Wesley: Bishop’s Snowy Leap – Paranormal Tiger Shifter Romance (Bishop's Snowy Leap Book 3)

by Kathi S. Barton

  “She wants to buy up my company and disband it.” She looked at Holly, who explained. “That’s what they’re saying now. That they have no intentions of selling it off in pieces, but I know better. I’ve been around a lot longer than she has.”

  “Hello, Penny. Mr. Holland isn’t going to meet payroll this week. He was only able to pay everyone last week because a large order was put into his company for one of the other ten products they make for her. But now that he’s paid his people, there isn’t any money for him to buy the product needed to make the order.” She asked Raven, who was explaining all this if she was going to keep the business open. “Most of it, yes. But there are parts of this company that haven’t shown a profit in over twenty years. Twenty years of draining the company of funds trying to make it sell. One product, in particular, is going to have to be cut out altogether. There isn’t any retooling it at this point. He started making and selling it because his wife thought it would be a good seller. It wasn’t. It never will be either. No one has any use for a device to play music when everyone and their brother has a cell phone.”

  “Okay.” She turned to Mr. Holland. “You’re an idiot. If I didn’t know for a fact that hitting you over the head would only hurt my hand, that is what I’d do. Why are you even worrying about what she’s going to do with your company after you sell it to her? How much are you going to be making anyway?”

  He told her. “It’s not the money.” She said it sure as shit would be if it was hers. “I don’t want to sell. Don’t you women understand? This has been my company since I started out buying and selling before you were born.”

  “You’re really stuck on age differences, aren’t you? Whatever. Mr. Holland, how about she leaves the music player to you to run, and she takes the rest of the company from you to make it work?” He looked at Raven, and she did as well. “It’s the only holdup, right? This dumbass idea he has that this thing will be a moneymaker?”

  “Yes. It’s the only sticking point we’ve run into. It’s not ever going to show a profit. Not in this century or the ones to come.” She turned back to Mr. Holland, but Raven spoke again. “If he takes this deal, where he runs the music part, it will be up to him to pay their payroll and buy materials for the part I’m not taking to work. I’m not going to be responsible for a product I won’t own.”

  “You down with that, Mr. Holland?’ He said he most certainly was not. How was he supposed to pay everyone if she took the profit-making part of his business? “I don’t know. But you really should think about what you said. The music thing isn’t making any money. But hey, that’s not up to me. Okay, then I’ll talk to Raven, and I’ll convince her to walk away.”

  “Good. The sooner you’re gone, the better things will be for me.” Penny started away, Raven glaring at her from the table where she and her grandmother were sitting when she turned back to Mr. Holland. “I’m not going to change my mind. What is it now?”

  “Call your wife, Mr. Holland.” He asked her why. “You tell her you’re going to receive seventy million dollars today for your entire company, and you get to walk away. Or you can tell her that you’re not going to be able to go on vacation next year or whenever, no more trips overseas, because you’re now stuck with a dying company, one that you’ve not been able to show a profit for in more time than I’ve been alive. See how I worked that in there? I can see that you enjoy traveling by the pictures on the wall. You tell her that you’re going to make considerably less than the seventy million—nothing, as a matter of fact—that was offered because of the thing she wanted you to sell. Not only that, but you also have no capital, no payroll money, nor do you have your pension. Because if Raven and her grandma walk away from this, which is what I’m going to suggest they do, then you’re going to prison. Not paying people for the work they’re doing for you is a thing that will land you in prison faster than it would if you murdered someone.”

  “You’re blackmailing me. Is that how you do business, young lady? I won’t have it.” She asked him again to call his wife. “I will, but I know what she’s going to say. She’s going to tell me to stick to my guns, and we’ll make it work out some way or another.”

  While he called his wife, putting it on speakerphone for all to hear her turn down the money too, Raven smiled at her. “You make this work, and I will give you a bonus so large that you’ll never be able to spend it all.”

