“Michael died six years ago.”
“I'm sorry.”
“He was thirty-eight.”
Daniel swallowed.
“Loved engineering more than business.”
He smiled faintly.
“I wanted him in board meetings. He wanted grease under his fingernails.”
“Sounds like someone I'd have liked.”
“You would have.”
Daniel continued.
“After he died, I stopped coming into showrooms very often.”
“Why?”
“Too many things reminded me of him.”
He tapped the roof.
“This car was one of the last projects he worked on.”
Ethan suddenly understood why Daniel's eyes had filled with memories that first morning.
“You weren't testing the car.”
Daniel smiled.
“No.”
“You were visiting him.”
Daniel looked toward Ethan.
“For a moment.”
The two men stood silently.
Then Daniel changed the subject.
“How are the complaint numbers?”
“Down sixty percent.”
“Sales?”
“Up.”
“Employee turnover?”
“Down.”
“Coffee?”
Ethan frowned.
“What?”
“Still terrible.”
Ethan laughed.
“I'll add it to the strategy plan.”
“You should.”
Before leaving, Daniel stopped.
“Ethan.”
“Yeah?”
“You know why people are responding to what you're doing?”
“Better coffee?”
Daniel ignored him.
“They trust consistency.”
He looked around the showroom.
“Anyone can treat an important person well.”
Then he looked at Ethan.
“Character is how you treat someone before you know whether they're important.”
Ethan remembered that sentence.
He would repeat it many times.
Six months after Richard's dismissal, a young man named Noah entered the showroom.
He was nineteen.
His sneakers were worn.
His jeans were inexpensive.
He carried a backpack and looked deeply uncomfortable.
A new receptionist smiled.
“Good afternoon. Welcome to Sterling Crown.”
Noah looked toward the cars.
“I'm not buying anything.”
“That's okay.”
He seemed surprised.
“I just wanted to look.”
“Of course.”
She pointed toward a young sales consultant named Sarah.
“Sarah can show you around if you'd like.”
Noah immediately shook his head.
“No, I don't want to waste anybody's time.”
Sarah had overheard.
“You're not.”
Noah looked embarrassed.
“I can't afford any of these.”
Sarah smiled.
“Neither can I.”
He laughed.
That broke the tension.
“What do you want to see?”
Noah pointed.
The silver Aeron.
Sarah looked at him.
“Good choice.”
She opened the driver's door.
Noah froze.
“I can sit in it?”
“Why not?”
He stared.
“Seriously?”
“Seriously.”
Noah slowly lowered himself into the driver's seat.
His face transformed.
He ran his fingers across the steering wheel.
For a few seconds, he looked like a child.
Sarah took his phone.
“Want a picture?”
He nodded eagerly.
She took several.
Then Ethan walked over.
“How's it feel?”
Noah looked up.
“Unbelievable.”
“First time in something like this?”
“First time inside any car worth more than twenty thousand.”
Ethan laughed.
Noah looked at the dashboard.
“I'm leaving for basic training next month.”
“Military?”
“Army.”
Ethan nodded.
“What made you come here?”
Noah looked embarrassed again.
“My brother used to bring me by when I was little.”
“Used to?”
“He died two years ago.”
Ethan's expression softened.
“Car accident.”
Noah touched the steering wheel.
“This was his favorite car.”
Ethan glanced across the showroom.
Daniel Harrison was standing near the entrance.
He had arrived ten minutes earlier.
He had heard everything.
Daniel approached.
Noah immediately climbed out.
“Sorry.”
“For what?” Daniel asked.
“I was just looking.”
“So was I.”
Noah did not recognize him.
Daniel looked at Sarah.
“Did you show him the engine?”
“Not yet.”
Daniel looked at Noah.
“Want to see something interesting?”
Noah nodded.
Daniel spent twenty minutes explaining the Aeron's engineering.
Not the price.
Not its prestige.
The engineering.
Cooling systems.
Suspension geometry.
Weight distribution.
Noah listened with absolute concentration.
Finally, Daniel asked:
“You like mechanics?”
“Yeah.”
“Ever thought about engineering?”
Noah shrugged.
“College wasn't really possible.”
“Why?”
“Money.”
Daniel nodded slowly.
“What happens after the Army?”
“I don't know.”
Daniel handed him a business card.
“Send me an email when you finish service.”