Immediately alert, he nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”
“Are you enjoying it?”
“It’s certainly a challenge,” he said. “Bridget had a lot to contend with when she was in the role and she’s been a real asset to me since I started.”
“She’s not just a pretty face.”
He wasn’t touching that comment.
“You were living with your brother?” Carmen asked. “That’s why you needed somewhere else to stay?”
“That’s right. Hal and I met Tanya and Bridget when we were out one night recently.”
Immediately Carmen’s expression turned speculative. “You’re that Jack?” She raised her eyebrows at her daughter.
Bridget winced and nodded. What had she told her mother?
“That’s interesting,” said Carmen.
Jack stayed silent and was relieved when the meal was over. He helped carry the dishes to the kitchen and offered to clean up.
“No, you are our guest,” Carmen said shooing him out of the kitchen. “Bridget can show you the garden.”
He followed Bridget out of the back door and stopped, staring at the food oasis. Everywhere he looked there were fruit trees, or vegetable patches filled with ripening produce. “Wow.”
Bridget grinned at him. “Mama loves to garden.”
“I’ll say.”
She led him down the steps. “When we lived in El Salvador we went through periods when food was scarce. This is her way of ensuring it never happens again.”
“I can understand that. You said she misses it a lot.”
Bridget nodded. “She misses her family and the country, but I’m not sure she will ever go back, even if it is safe. My father died there.”
“How did he die?”
“Mama never gave us the details. He went to work one day and never came home.”
“I’m so sorry.” He wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. When he let go she gave him a small smile.
“It is what it is.”
He changed the subject. “So you mentioned me to your mother after we first met?”
“Yeah. I told her I’d met a nice man. I’m fairly certain she’s connected the dots and knows we’re not just colleagues.”
“I’d say so. Should I expect a grilling?”
Bridget smiled. “Probably.”
He’d have to allay Carmen’s concerns. He could do that. They walked down the path toward a greenhouse. “Your mom has a lot of foster kids. Do Hispanic families struggle with moving to the US?”
Bridget frowned. “The girls are all refugees. They’ve come to the States without their families.”
Jack took a step back. “But they’re so young. Why would they do that?”
“The situation in many parts of Central America – Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras – is not good. Gangs rule the streets and if you don’t join them you can be killed. Many of the girls who flee have been raped or were going to be forced into marriage. They figure it is better to take their chances with the people smugglers and the US.”
Jack had been out of touch with what was going on in the US while he was living in Australia and had no idea things were so bad.
“The detention centers are often full,” Bridget continued. “Mama takes girls while authorities are searching for family they may already have here, or girls who have been granted refugee status and have nowhere else to go. She and Zita teach them English, home school them until their education is at a level where they can go to school here, and support them until they are ready to move out.”
They walked along the path until they came to the little cottages Jack had noticed on the drive in.
“Some of the older foster kids live here,” Bridget explained. “They’ve graduated high school and are studying at college or doing an apprenticeship. It gives them a little bit of independence, but Mama is still close by if they need a hand.”
Jack shook his head. “What an incredible thing to do,” he said. “Though it must be difficult. It sounds like those girls have been traumatized.”
She nodded. “Both Mama and Zita have had training in counseling.”
“Who pays for it all? Do they get help from the government?”
“No. Carly pays for it all. She bought this whole property and set up a not-for-profit organization.”
That software company of hers was obviously doing well. This was something the family all cared dearly about. “Were you refugees?” Jack asked.
Bridget shook her head. “Mama and Papa had applied to immigrate before Papa died. The acceptance came through the week after the funeral.”
“How tragic.” He couldn’t remember what age she’d said she was at the time. “You were young, weren’t you?”
“I was five, and my whole world revolved around our little farm that Mama tended, and the little village where we lived. Houston was a huge culture shock.”
“I can imagine.”
Bridget smiled. “I want you to taste some jocote.” She entered the large greenhouse, grabbed a little step ladder from the path, and put it next to one of the trees bearing small red fruit that Jack had never seen before. She picked a couple and handed him one. “I tend to peel them, but you don’t have to.” She showed him what she meant and then popped the orange flesh into her mouth, closing her eyes in satisfaction.
He did as Bridget had demonstrated and the flavor exploded in his mouth as he bit into it. It was a cross between a strawberry and a mango and absolutely delicious. “Wow, that’s amazing.”
“Isn’t it just?”
He ate the rest of it and was going to ask for another one when he was distracted by Bridget licking the juice off her fingers. Heat shot straight to his groin. “Let me help you with that.” He took her fingers in his and slowly sucked them.
Her eyes went dark and her mouth opened a little, her tongue touching her top lip. It was all Jack needed to lose control. He pulled her toward him and crushed his mouth to hers. She tasted like the fruit, sweet and juicy. She moaned, and he forgot where he was as he deepened the kiss.
“Dios mío!”
The shriek shot through his senses like a bullet and he and Bridget sprang apart. Her mother stood at the doorway, her hand on her chest, her eyes wide.