  “I don’t care about that. I’m here to hurry this meeting along so I can beat the shit out of you.” Holly laughed as she sat down at the table again. “What the hell gave you the right to buy me all that crap without asking?”

  “Would you have allowed me to do it if I had asked?” She said no. That she was standing on her own two feet. “You mean like Mr. Holland here is? I bought it because I see something in this that you might not just yet. You’re selling all over the world, making a good but not fantastic profit, but you could be doing much better. You’re very talented, Penny.”

  “I’m happy with making what I am.” Raven just stared at her. “All right. I have wanted to branch out for some years now. But I don’t have the start-up.”

  “You do now.”

  They both turned to the phone when Mrs. Holland answered. Penny hoped she didn’t just fuck things up for Raven because she’d been pissed. Mr. Holland explained in great detail what was going on with his business.

  “So, let me see if I have this right, all right, Herby?” He told her she was on speakerphone. “Good. When you hang up from this call, I hope you realize how smart you were for calling me. I love that you still think of me as a partner in our business deals as much as we are in life. I know this company is all yours, but if you walk away from the deal that makes us seventy million dollars, I will never speak to you again. We’re not getting any younger, Herby. We don’t have a lot of debt right now, and that feels good. But we could be doing so much more, don’t you think? We could help our children buy new homes. Help our grandchildren with college. Go on those trips like we used to before the company took over your life. How many times have I told you I just want you home every night? More than I can count. Herby, you’d be a fool if you didn’t take this deal from Mrs. Bishop. And I know for a fact that I didn’t fall in love with a fool.” He told her how the player he was working on would be finished. “It’s just one item, Herby. A single thing that I happened to mention I missed. I’ve seen the paperwork. I know it’s pulling down the entire company. Sell it before it’s taken from you. Or worse yet, all this takes you away from me. Please. I want to see the world with you, right by my side.”

  Half an hour later, the deal was finished. Not only did Raven pay off the payroll before leaving, but Mr. Holland had his money in the bank. Holly also paid for tickets for the couple to take a long cruise, her treat. Raven told Penny that she was coming to dinner with her and Grandma.

  “I have to get back there and figure out what the hell you’ve gotten me into.” Raven just moved her along until she found herself sitting in a restaurant with a glass of water in front of her. “You really do think you’re right about everything, don’t you?”

  “Yes. Most of the time, I am. I was, however, wrong about you.” Penny asked her about what. “You didn’t just close that deal for us, Penny, but you were also able to let that man save face when he thought for sure he was going to upset his wife. Without you, everyone would have been out of work in the morning. I would have shut the place down, then bought it from the bank for nearly nothing.”

  “Then why the hell were you working so hard at making him let you buy him out?” Holly answered this time. “All right, I can see that. You wanted it to be something that wouldn’t piss off everyone that worked there. You had it in the bag, Raven. Surely you know that.”

  “No, I didn’t. And as much as I’d like to have a good working relationship with people that will soon be working for me, had I had to take it from him, they would have been out of work as w
ell. It would have bothered the couple for a long time. This way, they made a good decision together. There would have been tension that didn’t need to be there, as well as a lot of disgruntled employees. That does not make for a happy work environment for anyone.” Penny was embarrassed at the praise Raven and her grandmother were giving her. “You and I, with the help of my grandma here, can do a great deal together. Also, with Dwayne coming along with what he knows about land, there won’t be anyone who can’t be sold on something we want to help them with.”

  “All I did was make him realize it was a huge decision that he shouldn’t be making on his own.” Holly told her that was sometimes all it took. “I’ll help you, but don’t think I’m not still pissed off about your purchases.”

  “I tell you what, Penny. You pay me back in whatever product you think is worth it. I think you’re underselling your items.” She said she’d discovered that as well. “Good. That means you know you have to raise prices and do it soon. We’re going to make a good team.”

