Chapter 26: Atlanta
A/N: I’ve started a Flickr set for pictures I want to share. You’ll find it on the Pages toolbar.
Also, I use the words ‘cast’ and ‘walking boot’ interchangeably. At this point, Steph is in a ‘walking boot’, but sometimes it’s just easier to say ‘cast’.
Danny’s POV
The CO’s trip has been scheduled for a week. The entire main office building has been cleaned and inspected. Each satellite office was given the once over. The CO’s office has been completely refreshed and fresh flowers added. Bobby’s apartment was given a top to bottom clean, and Ella called to update Rose on the CO’s likes, dislikes and needs. An SUV has been set aside for her use and two men have been given ‘Bombshell Duty’. I called Hal to find out what Bombshell duty covers, and Jase and Lance are prepared, if nervous. They’ve memorized the Trenton SOPs in regards to the CO.
We’re just awaiting her arrival.
This trip is important in a lot of respects. First, this is the first time the Atlanta men will meet the new CO, and she is here to do a branch review. That’s the most important objective of this trip. We are the first office to get her attention, and the eyes of the entire company will be on us to determine what she looks for, what she overlooks, where we fail, and where we succeed.
I’m determined we will have more successes than failures.
Second, this is the first time the Atlanta network team will meet their boss and the company head of Electronics. They have completely cleaned out the rat’s nest we used to call the ‘Server Room’ in advance of his visit. They’ve attended the Microsoft SharePoint training classes, so this week will be devoted to getting the servers and environments setup for this new project. I don’t understand half of what they’re saying, but Nate is thrilled and can’t wait to get started.
Third, it’s a chance for my office to get to know the new boss. The reporting structure was sent to each XO two weeks ago for dissemination to the staff. Each man in the Atlanta office now knows the new reporting structure and understands that this woman visiting today is his true boss. She is going to be in charge of the day-to-day operation of this company. He needs to impress her.
I’ve had to stop the men from buying her flowers every day. They’re determined that she enjoy every moment of her trip here.
My Bonds Enforcement department is the most excited of all. Steph’s agreed to hold a workshop here for two days, and the men who attended in Trenton have been hyping it up to their colleagues. In the month since her workshop, we’ve gotten the capture rate up to 92%. We only have three big fish still outstanding, and we’re hoping she’ll work with us to get through those. We’re now second in the company, behind Trenton.
Mark is pissed beyond measure, but he didn’t take that workshop seriously. I did and, as an added bonus, Manny gave me tips on how to restructure my Bonds Enforcement department to make them more efficient. It was great stuff that I immediately put into practice, and I’m reaping the benefits. Atlanta’s gone from last to second. Bonuses are guaranteed this year. My men are prepared to listen to anything she says.
The Suburban containing the new CO arrives and we see Jase, Ram, and Hector exit first. The sight of their boss has silenced the network guys; in their excitement, they forgot that their boss is one of the most feared men in the company. Three of my guys exit to assist with the bags. A wheelchair is set up and the new CO is lifted from the SUV into it. She immediately begins pumping her way to the building. Finally, another woman exits the SUV. This must be the trainer, Sarah.
Ms. Plum looks spectacular. She’s dressed in what is clearly an expensive skirt suit and some great pumps. Those are pumps, right?
Rose whistles. “Jimmy Choos. Alright then, Miss Thang.”
I have no idea what that means. I open the door and am immediately surprised to find my arms full of my boss. I return the hug. Lord, she’s soft in all the right places. Cindy is getting a desperate man tonight.
“Danny! It’s great to see you. How are you?”
I grin. She’s so happy it’s hard not to love her. “I’m great, Steph! Welcome to RangeMan Atlanta. The men can’t wait to meet you, but I’d like to introduce Rose Taylor, our housekeeper. She’ll be acting as your personal assistant for the week.”
Steph waves at Rose and attempts to raise her eyebrows at me. I have to remember not to laugh. The Trenton guys have joined us and my guys have all the luggage.
“Personal assistant? I’ve never had a personal assistant. Do I need one?” She looks bewildered by the thought.
