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“I’m…” He gave me a side-eye, like he wasn’t sure how to answer.
“It’s a simple question, Hanson.”
“I’m…not trying to get the company in trouble?”
“You don’t know?” I sat forward, resting my arms on the table.
“No, sir. I mean, yes, sir. I know I definitely wasn’t trying to get the company in trouble.”
“So, you’re an incompetent fuck,” I snapped. “Because the shit I saw going on in your accounts is fucking disgraceful. You’re fired as of now. There will be no severance package, and you sure as shit better not ask me for a reference, because what you’ll get won’t find you a job anywhere else.”
I stood, shoving back my chair and buttoning my jacket. He scrambled to his feet , still in shock over what happened. I stormed out of the office to the secretary. “Call security and make sure Hanson is removed from the building immediately. I want him and all his belongings checked before he leaves. Make sure he isn’t carrying any flash drives on him. And get me a list of possible replacements by the end of the day.”
“Yes, sir.”
I started to leave, but turned around. “How long have you worked here?”
“Fifteen years, sir.”
“Why are you still a secretary?”
“Sir, there isn’t really anywhere to go in this company if you’re a secretary. But I appreciate the steady paycheck and it’s a decent job.”
I nodded. “When you’re done with Hanson, come up to the 44thfloor. You’re my executive assistant now.”
“Sir?” Her jaw dropped.
“Do you not want the promotion?”
“Yes, sir,” she grinned. “I’ll be up within a half hour.”
“That’s what I like to hear,” I said with a slight grin. See? I wasn’t always an asshole.
* * *
Alisha quickly fitinto her new position. She hired a secretary for me, as asked, so she could be my full-time assistant. The last thing I needed was her running ragged to keep up with my demands. I knew they would be large. But from day one in her position, she swiftly took to understanding my needs and only three days later, she was telling me what I needed before I needed it.
She stormed into my office like a whirlwind in a stylish tight purple dress. After her first day, I knew she had been extremely undervalued in the company and immediately gave her a raise higher than I had been planning. I also gave her an advance on her paycheck. If she was going to be traveling all over with me to meetings and such, I needed her to look her best. She didn’t disappoint.
Holding an iPad in one hand and a stylus in the other, she got right down to it. “You have an eight o’clock appointment with your father, after which the board is meeting at nine o’clock. I’ve sent over all the paperwork ahead of time for him to look over before the board meeting, and I highlighted all the pertinent facts of the contract, just to be sure he doesn’t miss anything.”
She lifted her head, smirking slightly at me. She didn’t like my father, that much was clear. That actually worked perfectly for me, because I knew she would never be turned against me.
“But before the board meeting starts, your wife will be joining you.” She gritted her teeth in annoyance. “I was going to run this past you first, but your father called her in before I had the opportunity.”
I rolled my eyes in irritation. Of course my father would step in one last time and make my life a living hell. I hadn’t spoken to Kimberley yet, and I hadn’t planned to for as long as possible.
“Make sure mywifecomes in here first. I don’t need to see her for the first time in front of my father or anyone else.” Luckily, Alisha knew about our contract, since she went over it for me the other day to ensure there was nothing I was doing wrong before I went to the board. I had already gone over it, but two sets of eyes were always better than one.
She smirked at me, turning for the door. “I’ll watch for her and make sure she comes directly in here.”
“Thank you, Alisha.”
Sighing, I rubbed a hand over my face. I might as well get this meeting over with. I walked down to my father’s office and shut the door behind me. “You rang?”
“I just wanted to go over a few things before we meet with the board. Now, it’s very important that you keep me on as council—”
“Is that all this is about? How you’re going to keep your power? Save it. I already told you, I’m not doing things your way. I will keep whoever I want in this company and that’s final. You didn’t put anywhere in the contract that you were to remain on in any capacity. If you thought I would bend for you like Michael, you were dead wrong.”