  Penny didn’t know about working as a team. However, she did find herself excited to go back to her barn and start working with the few colors she’d seen in the boxes. Wondering about how much it would cost if she were to get shelves put in the place, Penny wondered if that would be a good winter job for Wesley. He said he didn’t have much to do during the downtimes.

  ~*~

  James didn’t particularly care for the way he was being treated around here. He thought that since his mother had been a long time resident, he should be treated differently. Not that he was sure how that was supposed to work for him, but people were mostly snots.

  He looked across the street to see his niece coming out of the bank that Emmie worked at. There was another snot, he thought as he crossed to see her. Penny had gotten very uppity of late. Then there was the whole thing about Mom’s will. Where did her stuff go? Who owned the house and the car she’d had? The car was wrecked up, but he thought he could get some money for it.

  “What do you want?” He told Penny that was no way to treat him. “Oh? And why is that? You just got out of jail. Do you want to go back? I will press charges, Uncle James. I’ve had about all of you that I can take.”

  “I want to know what the will said.” She asked him why as she moved down the street at a fast clip. “Slow the fuck down. Are you off to the races or something? Where is the money from my mom’s estate?”

  She stopped so suddenly he nearly knocked her to the ground. “You do remember that she was my grandmother, too? That I am your niece?” He huffed at her. “Very mature. I’m busy. Tell me what it is you think I’ve done wrong to you. Then I’ll tell you to fuck off again, and I can be left alone. Well?”

  “What the hell is up your ass?” She stopped again, and he did knock her back this time. He’d meant to do it and was disappointed she didn’t hit the ground. “Before I forget to remind you, I’ve set up a day that you and Dutch can get married. I paid for the license, so you’ll have to pay me back for that.”

  “No.” She took off at her fast pace again, and he was nearly out of breath when she had to stop at the crosswalk. James didn’t think he’d ever catch up to her if she had been able to cross where she was standing. “Why are you still following me? I have a lot to do today, and none of it includes listening to you whine about whatever you’re whining about.”

  “I should knock you on your fucking ass right now.” She lifted her chin up but moved as he swung at her. She was laughing as she crossed the street. James was still standing on the other side when the Don’t Walk sign blinked at him. He crossed anyway. It was funny to him to see cars scrambling around, trying not to hit him. “Keep it up, bitch, and you’ll be laughing out your ass.”

  People stared at him as he stepped up on the other side of the street onto the sidewalk. James was trying to keep an eye on where Penny was headed next, but he lost her when she walked into a large group of people. Damn it all to fuck and back. He didn’t get to tell her he was marrying Emmie soon too.

  The more he thought about that, the better the idea was. The four of them could live in the house that had been his mom’s. The women would go on working like they were now, and he and Dutch could make sure they never missed a sporting event. James figured that between the two of them, Penny and Emmie, there would always be something cooking in the kitchen, and the fridge would be full of beer. Just the way he liked it.

  James didn’t know shit about getting a license to get married. He’d only said that to his niece so she’d fork over some money to him. He had no idea why he thought that would work. Penny hadn’t been all that generous in a long time. In fact, now that he thought about it, he didn’t know if she even had a job.

  “She has to have one.” He crossed the street, no longer sure where she had gone. Thinking about her having to have a job got him sidetracked. Penny always seemed to have a couple of bucks on her. She also seemed to be gone a lot. Or was she only hiding from him? That was more than likely it. Penny had herself a hidey hole that he wasn’t aware of. “Well, that’s going to stop as soon as she’s married to Dutch.”

  “You talking to yourself, young man?” He thought he knew the old man sitting on the bench, but he couldn’t place him. “Who are you thinking is going to marry Dutch Donnelly? I know him, and I don’t think there is a girl around that would willingly marry him. Either of you, for that matter.”

  “You keep your opinions to yourself, old man.” The man laughed, and James told him that his niece was marrying Dutch. “And I’m going to be marrying Emmie. We’ll have a nice home in my mom’s old place and live like kings.”

