Till There was You

Jess Brooks was a very good looking man, in a rugged way. While his actions were those of a gentleman, Karen had the impression he was simply keeping his passion in check. He gave her a small smile and Karen found herself blushing like a virgin on prom night.

"You stared at me the day of the meeting," began Karen.

"I did. I'm sorry if it offended you, but I couldn't help it. You're a very beautiful woman," replied Jess in a way which did not sound like an apology.

"You weren't staring at my face," replied Karen. "You appeared to be more interested in points south."

"Miss Mathers, I'm sure I'm not the first man enthralled by your beauty. I did look a little longer than I should have, but in my defense, I thought you were concentrating on the other side of the room at the time."

"Do you think it would have been acceptable if I hadn't caught you?" question Karen.

"Maybe not acceptable, but certainly understandable. Like I said, you're a very lovely woman. Men will always be drawn to your beauty."

"You're a strange man, Mr. Brooks. You pointed out a few issues with the plans, yet I have the feeling you knew the answers before you asked the questions.

"You just made those two men back off with a simple threat. You acted like you hadn't a care in the world, but they're a couple of big guys. On top of that, you're an extremely good dancer!"

"I know their type. I saw them follow you and Heather, so I thought I'd stroll over and make certain they didn't make what's known as unwelcome advances," replied Jess easily. "They didn't want the trouble they were facing."

When the song ended, Karen and Jess returned to the group. Everyone was looking at her in total silence. Heather gave her a big smile before breaking the silence.

"You guys looked like professional dancers out there," gushed the blonde. "You never told us you worked at a dance studio in high school, Jess."

"But Will did?" asked Jess rhetorically as he glanced at his brother, who suddenly had to tie his shoe. "He needs to be careful. I have a few stories about him I could share."

As Karen drove to her hotel later, she realized she had enjoyed the evening. She had been born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Her father came from old money. He and several other members of his family had attended Harvard, which was the main reason Karen had pursued her MBA there.

Her mother, Sarah, had told Karen many stories about her early childhood. Her family didn't have much money, but Sarah's father worked hard and seized opportunities when they came his way. He went from working as a building contractor to becoming one of the most successful real estate developers in New Jersey. By the time Karen's parents met, her mother was considered quite a catch. Sarah was very beautiful and her father was nouveau riche, making Sarah acceptable to the Mathers clan.

Karen loved her father and the entire Mathers family, but she found them to be a bit pretentious and stuffy. Sarah was entirely different. She enjoyed working in her garden and making Thanksgiving dinners. She was never too busy to spend time with her children, Karen and Larry, known as Lawrence Mathers IV to the rest of the family.

Karen's maternal grandfather had grown very close to her over the years. He often took her with him on drives around New Jersey. He was always on the lookout for good real estate investments. He was the opposite of pretentious. Karen recalled how he'd always treated working men and women with respect, while the Mathers clan seldom even acknowledged those to whom they referred as "the help".

Karen had been chastised by Grandfather Mathers several times over the years for playing with the cook's daughter. Her mother, on the other hand, invited all the children of the people who worked for them to Karen's birthday parties and treated them very well.

Karen had formed her own opinions as to which side of her family exhibited more class. The Mathers would have been appalled if she had ever voiced that opinion.

While attending Harvard, she had stepped entirely into the life of the upper class. Her fellow students were from the best families and understood well how wealth brought privilege.

Spending an evening with honest hard working people who laughed, joked and teased each other had been just what she needed to finally relax enough to enjoy the task she had undertaken.

Monday morning found Karen checking the progress of the builders at the project. Many were now erecting exterior walls. She was pleased with the progress being made on most sites.

She could barely contain her surprise when she stopped to check on Jess Brooks' progress. Somehow, all of the pads had been poured and the concrete was now curing. Only two pads had been finished at quitting time Friday.

Karen found Heather carrying building materials to a home site. "How did you get the other eight pads poured? Did Jess have you work overtime? The Fair Labor Standards Act is pretty clear. He knows this project must follow all government laws, rules and regulations."