“Well, since it’s your first visit and you’re in a wheelchair, I thought you might need some assistance. Rose will work with Hector and my guys on your security detail so you don’t have to be stuck in the building. I’m sure you’ll want to get out and see the city and go shopping, especially since Hector is going to be tied up in the server room and in meetings.”
Throughout this little speech I’ve been pushing Steph across the building to the elevators. She’s craning her neck in every direction to see everything, and the men are just as eager to get a look at her; Chase came back from Trenton half in love. Now would be a great time for a burglary; I’ll bet none of my men are paying attention to their screens. “I’ll give you the grand tour later, but do you need a few minutes to relax and maybe change? Ella tells me you aren’t a fan of flying so I thought you might like a moment.”
I hear a loud exhale and Steph leans back in the chair and smiles. “Danny, that would be great. Thank you. I hate flying.” Rose passes her a bottle of water which Steph thanks her for then completely drains.
At this point, we’re all in the elevators, me, Rose, Steph, Hector, Ram and Sarah. We stop on the 9th floor to allow Ram, Hector, and Sarah to get their luggage stored in their apartments. Ram and Hector rejoin us while Sarah goes in search of the gym. We ascend to 10, Bobby’s apartment, and I fob us inside. Steph has a lot of luggage so I switch places with Rose to assist.
Bobby’s apartment is a study in quiet comfortable elegance. I occasionally go up there to sit in peace and quiet. Downtown Atlanta is a loud, rough area, and the 10th floor is an oasis. I can see Steph is amazed.
“Wow. This place is . . .” Steph is at a loss for words.
“Gorgeous,” Ram finishes, looking around in surprise. “I didn’t think anyone could top the boss’s apartment for style and class, but this is . . . shit . . . I don’t even know what to say.”
Rose smiles. She’s cleaned and polished and scrubbed her fingers to the bone to make Bobby’s apartment a showcase for Steph. There are little feminine touches everywhere. I hide a smile. I wonder what Bobby will think of it the next time he drops in.
“Mr. Brown once said that he saw enough darkness and dirt and blood in the world that when he came home he wanted to be surrounded by light and warmth and comfort. Light and comfort above all.” Rose smiles. Steph is still exploring everything. “He wanted you to be comfortable in his home so he gave me permission to do whatever I needed to make you comfortable. If there are any changes you’d like to make here, just let me know. I’ve added all your normal toiletries and amenities in the bath and bedrooms.”
“No, no changes. This is wonderful.” Steph is out of the wheelchair and carefully maneuvering around Bobby’s apartment. I see Rose making little notes. I raise an eyebrow and she shows me her notepad. It’s reminders to get some non-slip rug grips and to move certain pieces of decor to give Steph more walking space since she has a new cast, although she’s not wearing it right now.
My staff is determined to impress.
An hour later Conference 1 is filled to capacity and all satellite offices are on the video call. I noticed a rogue transmission and, after Hector investigated, the feed to Boston was cut. Nosy fucker; he’ll learn all he needs to know when she visits his office. I make a note to determine who forwarded Mark the connection information.
The men are silent in front of me. I’m merely waiting for Hector to return. Steph, Ram, Chase, and Adam are all in the front with me, staring back at the men. Well, the men are staring; Steph is smiling nervously. She’s changed into black SWAT and pink flats. The non-regulation footwear makes the men smile.
Finally, Hector returns, a hard look on his face. I’m glad this isn’t my fault. He passes me a note: He identificado la fuga. Yo me ocuparé de él. (I’ve identified the leak. I’ll take care of it.) Well, no worries there; that person will never leak again. I nod.
“Gentlemen,” and every man comes to attention, “we are here to welcome the CO of RangeMan, LLC to the Atlanta Office. Let me introduce to you Ms. Stephanie Plum.” Steph waves to the men from her wheelchair and they clap politely, surprising us all. “Also with her is Hector Gutierrez, who is the head of Electronics and Communications for RangeMan, LLC.” Hector nods just slightly. “Finally, we have Ramsay Sinclair, the External Liaison from RangeMan Trenton. They will be here with us over the next two weeks to accomplish various objectives for the company. They are to be given every assistance and courtesy of this office. I intend that this first trip of the CO’s is the standard that is set and that none are able to surpass it.”
