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James
My father looked up from his desk and huffed at me. “I didn’t think you’d actually wait until the six month mark to show up.”
“I told you I would,” I said as I entered, shutting the door behind me. “When do we do this?”
He leaned back in his chair and assessed me like one of his acquisitions. “The board meets next Tuesday. That will allow you enough time to get up to date.”
“I’m fully up to-date.” I walked over to his floor to ceiling windows, shoving my hands in my pockets. “You’re losing money on the Spencer deal. Accounting is screwing up the books. I’d fire Hanson now before he gets the company audited. And your secretary is screwing half the people on the floor.”
I turned back to him, my face cold and unrelenting. This was the man he wanted. The truth was, my brother would have been the perfect puppet for him, but I never would have been, and still wouldn’t be. I refused to do things his way, and that’s the way I would run this company moving forward.
“I’ll need an office in the next hour and a secretary. I want to interview them myself—”
“Son,” he chuckled. “I think you’re moving a little too fast here. Let’s give this time to get your feet wet.”
I headed for the door, not bothering to stop for him. “This was the agreement. You wanted this, not me. If you want to tear up the contract, just say the word. Wright will be in here within the hour to have an emergency board meeting.” I jerked the door open and turned back to him. “Get me the fucking office and secretaries to interview now.”
I strode out of his office and down the hall to the elevator. The first stop was accounting to get that mess cleared up. After that, my fucking office better be ready. I didn’t give up everything I wanted in my life to deal with my father’s bullshit.
Stepping out on the twenty-sixth floor, I walked past the woman who sat behind the secretary’s desk. I remembered her from my college days, only then she had longer hair. Now she wore her hair short, nearly buzzed against her scalp, but it looked good on her.
“Sir, is there something I can help you with?”
I turned to her, giving her the cold stare I gave everyone else. “Yes, I need a private room, and I need Hanson in there immediately.”
“Um…sir—”
“I don’t need excuses right now. I want that incompetent asshole in a private office now, or I’ll fire him right in front of the whole goddamn department.”
She swallowed hard, nodding quickly. “Yes, sir.” She immediately picked up the phone and called Hanson as she pointed down the hall. “First office on the right is open.”
“Thank you, Alisha.”
“You’re welcome, sir.”
I might not make any friends here, but the employees around here would learn really fast how I did things. I wanted efficiency and accuracy. I didn’t need drama or bullshit in the office. Any of that would end with employees getting fired.
I sat down in the chair behind the desk and waited for Hanson to arrive. He strolled in five minutes later, his sleeves rolled up and his tie crooked. There was no suit jacket in sight. To say I was unimpressed was an understatement. I didn’t expect people to show up in their Sunday best, but a little fucking respect when they were meeting with me wasn’t uncalled for.
“Hey, J! It’s good to see you.”
I never worked with this asswipe a day in my life, and based on the way he was acting, he thought this kind of cavalier attitude was perfectly fine. “Sit.”
He grinned at me, taking a seat across from me. “How’s it been going?”
“First of all, this is an office. When you have a meeting with the boss, you put a fucking jacket on and straighten your tie.”
He sat there, not doing anything. But the longer I stared at him, showing my displeasure, the more uncomfortable he became. He finally took the hint, straightening his tie and rolling down his sleeves. Then he sat up taller in his chair, clearing his throat.
“Second, why is it that your records are so far off?”
He frowned, not understanding.
“I’ve gone through your accounts that you handle. None of the figures match up. In fact, you’re making the whole fucking company look downright incompetent. Is that what you want?”
“Uh…”
“So, tell me, are you fucking stupid, or are you trying to get the company in trouble?”