  “I don’t know how to break this to you, but your niece is already set to get married.” He asked him what he was talking about. “Yes. Penny is marrying my son, Wesley. They just got to get things all set up for first thing in the morning. It’ll be the prettiest little wedding, I’m betting. I was just sitting here thinking about how lucky I am to have three of my sons getting married to the best little girls around.”

  “Why would my niece want to go and marry someone else when I told her she was marrying Dutch?” The old man, he knew he was a Bishop now, laughed at him. “What the hell do you think is so fucking funny? Now I have to go and kill her soon-to-be-dead husband so she and Dutch can get hitched. Why do women have to make things so complicated?”

  “You think you’re going to be able to take on my son? Well, you go ahead and give that a shot. Why don’t you let me call him here for you? Might be some of the best entertainment going on these days.” The man stood up and looked into the store he’d been sitting in front of. “Wesley? Come on out here, son. This man thinks he’s gotta kill you for wanting to marry his niece when he had her all set up to marry that Donnelly boy.”

  There wasn’t anyone in there. Bishop was lying to him to delay him. He didn’t know why he’d care where he was going, or for that matter what he’d been up to, but it was a delay tactic all the same. Then his niece came out of the store. Just as he was drawing back to hit her in the face, he heard a small growl.

  “You touch her, and I will tear your arm off and beat you to death with it.” The threat—and there was no doubt that was what it was—was softly spoken and full of promise. Dropping his arm back to his side, James turned to see who the hell he thought he was. “My name is Wesley Bishop. Your niece, Penny, will become my wife as soon as I can arrange it. Now, I don’t know where you get off thinking you would have any say whatsoever about who your niece marries, but she’s a grown woman. She and I are to be wed, and if you have any idea to try anything towards her, I will kill you where you stand.”

  “She’s supposed to marry Dutch. I’m going to marry Emmie, and we’ll have a nice life.” It sounded so whiney saying it like that that James felt his temper rise. “She has no right marrying someone I didn’t approve of.”

  “Why? You’re not even her father. Why would anyone care what your opi
nion is about this?” He said he was her caregiver. “At twenty-six, you think your niece is in need of a caregiver? I don’t think you’ve taken a good look at Penny lately, James. She’s an adult. I’m sure she votes and everything now.”

  “Fuck you.” Wesley laughed as he put his arm around Penny. “Get your ass home and fix some dinner for your dad and me. I’m going to be finding out about my mom’s will too. You know who got it all?”

  “I did.” He couldn’t have heard her right. “I got it all. The house—which I’m going to be redoing and renting out—and the money she had in her account. There wasn’t much, but it’ll come in handy for the repairs that need to be done. Also, her insurance money. I didn’t know she had any, but it was a nice chunk of cash.”

  “Give it to me.” She didn’t say anything, but she did laugh. “You heard me, Penny. Give me the money, and I won’t say anything about you getting the house. But I do like the idea that you’re going to fix it up. I’ll live in it until you rent it. It would be better if you didn’t try hard to rent it while I’m there. This is better.”

  He put out his hand, and she just looked at it before shaking her head. Wesley smiled at him like he knew some big secret. He more than likely did, but that didn’t mean James was going to allow Penny to have the money. Being the oldest should have made him first in line for all his mom’s things.

  “When your mother was alive, James, what did you do to make her life better?” He asked Wesley what he was talking about. “You heard me. When she was alive, how many times did you go by the house and help her out with something? Mow the yard? Did you help her clean out the gutters? Anything? Or were you, just like you are now, there with your hand out waiting for her to turn something of value over to you?”

  “What is your point?” Wesley just shrugged. “You ask that like you already know the answer. No, I didn’t help her out. I have more important things to do than to sit around her house, waiting for her to find something for me to do. Yes, she did give me money when I asked, unlike my niece here. Hand it over, Penny. I’m not fucking with you right now.”