Jeffrey stomped back and forth through the kitchen of the house that ADJ Associates called home. He growled, “What the fuck is wrong with contractors when they can’t follow a simple blueprint? And beyond that…where is the updated blueprint when the actual building is different from the drawn and accepted plans?”

“What was the issue again?” asked Andrew as he sipped from his mug of coffee.

“Just like happens in hundred-year-old houses,” said Jeffrey. “We tore into a wall, and there we found electrical and plumbing both. They drew the pipes in different places on the blueprint. That was supposed to be a simple hollow wall. Now we have to reroute both electrical and plumbing.”

“That will just take a little more time?” asked Andrew.

Jeffrey said, “You know as well as I do what it means. It’s going to be a significant cost overrun, too. I hate taking that to a client even if they are okay with it. That kind of change makes us look careless or clueless. Either way, it’s not a good reflection.” He kicked at the bottom of the cabinets and pounded a fist on the counter.

“You still want to stick by tearing the wall completely out?” asked Andrew. “I’m not sure it’s essential to remove it.”

Andrew had a difficult time concentrating on Jeffrey’s frustration. He was constantly thinking about Vincent, and it made him smile. Against all probability, it looked like there could be some future well beyond the roll in the hay together. Andrew often grumbled that men were either good for a hot fuck or good for a long relationship. Vincent was possibly beneficial for both.

Jeffrey finished up his comments saying, “Don’t you agree?”

“Oh, damn, I’m sorry I missed that last part,” said Andrew. “I was distracted. Could you run it by me again?”

Jeffrey said, “You’re not helping, and here is the issue in the short and sweet version. If we don’t remove that wall, the unnecessary wall separation between kitchen and dining room remains. The island should be all the separation we need, and that maintains the open feel we want to create. Leaving that wall in place would hamper some of your attempts to create that light, breezy mid-century feel in the decorating.”

Andrew nodded and said, “Oh, of course. I completely agree. Do you want me to talk with Vincent about the additional cost? Do you have an estimate?”

“I’ll ballpark it at $5,000,” said Jeffrey. “Yes, I would like you to talk to Vincent, and the sooner, the better. I feel like we’re dragging our feet on the project. If we worked at our normal speed, we would be finishing up within about three more weeks, but I think it’s going to take longer. Maybe twice as much longer. At least four more weeks at the least. It’s a good thing that Vincent isn’t planning on moving in tomorrow.”

---

“I just left the Cherry Avenue store,” said Vincent. “There was a personnel dispute there, and I was asked to appear and help moderate a tense meeting. Fortunately, by the time I arrived, it seemed like everything reached a resolution. My store manager took me aside and said the threat of my appearance moved everything forward.”

Andrew pushed the button on the phone for the speaker. He wanted his hands free. He was also fiddling with one of his latest music playlists on the computer while he leisurely tried to get to the point in the conversation of sharing the news of the cost overruns on the house. Andrew asked, “Are you really the big, bad guy in meetings like that? You don’t strike me that way.”

“It’s not that I’m a bad guy,” said Vincent. “It’s that perception of power. I think the employee in question feared for their job if I appeared and they didn’t shape up.”

“Do you fire many people?” asked Andrew.

“Fortunately, no,” said Vincent. “I do put a lot of effort into trying to make sure I pick outstanding people up front. That way I don’t have to worry about firing anyone later.”

“That’s a good point,” said Andrew. He dragged “Last Dance,” one of his favorite Donna Summer songs, into the playlist.

“Was there a particular reason you called?” asked Vincent. “You wouldn’t have known about my personnel issue.”

“Oh, yes, there is,” said Andrew. He smiled at the perfect opening to talk about the house. He said, “I was speaking with Jeffrey this morning, and he ran into a little problem at the house.”

“Are you sure it’s little?” asked Vincent.

“I guess that it depends on how you look at it. It’s little compared to the overall project but taken alone, maybe it’s a little bigger than that,” said Andrew. “Anyway, this wasn’t his fault at all. The blueprints of your house aren’t accurate.”

“They built something different from what’s in the plans?” asked Vincent.

“That’s exactly what they did.”

Vincent sighed. “How bad is it?”

“Well, Jeffrey was starting to tear out that wall between the kitchen and the dining room. It’s the one we spoke about replacing with an island so there would be such a dramatic sight line through that space. Then he found electrical wires and plumbing pipes in the wall that weren’t supposed to be there.”

“That doesn’t sound like something positive. Do you need to change plans then?” asked Vincent.

Andrew said, “They can work around it. They can reroute the electrical and plumbing, but that means the overall project becomes a little bit more expensive.”

“How much is a little bit?” asked Vincent.

Andrew said, “It’s all relative.”

“How much?”

“About $5,000.” Andrew winced and pulled his hand off his computer’s mouse to focus full attention on Vincent’s response.

“That doesn’t sound too awful,” said Vincent. “I would say go ahead. Wouldn’t you agree.”

