“He could have done it. You don’t know who he is now, you said so yourself” Trevor said, trying to control his rising anger.
“Actually I said he was an old friend, which doesn’t imply anything but…”she paused to take a breath and said, “I guess you’re right it has been awhile but I still say he didn’t do it.” Elle almost sounded defeated thanks to her admission. To cover she asked him, “Do you want to know my name?”
He couldn’t believe she backed down that quickly, he expected more of a fight. “Yes, I want to know the name you came up with.”
She said, “You probably won’t like my name either, but remember you suggested an old friend of mine.” She hoped the warning would keep things civil. He just sat there staring; waiting for her to tell him who she thought may have done this.
“Becky Nobel.”
Trevor sighed and narrowed his eyes slightly. “What?! She wouldn’t do anything to hurt the company or me; she’s been with me since the beginning. I’ll reserve judgment until we know for sure but these people are like a second family to me.”
“Fair enough.”
“Glad you think so,” he said with a tinge of hostility in his voice.
Elle ignored his tone and said, “I have another question. Does each team have a specific area or zone for jobs that you send them to? Could one team be jealous of the quality of jobs another team is getting?”
“No, I change it up so each team is at a different location. The size and scope of jobs determines their pay so I make sure everyone gets a variety. They’re never in the same spot or area more than a few days.”
“Why don’t we take a break for a few minutes, cool down and get clear heads, before we trade stacks and go through them?” Trevor suggested leaning back in his chair.
“Okay we can do that, but just a few minutes then we get back to this.” Elle said as she leaned back in the chair stretching her back and drawing Trevor’s gaze. She was elated he wanted to talk about something other than business, even though she was coming across like a complete hard-ass. Small talk would ease some of the tension that had built up hopefully. “How did you come up with the name C & C landscaping?”
“Wondering where the second C came from?” Trevor said with a small smile.
“I was curious about it, since it seems like you’re the only one running this place.”
“When I decided I wanted to start a landscaping business I had a partner and both of our last names started with C so that’s what we went with. But then right before the business launched he backed out and at that point it would’ve been too much to change the name. Before you ask no his name isn’t on any of the documents to this place, I did make sure of that so he can’t be trying to get a share of the profits or ruin anything. It was all done legally and above board; we’re still friends and talk occasionally. He started his own architectural firm in the city soon after this place was up and running.”
“Oh okay, that answers what would’ve been my next question.”
“I’m glad I kept the name because Jake’s last name is Conners and he has some interest in the business. I wouldn’t mind if he wanted to buy in and help run the place one of these days. I could use the help.”
“That’s pretty incredible you know, having your friend here with you.” Elle said smiling as she finished writing some notes down. “I have another question; do you run background checks on your employees?”
“I’ll answer that but then we go back to taking that ‘break’ we haven’t actually taken. Yes I do and if something pops up, I don’t hire them. Now, how about this weather?”
He couldn’t believe he just brought up the weather but hey it was a start to normal conversation that didn’t include work, even it was ridiculous to talk about.
She wrote down something in her notebook then looked up at him and answered. “The weather has been amazing, I love the spring. I bet you love it; I would imagine it’s increased business. Wait, should I not say that since it violates the rules of our ‘break from work talk’.” Then she laughed.
“Of course we can talk about it, I also love the spring because it’s the best weather for running. But you’re right it’s never bad for the landscaping business when the spring officially rolls in. Winter can be slower around here. Spring starts our busy time. So how did you end up with your own business?” Trevor asked, turning the tables on her.
“Well I got my first job right out of college in HR and liked the work but not the job so I quit. I got a PR internship that was part time and worked another part-time job at a place I’d worked at in college. I decided a company that did both, HR and PR, would be the best place to work but there weren’t any around. I made up my mind to start a company that did both, so I talked to people I knew from both fields, they helped me out, I landed a few clients and here I am. Of course I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for my best friend and business partner Taylor, she helped me start the company. Even though when we started we were both still working other places we put in the hours to make it work and it paid off. It’s not the most exciting story but it landed me here and I’m happy with what I’m doing so that’s the best to me. I have my best friend working with me, some college students and a few other people who do freelance work in HR and PR.”
“How about you, how did you come to own a landscaping business?”
“Your story is yours and it’s a good one, you do what you love, what’s more important than that…?Good for you.” He added with a wink.
He continued, “After high school I knew college wasn’t for me and I wasn’t really sure what to do, it was either the military or finding something that paid my bills. My friend Jake went into the Air Force because he had wanted to for years but I wasn’t sure if the military was the right fit for me so I ended up getting a job landscaping. The boss liked me and sent me on jobs alone after only a few months. I decided to go freelance after a little while and I built some clients and started working steadily and the more work I got the more I realized it was time for me to try my own business, now I’m here. I have to say I love it now but I wouldn’t say I loved landscaping ten years ago.”
“Well that’s a good ending, I’m glad it all worked out for you.”
