“Ah, yes. She chose MMA. My little five-year-old wants to jump right in the ring.” He chuckles. “Seems I will have my work cut out for me with these girls.”
I smirk. He jokes, but I know his family means everything to him.
“Well, let me know if she needs anything. Access to training facilities or gear. It’s no problem.” He’s a great man and deserves to enjoy his family time without worrying about anything financial when it comes to them.
He inclines his head but doesn’t fully acknowledge the offer. I’ll have to let Alester know to keep a digital eyeball on them, to see when they need anything. It’s the easiest way to know what our employees need, especially when they feel an unnecessary guilt in telling one of us. We make it very clear that we love taking care of our employees. They’re like family, and we want to know what activities or events they’re into so we can gift them things occasionally. Because what’s the point of having all this money if I can’t spend it on people I care about? I don’t need to horde it. I have plenty–hell even more than plenty–to live well within my means. I have the acreage, apartments near every office, a couple vacation homes, plus I give back to charities, and there’s nothing wrong with spoiling my employees too. This is why they don’t like me in the media. They want dirt, but I don’t care enough to give it to them.
“Where to today?” Thomas asks as we head down main street.
“The acreage. I need to check a few things, then we have to go to the club for a meeting.” I pause. “It will be brief.”
Thomas merges onto the ramp out of town when I have an idea. “Actually, let’s stop by the bookstore first.” He seamlessly changes lanes to head in the opposite direction as I pick up my phone and dial.
“Endlessly Books! This is Kayla. How can I help you?”
“Hi Kayla. I’m going to be at your store in twenty-five minutes. I’d like you all to put together a large quantity of books and toys for a variety of ages of children. Price does not matter. I’m just on a time crunch and can’t gather everything myself. As much as you can pick out in that time is perfectly fine.”
“Uh. Okay. Any amount we can gather you said? Are you sure?” Kayla’s voice drags out, her nervousness radiating through the phone.
“I’m sure. Your store manager knows me. Tell him Mr. Edward will be there soon.” I hang up without waiting for the young girl to respond.
I pull out my packet of applications to flip through them while I wait to arrive at the bookstore. There are a lot of positions to fill at our new location, and finding the perfect candidate takes time.
“We are here, sir,” Thomas says as he shifts the vehicle into Park.
I sigh. “Thomas, I asked you not to call me that. James is perfectly fine.”
He chuckles. “Sorry, James. I’ve been around a long time. Some habits are hard to break.”
He climbs out and rounds the SUV to open my door. I stuff my papers into my briefcase and nod my thanks. Thomas likes everything the traditional way, and I try my best not to force change on him too often. I let him get the door each time, but I’m trying to break the sir comments. They make me feel pretentious.
“Thanks, Thomas. I’ll be right back out.” I jog up to the building since I’m on a time crunch. When I open the door, the store manager is there to greet me. “Mark, good to see you,” I say. “I take it you got my message.”
“Yes, yes, Mr. Edward. I have everything right around the corner here and it’s all rung up the way you like. It’s ready for payment whenever you are.” I round the corner to the cash register at the end of the long counter and swipe my card without looking. The machine starts spitting out the receipt. It takes a full minute for it to finish. Mark neatly folds the yard-long slip of paper and hands it to me.
“Thank you. Do you have someone who can help me get it to the SUV, or should I ring my driver?” I ask.
“Not to worry. I have it all handled.” He waves two male employees over, and they start pulling two long carts stacked with ten boxes on each cart that are overflowing with booksand toys.
Perfect.
“These two are going to follow you out and load everything inside for you.” Mark extends his hand, so I reach out and shake it. “Thank you so much for your business.”
“Thank you for your speedy service. The children are going to love everything,” I say, and he beams up at me.
This is by far my favorite part of having seemingly endless funds. Being able to buy things for children in shelters and orphanages. It may seem small on my account, but to them, it’s a bright spot in their day. The older ones can have new books to escape into, and the smaller kids get beginner books and stuffed animals. I started having the store throw games in the boxes too, for variety. It doesn’t feel like I’m doing enough for the kids, but seeing Avery, the blonde three-year-old’s face light up when she grabs a new stuffy and a book has me coming back as often as I can.
It doesn’t take long for the employees to load the SUV, then Thomas pulls back onto the road towards the Boys and Girls Harbor. It’s a short drive before Thomas winds up the gravel drive, parks, and makes his way to my door.
A volunteer rushes to our vehicle.
“Can I help you?” she asks.
I gesture to the trunk and Thomas clicks it open. “I have some donations for the kids.”
Her shoulders relax. “That’s amazing. I’ll get a dolly and we can take it to the lunch room, but the children are all on a field trip right now.”
“That’sfine. I’ll see them next time.”