At that, the men cheer. They’re onboard with this plan, and I see Steph grin out of the corner of my eye. I meant what I said, though. I want her to compare her other trips to this trip and feel we were the best. I turn to Steph. “CO, a few words?”
I can see I’ve put her on the spot, but I hand her the microphone anyway.
“Thank you for the introduction, Danny. I’m excited to be here and I’m looking forward to meeting and getting to know all of you. When Danny invited me he said he wanted to show me some down-home Southern hospitality and friendliness, was that it?”
I nod and my men cheer. Yeah, we can do friendly.
Steph grins. “Well, so far I can see the friendliness, and I’m looking forward to my visit here. Please don’t go out of your way to change your routine. I want to see everything working just as it normally does. I am glad to be here and thank you.”
Again the men clap and cheer. I dismiss them and Steph is immediately besieged by my Apprehensions team, led by Marcus. He wasn’t able to attend the Trenton meeting and has been kicking himself ever since.
“Ms. Plum—” he begins.
“Stephanie, please.”
Marcus smiles. It’s hard for him to call people by their given names because that wasn’t the way he was raised. “Ms. Plum, Stephanie, it’s a pleasure to have you here. My team has been telling me wonderful things about you, and I’m sorry I missed your first session in Trenton. I look forward to watching you do your magic in person.”
Steph laughs. “I’ve never thought of what I do as magic, but I’m ready to dig in. I understand you only have three really big captures remaining?” Marcus grins and nods. “Well, Manny and Zip, the new head of Apprehensions in Trenton, don’t want me to share too much with you. Your 92% capture rate this month is making them nervous.”
My men laugh and I grin. Good. Atlanta has been something of a company joke when it comes to captures, and I’m determined to turn that around. If Trenton is nervous then we’ve really improved.
Steph’s POV
I’ve settled back in Bobby’s apartment for a breather before lunch. Danny’s promised to take us someplace good and I can’t wait.
Rose has gone all out setting this place up for me. I find the Bvlgari shower gel in the shower with my hair products, including the stuff I usually buy from Mr. Alexander. There’s fruit in the kitchen, my favorite water (yeah, I have a favorite water now) in the fridge, and small chocolates in the bedroom. I brought my laptop with me, but I see another laptop, printer, and fax machine set up and ready to use. I get the feeling that Bobby does not allow work to invade this space.
I walk around Bobby’s apartment slowly and cautiously. This place is gorgeous, breathtaking, a real showplace. We’re in the middle of downtown, only ten floors up, and yet it’s almost silent in here. Bobby’s home is as warm and comfortable as he is and, unlike Ranger’s home, you can occasionally find a personal knick knack or two. I’ve spotted pics of Bobby with his parents, with his family (I’m thinking Chase must be a cousin), and standing outside a different house. I spotted one pic that looks like the guys ten years ago. They’re all sweaty and dirty but grinning for the camera, and I realize that I’m staring at Ranger in the picture for at least five minutes before I put it back down.
It’s been two months since Ranger left and I’ve thought about him every day. I’ve also had time to think about what Mary Lou said, and I accept that she’s right but I think she’s being unfair too. Ranger has never given me the smallest reason to believe that there could ever be anything between us except casual sex, and I loved him too much to be content with that. If he wanted there to be more between us he could have said something, given me some reason to believe that he might change his mind. I’m thinking it’s unfair that he waits until he won’t be around for an entire year to tell me that he’s willing to talk about it when he returns.
Now I’m here, running his company, eating bark and twigs (although I get the feeling Ella’s modified the bark and twigs for me) and working out with the exercise Nazi in order to make him happy. Just my luck: he’s not here to see it. I need to start thinking about the things I’m going to ask him for. I’m not making all these changes without him making some.
Is it the lack of meatball subs giving me courage?
In any case, Bobby’s apartment is breathtaking, and I’m looking forward to being here for two weeks, but I can already tell that I’m going to be as lonely and isolated as I was in Trenton. At least in Trenton I could get out on the weekends with Mary Lou, Connie and Lula, but it was lonely during the week. Nothing but the guys and work and exercise, and that might be fine for Ranger but not me. I’m not sure what to do with a ‘personal assistant,’ but the moment Danny said I had one I immediately thought ‘shopping’. I hope Rose knows all the best places to go.
