Bishop: A True Lover's Story

The guys all laughed, as a few others got in some good-natured jokes about Bishop’s drawings, mixed with praise about how thorough they were, and if they’d be able to pull off some of the more intricate details of the landscape.

“It’s not gonna be a problem. We got this.” Mike still grinned proudly.

Steve was still laughing when he added, “Yeah, your brother can draw his ass off, Mike.”

Manny and Trent laughed even harder.

“That’s not my brother, dipshit, that’s my son,” Mike growled.

It only caused more laughter as Steve and a couple of the newer guys kept moving their eyes back and forth between him and Mike. Some of them even shaking their heads as if they didn’t believe it, as if perhaps they were playing a joke on them.

Mike waved them off. “You guys are assholes and you’re about to start licking my son’s boots because I just got an email that we won the bid on the Town Center Office Suites building.”

There was a small pause before the guys let out loud whoops. Bishop stared straight ahead, not quite wanting to believe it himself. He knew it was the largest job his dad and Manny had ever bid on. And their decision to take that chance was because of Bishop. They’d used one of his sketches for the four-story building’s vast courtyard and parking lot.

“You’re not shitting me, are you?” Manny yelled.

Mike shook his head. “We start Monday.”

“What about the two Wawas on Military Highway that we do on that day?” Trent asked. “We can’t fit that in too.”

“I’ll rework the scheduling. Hell, we may even have to hire a few more guys,” Mike said. “Business is booming!”

“Okay, since we’re done for the day, let’s start up at six next week because we’re gonna need to do some surveying first,” Manny noted. “There’s been no work on that property for months. You know the city of Virginia Beach won’t tolerate an eyesore in the middle of their precious Town Center. All eyes are gonna be on our work, fellas.”

“I’ll go by and look at it this afternoon,” Bishop volunteered.

This was a huge job for them, one that could set his dad’s business above a lot of the other landscaping companies in Hampton Roads. He’d seen the Town Center Office building a few times when they’d gone to take pictures for him to draft ideas for the bid, but he hadn’t laid eyes on it since. It was a large piece of untapped property that the owners had let go for far too long—they were probably more concerned with the expensive decorations on the inside than the grass and dirt on the outside. He’d ignore the occupants of the building like he always did, just as they did him, and put his attention into what he considered to be his craft.

Chapter Eight

Edison

“You’re here late,” Presley said on her way past his door.

“I could say the same about you. You’re supposed to be going out of town.” Edison called out to his boss, the senior partner and owner of the bankruptcy law firm he worked at. He smiled at her when she backtracked and stuck her head in his door. “Did you finish your motion?”

“Yes, boss.” She winked. “And thanks for helping Marie with that Chapter 7’s Schedule I. I mean I don’t understand why she keeps struggling with that. Damn. The bankruptcy software does it all for you.”

“Not all of it.” Edison reasoned, not wanting to say anything negative about the new paralegal.

“You’re so PC. She’s not the brightest star in the sky and you know it. Some of the mistakes she’s made are kind of telling.”

“Let me keep working with her. She’ll catch hold. It takes everyone time to get used to our system.”

“Okay. You’re the executive manager. Her screw-ups fall on you, unfortunately.” Presley waved and walked away. “You’ll be firing her if she submits another inaccurate schedule to me.”

Edison stroked his hand down his tie, then decided to loosen the thick knot pressing against his throat. Firing was not his favorite part of his job, but it was sometimes necessary. He especially hated it when one of the senior partners hired a cute desk bunny who looked gorgeous in the office but didn’t have the first clue about working in one. Some of them didn’t even have legal experience, much less bankruptcy knowledge. So, as the executive office manager it was his responsibility to ensure the senior partners’ support staff was operating efficiently.

He was one of the youngest managers they’d ever had, but no one could argue he was also one of the best. And that was because he lived and breathed his job. He had the title and the pay to show for his hard work, but he also had the nonexistent social life as well. The young staff he worked with had been gone at five on the dot and were undoubtedly already three sheets to wind from their routine Friday night happy hour. As the boss, he was never invited.