Shit. Not the best way to make a good impression. Then he remembered how Carmen had fooled him with her hysterics over the phone and relaxed.
“Mama.” Bridget’s tone was a warning.
Carmen sighed and said something to Bridget in Spanish. Her expression was concerned. Bridget’s answer was slow, soothing.
Carmen turned to Jack. He braced himself. “You know about the Lionel affair?”
“Mama –”
“Shush. I’m asking the man a question.”
Hell. “Yes, Senora Flanagan. Bridget told me about it.”
“So you know it almost ruined her career?”
“Yes.” What was he supposed to say? He couldn’t say he loved her and wanted to marry her. That would freak Bridget out.
“What would you have done in that situation?” Carmen asked.
“I would have owned up to my mistake.”
Carmen nodded with approval. “My Birdy now worries too much about what people think.”
“That’s enough, Mama,” Bridget said sternly.
He didn’t want Bridget to be embarrassed, but he was curious about what Carmen was going to say. He stepped closer to Bridget and took her hand. “I care for your daughter.”
“Yes, I see how much you care. You have no regard for her reputation and the gossip that will fly when people know you’re together.”
Her accusation hit him right in the chest. She was right. He didn’t care what people thought, he wanted everyone to know they were together. “We’re being careful. We have separate rooms and we’ve told no one how we feel about each other. They all think Bridget’s doing me a favor.”
“So you’re embarrassed to admit the truth? Are you ashamed of your relationship wit
h my daughter?”
Jack couldn’t keep up with her, but he suspected he was digging a deeper hole for himself. “We are doing nothing to be ashamed of,” he said, standing taller and looking her in the eye. “Your daughter is a beautiful person and I care for her.”
Carmen squinted at him, examining him carefully. Then she nodded once, said something in Spanish to Bridget and walked off.
He let go of the breath he’d been holding. “What did she say?”
Bridget was silent, her mouth open in surprise. “She’s OK with it.”
Relief flooded him. He’d wanted her mother’s blessing.
“We should go back inside,” Bridget said and, without waiting for an answer, she hurried out of the greenhouse.
What had got into her?
* * *
Bridget couldn’t believe what her mother had said. She’d turned to Bridget and said, “I like him. Don’t let him get away.”
She didn’t like the level of commitment the statement implied. She was relieved Jack didn’t speak Spanish.
Safely inside the house, she sat on one of the sofas to chat with Carly and Zita. The other girls had made themselves scarce, with the exception of Elena, who was trying to improve her English and was listening carefully to every word.
“How many foster children have you looked after over the years?” Jack asked.
“Thirty five,” Carmen answered.
“It must be hard to see them go.”
“Sometimes,” Carmen said. “Some are going to their families, where they are much happier, and others grow up and move out, like two of my girls have. We keep in touch.” She smiled at Zita, who still lived at home.
Bridget was so proud of her family. She remembered the day when her mother had declared she was going to be a foster parent. There had been a lot of talk about child refugees and how the migrant community couldn’t afford to take them, because many were struggling themselves. Her mother had been working at a local wholesale nursery, and while she wasn’t earning a fortune she had enough money to provide a bed for another child, especially since Bridget and Carly had already moved out. It had grown from there.
“That’s really nice,” Jack said.
Carmen nodded. “It was easier when Carly bought this property and we built the house. It gave everyone a little more space, and meant our celebrations didn’t need to be held at a nearby park.”
“The foster girls all come to celebrations?”
“Of course. They are my daughters as much as my own are.”
Her mother had always been a nurturer.
The conversation moved to Carly and her software company and Bridget sat back, content to listen. Jack asked interesting, intelligent questions and it was comfortable, companionable. There was no tension there at all. She should be grateful.
Instead she was worried. Lionel was the only other guy she’d brought home to her family and he hadn’t fit in at all. She should have seen it as a sign, but she hadn’t. But now with Jack, it was as if he’d known her sisters for years by the way they were laughing together.
Bridget wasn’t ready for this, she didn’t want to look more long term than this week. The whole situation with them working together was too tenuous. She was relieved when it was finally time to leave the house, say goodbye to her mother and little sister, and drive back into the city.
After they dropped off Carly, Jack said, “That went well.”
She nodded. “Better than I expected. Mama likes you.”
“She’s a great woman. It must have been so difficult for her to move to a new country with three young children while she was still grieving for her husband.”
Bridget was sure it had been. It wasn’t something her mother liked to talk about. She only knew bits of what their life in El Salvador was like, the things she could remember and the stories Carly sometimes told.
“She did it for us.” It was the one thing Bridget would never forget. She’d left her home country to give her daughters a better chance at life.
She didn’t want to talk about her family any more. “When did your parents split up?” she asked Jack. At the party, Anna and Eric seemed on good terms, despite no longer being married.