My itinerary for this trip is tight. I’m visiting two satellite offices each day and spending time in the main office for an entire week. Hector has his meetings and he is determined that the environment will be set up and ready for me to review before we leave. He’s not happy that it means that he has to trust Danny’s guys with my security, so I’m sure Danny is nervous about making sure I’m safe.
I mean, unless trips to the mall have somehow become dangerous.
I move back to the bedroom and get dressed. The new cast is actually a walking boot, which allows me to slip into the shower with ease, but I have to be careful moving. Hector demanded, politely, that I put it back on for my leg’s sake. There aren’t any non-slip rugs. Finally, I’m dressed and ready for this trip to lunch. I’ve been awake for seven hours already and I’m tired. The only positive: no exercise this morning. We had to make the plane.
I slip back into the wheelchair and head back down to the 5th floor. It’s abuzz with activity. I reviewed the paperwork last week to prepare and I know that commercial and residential monitoring is huge here. The Apprehensions group is down on the 3rd floor and they share space with the Client Services group. Jase is standing next to the elevators and at the sight of me he comes to attention. Sigh. I have to convince these guys I’m not Ranger, but in the meantime I’ve learned the correct commands.
“Stand down.” He immediately relaxes. “Can you tell me where Danny is?”
“Yes, ma’am. He’s in his office, down the hall. Want me to escort you there? I can also show you where Leadership Core, Lt. Brown, and the CO normally work when they’re here.” Jase is serious and looks nervous.
“On one condition,” I reply.
“Yes, ma’am?” Jase says, cautiously.
“Please stop calling me ma’am! I hate it. It makes me feel 30 years older.”
Jase grins, the first relaxed look I’ve seen on his face since he picked us up at the airport. “I’ll try, Ms. Plum, but I warn you, this is the South. Ma’am comes out of everyone’s mouth as easily as hello , darlin’, and sumabitch.”
Which of these does not belong? I laugh, which causes men across the floor to look up in surprise. Danny appears, looking confused.
“Steph?”
“Sumabitch,” I choke out, still laughing.
We head to the garage and bypass the company SUVs in favor of Danny’s truck, a massive F-150 with the chrome grill and all the bling. Ram grins; this is his kind of truck. We pile in, and Danny disables the monitoring and turns to us.
“I know you’re working to make RangeMan standards, Steph, but this is your first meal on your first visit. I’ll be damned if you end up chewing lettuce leaves. Chase, Adam, Nate and Marcus are joining us later, but we don’t want the men to know where we are taking you.”
Now I’m intrigued and grateful. Clearly, this isn’t a bark and twigs meal. I think about what Bobby said about being tested and realize that yet again, Danny is someone to be trusted. He’s maintaining my authority in front of the men while still making me happy.
“Danny, you are rapidly moving up the ladder as a man to be admired,” Ram laughs. “How often do you do this?”
“I have a once a month cheat. Your trip just happens to fall during the right time, so I’m taking my cheat day today.”
Danny took us to the Busy Bee, a favorite of the staff, and the moment we walk inside I understand. The place is devoted to old-fashioned Southern soul food, and I’m in heaven. One meatloaf plate later, I push back from the table and pat my stomach in happiness. Mom’s can’t compete with that. Every man at the table is twitching.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“Shorty’s,” Ram replies.
I blush. Well, it was worth every moan. I haven’t had anything that wonderful in weeks.
The waitress walks over. “Honey, if we hadda taped you, we could play that for money. Here.” She hands me a slice of Red Velvet cake. “On the house. Danny, next time you intend to bring her, let us know. Big Daddy’s in the back hoppin’ mad we didn’t get her on tape!”
The men laugh. Again, worth every moan and so is this cake. Three minutes later, the cake is demolished and I’m sleepy. The men look astonished and a little frightened.
“Steph, honey, do you realize you just inhaled that cake?” Chase asks, shifting in his seat.
“Yes,” I moan sadly. I’d pay for another piece. Hector gets up from the table and returns moments later with half a cake. He smiles. I sit up, hopeful. My partner would be brave enough to slip me cake. This trip is looking up.
