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“The whole family has said something.” Dreyden was quiet for a moment. “If it’s that noticeable, then I guess it’s time for a checkup, at least.”
“Make the call to the doctor’s office.”
“Enough about me,” Dreyden said as he settled back in his chair. “Let’s talk about you. How was your first week on the job?”
Kellen shrugged in nonchalance. “It was okay. I spent most of the day in technical workshops and the rest getting familiar with some of our current projects. I haven’t been able to touch anything yet.”
“So what do you think of the new Special Projects Director?”
“When did you find out that Addison was getting the position?” Kellen asked.
“I think Ari may have mentioned it a couple of weeks ago.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Dad didn’t want us to say anything,” Dreyden responded. “He wanted to be the one to discuss it with you.”
Kellen gave a short laugh. “There was no discussion. Dad straight out told me that he had given the job away. He didn’t think that I could handle the position.”
Dreyden took a long drink of his bottled water. “You’re still upset with him, I see.”
Shrugging in nonchalance, Kellen responded, “I don’t agree with his decision, and I never will.”
“Dad wasn’t trying to hurt you.”
“That may not have been his intention, but he did,” he stated. “He clearly has no faith in my abilities.”
“You’re taking this the wrong way.”
“I don’t know any other way to take it, Dreyden. Dad didn’t even consider giving me a chance to prove myself. He just gave the position to someone else.”
“Kellen, do you honestly think that you could have gone to another company and walked into a director position with no experience?”
“I’m really tired of hearing that. Maybe I should put some feelers out there and see,” he countered.
Dreyden scratched his arm before folding them both across his chest. “Maybe you should. Who knows...it may work out for you.”
Kellen eyed his brother for a brief moment, noting the way he was scratching his skin.
“Dad would probably see it as a betrayal of some sort.”
“No, I’m pretty sure he would understand,” Dreyden uttered. “Dad has always allowed us to make our own choices. You’re free to do whatever you want.”
“I don’t know what to do,” Kellen said with a sigh of frustration.
“I would give the job six months,” Dreyden stated. “If you still feel the same way, then start sending out your résumé.”
He nodded in approval. “I can do that.”
“I think I need to change the soap I’m using or something. My skin is dry and itchy.”
Kellen chuckled. “I’ve told you about buying that cheap stuff. You need to stop being so frugal.”
“And you need to start putting away some money for the future,” Dreyden advised. “God bless the child that’s got his own.”
“You don’t have to worry about me, big brother. You, Blaze and Ari have been good role models for me. I’ve learned from all of your mistakes.”
“But have you learned from your own?”
Kellen laughed. “The jury’s still out on that.”
* * *
“Charles will provide leadership for all team members throughout the life of this project to ensure continuity, meaningful collaboration and clear communication,” Addison stated Monday afternoon. “Kellen, I would like for you to shadow the team.”
He gave a slight nod, but did not respond otherwise.
Kellen had been with the company for almost three weeks now and hadn’t been able to touch a project. She could tell that he wasn’t happy with her decision, but this project was too important to the company—Addison was not willing to risk placing a novice on something like this.
After the other employees left the room, she said, “I get the feeling that you’re upset about my decision to just let you shadow the team.”
“I’m here to work. All I’ve been doing since training ended is shadowing this person and that person.”
“I understand that you’re ready to jump in and get to work, however, you need to observe a few projects first.”
“You saw my portfolio,” Kellen uttered with a hint of arrogance. “You know what I can do. Is all this necessary? Why can’t I learn by actually working on something?”
“This is a major project...”
“Oh, I get it,” he responded. “You’re afraid I’ll make a mistake and it’ll reflect badly on you. This is about you.”
She responded coolly, “This isn’t about me at all.”
“You don’t have to worry about me tarnishing your sterling reputation, Addison. I’ll shadow the team as you decided, but I’m not about to let you think I’m okay with it.”
Addison sat there, her cheeks on fire but trying desperately to appear calm, refusing to let Kellen see just how upset she was. “Kellen, I shadowed for a month before I was given a small project to work on. Just be patient.”
“I hope you don’t plan on having me shadow for a month.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “Actually, I was thinking it might be a good idea.”
“You can’t be serious.”
Addison met his gaze. “I am very serious about this, Kellen. Let me be clear. I’m not going to let you touch anything until I know that you’re ready.”
“I hear you, boss,” he uttered before walking away.
She could not believe his gall. If she’d been a man, there was no way that Kellen would talk to her this way. Clearly, he didn’t like having a female in charge. Some men believed that female managers were emotional and leadership-ability lacking. She knew that some of her male employees felt that way. Well, she wasn’t going anywhere. Addison led her teams with a firm hand, while being open to their thoughts and opinions.
In a way, Addison understood Kellen’s desire to get to work. She had been the same when she started, but not as arrogant. He had a lot to learn about the specific technical parts of the job—things he wouldn’t have learned in school. Kellen was very talented and he was intelligent. Still, there was so much he had to learn about his job.
