Chapter 50

The business didn't change at all. The changes were all behind the scenes with lawyers, accountants, and CEOs. John had batted a thousand when he made predictions about the CEOs and whether they'd stay or go if we gave them the chance.

It was like a victory tour or a lap around the track after winning the race, as I went from business to business. I'd talk with each CEO and invite their wives and families out to nice dinners or weekends away, so I could personally thank them, make sure they were happy, and ready for the next steps.

It was in late November that I took Craig and his wife Emily to Hawaii for a business meeting. I rented a big house with an estate around it, and a private beach. We had a helicopter pick us up in the yard and fly us around the island. In addition, we went fishing and snorkeling. The private chef that came with the house made great meals for us, and we spent a lot of time just enjoying everything. Craig was still a young guy and his wife was the same age.

We were sitting out by the pool one evening, when I finally asked him, "Craig, it looks like you did it and after five years of work you've made it to the finish line. You won the race and earned the prize. What do you see in the future?"

"John asked me that about ten months ago, and I wasn't ready for the question, so I didn't have an answer. I had some ideas but hadn't made a final decision. A few months ago, I talked with Emily, and asked her if what we have done this week, was the way she wanted to live the rest of our lives. How much champagne do we want to drink, and how much golf can I play?"

"I used to play golf in college, not on the team, but during my years in college. I don't even know if I own clubs anymore."

"Emily told me that she'd like to see me more often, but that we were both too young to retire."

"So you're going to stay in Nashville and run Freedom for me?"

"I was thinking about becoming an owner instead of a CEO."

"Tell me about your plans?"

"I want to duplicate what we've done here somewhere else, as either an expansion or a separate entity. I was thinking about Canada or Mexico, which would be a easy to do. Europe would be a huge challenge, but very rewarding."

"Just imagine having to deal with all those different countries. I had enough trouble dealing with the different states."

"That's why I was thinking of Canada or Mexico. I'd have to meet with the governments, lay out the benefits, and see how they reacted. If I don't have their support, I'll stay here or look for something else. Britt, do you have any money lying around that you might want to use to finance a new project?"

"Craig, if you have some business you want to start, I'll make sure you're financed by either me or some other firm. What do you want to do, Emily?"

She said, "Britt, I've felt like a war bride at times, when Craig is up to his eyeballs in work. But when I hear and see all of his accomplishments, I'm so proud of him and my heart melts like a princess when her knight appears. I know that Canada is cold, but there is no question that it's a safer place than Mexico. Both countries are much smaller, and as long as he leaves the best people to run your company, he can steal a few good ones to run his."

"Thanks for thinking of me. Craig, how much money will you need and what're your plans for building trucks?"

"That's why we may want to expand what you have. I'd consider doing the work, but would like to have a piece of the pie."

"I'll think about it. Make some contacts in Canada. Once you do that, we can continue to work on this."

The rest of the week was fun and relaxing. I stayed in Hawaii, while Craig took Emily back to Nashville. The next day John, Beth and the kids came in to meet with me. My almost ten-year-old girlfriend was the first out of the car and running to see me. She had on a pretty sundress and jumped into my arms when she made it to me. I had received three hugs and six kisses by the time her family made it to the door.

Her mom smacked her bottom and said, "Mary, go get your suitcase and close the trunk."

Beth took her place in my arms, and I held her for a minute as Mary walked past with her case. Johnny was trying to get into his suitcase to put on his bathing suit. We found rooms for everyone, and Beth made them put away their clothes before going swimming. Johnny was in the pool swimming like a twelve-year-old fish. Mary made sure I saw her new bikini before she jumped in with her brother.

Beth came and sat in the living room with John and me. "First class certainly helps on those long flights. Thanks for paying for my entire family, so John didn't have to sit in back."

"I didn't want people to think that I discriminated against men."

We had an early dinner, and due to the time difference, the kids went to bed early. Beth and I shared a bottle of wine while John sipped on a diet coke. We were in the same seats as Craig and Emily were a few nights earlier.

"John, did you ever talk to Beth about her bonus?"

"I did, and it was an interesting talk."

"Beth, what did you and John decide?"

"I told him that I felt that you had paid more than I deserved for the last three years and didn't need a bonus."

John said, "I told her that you'd give her the moon if she asked for it, and not think twice about it."

"You're right about that. Beth, John has helped me since I was a kid. I always felt like I could come to your house and feel loved even when my own too-fucked-up parents couldn't show me any. He's taught me about photography, one of my favorite hobbies. He's helped me build a business, and yes, I know I paid for his work, but the peace I felt, knowing that he was watching over me, was like carrying a big weight for me."

"Britt, we all love you. You have let us use your condo as if it's ours. You've earned John bonuses and paid me more than I could have earned anywhere else."

"Beth, I don't know what I'll be doing, but it will probably be just attending board meetings. I can still use you, but your workload will be much lighter. I'll be setting up some more trusts for my family, friends, and children. You fall into two of those categories. If I pay John though his law firm, they'll take a chunk. If I give it to you as a gift, I'll end up paying a fifty percent gift tax. For every million I give you, I'll have to pay five hundred thousand in taxes. You work for me, so I can give it to you as a bonus, and it will be the cheapest way."