“After Hal and I moved out,” he said. “I think they wanted to give us a stable home life, but we knew they weren’t happy. We were both pleased when they split, and they’re enjoying life now. Dad might have a girlfriend, but he’s keeping it quiet.”
“It’s nice they still get along.”
“It is. It’s so much easier at family gatherings.”
Bridget pulled into the driveway and they went inside. Jack pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
“Thank you for introducing me to your family.”
“If I hadn’t, Mama would have turned up on the doorstep,” she joked.
He frowned and she realized she might have hurt his feelings. She gave him a squeeze. “I’m glad you like them. The girls have been anxious to meet you since I first mentioned you.” She brushed her lips against his and moved away. “Are you hungry?”
“Only for you.”
She glanced back at him and he picked her up and carried her into his bedroom. She shrieked and then laughed as he tossed her onto the bed. He stripped off his shirt and desire spread through her.
“Come and get me then.”
Chapter 19
Jack was ready for anything when he went to work the next day. He’d had a fantastic weekend, introduced Bridget to his family and met her family, and was confident they would be able to resolve the issue of working together soon.
His mood wavered when Anthony stopped him in the hall. “Have you got a minute?”
Jack nodded and followed him into his office. Anthony closed the door behind him and indicated he should sit.
“Dirk has made an official complaint about you.”
Jack’s mouth dropped. “On what grounds?”
“He believes he’s not being treated equally and is missing out on opportunities.” Anthony checked his notes. “There’s a safety forum this week he wasn’t allowed to go to.”
Jack clenched his hands. “The forum covers high-level safety and environmental issues for managers and senior managers, which is why I’m going and taking Bridget as my second-in-command. Sally is also going because she’s the environment officer. There’s no need for anyone else to attend. I’ll be debriefing with the whole department when I get back.”
“He suggested Bridget is getting more opportunities because she’s female.”
Jack stared at the man in disbelief. “He’s claiming gender discrimination?”
Anthony sighed. “Yeah, I know he’s talking bullshit but it’s my duty to investigate it anyway.”
“You know what the issue is, Anthony. We discussed it last week after I disciplined him at our team-building session. The truth is, Bridget is a better team member in all regards: she’s dedicated, has the respect of the technicians, has a passion to change things for the better, and she gets results. That is why she is getting the opportunities. Dirk is happy to go with the status quo and the guys at the plant don’t like him. Neither do most of the people in my department.”
Anthony nodded. “Depending on how far he wants to take this, we may have to have a session with an intermediary. I’ve suggested to Dirk that over the next month he records any instances where he feels he’s being treated unfairly. I recommend you do the same – keep a record of whenever his work or his attitude has not been satisfactory. Then we can have another meeting to discuss the issue.”
Jack ran a hand through his hair. “Sure, I can do that.”
“Great. I think we can work this out to everyone’s satisfaction.” Anthony stood and shook his hand.
Jack wasn’t sure Dirk would ever be satisfied, but he would do everything he could to protect Bridget. He walked slowly to his office. Being in charge did have its disadvantages. And putting up with jerks like Dirk was definitely one of them.
* * *
By the time the forum rolled around on Wednesday, Jack was relieved to get out of the office. It seemed like Dirk had made it his mission to be as difficult as possible. Bridget had asked him to supervise the contractors who were enclosing the relief valves, and when they were missing a single permit he’d canceled all of the work that day, instead of writing it himself. That affected the whole project plan. Jack had words with him and dutifully recorded the details in his journal. Dirk had also been surlier than normal, and Jack had received a number of complaints from his team and others on the plant.
Jack took a sip of his take-out coffee as he and Bridget walked into the hall where the safety forum was being held.
“I’ll introduce you to some of the people working on neighboring plants,” Bridget said. She waved to a short, dark-haired guy in his mid-forties. “Hi, Graham. How’s things?”
“Same old, same old, Bridget. You still in charge over at Dionysus?”
She shook her head. “No. This is my new boss, Jack Gibbs.” She turned to Jack. “Graham is the Safety Manager at the oil refinery across from us.”
Graham shook Jack’s hand. “Pleasure to meet you. Bridget here is a great woman.”
Her eyes widened.
Jack smiled. “I know. She sure makes my job easier.”
They were called into the hall as the forum was about to start.
Jack found the first panel discussion interesting. After three years working in Australia he was fascinated to note the differences in the way the two countries dealt with safety and the environment.
At the end of the panel there was an opportunity for questions from the audience. Bridget asked for further details about a particular aspect relating to process safety. It was a great question and Jack knew she was immediately thinking about how to apply it at the plant. She was always on the ball. He made a few notes of his own.
At the end of the day there was a cocktail party. Bridget introduced Jack to people she knew, and eventually excused herself to speak with someone else. A guy about Jack’s age with black hair, not a strand out of place, came up to him.
“You must be one of Bridget’s colleagues.”
“Jack Gibbs,” he said. “I’m the new safety manager over at Dionysus.”
Break the Rules (The Flanagan Sisters Book 1) Page 18