* * *
Kellen sighed in frustration as he made his way home. Addison was just as bad as his father. Apparently, neither one of them had any faith in his skills. He’d spent the rest of his day at the office sitting in a conference room listening as a team of engineers discussed a project he wanted in on. It had been a struggle for him to just sit there quietly and contribute nothing.
At home, Kellen changed into a pair of sweats and a T-shirt. He needed to work out some of his aggravation.
“I suppose you’re still angry with me,” Malcolm said when he entered the exercise room.
Kellen shook his head. “I’m not angry, Dad. I’m just really disappointed with the way things turned out.”
“I understand that. Do you want to talk about it?”
“It won’t change anything,” he responded. “So there’s really nothing for us to discuss.”
“Your mother made roast chicken for dinner,” Malcolm announced. “Will you be joining us?”
“I’m going to have dinner out, but I won’t be out late,” Kellen answered. “I’m in the mood for Italian.”
Malcolm stood in his path. “Son, I don’t like this distance between us. I’m sorry that you’re so disappointed and upset. It’s not what I wanted for you.”
“How did you expect me to feel, Dad?” he questioned, meeting his gaze.
“I knew that you would be disappointed, Kellen. It just didn’t occur to me just how much you wanted the position, but even if it had—I stand by my decision.”
“Dad, I accepted the position offered to me and I’m grateful to have a job, period. I know that you believe this is the best career path for me, but I don’t agree.”
“You’re right. I do believe this is the best career path for you,” Malcolm responded. “In time, you will feel the same way.”
Kellen smiled. “We’ll see, Dad.”
“Why don’t you stay and have dinner with us? Your mother would love to spend some time with you.”
“What about you?”
“I would like that, as well.”
“I’d like that, too,” Kellen confessed. He was tired of being angry and he hated the distance between them. It was time to accept what he could not change and just move on.
Chapter 4
Kellen shifted in his seat to keep from falling asleep. The person he was shadowing talked in a monotone voice, which was boring him senseless. He rose to his feet. “I’ll be right back.”
He made his way to the break room. Hopefully, moving around a bit could wake him up some. It was nearly the end of August, and he was still taking workshops, working on mock projects and shadowing others. He was ready and anxious to work on real projects.
“Kellen?”
He turned around to find Addison standing in the doorway.
“Taking a break?” she inquired.
“Yes, I needed one.” Despite his frustration with her, Kellen felt an invisible thread pulling them together. When he looked in her dark brown eyes and downward to her perfectly shaped lips, he felt the urge to taste them.
“Are you okay?” she inquired.
Kellen nodded. “I just came in here to get some water, but I’m glad you’re here. Addison, I was thinking about something while observing Josie. That new civic center is a gem of a project. What it needs is a high-profile, progressive design that will enhance its reputation, such as building it on the waterfront.”
“That was the original idea, but it means pier drilling and extensive foundation work. ADDG would have to foot the bills for this until the first payment comes in after the end of stage one. This job’s too big for us, Kellen.”
“Addison, you’re thinking too small.”
“I’m thinking within our means,” she countered. “Thanks to your father, this company has never experienced any cash-flow problems. I definitely don’t intend to accrue any on my watch.”
“We’re on solid financial footing, which means we could expand. If the city wants the center on the beach, then we should give them what they want,” Kellen argued.
“We would need at least fifteen million dollars in reserve in order to do that. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a good idea,” she said, “but it wouldn’t be feasible for several reasons. One being that it would be much too expensive, and another is that your father would never give us his approval.”
“I could talk to him,” Kellen offered.
Addison shook her head. “I’m saying no to the idea.”
Her tone was firm and final.
Irked, he stalked out of the break room, heading back to observe his coworker.
She is going to be a problem, Kellen decided. He didn’t fully understand why his father had so much faith in her. Surely, he wasn’t swayed by her beauty.
A thread of shame snaked down his spine. He knew his father would never hire someone who was unqualified. Even so, he included Kellen in the group of unqualified individuals.
He had accepted his fate, but now he had to deal with Addison. He couldn’t help but wonder if she felt threatened by him.
After all, he was an Alexander.
Addison was still heavy on Kellen’s mind by the time he made it home. He put forth a valiant effort to put her out of his thoughts, but it proved harder than he thought.
* * *
After work, Addison met Tia at the La Serenata de Garibaldi located on East First Street for dinner.
“I love this place,” she said, sliding into a booth near the window. “It’s one of my favorite restaurants.”
“The food here is great,” Tia responded. “Especially the Callos de Hacha a la Plancha.”
The grilled scallops topped with mushrooms, peppers and onions were a good choice for appetizer. “I think I’ll have that, too, for starters. For my main entrée, I’ll get the fish enchiladas in green chile sauce,” Addison stated with a smile. “This is the perfect way to end a busy workday.”
“Hey, isn’t that your handsome employee over there?”
Addison stole a peek over her shoulder.
