Page 59 of Sweet Harmony

Connor grinned.“Does owning the series on DVD, the director’s cut of the movie,all the Funko figurines and an autographed photo of Alan Tudyk,make me a fan?”

“Holy shit,”Gideon said. “When did you meet Alan Tudyk?”

“I went toGranite State Comicon a few years ago. He was one of the guestspeakers. He and Nathan Fillion were there, but the lineup forFillion was huge.”

Gideon wasstaring wide-eyed at Connor. “What was Tudyk like?”

“Really coolguy, actually,” Connor said. “I heard that he’s going to be backthere this year. I’d go again to meet him. I’ve been obsessed withthe series since I was fifteen.”

Gideon sat backin the chair. “I swear you’re the only person in this town besidesme, who even has an inkling of an understanding of how fantasticthe show was. Kira, when did you say they were showingSerenity?”

“In a coupleweeks, I think,” Kira said.

“If you’re notbusy, we should grab tickets to the show,” Gideon said toConnor.

Kira’s mouthdropped open as Connor nodded. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

“Good. What’syour favourite episode?”

“Well, I love‘Ariel’, but I have to go with ‘Our Mrs. Reynolds’,” Connorsaid.

Gideon actuallygrinned like a school boy. “Me too! Here’s the thing, people don’tget just how incredible Christina Hendricks is in that episode.They totally wasted her in the ‘Trash’ episode, which is why peopleforget how good she was in episode six.”

“Couldn’t agreemore,” Connor said.

As Gideon andConnor talked animatedly about the stupid bug show, Kira stared insilent shock. Holy crap. Gideon and Connor were…bonding.

ChapterEleven

“Tell me, Ms.Walker, why exactly are you showing me the town’s former firehousestation?” Mr. Stark studied the brick building in front ofthem.

“I know it’sunconventional, but I think if you take a look inside, you’ll seewhy I believe it’ll work for your new office space.” Consideringshe was so nervous that she was close to vomiting, Kira was proudof how confident she sounded.

She’d shownIsaac Stark five different commercial properties and none of themhad worked. Bringing him to the city’s former fire station had beena last-minute decision on her part, and she hoped like hell shecould convince her client it would work for him.

He studied thebuilding for a moment before glancing at his watch. She crossed herfingers and sent a prayer to every god she could think of as thesilence stretched out.

“You have sevenminutes to convince me, Ms. Walker.”

“I’ll only needfive.”

What almostlooked like a smile flickered on his features before he nodded.“Lead the way.”

She led himinto the building. They were standing in the vehicle bay area andMr. Stark studied the two large overhead doors and the staircasethat led to the open upper area.

Kira took adeep breath. “You’re looking for a building that is open and airyand promotes teamwork, right? This place is perfect for that. Witha few renovations, you could have this place turned into theperfect open-concept office space.”

His looksuggested that he wasn’t seeing her vision. She hurried on. “Theoverhead doors leading into the bay area could be replaced withwindows, allowing plenty of light in. Along this wall,” she pointedto the far left, “three offices could be built. The use of frostedglass would keep that open and airy feeling. The building isequipped with bathroom and shower facilities. You said you’ll havefifteen employees working out of this building, correct?”

“To start,” hesaid.

“Right here inthe middle of the bay area, you could set up the working stationsfor your current staff and there is plenty of room to add morestations as needed.”

She walkedtoward the stairs, resting her hand on the railing. “Upstairs couldfunction as your staff room – there’s already a kitchen with roomfor a full-size stove and fridge. You mentioned wanting an area foryour staff to test out video games, socialize, etc. Upstairs wouldbe perfect. It’s sectioned off from the main working area, but withthe vault ceilings and the upstairs being open to the downstairs,you still get that modern, open air concept you’re lookingfor.”

Mr. Stark wasstaring at the metal pole that jutted down from the upstairs to thedownstairs and Kira said, “And you have a metal pole as an addedbonus.”

A ghost of asmile crossed his lips. “I’m sure it would get plenty of use fromemployees.”

---