Page 4 of Blue Collar Billionaire
“He is. You aren’t one of our customers, are you?”
Jack cleared his throat and tried to not let the memory of his one run-in with the banking mogul ruin his day. “No. Definitely not.”
“I didn’t think so.”
Jack ignored the subtle inference that a guy like him wouldn’t have an account with Alderidge Bank, what with their sizable account minimums. He wasn’t about to inform her that a man who owned a construction company, but who also wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty on-site for a highly important project, might have more money than he knew what to do with. “I could show you the plans. At least tell you where we are in the process.”
“I guess that could be okay.”
“Come on.” Jack waved her over to the worktable where he kept the site plans. He got another whiff of her sweet floral scent when she stood next to him. It was heavenly, like a meadow of wildflowers at the peak of a Texas summer. “There’s a lot to do before the festival. Here’s where the stages are going, but we’re also constructing outbuildings for the various VIP areas, facilities for food preparation, and bringing water and electricity to this side of the island. You name it.”
“Wow.” Lexi leaned closer to him as she surveyed the plans. She clearly had no idea of the effect she was having on him, but Jack was painfully aware as a wave of tingling warmth came over him. It hadn’t been long since he’d been this close to a woman, but it had been a lifetime since he’d had one pique his interest like this. “Do you think you’ll have enough time to get this all done?” She turned around and looked out over the work site. It was still largely a vast pile of dirt. “I don’t know much about construction, but it seems like a very big job.”
Jack had known from the beginning that they were biting off a bit more than they could chew with this festival, but with Rusty Edmond bankrolling the project, he believed they could pull it off. Money had a way of making everything easier. Having come from very little, Jack had learned that lesson many times. “We’ll get it done. We’re about to start rotating crews and working longer shifts.”
Lexi smiled at him sweetly, delivering another pang of guilt over having given her a hard time when she’d arrived. “If I wear different shoes, can I come back to see the progress?”
Jack was hit with a glimmer of optimism at the thought of that. “Of course.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card. “Here’s my number. Just call or text me ahead of time and I’ll be sure to clear my schedule.”
Lexi looked at the card. “There you are. Owner, Bowden Construction. Very impressive.”
Something told him she wasn’t all that impressed, but he’d take it. “You know, I’d like to apologize again for the way I acted when you first arrived. I shouldn’t have done that.”
“Apology accepted, Jack. It’s old news at this point.”
“I’d like to make it up to you if I can. Dinner? In Royal?”
“Do you live there?”
“I do. Out in the sticks.” Jack skipped the part about twenty acres of land and a magnificent custom home with a massive pool. He wasn’t the bragging type. And would rathershowa woman what he was worth, not tell her about it.
“Well, sure. That would be fine.”
“I mean, wearedating,” he said with a wink. “We should probably be seen in public. At least once.”
Two
Jack wasn’t proud of it, but he’d looked up Lexi Alderidge online as soon as he returned home from the job site Thursday evening. It was a move made solely for self-preservation. He already knew he didn’t like Lexi’s dad, Winston, so he had to know what his offspring were like. He’d made a few mistakes when it came to women over the years, and he wanted to know exactly what he was getting into by taking Lexi Alderidge out on the town.
Much of what Jack found online was reporting on Lexi’s recent divorce. Her now-former husband was Roger Harrington from Houston, a man of considerable means. Lexi and Roger had been married for nearly fifteen years before the split, but they hadn’t had children, which was probably a good thing considering how things ended. Jack’s parents were happily married, but he had plenty of friends who’d struggled with it when their parents split up.
Irreconcilable differences were cited as the reason for the divorce, but Jack had suspicions that might not be the whole story. Roger was photographed weeks later at a charity event with a much younger woman on his arm. Jack knew guys like Roger, who were born with a big bank account, attended the finest of schools and never wanted for a single thing in life. Although Jack didn’t want to invest much energy into thinking about how his own life had wildly differed from that path, he did hate that the arrogant jerk had insulted Lexi by picking up so quickly with another woman. Perhaps Jack could take away some sting from that rebuke. It sure made him want to treat her like a queen.
A few minutes before seven on Friday night, he pulled up to the guarded entrance of Pine Valley, the ritzy gated golf community where Lexi had told him she lived. “Jack Bowden. Lexi Alderidge should have left my name,” he said to the man working security.
“Yes, sir. Do you know where you’re headed?” The guard stepped out of the small outbuilding and pointed off to the east. “The Alderidge family compound is along that end of the golf course.”
“Family compound?”
“Yes, sir. Winston and Annemarie have lived here since their girls were little. Ms. Lexi is staying in their guest cottage. Once you get past their gate, keep to the right of the main house and continue until you run out of road.”
For an instant, Jack considered turning around. Lexi had left out the part about living on her parents’ property. He didn’t relish a run-in with her father. The one he’d had several years ago had not ended well, and Jack didn’t want to embarrass Lexi. Then again, it might be good for the Alderidge family to have someone like him shake up their utopia. “I’ll find my way. Thank you.”
As Jack drove down the winding tree-lined streets of Lexi’s neighborhood, with its stately mansions and pristine lawns, he knew very well that he couldn’t be any farther removed from the life he’d had before he came to Royal eleven years ago. This much money and prestige had never been part of his upbringing in San Antonio, and frankly, he preferred it that way. He took immense pride in how hard he’d worked to be driving a Bentley Bentayga SUV with a panoramic sunroof, custom leather upholstery, and some serious horsepower under the hood. The first time he’d driven into Royal, heartbroken but determined to succeed, he’d had nothing but big dreams and a rusty old Ford pickup. How times had changed.
He finally reached the Alderidge home, which in all reality looked more like a fortress. A tall ivy-covered stone wall surrounded the property, with a large wrought-iron gate. Lexi had given Jack the security code, but it didn’t make him feel any better about pulling into Winston Alderidge’s driveway.
The house was still several hundred yards ahead, with a wraparound front porch and plenty of Southern charm. There were lights on inside the house, and he did wonder for a moment if Lexi’s dad was the type to peer out the window to see who was driving around back to pick up his daughter. Jack didn’t put too much thought into it though. He’d have his moment with Winston someday, and then he’d tell him exactly what he thought of him.
