication with regular electric shock treatments if you think that. It’s not like Monique is on some quest to see all the Delacroix siblings naked.” She flicked him on the forehead hard enough to make his eyes water as he batted away her hand. “Weren’t you the one who told me to do the right thing? In case you missed it, I’m doing the right thing.”
“Okay, okay, it’s just that she’s really sweet and I don’t want her to go through any more pain.”
“Believe me, I’m not into Jim Bob’s girl. I only want to get to know my nephew and take care of his mother. I think that’s what my brother would’ve wanted and expected of me.”
Jefferson went from scratching his face to humming, and she thought he really needed to work on his ticks. He had to learn to bounce his leg nervously like a normal person so he wouldn’t lo
ok so obvious.
“Don’t lead her on, okay?”
“I’m not that irresistible, no matter what my mother says in her quest to marry me off. She’s straight, and I’m her sister-in-law. That’s all there is to it.” Her cell rang and it was Syd. “Hello, beautiful.”
“I hate to bother you even though you give the best compliments. Mr. Mann is here and really needs to talk to you. He’s been here thirty minutes and he said he’s not leaving until you get back.” Syd’s voice got lower, as if he was there listening in.
“Did he bring his bunny slippers? I’m not coming back. I’ve got a platonic date that I’m not changing, so tell him to make an appointment, preferably for the day after I retire. We have nothing to talk about, just like we’ve had nothing to talk about since my press conference.”
“He’s not budging, Tuck.”
“Put your foot down and tell him to go. If that doesn’t work, put security’s foot up his ass and boot him to the curb.” She hung up and glanced at Jefferson. “You’re right. The termination is a job for legal.”
“What changed your mind?”
“Life is too short to waste on assholes. I have firsthand experience with that, and if I had to lose my best friend, then I need to find something else to be happy about. That little boy is a good reason to smile, and Mann and Big Earl can kiss my ass.”
“Good, and I was worried about you too.” Jefferson shook her hand before putting his arms around her. “And I know Jimbo’s proud that you’re taking care of his son and the woman he loved. Monique and that little boy deserve to have a chance.”
“Thanks, buddy, but I’m not forgetting you thought I was on the hunt. Aside from the major ew factor, I’m not that much of an asshole. I still love you, though.”
She stopped at the sushi place Monique liked and picked up a variety of options, wanting to get to her house with enough time to really enjoy Grady. This was a new experience, but she was starting to understand why her brother loved children, and it saddened her that Grady would miss out on Jim Bob’s big giving heart. The sight of Monique and Grady sitting on the porch swing lightened her soul, and she hurried to get out of the car.