"Karen, we didn't all go to Harvard, but we do know when we can trust a man. Jess keeps track of our hours and pays us damned good. I'm surprised you'd even suggest he would take advantage of us. Maybe you didn't catch on Saturday night, but we're family. We give Jess our best and he treats us with respect. He doesn't need any government regulations to do the right thing by family. I have to get back to work."

Karen had no trouble picking up on Heather's irritation. It was pretty clear that she was loyal to Jess and wouldn't tolerate anyone speaking ill of him.

That was when she saw the beautiful woman Jess had been walking with on the beach. She had parked near Jess' truck and the two were in deep discussion. As she watched, the woman took a briefcase from Jess and hugged him tightly. She carefully wiped her eyes, slid into her car and drove away.

Karen was surprised how simply seeing Jess with that woman again upset her. She and Jess certainly weren't in any sort of relationship. She barely knew him, yet she had to admit she felt pangs of envy.

The week seemed to pass slowly. All of the contractors were erecting outside walls and some were preparing to begin placing roof rafters. Jess' crew had built and laid out sections of outside walls next to the pads, but had not erected a single one.

For some reason, Karen was uncomfortable approaching Jess on the subject. He was falling behind schedule, yet seemed unperturbed. She again wondered if he had read the contract and understood the consequences of not meeting timelines.

Friday afternoon, she saw Stan driving past her to the job site, so she flagged him down. "Stan, you must see the other crews have either begun on the roof systems or soon will be. Why is Jess stalling?"

"I don't think he'd appreciate the word 'stalling' very much," chuckled Stan. "For a gal that only speaks with the crew boss, you seem to ask me a lot of questions. Jess is of the opinion that concrete needs to cure for a week before it's ready to build on. He reads a lot and talks to old timers when he gets the chance. Don't worry about him. He has it all planned out."

Karen had a small trailer parked at the entrance to the development that she used as an office. She was working on a report when Ben Giverns walked in.

"Karen, there's a barbecue tomorrow afternoon at the Methodist Church on fifth avenue. It's a fund raiser for a family who had a bad car accident on Route 1. I'd sure like to take you. It would be good for you to be seen supporting community events. Word of mouth is still the best advertising."

Ben Giverns was tall, blonde and attractive. His family had been building homes in Florida for over twenty years. His firm had secured a bid to construct 12 homes in the development. Karen quickly accepted his invitation.

She and Ben arrived at the fund raiser shortly after two. Karen was impressed when she saw the number of vehicles parked in the lot and down the street. It appeared the community was turning out in droves to support the local family struggling with expensive medical bills.

As they stood in line for tickets, Ben filled Karen in on some of his many accomplishments. In a surprisingly short period of time, she learned he had played tight end for the Gators and was the biggest reason they had managed to win any games.

His father had started the business over twenty years before, but Ben was certain he would take it to the next level. His project was now well ahead of schedule and he expected to qualify for the bonuses.

"When it comes time to develop the rest of the phases, I think you should consider contracting one experienced builder, like Giverns and Sons. If we're able to be so far ahead of the other builders when we each have relatively small project, imagine how well we would do with a few hundred homes.

"Walt Disney has huge plans for Orlando. All of the people who will work there are going to need homes. We're just an hour from Orlando. There's going to be thousands of people working there, and they'll need places to live. You're doing a smart thing by building homes now. By the time the park opens there won't be a house available within a few hours' drive. This is going to be big.

"With the beach so close, this is a natural location to live. I think your company and our company can both make money. We'd be willing to supplement your income with a consulting job if we managed to get the contract," concluded Ben as he glanced sideways at Karen for her reaction.

Karen had trouble believing her ears. Was Giverns trying to bribe her? Did he think she'd steer the company in his direction for a consulting fee? Suddenly, she regretted coming to the fund raiser.

That was when she noticed Heather and several other employees of Jess' busing tables, delivering meals and serving drinks. As she watched Heather and the others, it occurred to Karen that they had more work than they could handle. The turnout had far exceeded expectations.

"Heather!" called Karen as the blonde was hurrying past her with a tub of dirty dishes. "Is there something I can do to help? You look really busy."

