Initiative (Suncoast Society #31)(2)

“Someone should tell Jackass that.”

“I plan to.”

“As soon as you finish your coffee?”

“Damn straight. I don’t want to face murder charges.”

“I think it’d be manslaughter. I didn’t hear you plan a damn thing.”

“I love you, Kristin.”

The older woman smiled as she hauled herself up out of the chair. “I know. Job security. That, and I have access to the corporate checkbook to post your bail.”

Kristin gently closed the door behind her as she left. Yes, Susan couldn’t do this without Kristin to help keep her sane and nonhomicidal.

Since she couldn’t go after Jackass until he arrived, Susan turned to her computer to start going over yesterday’s sales reports. John never put up with bullshit from Jack, and Jack had spent his time with his nose crammed so far up his older brother’s ass he hadn’t had time to piss off anyone else.

But without John’s iron will to keep Jack in line, he’d pretty much become the * everyone else knew he really was.

She was not, however, obligated to put up with it forever.

And she wouldn’t.





Jack finally made it in to work a little after eleven. His excuse this time was a dentist appointment.

Susan thought she’d heard the sales guys had an ongoing “Jack’s Excuse Bingo” pool to see what he’d blame for his perpetual Monday tardiness. She had consumed yet another cup of coffee and had worked up a pretty good head of steam by the time Kristin phoned her and let her know Jack had been spotted on the property.

Susan wasted no time heading to his office, knowing Jack would likely scoot out for lunch as soon as he could, not reappearing for a couple of hours.

He’d barely settled in at his desk when she walked through his office door and shut it behind her, locking it before turning to him wearing what she hoped looked like the grin Kristin had dubbed “shark terrifying.”

He must have sensed a problem, because he sat back, leaning away from her as she walked over to his desk and planted both hands on it, looming over him.

“I had an interesting and enlightening talk with my attorney this past weekend, Jack. Would you like to know what he told me?”

He swallowed hard. “Um, what?”

“That John’s will doesn’t guarantee you this position,” she said, tapping the desk. “It guarantees you a position, with starting pay. Now, John loved you and put up with you far longer than I ever would have. If I hear you ever again pull a stunt like you did this weekend, you will be our newest car washer. Got it?”

His eyes widened. “You can’t do that!”

“Watch me. My attorney said I can. There’s not a damn thing your mommy and daddy can do to stop me. And if you refuse to do the job I give you, then you can be terminated for refusing to perform your duties.”

She fought the urge to laugh as she leaned farther across the desk and he actually pushed his chair back and away from her until he bumped up against the wall.

Her gaze narrowed. “I don’t like you, Jack. I hold you responsible for John’s death. You’re damn lucky you’re not cleaning toilets and mowing the grass here. Don’t think I won’t do that, either.”

She made him flinch when she feinted at him before straightening and raising her voice to a normal level. “You do your job. You are a salesman. You do not throw your weight around service, parts, the body shop, or even sales. You are not in charge, and you have no standing whatsoever as management. Therefore, you keep your nose out of other departments. We clear?”

He nodded.

She headed for the door and shot her next comment over her shoulder. “Oh, and turn in that car you’re driving. I’ll have one of the guys give you a trade-in.”

“What?”

She stopped, glancing at him. “Again, the will states you can have a car. Whatever car I decide you can have. Or, you can always pay the friends and family dealership cost rate and buy the one you’re driving now.”

He frowned and slowly shook his head.

“Good. You don’t make enough in commissions to warrant you having that car. I need to turn it over before it gets too many miles on it. Get your stuff out of it and hand the keys over to Matt by noon. If there are any damages on it, I’ll take it out of your pay.”

“But I have a date tonight!”

“Excellent. You can show her your new ride.”

She made sure not to slam the door when she left. She’d already notified Matt, her sales manager, to prep a fifteen-year-old Ford Focus for Jack. It was a trade-in they’d received that week, and they’d been planning to load it on a hauler to send to auction with about seven others.

It was mechanically sound, if not cosmetically in the best shape.

Earlier, Matt had nearly wet himself laughing as she hung up the phone with him.

Susan would make Jack’s life as miserable as possible until he finally quit, which had been Ed’s advice to her, delivered over dinner Sunday night at his and Hope’s house.

Make Jack miserable to the point so that when she offered him a buy-out he’d gladly take the money and run, because once his time ran out, she could fire him for failure to perform. And the shares he owned only gave him voting power, not monetary payouts, so they were pretty much worthless on their own.