“Of course I would,” said Andrew, “but I’m not paying the bill.”

“It’s fine,” said Vincent. “I’ll just have to sell a few more tomatoes and free-range chickens.”

Andrew said, “That’s a relief. I was nervous, but now that the house issue is out of the way, do you have any free afternoons coming up soon?”

“I might be able to free up some time,” said Vincent. “Did you have something in mind?”

Grinning, Andrew said, “Nothing more specific than you and me naked in bed together.”

“Sounds like a perfect afternoon.”

“Friday?” asked Andrew. “That’s just two days from now. I think I could hold out until then.”

Vincent said, “Let me email it to myself here on the phone so that I don’t forget to add it to the schedule when I get back to the office. Vicki, my secretary, sometimes gets irritated if I’m not there at the office when my schedule says I will be.”

---

Andrew enjoyed working lunches. The engagement made him feel doubly productive. He met with a small team working on the women’s shelter project at a local cafe. The project was coming along well, and everyone shared a progress report. Andrew was invited to tour the university’s art studios and look at student works that were available for the shelter project. He jotted down time on his cell phone schedule app for Monday afternoon to look at the art.

When he returned to the office, Andrew found Jeffrey and Doug sitting on the deck talking about working on Vincent’s house. Doug looked up as Andrew approached and said, “This is perfect timing. We had a question for you.”

“Me?” asked Andrew.

“Yes, you,” said Doug. “There is a lot of progress at the house, and soon it will be ready for you to move your work on the finishing touches front and center.”

“That’s exciting,” said Andrew. “I haven’t been there in a couple of days, so I’m eager to see what you’ve accomplished.”

Jeffrey said, “I think it would be good for us to all go out there together so we can talk about it and know that we are all looking at the same thing.”

Doug nodded in agreement. He asked about meeting Friday afternoon.

Before Andrew could respond, Jeffrey said, “That works well for me, and it sounds good to do it right before the weekend. That way we can push everything else aside and concentrate.”

Andrew shook his head and said, “Whoa…you didn’t wait for me to say anything. I have Friday afternoon blocked off my schedule. I just can’t meet then.”

Doug sighed and said, “You seem to have a lot of afternoons blocked off lately.”

“I’m a busy man,” said Andrew.

“Would that be busy with anyone in particular?” asked Jeffrey.

Andrew smiled sheepishly and said, “Well, yeah, okay, I admit it. I’m going to see Vincent again but, you know, he is a really good man. I’ve finally found one.”

Jeffrey crossed his arms over his chest. He said, “That is a great thing, but you’ve also got a job, and you work with us. Maybe it’s about time to move your personal life to the evening and weekends like everyone else.”

Andrew looked to Doug, but he found little sympathy there. He said, “It’s a complex situation. Vincent is raising a daughter, and he tries to keep the evenings free so that he can be a responsible dad.”

Jeffrey said, “I understand that life can be complicated, but it’s complicated for everyone. We need you, Andrew. You’re just as important to ADJ as Doug and me. I’m worried this is getting a little out of hand.”

Doug said, “Yeah, me, too.”

Andrew sighed heavily. He said, “I’m sorry. I’ll try to do better, but I can’t cancel Friday. Can we meet at the house Saturday morning? I’ll bring pastries.”

“And cut into our personal time,” whispered Doug.

“You can both take Friday off, too? Maybe?”

Jeffrey said, “For just this time, I think Saturday would be okay for me. How about you, Doug? I’ll make sure he has your favorite pastry, and the cost all comes out of Andrew’s pocket.”

Doug said, “Okay, maybe I’ll be just a little further along with the landscaping, but don’t forget this, Andrew. We have your back, and we need to know that you have ours, too.”

Andrew looked down at his vibrating phone and said, “Yeah, I won’t forget.” Vincent was calling. Andrew said, “I’m sorry, guys. I need to take this call. I’ll be right back.”

As he stepped inside his office, Andrew asked, “What’s up? I was just thinking about you.”

A heavy groan issued from the phone. Vincent said, “I can’t get together on Friday. It’s just not going to work. I promised to take Mandy to a movie Friday night, and play practice is canceled, so she will be ready to be picked up from school earlier than normal.”

Andrew mumbled, “And I just stared down my colleagues over it.” He didn’t want to argue with Vincent, and he knew that Mandy was the most important thing for her dad. Andrew said, “That’s okay. We will just have to reschedule. Are you free for lunch on Saturday?”

“I can be,” said Vincent. “I usually do cleaning and laundry on Saturdays, but this Saturday I know that Mandy will be hanging out with a friend, so it should work fine to have lunch. There’s a great little cafe across the street from my downtown store. Should we meet there?”

“That sounds like a plan,” said Andrew. “I’m sorry Friday won’t work out, but we’ve got a lot of time in the future. Every day I’m more convinced of that.”