"Seriously?" asked Heather. "If you mean it, grab an apron and get into the kitchen and help wash the dishes, glasses and utensils. I have to warn you. It's hotter than hell in there."

Karen excused herself from the stunned Ben Giverns and hurried to the kitchen. She found some of Jess' crew steadily washing dishes. She scooped up an apron and took a position next to a middle-aged woman she had never seen before. The woman smiled as Karen immediately began washing dirty glasses.

As she worked, Karen chatted with the woman. It was the usual kind of talk people share when they first meet. "I'm Karen. I've just started working here and I love the area. I'm from New Jersey and I'm very much enjoying Florida."

"Hi, Karen," replied the older woman. "My name's Victoria. I've lived in the area my entire life. I've raised two kids here and couldn't imagine living anywhere else."

The conversation continued as the women worked steadily in an effort to keep clean dishes available to the servers. It wasn't long until the talk turned to Karen's work.

"It sounds like you're doing very well," praised Victoria. "An MBA from Harvard and supervising a large development is rather impressive for a woman so young."

Karen debated mentioning she was working for her grandfather, but dismissed it as unnecessary. How she had managed to attain her position was not important. The fact was, she was placed in charge and was doing a good job so far.

"It was nice of you to come here today to help with the fund raiser," added Victoria. "I'm sure people will look at you and your company favorably for your contribution."

"I actually came with Ben Giverns, as kind of a date. I didn't even get to sit down before I realized my mistake," admitted Karen. "He and I have different views on certain basic issues. At first, I volunteered to help in an attempt to avoid him, but I'm glad I did. This is so much better than listening to that pompous ass."

"Ben always cut a wide swath in Palm Oaks," replied Victoria. "He was a football star in high school and even made the Gator's team, although he seldom got to play in their games.

"Is it wise to date men with whom your company has contracts? Aren't you concerned about possible conflicts of interest?" asked Victoria.

"I'm able to keep my personal life and my work separate, but I don't think I'll be doing that again," replied Karen. "The fact that Ben thought he could persuade me to help his company get more contracts was an eye opener. I always thought men were after one thing. Now that I'm in business, I'm finding money is another goal of theirs."

"As beautiful as you are, I suspect men will always be after that one thing," replied Victoria with a smile. "You must have suitors lined up."

"Thanks, for the compliment. I've had my share of interest from men, but I must be too picky or something," replied Karen. "I've never found a man that fills the bill, so to speak. Maybe I'm just a romantic at heart."

"Will and Jess want a couple more beers," announced Heather as she entered the kitchen, grabbed two bottles of beer out of a refrigerator and went back out the door.

"I didn't know Jess was here. What's he doing?" asked Karen.

"He and Will are manning the grill. They've been working since early this morning. They had to prepare everything and get a good bed of coals. Barbecues take a lot of time and work," answered Victoria.

"You must know Jess if you've lived around here a long time," reasoned Karen. "What's he like? Does he have a really beautiful girlfriend with two adorable kids?"

Victoria couldn't suppress a smile as she answered Karen's question. "As far as I know, he doesn't have a girlfriend, although a lot of young women in the area would love to change that. That beautiful woman with the kids you mentioned is probably Wendy.

"Her husband, Jim, helped gave Jess his first construction job. Jess was just starting high school when he rode his bike into Jim's father's office and asked for a job. Jim's father was in the process of telling Jess he was too young when Jim intervened. Jess became Jim's shadow that summer. Even with the ten years age difference, they became very close.

"Jim's business didn't survive the last economic slump. He had a young wife and two small kids, so he went back into the Marines to support his family. He had served right of high school, so he simply re-enlisted. He's an officer now, stationed in Vietnam. We all worry about him.

"Jess promised to keep an eye on his family while he was overseas. Jess noticed Wendy was being extremely frugal and finally got her to admit things were tight for them. He hired her to take care of his books. He even paid for her to go to a community college for accounting courses. He loves her, but like a sister. Jess is all about loyalty and Jim's friendship is extremely important to him."

