behind his father’s shadow. Recently, he’d begun to feel confined, as if he were boxed into a place without an exit. Had his father sensed his restlessness? Was that what spurred his decision to retire? If so, the timing couldn’t have been better.
Sara Archer, who stood a head shorter than her son, went over to him, patted him lightly on the cheek and reminded him in a sassy tone, “Well, you’ll always be Junior to me.”
Leon grimaced, and then broke into a smile, both annoyed and flattered by his mother’s display of affection. As her only child, he had learned long ago that it did no good to protest her overprotective ways. As long as he lived, he would be her little boy and there was nothing he could do to change that.
“And I don’t want you to worry about checking on the house while we’re gone,” Sara continued. “I gave Nona my keys so she can come in and water my plants and check on the aquarium. You’ll have more important things on your mind than tending my African violets and feeding the fish.”
“If that’s what you and Nona arranged, it’s fine with me,” Leon conceded, aware of how much his mother liked and trusted Nona James, who was not only Archer Industries’ operations manager, but also a longtime family friend.
“I think that’s it,” Gerald Ayers stated as he snapped his briefcase closed and handed a packet of legal documents to the elder Archer, who put them into his safe.
Gerald leaned over to shake Leon’s hand. “Congratulations, Junior,” the lawyer said, beaming his approval.
Leon pumped the attorney’s hand, “Thanks, Gerald.”
“No problem. You’re going to do fine.” Turning to Leon Sr., the lawyer said, “If that’s all you need from me, I’ll be going. I’ve got to leave for the airport in an hour.”
“Please don’t tell me you’re leaving the country, too,” Leon remarked, concerned.
“No, not at all. Going to visit my daughter in Baton Rouge. I’m only a phone call away if you need me, Leon. Call anytime, and I’ll be here…. Just as I’ve been for your father over the years.”
“Whew! That’s a relief,” Leon said, knowing how much he was going to need the seasoned attorney’s advice.
After Gerald left, Leon and his father reviewed the transition process, and then conducted an in-depth examination of the current production schedule.
“Next up is a women’s swimsuit line for Leeman’s,” Leon Sr. informed his son.
“A swimsuit line, huh? That ought to be a pretty simple run. Steve Hadley’s company out of New York, right?” Leon said, remembering the previous orders Hadley had placed with Archer Industries.
“Right. But this one might be a bit tricky. The designer wants to use a fabric that’s gonna take some serious negotiating to get down to the price Hadley wants to pay. Some kind of a specialty blend they sourced out of China.”
“Could be pricey,” Leon said.
“Exactly what I thought, so I put our man in New Delhi on it. Hopefully, he’ll find a better price in India,” his father offered.
“Sounds good. Where do we stand on the Leeman’s contract?” Leon asked.
“All done. I finalized everything with Steve Hadley. Here’s the name of the rep from his store who is due here this afternoon to consult on the project,” he said, handing Leon a piece of paper on which he had written the name. “Make sure everything comes off without a hitch, you hear? We can’t afford to lose this account. We’re doing fine, but profits were down a point last quarter.”
“I know,” Leon agreed, reading over the note, which read: Mr. Kacey Parker, Leeman’s. “Don’t worry. Leave all the business problems to me,” Leon advised. “You and Mom go have fun in Africa.”
“We plan to,” his father replied. “But don’t you have too much fun while we’re gone, okay?”
Leon rolled his eyes in exaggeration. How much fun could I possibly have if I’m busy turning triangles of exotic fabric into swimsuits for curvy females? he wondered with a smile.
Chapter 4
The two-lane highway leading to Rockport, Texas, was bordered by flat coastal plains on one side and the surging Gulf of Mexico on the other. The black ribbon of asphalt stretching out before Kacey pulled her along, bringing her ever closer to her destination. Few cars passed hers on the highway, and most of the buildings she encountered were either low-slung ranch houses surrounded by acres of green pasture or weather-worn beach cottages raised high on stilts. Kacey had to admit that the sudden sense of isolation that hit her was eerily disturbing, yet peaceful.
Continuing northward, she shifted her gaze from the road to the sky, where not a single white cloud marred the huge expanse of blue that seemed to go on forever. This kind of openness, emptiness and lack of population was a definite contrast to what Kacey was used to. An Easterner born and bred, she considered herself a typical urban working woman who thrived on deadlines, pressure and competition in a fast-paced environment that included long hours at the office, lots of take-out dinners and hitting the live entertainment circuit with her friends to relax. Leaving all that behind to hole up in this small town was going to require a great deal of patience, flexibility and trust.
When Kacey’s cell phone rang, she checked the screen and saw that Linette was calling her back. Kacey answered, intending to keep it brief.
“Hey. Where are you?” she asked, knowing Linette was never in the same place for very long.
“At the airport. LAX,” Linette sputtered, sounding out of breath. “Just got here, and wouldn’t you guess…one of my bags is missing. This sucks. I’m shooting stills for Roberto Rogales’s new outerwear campaign tomorrow and I need my equipment!”
“Right,” Kacey replied, recalling the assignment Linette had accepted with the former Ralph Lauren protégé. “Glad that job worked out for you. But don’t worry. Your bag will show. Happens all the time.”
“It had better,” Linette tossed back. “The schedule Roberto sent looks pretty scary and I’ve got a lot to do. Anyway, I got your message. What’s up with you?”
“Well, right now I’m driving down a two-lane highway along the Texas Gulf Coast, on my way to the factory that is going to manufacture SunKissed by Kacey.” She paused to let Linette absorb her good news. “Can you believe it?”
“Get outta here! For real? Hadley accepted your swimsuit line for Leeman’s?”
“He did,” Kacey confirmed with a smile, eagerly filling Linette in on the details of her meeting with her boss and her upcoming stay in Rockport.
“That’s sooo exciting,” Linette said, clearly happy for Kacey. “Your swimsuits are the bomb! They’re gonna be a huge hit. I’ve never seen any like them.”
“Your photos played a big part in winning Hadley over. And once the manufacturer’s samples are finished, I want you to shoot those, too. My plan is to convince Hadley to send our models to Rockport for the fittings and the promotional photos. Think you can squeeze in a trip to Texas when I get to that point?”
“Of
