Gary set the walking pace and Preston stepped in line with him. The kid briefly described how the progress was moving along. “This is good news. Exactly what I needed to hear.” He nodded as they walked onward, checking every working station as Preston specified it.<br/><br/>He mentioned being close to wrapping things up. “Ahead of schedule,” Gary mentioned, without explaining why he had said that. Was it an accusation, or was he impressed? It was impossible to tell.<br/><br/>The snack area was pointed out, and Gary waved at his beautiful daughter Addison, who was there snacking. Preston waved as well, which gave Addison a chuckle as she waved back to them both simultaneously.<br/><br/>Gary then heard Preston’s final comment about how Addison seemed like she was happy to come along for the ride to the work site. “Really…?” Gary asked, clearly in some disbelief. “I don’t suppose you bribed her. That’s what I kept doing for a while, until my incentives grew old and boring.”<br/><br/>He shook his head at the memories, but then reached out unexpectedly, his large hand smacking Preston’s back. “Keep it up, kid. Not just with the site management, but with my daughter. Apparently, whatever you’re doing to convince her is working. So, don’t stop now.”<br/><br/>He went on, his hand patting Preston a few times before falling away. “And, if you can convince her to take over eventually, I’ll buy you a lifetime supply of steak dinners and whiskey.” With that, Gary walked onward, on his own, and left Preston to his own devices.<br/><br/>Addison bounded over shortly afterward, offering him the other half of the glazed donut she had been working on. “How’d that go?” She asked with a perked brow. Apparently not even his own daughter could always read Mr. Marino.