Dressed in his usual jeans, cotton T-shirt and boots, he walked in wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. “Morning Rollin, I thought you were already out checking the crops by now,” Corra said.
“I was, but I’ve got some business to take care of in town. Some of us start work before 8:00 a.m., missy.” He grabbed a glass from the cabinet and walked over to the refrigerator for water.
“Rollin, you know I can’t get here any earlier. I have to get the kids off to school.” He teased her about her hours every week. Since she quit managing Save-A-Lot groceries and started working at the Coleman House she’d only averaged about thirty hours a week.
Rollin threw back his water and set the glass on the counter. “Sis, I need you to do something for me today.”
“What’s that?” Corra asked, as she finished her plate and pushed it aside.
“I’m expecting a guy to drop by this morning and demo a new computer program. I need you to handle it for me.”
“Me! Why me? You know more about that system than I do. Or Tayler, she knows it.”
“Tayler’s in town taking care of some business and there’s an issue with the last shipment for Whole Foods that I need to attend to. You can do it. Just see if what he has is better than what we’re currently using.”
“But, I have a client coming by this morning.” She placed her plate and his glass in the dishwasher.
“He’s not coming until around noon. And it won’t take long.” Rollin turned and looked out the back window. “Here comes the morning truck. You should have seen the crew this morning. They’re from the city and were so excited to tour the farm they practically ran out and jumped on the truck.”
Corra walked over to the window and stood beside her brother. The pickup truck slowly made its way up the road to the house. The bed-and-breakfast was a working farm where every morning at 8:00 a.m. Kevin, a full-time employee, and Kyla, their cousin and a new employee, loaded the guests on the back of the truck and carried them out to the fields to pick the day’s meal. Rita would prepare their vegetables and fruits for dinner. However, nothing was in season at the moment. So, the guests toured the farm.
“We’ve got a full house this week, don’t we?” Corra asked.
“Yep. For Greek Alumni week at the college, Tayler suggested we offer a discount. Booked us up for two weeks. After that we have a few vacancies.”
“Well, I’d better get ready to open the gift shop.”
“Hey, don’t forget about the computer guy. He’ll come to the house, not the gift shop.”
“Rollin, how can I be in two places at once?”
“Kyla will help you out. Let her cover the shop once he gets here.”
Corra nodded. In the time Corra spent recovering from a broken fibula, Tayler had convinced Rollin to do something she couldn’t—hire more staff. Tayler had taken over serving breakfast from Rollin while Rita remained the queen of the kitchen. To assist her they’d brought on two relatives. Tracee Coleman, who’d spent five years working for a bakery in Louisville, Kentucky, and her younger sister Kyla who was working on her Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics from the University of Kentucky. She worked on the farm four days a week. She had even helped Rollin set up an internship with the local college. They currently had two young interns onboard.
Corra walked outside as the truck pulled up. She waved to Kevin as Kyla jumped off the back of the truck. She gave a few instructions to the guests before waving at Corra.
“Morning, Corra. You missed a fun ride this morning.”
“I’m sure I did.” Corra waved back. Kyla had the body of a dancer, with her long legs and trim figure. She was super smart, highly adaptable, and she had an insatiable curiosity about the bed-and-breakfast. She was just the type of employee they needed.
Seconds after Corra opened up shop the bell over the door jingled. In walked her first customer of the day.
* * *
When the decision was made to move 3C Evolution’s call center to Danville, Kentucky, two employees accepted the offer to move with Christopher Williams. Customer service manager Terry Davis and office manager Valerie Amares were now Danville residents.
The new office was small, but large enough to cover the Southeastern territory. Chris and Terry walked out of a meeting where they discussed how successfully the staffing of the center was going.
“Chris, are you sure you don’t want me to handle this demo for you?” Terry asked.
“I can handle this one. The bed-and-breakfast is owned by one of my former teammates.”
“The Coleman House?” Terry asked.
“Yeah, Rollin Coleman and I played football together in high school. We had some great times out at the farm. Some of which I can’t tell you about.”
Terry laughed. “Yeah, I bet. Getting girls in the cornfield.”
Chris shrugged. “Hey, don’t knock it.”
“Naw, man. I understand. I grew up in a small town myself outside of Indianapolis. I was on my high school basketball team. It was by far the best time of my life. But, those were the good old days,” Terry concluded.
Terry walked down the hall with Chris until they stood at Val’s desk.
“Headed out, Chris?” Val asked.
“I’m going to swing by my folks’ place first, then I’ll be at the Coleman House if anybody’s looking for me.”
“We’ll hold the fort down,” Terry said.
“Do you think you’ll be back in time for the four o’clock conference call?” Val asked.
Chris snapped his fingers. “I forgot all about that.” He turned to Terry. “What are you doing at four o’clock?”
Terry’s eyes widened. “Uh, nothing.”
“Great.” Chris turned to Val. “Terry will sit in for me. Let Craig know.”
“But it’s a director’s meeting!” Terry’s voice rose.
“Good preparation for the increased responsibilities you’ll have here. Just keep me abreast of what’s going on.”
Chris laughed at the startled looks on Terry and Val’s faces. He had a promotion in mind for the both of them, as long as the call center went off without a hitch.
Chris suddenly thought of Corra Coleman. He’d been in town two weeks and he hadn’t seen or spoken to her since his return. Although he’d been extremely busy getting everything functional and assisting Terry in hiring a supervisor and a few call center reps, he should have called Corra the day he arrived. The last time he spoke to her she was recovering nicely from the accident and had no hard feelings toward him. He hoped those emotions hadn’t changed.
Seven years ago, Chris sold his first business and purchased his parents a modest home on Mitchellsburg Road. The ranch-style home sat on four acres, and was big enough for family barbecues, yet small enough for his mother to get around without much help.
Chris pulled his Cadillac CT6 all the way up to the garage door and killed the engine. Since his return to Danville two weeks ago he’d only visited his parents once, and hadn’t seen his little sister, Pamela, at all. All of that was about to change. Pamela’s car was parked next to his.
Chris climbed out of the car and walked around to the front door. He rang the bell and waited for his father to answer. Instead, Pamela threw the door open.