Page 18 of Denying Davis
Grandad shook his head. “I believe you have more talent than that, and besides, I have plenty of suits to take care of the legal and regulation bull we encounter in that sector on a regular basis.” He drank some more coffee. “No, I’d prefer to see you as a junior vice president, in charge of Armstrong Automotive.”
“Armstrong Automotive?” I blinked at him. I hadn’t thought of the Pittsburgh-based business in years, even though my grandfather made the bulk of his fortune with it. Manufacturing wasn’t a exactly a growth industry, and most of our family’s successful holdings centered on real estate, a tech company in Mountain View, California, and sugar refineries in South Florida. “Really?”
“I think it’s a good fit for you.”
“You do? What about something closer to our efforts in Cali—”
“We’ve downsized it in the last few years, but the main plant still has about two hundred thirty employees. That location alone does about forty million in revenue annually and still turns a profit. Great place to start.”
The butler arrived with my coffee and our breakfasts. He placed two crisp white plates full of fruit, scrambled eggs, sausage, and muffins in front of us then quietly retreated to the house with barely an interruption in our conversation.
“Are you sure that’s the best fit for me?” I asked. Too bad my coffee order hadn’t also come with a shot of Kahlua or vodka. I made sure to look my grandfather in the eye. “I recently had an idea for one of the ways we can better develop the strip we own in Manhattan, one that builds on what we’re doing in Mountain View. What do you think about a development called Gotham Gar—”
“Manhattan? It’s too big for you right now. Better to start smaller. And Pittsburgh is a good spot. Less risk.”
“But the Manhattan property is ripe for redevelopment.” I swallowed and reminded myself to move slowly. This was my chance to convince Grandad I had the chops to take our holdings to a higher level. “Gotham Gardens would be a mixed-use initiative. We can do some great things with coworking space, fair-priced condos, and incubation of fledgling tech companies. Really show the world we are investing in the trends of the future.”
“Trends?” He frowned. “We don’t followtrends.”
“But that’s where my strengths lie.”
My grandfather laughed to himself. “You know, your father said the same thing when I put him in change of that company too. This was long before you were born, of course, and he only worked there a few years. He didn’t want to run the Pittsburgh holdings either. Said it was a backward business model that didn’t have a future.”
I grimaced. Sometimes, the mere mention of my father still rubbed me raw. I couldn’t separate him from the way he’d ended his life. “Sounds just like something he’d say.”
“He wanted me to just hand him money.” My grandfather studied me. “But he wasn’t as measured as you, or as focused. You’re more like your mother in that way.”
“I am?”
My interest perked up. I liked it when people talked about my mother, if only because most people never did. She had died in a car accident in Monaco when I was three. Some memories were too painful to revisit, and my father had all but wiped her memory out of our family history.
“She knew when to hold her feelings back, especially around me,” my grandfather said. Then his face fell. “And you know, all these years, I’ve been convinced her death is what set your dad on his…let’s call itcrooked…path in life. He was reckless after she died. Things stopped mattering to him.”
“He wasn’t a very good father.” I swallowed, thinking of how my perception of him had changed in the years since his death. Complicated would be a understatement. “He wasn’t kind in the end. Wasn’t—wasn’tthere.”
“No, I know he wasn’t.” He picked up his fork as if he wanted to begin eating breakfast, but he shifted his fruit around on the plate instead of taking a bite. “You may not realize this, but over the years, I had to step in quite a few times and fix some of his mistakes.”
“His mistakes?”
My grandfather nodded. “He had a knack for getting into situations that he couldn’t solve himself. Heavy drinking, fast cars, all of it.” His eyes softened. “Thank God you’ve never been like that, Davis. In some ways, I think of you as the son I never had.”
“Thank you,” I said as a small lump grew in my throat. My grandfather’s praise was rare and hard to achieve. Even my graduation from law school hadn’t caused him to be this complimentary to me. “That means a lot.”
“So, it’s settled. You’re going to Pittsburgh, and that’s the end of it.”
I winced. “No, I don’t think it is.”
“No matter how brilliant I know you are, I’m not going to put our money on the risky investments of a twenty-six-year-old man who has never held a real job.”
“I wrote that app, Grandad. That was a job.”
“That was playtime.” He sighed. “I know that sounds harsh. Unfair, even. But it’s my final decision.”
I stared at him. There were times when it felt like he didn’t know me at all, and this was one of them. And what a shame, really. He always seemed to do this—draw me in then push me away.
“I’ll put it to you this way. If you do well with this, in three years or so I’ll revisit your Gotham Gardens project, or whatever you want to call it at that time. But for now, you’re taking over Pittsburgh at the beginning of the year.”
He wasn’t going to change his mind. I knew him. A fourth of his DNA flowed through my veins, after all.