"But, I don't really want to take your money."

"Beth, I can't make you take it, but just like you do things so your kids can have a better life, I want to do this for you."

"How much?"

"Beth, I asked John to come up with a number, but you came up with zero. I wanted it to be ten billion, so let's compromise at five."

"No fucking way. I wouldn't be able to sleep with that in my account. I'd be afraid that my kids would be kidnapped, or my home would be robbed."

"Did you hear about the blonde that was driving down the road? A cop saw her weaving from one lane to the other. He followed her for a bit and then pulled her over. He walked up to the car and she rolled down her window and said, "Thank God you're here officer. There are trees all over the road." The cop looked in the road and then in her car. He said, "Ma'am that's the air freshener hanging from your review mirror. Beth, you're looking for something that isn't there. Do you know how much my mom has in her checking account?"

"No."

"Neither do I. My mom is the only child of my grandparents and they're worth millions. They could have given her ten million last year. We don't know. If I give you a billion then only we'd know unless you told someone."

"A billion, I thought it was five billion."

"Whatever you want. Talk to John and let me know."

"I like the blonde joke, but I'm not a dumb blonde."

"If you were, we wouldn't be talking about your five billion dollar bonus."

"Thanks, baby."

"Talk to John."

I looked at John, and he was smiling. "You two sound like Johnny and Mary sometimes."

Beth looked at me and said, "John said he didn't want a bonus."

John said, "Hey now. I was just kidding."

"Gottcha."

They felt tired, so they went to bed, and I stayed out and finished the bottle of wine. I remembered back to my first life when I'd buy a lottery ticket and think about what I'd do if I won two hundred million dollars. Whom would I help? How would I invest it? What would I buy? Dani was already dealing with her fortune and lives alone in a ten thousand square foot house. She's afraid of her friends. I'm looking at getting a billion a week in income and I'm only twenty-four years old.

I don't have a wife or a girlfriend. My parents are both fine, but could use some money for when they retire. Is that a million, ten million, a billion or who knows? Do I want to live in a castle or a house? A condo is less upkeep, but less secure. Do I want servants to do my housework or should I do it myself?

This could drive me nuts. I need to think about the employees first, the customers next and then what I need to do for me. I had time to think about it. Christmas was low-key, so I stayed at my condo in Orlando. I did stop by on the same schedule as the year before, and went surfing with Doug, but the waves were much smaller.

January came, and as we'd discussed, we dropped prices to all of our customers, and all were happy to sign new contracts to get the savings. We had two complaints from employees that heard about the price drop, but that was before they looked at their pay stubs. A week later, we met for our board meeting and met with the union reps. I asked if they were all right with the raises, and they were. We extended the contract for six years from that day and changed the formulas to reflect the new pay plan.

The board meeting was a happy time, but we did cover all the business issues. We made sure that with the changes, that all of them kept an eye for any side effects we may not have anticipated. March was the payoff month, and we scheduled it for the day after our board meeting.

We were in Nashville for the board meeting, and we covered business in record time before Craig asked for any new business.

I requested the Chair to recognize me, and when he did, I stood and said, "You all came to me highly recommended by people I respected, and none of you have let me down or have let each other down. This has been a team effort since day one, and as a team, we worked together. We examined the goals for the businesses and figured out what each division would need to do for us to succeed. Each of you had a job to do for the team, each of you have done that job. You've all exceeded the goals and all have exceeded my expectations.

"As a result I've made a decision without the board, and decided to double the bonuses that we agreed to, before you started. You all had different goals and different bonuses. Whatever yours was, multiply it by two and some of you may need an accountant to help with the math."

"I had a dream and a rough plan. Your knowledge, experience, and hard work shaped the plan. You filled in the gaps. You looked out for each other and others looked out for you. I've also removed the end dates for your contracts. Some will be staying on. Some of you will be retiring like Joe. Others have new adventures that they're looking to start. Vaya con Dios and thank you. Don't spend the money yet, since the buyout is taking place tomorrow in Georgia, so officially the bonuses will hit your accounts on Wednesday."

There wasn't much else to say after that, so we adjourned the meeting with handshakes and back-slaps. We had a nice dinner and I caught a charter flight to Augusta, where we had a 9 AM tee time. I didn't have any clubs so I had to rent a set. The group included Marshal and Mike Reems as the private investors, Bill Bowls and Ken Link represented the private equity firms, John Overstreet and I were here for me, and I had invited Craig and Fred White.

I felt exhausted after the non-stop workload of the previous years. We all drove up to the first tee where we set up the teams and the bets. Bill asked who had honors. Marshal said, "I remember that Britt went first last time and still has honors."

I walked over, stuck the tee in the ground, and balanced the ball on it. I took a practice swing and then stepped up and hit the ball solid. We all watched it start to rise as it cracked off of the tee and then start to spin and turn right. It soon stopped moving toward the hole and was slicing so bad that I'd never find it.

"Last time I made a speech about how you could depend on me to succeed under pressure. Today I can tell you that I've been so busy that I haven't played golf in years. Since this team isn't going to win a hole the way I'm playing I'm tell you right now that I'll cover all of John's losses..."