LITMIR.BIZ

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the switch, and the main overhead lights came on in sequence. Computers came to life, and robotic machines started their power-up sequence along the assembly line. The hundred staff members on the floor sent up a cheer.

      He hadn’t really turned everything on with a single switch. The supervisors and foremen at each station had simply taken the overhead lights as a signal to go live. It was eight a.m., August 16th, day one of the expanded operation.

      From the interior walkway on the third level, Riley gave everyone a wave and a salute. “The clock is officially ticking,” he said to Wade.

      The cheering gradually died down, and everyone’s attention turned to their tasks.

      “Now you just need to get the glitches worked out of the supply chain,” said Wade.

      “The custom rivets finally arrived. Colorado’s good on the sheet metal. How are your new parts certifications coming?” Riley moved along the walkway to his office, the spring-loaded door shutting out the noise behind him.

      “My guys say they’re on track.”

      “That’s great.” Riley plopped down on his desk chair.

      The new office was compact and utilitarian, with big windows overlooking the factory floor. His production and sales managers had offices on either side of him, with the various unit supervisors near their staff’s stations throughout the facility.

      Out of habit from all the recent construction, he’d worn cargo pants and a t-shirt, his feet clad in steel toed boots. Part of him was itching to get down there on the floor and plunge in. But he realized he had to stay at the helm.

      He had over a hundred and fifty workers now, operating on three shifts. They needed a leader, not a colleague. And he had to keep focused on the company’s strategic direction.

      “Good luck,” said Wade.

      “Talk to you in a few days.” Riley ended the call.

      As he settled back in his chair, his thoughts went fleetingly to his father, Dalton Colborn. The man had never once acknowledged Riley as his illegitimate son, and he’d certainly never given him any support or encouragement. Still, their lives had ended up following a similar path.

      At the moment, Riley couldn’t help but wonder if this was how Dalton had felt in the early days when his fledgling company had first started to grow. Had he experienced this same combination of exhilaration and flat-out fear? Dalton had gone from nothing to a billion dollar aerospace company before he’d died, so he must have taken chances along the way.

      Shane Colborn had inherited that dynasty. Shane was the legitimate son, the golden child.

      “Well, Shane,” Riley said out loud to the empty office, wishing he had a shot of tequila or even a beer to use for a toast. “Let’s find out if your illegitimate half-brother can give you a run for your money.”

      His phone pinged with a text message.

      He set aside his thoughts and checked it. The text was from Ashton Watson, his high school friend. It was a photo tagged: Blew my mind.

      Another text came immediately from Ashton. I’ve met the bride.

      Curious, Riley tapped the photo. It expanded to show a picture of Shane dressed in a tuxedo standing next to a gorgeous, auburn haired woman in white lace. She had a trim body, bright green eyes and flawless skin, a true ten on the hotness scale. Then again, a ten was exactly what Riley would have expected for Shane.

      His office door opened, and Ashton strode right in. “She’s a piece of work, that one. Nasty as they come.”

      “She doesn’t look nasty,” Riley couldn’t help but observe. She looked classy and beautiful, and also very happy. Then again, she’d just married a billionaire in a lavish wedding that was reported to have cost several hundred thousand dollars. That would probably make the nastiest of women happy.

      “Just don’t tick her off,” said Ashton.

      “How do you know her?”

      “She was Jennifer’s roommate.”

      “Jennifer?”

      Ashton gave an exasperated sigh, lowering himself into the single guest chair. “I dated her for four months.”

      “Did I meet her?”

      “Yeah. At least once. I’m sure you met her. Blond hair, blue eyes, great legs.”

      “You just described every date you’ve had since freshman year.”

      “She was different. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. It’s going to go bad for Shane. I’d put money on it.”

      “Couldn’t happen to a nicer guy,” Riley drawled.

      Ashton grinned and cocked his head toward the interior windows. “Looks really good out there.”

      “I can’t believe we’re finally up and running.”

      “I knew you’d do it.”

      “I haven’t done it yet.” Riley rose to gaze out at the factory himself. Machines were running. People were working. But it was a long, long road to any kind of profitability. He sure hoped he could make it.

      Ashton stood beside him. “Yeah, you have. Before long, you’ll have more contracts than you’ll know what to do with.”

      “Believe it or not, I’ve been thinking about Dalton.”

      “Seriously?”

      “I was thinking, he had to have started out like this, same risks, same fears, same hopes.”

      It took Ashton a second to respond. When he did, his tone was thoughtful. “You’re more like him than Shane is, you know.”

      “That’s not my ambition. Riley had no admiration or respect for his biological father. He hated the man.”

      “Shane had it handed to him on a silver platter. You had to fight for every inch to get where you are.”

      “Where I am is deep in debt and tip-toeing along a cliff of complete disaster.”

      “That’s what makes it exciting,” said Ashton. “No risk, no reward.”

      “Is that why you fly the way you do? The adrenaline rush?”

      Ashton was a helicopter pilot, and he volunteered for search and rescue on his days off. He had a reputation for saying yes to the riskiest of flights.

      “Sure,” Ashton said with a shrug. “That and it impresses the girls.”

      “Like you’ve ever had trouble getting girls.” For some reason, Riley took another look at the picture of Shane and his bride.

      “Her name is Darci Rivers,” said Ashton.

      There was something compelling in the woman’s emerald eyes, a secret in her lush smile. Riley suddenly pictured her shiny hair splayed across a white pillowcase.

      He shifted and quickly banished the image.

      “You think he made a mistake?” he asked Ashton.

      “Oh, he made a mistake all right. That creature’s got claws.”

      “Well, I hope she distracts him,” said Riley.

      He and Shane would be going after the same airline contracts from here on in. If Shane was newly married to a handful of a wife, it might give Riley an advantage.

      * * *

      Through the glass of the restaurant window, a good looking, neatly dressed man caught Kalissa’s eye for a second time. He was staring openly now as she wheeled a trio of azalea plants across the lighted patio garden.

      It would be nice to think he was interested in her. He was extremely attractive, with dark eyes, a straight nose, and the kind of square chin that made a man seem powerful. But

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