"I see. She's his friend's wife," repeated Karen as she nodded her head in understanding. "He seems to be very close with his brother. Heather seems to think he walks on water."

"Jess gave Heather a job when she was at her lowest. She'd been in a little trouble when she was younger. Her father left when she was small and her mother was overwhelmed with three kids and no husband. Heather was dragged up, rather than raised.

"Heather stole some items from a local store at Christmas time. She was going to give them to her younger siblings so they'd have a real Christmas. Of course she was caught. The judge didn't want her have a felony on her record, so he placed her on probation, provided she found a job and stayed out of trouble.

"Judge Benson called Jess and asked if he'd help out. Next thing you know, that girl was on Jess' crew and working her butt off. She turned things around. She met Will when he was home from med school. To say they've hit it off would be an understatement," concluded Victoria.

"Will is a great guy and he and Heather seem so happy together," offered Karen. 'So Jess doesn't have a girlfriend? He's quite good looking."

Karen suddenly realized she may have revealed too much. "I mean in a country boy kind of way. I can see why the local girls would be attracted to him."

Victoria smiled from ear to ear as she listened to the lovely young woman qualify her observation about Jess. Was it possible Jess had finally met a woman who could keep him interested?

"He's a very good dancer," blurted Karen. "Will said he worked in a dance studio when he was in high school. He must have had several jobs."

"I heard you and he tripped the light fantastic the other night. The entire crew was very impressed. Jess worked a few nights after school at the dance studio. Rumor had it a lot of women signed up for lessons because he worked there," revealed Victoria with another smile.

"You seem to know him very well," observed Karen. "Have you known him his whole life?"

"From the day I gave birth to him," responded Victoria with a grin as she watched Karen's response.

"You're his mom?" asked a stunned Karen as she mentally went over the conversation to determine if she had said anything inappropriate. "I'm sorry if I said anything to offend you, Mrs. Brooks."

"I'm still Victoria," replied Jess' mother with a chuckle. "I'm the one who needs to apologize. I should have told you who I was before you went fishing for information on my son."

"You thought I was "fishing" for information?" challenged Karen. "I was just being friendly."

Victoria just smiled at Karen's statement. "Okay, maybe I was, but I bet I'm not the first girl who's gone "fishing" with you."

"No, you're not, but you're the smartest and most attractive girl I've ever had question me about Jess. You're also the first one to help me do dishes, so there's that."

"Mrs. Br..., Victoria, could I ask you to not tell anyone I was so inquisitive? I do have to work with them and I'd like to keep their respect," stated Karen.

"Of course, Karen. I understand how the dance goes," replied Victoria. "You've done nothing which would cause loss of respect, but I won't mention this conversation."

A short time later, the two sweating, grimy brothers, walked into the kitchen and grabbed a beer each.

"We're done. We're out of ribs and chicken," announced Will after he took a long pull on his beer.

Jess took a sip of his beer and almost spit it back out when he saw Karen standing next to his mother. Both Karen and Victoria chuckled at Jess' obvious discomfort with the situation.

"I was just telling your mother what a good dancer you are," teased Karen.

"I'm less interested in what you told Mom than I am in what Mom might have told you," admitted Jess. "I didn't know you were here. Thanks for helping."

"She came in with that pompous ass, Ben Giverns. He left a couple of hours ago, so she needs a ride home, Jess," volunteered Heather as she emphasized Jess' name.

"Wait! I have an even better idea," proclaimed Heather, unconcerned that she had only interrupted herself. "Karen, we're all going to the beach once we clean up here. Why don't you come with us?"

"I didn't bring a suit, or even a change of clothes," protested Karen somewhat weakly.

"No problem, I have two or three suits and a few cover-ups in my beach bag," responded Heather. "We're about the same build, so they should fit you fine."

"That's funny," wise-cracked Jess. "Your bikinis don't even fit you."

"Smartass! I've never had any complaints about how my suits fit," boasted Heather. "Will, do you think my bikinis are too small? I want your professional opinion."

"I don't even know what the hell Jess is talking about," responded Will. "How could a bikini on you or Karen possibly be too small? Now I have to question my brother's manhood."