His Construction Princess

Aria's POV "You're fired. Get the f**k off my job site", I said to the jackass that just costed me a hundred grand, easy. "You can't do that", he protested. "The f**k I can't. When I hired you, I wasn't aware of your incompetence. Get. The. f**k. Off. My. Job. Site", I growled in challenge. This man can't possibly be that stupid. Rico stepped closer to me, squaring his shoulders in an attempt to intimidate me. "Rico, I will drop your 6ft ass, don't test me", I gritted, not backing down. He reached up and open-hand smacked me, like a b***h. "Rico!", I heard one of the crewman scold. It was too late though. I had already locked in on my target. I drew back and full force punched Rico in the throat. As a 5'2" woman, who is the owner of an up and coming construction business, sometimes I have to scrap to remind them who the boss is. As Rico fell to his knees, I grabbed his nappy hair. I yanked his head towards my knee at the same speed that my knee was traveling upwards. The sickening crack of his nose breaking ricocheted off the bare walls in the empty house we stood in. "Oh!", collectively broke out among the men. I took a step back and observed the rest of the crew, gauging where I stood with them. "Marcus, you are the new forman. Get this asshole off this property", I demanded. "Yes ma'am", he saluted. "You heard her. Get your asses in gear", he commanded, snapping his fingers at them. "I have an important lunch to get to. I'm already running late", I exasperated. "Then go, boss. I'll clean this up", Marcus assured me. "I appreciate you, Marcus", I nodded. I straightened my crop top and attempted to fluff my hair as I walked back to my truck. I dressed appropriately for lunch with a potential client. However, when I got a call from Marcus that Rico showed up to work at 10 am, high as a kite, and drove the forklift into the side of the house, I had to make a detour. How am I going to explain to my client that this has happened? It's something that will have to take a backseat in my mind for now. 'OTW', I texted my partner/mentor, William. He's an older gentlemen who took me under his wing years ago. I have only excelled thanks to him. He has become the father figure that I never had. 'Drive safe, kiddo', he replied. I know he is already at the restaurant with our potential clients. Chatting it up with them, and stalling for me. I pulled up to our nicest small town restaurant available, Crowley's. I jumped out of my truck and nervously dusted my clothes, as anxiety gripped at my throat. I always hate interactions with new people. It's something that William has been working with me on. Usually, he would deal with welcoming new clients and I would busy myself with labor. With William approaching 70 though, it's time for him to start taking more time to himself. He's secretly terrified of retiring, swears he will die if he stops. I walked into the busy diner and scouted it out. I spotted William's back and headed towards him. I quietly slid into the chair next to him, catching the other two men by surprise. "My apologies gentlemen. I had a man-child to fire", I announced. "There's the hotstepper", William said loudly, as he faced me. "Aria, what the f**k happened to your lip?", he panicked. I wiped my lip and checked my fingers, noticing blood and how scraped my knuckled were. "Incompetence", I answered. "Order me a sweet tea, please. I'll be right back", I uttered, standing up and leaving the table. When I stood in front of the mirror at the sink, I immediately understood why our potential clients had such surprised expressions. A large red mark spread across my cheek, and part of my chin. The corner of my bottom lip was split, with a minimal amount of blood seeping from it. When I rejoined the table I took a better look at the two men who sat across from us. One older, one younger, maybe around my age. Both dressed in armani suits, and wearing presidental rolexs. "Aria, this is Antionio and his son Alexander", William introduced. "It is nice to meet you", I greeted, reaching out to shake their hands. When I took Alexander's hand, he gripped it, turning it to inspect my knuckles. "Did you get into a fist fight before you got here?", his voice was deep and as smooth as silk. Holy f**k, he is a gorgeous man. His jet black hair accents his emerald eyes. "Kind of", I shrugged in a playful, yet non-chalant manner. Alexander examined my face. "I hope you beat the s**t out of him", he uttered. "Honestly, we did not expect a woman. That seemed to be a topic that was skipped over when all the talk of your company came about", Antonio sounded displeased. "Is that a deal breaker for you?", William asked, his tone no longer bantery. "No not at all", Alexander answered on his behalf. "I want to work with you Miss Aria", he said, his eyes steady locked on mine, as he spoke. "Son", Antonio grumbled. "Father, this is my deal, remember?", Alexander snapped, looking over at his father. This was when he finally released my hand. "I have a few rules and regulations that must be agreed upon first", Alexander announced, bringing his attention back to me. "Okay?", I nodded. "One, you will both need to sign a NDA. Any projects you do for us must be kept under wraps. Two, I want you to explicity run a crew, that I will provide for you", he stated. "Excuse me?", I snorted. "What's the point of hiring me then?", I asked, insulted. "Your expertise. I have a small group of men, that are kind of in my trust circle. It causes for less mess, blow back, and amount of NDA's to be signed", he explained. I thought about it for a moment, pondering my options. "Fine. It'll cost you extra though", I finally decided. "And, why is that?", Alexander asked, his lips curling into a smile, as he leaned in towards me. "If I am going to have to train a whole new crew, that costs more. My knowledge, nor my time are free. Being required to stay on site full-time to train novices and oversee this project, takes away from my other clients", I explained, leaning back in my chair and crossing my legs. The server interrupted our conversation, to take our main course orders. The server took my order, then Alexander's before moving to the other side of the table. "I will pay you an extra 30% for your time", Alexander couldn't wait to say, once he was finished with his order. "You have yourself a deal", I grinned, sticking my hand out to shake on it. Can you come take a look today and get started tomorrow?", he was giddy with excitement and planning. "Yes. I'll just arrange for my mother to get my son off the bus for me", I nodded, pulling my phone from my pocket. "You have children?" Antonio asked. "I have a 7 year-old son, yes", I nodded, finishing my text. "But, no wedding ring", Antonio observed. "Correct. My ex-husband left almost four years ago", I answered, holding my head high. "The piece of s**t that he was", William added. "I remember the day she walked up to my job site. Her mother was trying to pawn the dead beat off on me because I was looking for help. Aria stepped between her mother and I, head held high and said 'I'm the one looking for work'. She was tiny, but I had worked with her husband before and knew that wouldn't work out. It turned into the best decision I ever made. I got a daughter out of it", William said, with pride. He clapped me on the shoulder and we shared a smile. Alexander's gaze heated my skin like the sun. "Now why would your marriage fail?", Antonio chastised. "Father", Alexander snapped. By this round of questioning, I was hot. The fire in my soul burns with rage and vengeance every time my ex-husband is mentioned. Which is why I don't mention him. "I was 16 and he was 27. We had nothing in common. I thought it was love until I got around the same age and realized that I would never sleep with a 16-year-old child, no matter how mature they acted", I seethed.