Elle looked around at the pictures on the bookshelves in his office. She knew she was being nosy but was curious, “Nice pictures, who are those people with you?” After a few beats with no answer she said, “Wait never mind you don’t have to answer that, I was being nosey.” She felt her cheeks turn red but still got up to get a closer look at the pictures.
He smiled at her flushed cheeks and her quickness to say, “Never mind” to her own question. He looked at the pictures, “Its fine, you’re not being nosy. Although, you seemed pretty pissed before when I asked you about your relationship with Rob.” He knew he shouldn’t have brought that up but had to say it, even though he was joking... sort of.
“The picture you’re pointing to is me with my two brothers and sister a few months ago at a family dinner. The next one is us when we were kids at my grandparents’ house in Springside where I grew up and the last one is me with some of my friends at my friend Sam’s wedding last year.” He smiled again at the memories of going to his grandparents when he was a kid; he grew up in Springside, which was two towns over from Creekside. He told Elle that his grandparents had lived close when he was growing up so he could visit whenever he wanted to, especially if he needed a break from his brothers and sister.
Elle looked at the pictures again and asked, “Are you close to your siblings? I have a younger brother.” She got up to get a closer look at the photos.
“We are close which is good sometimes but sometimes not, you know how it is with siblings.”
“Are you the oldest or the youngest?” Elle looked at the wedding picture longingly, “You and your friends look close still. That’s nice it doesn’t usually stay that way the older we get, well with my friends anyway, some of us are still close but others just drifted.” Sh
e turned and looked at him, “but we weren’t talking about me and my friends.” She said smiling and playing with her watch nervously.
“My brothers are older and my sister is younger. That’s the same group of friends I’ve had since high school and yeah we are still close. Are you close with your brother?” he asked.
“Siblings can be tough to handle but amazing all at the same time, unless you understand that it seems like the craziest thing. We’re pretty close now, we weren’t too close growing up but the past few years we’ve become a lot closer. What’s it like having a big family?”
He laughed, “It’s crazy and loud but nice to know there will be someone who has your back no matter what.” Trevor said with contentment in his eyes.
Ringing interrupted them and made them look at their phones. “It’s mine; sorry I have to take this.” Elle said as she answered her phone. He took a sip of his coffee and waited for her to get done with the phone call.
When she hung up she looked over at Trevor with a look of disappointment, “I’m sorry I have to go, my friend Taylor was on her way to meet a client and got a flat tire, I have to pick her up and take her to the appointment, then go wait for the tire to be fixed. I’m sorry to run out like this.”
“Oh okay, yeah that’s fine. Good luck with the meeting and the tire.” Trevor winked, he felt himself flirting with her but he couldn’t stop. She didn’t recoil, just smiled and then looked down quickly; so cute. His heart lifted just a little.
Elle still smiling asked, “Would it be okay if I took your stack of files to look over, I’ll bring them back tomorrow?”
“Yeah sure that’s fine and I’ll go over the ones you had too. See you tomorrow.” He said as she was gathering her stuff into her bag.
“Okay, I’ll be here the same time as today. And thanks for letting me take these,” she held up the files in her hand. “I’ll look them over tonight.” She said as she walked out of his office.
As he watched her leave he stood there in disbelief over what just happened, all of it. They were talking and getting along and it felt pretty damn good, even if it was brief. He was annoyed she had to run out when they were starting to get personal, but also because he still didn’t have any answers to his problem. It was the first day but he was hoping for something. He also understood her reaction when he mentioned Rob’s name because he probably would have reacted the same way if it were one of his friends too.
Elle drove to pick up Taylor unsure of what she was feeling. She was giddy like a little kid on Christmas because she and Trevor were getting along and talking, but apprehensive about what it all meant. She hoped for more, but his employees’ comment about Trevor’s love life kept running through her mind; “love ‘em and leave ‘em”. She couldn’t believe the timing of Taylor’s flat tire but she was her best friend and she had to help her. Maybe tomorrow would be different for her and Trevor like it was today. Now that idea gave her hope.
he next few days Elle only saw Trevor in small snippets because he was booked solid with appointments for jobs; springtime was one of his busiest times. So she worked by herself but did see that Trevor had looked over her stack and either begrudgingly or grudgingly, depending on your point of view, agreed Becky looked like a possible ‘suspect’. She was reassured that he wrote it down and that his notes matched those she took when reading Becky’s file. She looked over his stack and also matched her notes with his, she also reluctantly agreed with his suspicions about Rob. Elle was glad they had people to look into and things were moving along so they could figure out what was going on and who was behind it, but she was also disappointed that Trevor wasn’t there; it had been a productive day Monday until she had to abruptly leave to deal with Taylor’s tire and afterwards an unhappy client that showed up unannounced at her office. Oh well, I guess there’s always tomorrow she thought, which also happened to be her weekly Thursday night girls’ dinner with Taylor. That’s when her phone chimed, with a text from Taylor; her ears must have been ringing. Taylor texted to suggest they make their Thursday night dinner quick, and not their usual “Sunday dinner”. They usually had dinner, drinks, dessert, and just talked or watched one of their favorite shows or a movie. Taylor said for a change they could go out for drinks at McDuckers after dinner. She made sure to add, “It will be different…we’re too young to get stuck in a rut, it’ll be fun!” Elle agreed and texted back, “Okay sounds good”.
