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Grandma Kate was still visible. Then he sighed and left.
She turned back to her computer and downloaded the charts and
graphs she d designed herself. Selecting the ones she needed, she
began printing them off. This would be her first real day in Texas
doing the work she believed in, the work she loved to do.
She couldn t wait to get out in the field and get started.
* * * *
I know there s a lot of oil there, Douglas Evercroft said. The
geology supports it, and my surveyors assure me that it s a site that
will prove very lucrative. He sat back and puffed out a breath.
Wanting my money all up front may seem extreme, but compared to
the money you ll make with all those barrels of good Texas oil, you ll
feel like you stole it.
Josh grinned. He had to give Evercroft credit. The man certainly
did his best to come out on top, no matter what.
They d been negotiating off and on for several weeks and through
that time had been haggling over the price of the land and the terms of
payment.
Since you re convinced we ll all be swimming in crude, you
shouldn t mind that we pay half the agreed upon price up front, and
turn the rest into a percentage of the barrels pumped as the oil is
extracted.
Doug returned Josh s smile. Now, son. I ve been around the
block a time or two. Back when your Uncle Carson was just getting a
feel for that chair you re sitting in now, I knew how things worked in
102 Cara Covington
this town. Hell, I started out as a roughneck, worked my way up from
nothing. I ve scrubbed my share of crude out from under my
fingernails, that s a fact. There s nothing to stop you from making that
deal with me and then letting the site go to reserve. The oil don t get
pumped, I don t get paid. Especially now that you ve got that fancy
environmentalist from back east sniffing all around. Likely you ll be
putting a lot of stuff on hold till she goes back to Washington.
Josh sat back and studied the man for a moment. One thing he d
been able to count on all his life, aside from his brother, were his
instincts. Right now they were screaming at him. It rattled him to
have thoughts of Penelope brought to the table, as it were.
I don t know where you got your information, Mr. Evercroft.
Josh sure as hell didn t like that he had it, either. He looked over at
Alex and saw his brother looked as surprised as he felt. Then he
noticed that both Colt Evans and Ryder Magee had sat up straighter in
their seats, focusing on Evercroft.
There d been no progress tracing those letters, and the fact that
Penelope could be a target worried him more each day. For Evercroft
to even know about her, it meant someone here had leaked
information to the man. Was it connected to their threat? Josh didn t
know and he didn t like that he didn t know.
The family has hired a consultant, that s true. In light of recent
events, we want to be absolutely certain that all remediated sites have
been properly rehabilitated.
He sat back and looked at his brother.
Alex leaned forward. We have no problem whatsoever adding a
clause to the contract that will allow for stiff penalties on our part if
we don t develop the site according to a timeline we can all agree
upon.
Evercroft winced, as if he really didn t like the sound of those
terms. I don t know. A man s got to protect himself in this day and
age. Paying me the money once we sign just seems like the straight-
up way to do things.
Love Under Two Honchos 103
Josh looked at him for a long moment, until the man blinked. Are
you doubting the veracity of a contract signed with Benedict Oil and
Minerals or the report of your own geologists? Perhaps you re
worried there isn t as much oil there as you d like us to believe.
Your company s always been rock solid. Evercroft looked like a
man who d just lost a pissing match. And hell, you know these
scientists are right most of the time.
Then we ll have our lawyers include a provision for penalties if
we fail to drill, Alex said. We ll pay you half of our previously
agreed upon price up front, and the rest as a percentage of the
production, as the oil is pumped from the ground.
For a long moment, Evercroft said nothing. He just sat there,
staring at his fingers as they tapped out a beat on the table. Finally,
slowly, he nodded.
Well, then. You have your legal eagles write everything up, and
send it over to my boys. Then he smiled. You can understand my
concerns. Once I heard you had an environmentalist sniffing around, I
began to worry. These are difficult times for the oil industry.
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