Beckett decided not to mention it. It’s what brothers did.
“Calvin’s crew is moving pretty fast,” Carter said, ignoring the minor blow up in the kitchen as he led them around the little barn. The path served as a shortcut to the big, stone barn that would soon house John Pierce Brews.
It sat by itself, on a rise surrounded by fields and pastures. A handful of pick-up trucks and construction vans were parked on one side.
Beckett stepped through the opening that would eventually be accordion glass doors to the stone terrace.
The massive main floor was looking significantly brighter thanks to the new windows that the builder added at strategic points. The thick walls, which would eventually be painted white, created deep windowsills. The wide-plank floors would be sanded down and refinished once the massive L-shaped bar was complete.
The rickety ladder to the top floor was in the process of being replaced by a rustic staircase made from reclaimed barn wood. The railing they chose was a modern cable system.
Tucked under the loft near the end of the bar was a shaft for a small elevator. On the other end of the wall were the skeletons of two restrooms. Beckett waved to Calvin and his foreman, Joe.
“Looking real good, guys,” he called out.
“Wait’ll you see the brewery,” Calvin said, pulling his Jets cap off his head to swipe at the sweat. “Really like that lipstick you’re wearing there, Carter.”
Carter dragged a hand over his mouth and swore. “You guys suck,” he said to Beckett and Jax. And Beckett instantly felt a little lighter.
Carter led the way downstairs to the first floor. One third of the space would be used for the commercial kitchen, but the rest would be the heart and soul of the brewing operations.
Thick beams and stone walls reminded all who entered of the building’s hundred-year-old past.
“I ordered the fermentation tanks last week,” Jax told them, wandering around the space. “Carter and I were talking about the keg room placement. We thought having it over here would make sense. The lines could go straight up to the tap system above.”
“Plus it’s a straight shot to the doors for deliveries and supplies,” Carter added.
Beckett shoved his hands in his pockets. He could finally start to envision it all.
“It’s going to be a hell of an operation,” he nodded. “We’re going to need an onsite office, aren’t we?”
Carter, arms crossed, leaned against a pallet of two by fours. “Jax had a thought on that.”
Beckett turned his attention to his younger brother.
“The silo,” Jax said.
The stone silo stood next to the barn, stretching toward the sky. Once a holding bin for grain, it had been empty for decades.
Beckett frowned thoughtfully. “How big is it?”
“Big. Twenty feet across.”
He thought about it, rolling the idea around in his head. “We could have an office off of the upper floor, some storage, maybe even move the bottling stuff out there.”
“Told you he’d be into it,” Jax smirked at Carter.
“It’s a good idea. Might as well make use of the space. What would it add to the timeline?” They were planning to open in the spring as it was now.
“The storage and bottling works wouldn’t be a big deal. It might take a little more time to get the office space together, especially if we want any kind of plumbing over there,” Jax told him.
Beckett nodded. “Let’s do it. We can always finish off the office after we’re open for business.”
“Sounds good,” Jax agreed.
“Now, the big question,” Carter said. “How much longer before we can start brewing?”
“Once the tanks are in place we can get everything else set up in a week or two tops,” Jax said, scrolling through the calendar on his phone. “We can pretty much start fighting over who gets to do the first batch.”
“Me.”
“Me.” Beckett and Carter frowned at each other.
“We’re going to have to settle this like men,” Beckett said.
“A duel at dawn?” Jax asked.
“We’ll come up with something,” Carter decided. “So while we’re on the subject of change,” Carter began. He pulled a black jewelers box from his pocket. “There’s hopefully going to be another one around here sometime.”
He snapped open the lid and Beckett pretended to shield his eyes from the sparkle inside. “Damn. Already? Didn’t you just meet like four months ago?”
Carter grinned. “Don’t even pretend like she’s not the one. I just have to convince her that it’s not too early.”
“Summer’s hell-bent on ‘taking things slow’ since everything happened so fast,” Jax explained to Beckett. “Meeting Carter, quitting her job, and moving in is freaking out the control freak.”
“Hey, that’s my control freak you’re talking about,” Carter warned him.
“I meant it in the most adorable, complimentary way possible,” Jax said, holding up his hands.
“Do you really think there’s a possibility that she’ll say no?” Beckett asked.