Trevor was on his way from one meeting to the next, and he had a moment to take a breath and think about the last week. All this running from job to job was of course good for business but it meant two things. One that he was constantly in a rush and on the road and two that he didn’t get to see Elle. He was bummed to say the least. As he pulled in front of his next client’s house his phone buzzed, it was a text from Jake. Jake was asking him to go out again for drinks with the guys Thursday night. Trevor thought about how much fun last week had been just to hang out and drink a few beers with his friends, he wrote back, “Okay sounds good, what time?” Trevor surprised himself by agreeing to go again but he decided he would be done by 5:00 or 6:00 and that he was having such a good week, he had something to celebrate. Between business booming, he and Elle getting along, and making headway on the whole business debacle he felt pretty damn good.
Thursday morning rolled around and Trevor got a call from a longtime and loyal client that needed his help right away on a tree, which had lost some large limbs. He wanted to try saving it, which meant he would be gone probably most of the morning if not the entire day so he wouldn’t see Elle yet again. He pulled out his phone and texted her to say that he wouldn’t make it this morning due to a last minute emergency. At least he had tonight with his friends to look forward to he thought as he walked out of his house.
Elle missed seeing Trevor at his office, they had been working together for a week already and even though he wasn’t there a lot it wasn’t going too bad she thought to herself. He did text her to say he wouldn’t be coming in so she was a little bummed; she missed his company. She was able to go through the client files, bills, and the sales orders for clients, whose projects had been affected by the schedule changes. She checked to see how long they’ve been customers, what teams worked on their projects…more stuff like that. She didn’t find anything that stood out. The one thing Elle did find was an open sales order, which showed a client being charged for something other than what the notes and invoice said the project was billed for. She would have to look further into that one and see if there were other sales orders and invoices that didn’t match. It wasn’t a smoking gun but it was something to go on. She made copies of the relevant documents to take with her so she could go through everything with a fine-toothed comb. She would need to go over this new information with Trevor and see if he had any input since he left her the files but she wasn’t sure he’d gotten a chance to go through them, he’d been so busy. She finished up what she needed at his office for the day and headed for her car. On her way out she saw Trevor getting out of his truck and walking towards her.
“Hey, how are you? Sorry I wasn’t here much this past week.” He said. He was glad he was able to catch her; because he was annoyed he hadn’t been there all morning, even if the reason was business. It shocked the hell out him, because he never thought that way, his business was what he did and had always come first, it was like a part of him.
“I’m good, I’m done here for now and headed back to my office. How are you? It was a lot different without your help, quieter too.” She said jokingly behind a huge grin.
He laughed then said, “Thanks, I think. I’m good. Busy day ahead of you, today?”
“Pretty busy but that’s always good and then dinner with my friend later. How about your day?” She asked.
Trevor wanted to ask who the friend was…could it be Rob? The fact that he wanted to know so bad bothered him. He hated feeling jealous, especially over someone he wasn’t even in a relationship with!
He just smiled and
said, “I’m going out for a beer with some of the guys later on.”
“Well I hope you have a good time. I better get going; I’ll see you Monday since I have that meeting tomorrow and I probably won’t make it here. Have a good weekend.”
“No problem, thanks you have a good time too. I’ll see you then.” He said and headed towards the building; she got to her car and headed off to her office. The nagging curiosity in Trevor bugged him, he decided to put it out of his head, he felt ridiculous about it anyway.
After finishing dinner Taylor and Elle were heading to McDucker’s, it was close and in town. As they walked to Taylor’s car she turned to Elle and said, “I hope we meet some hot men there.”
Elle just laughed and said, “Yeah, maybe we will.”
McDucker’s was a local bar that had been around for at least forty years and was still run by the same guy, Bob McDucker who was probably in his mid-60’s by now. It was a small place but inside it had a big stage for live music, it was off main-street but everyone knew about it so there was usually a crowd. There was a large covered patio out back and when the weather was nice the bands played out there. They had high-top tables around the room and in the back near the pool tables, then lower tables were scattered across the rest of the bar. This was the most popular local bar; at some point almost everyone seemed to end up there.
Trevor heard from Jake on his way home, his friends wanted to try a new bar called Bernie’s that was over in, Bidville, just past the Creekside town limits. Then as he was heading to Bernie’s he got another message, they decided just to go to McDucker’s again. Trevor just shook his head, did a U-turn and headed back into town.
My Missing Puzzle Piece (Creekside Falls #1) Page 4
