Chapter 1
Chapter
One
ADRIANNA
One year later
I have been walking on eggshells ever since the news came out.
Billionaire Foundation CEO Arrested
for Kidnapping Grandchild.
I knew something was going on with Gloria. She showed up out of the blue and stuck around. Sure, she would pop in from time to time to keep up appearances, but she always left for months again after.
Not this time. She stuck around, not that she was helping the foundation. She was forming a plan of her own.
My stomach churns as I remember reading the article. She had kidnapped Mason’s child and held her in the cellar at her home. She was planning to force Mason’s hand. Mason had her arrested and placed in a mental institution.
That left us without a CEO. There have been whispers about who it might be, but no one knows for sure.
I expressed my own interest in the position.
I might not have all the schooling and prestige as most, but I know how to do the job.
I have been doing it exclusively for the past three years.
I haven’t heard anything else about it, though.
They didn’t even call me in for an interview, leaving me doubtful that they will choose me.
Still, whoever comes in will need help figuring out where Gloria left this place. They will be expecting a mess, but they won’t find one.
Until they hire someone, I’m going to do the job myself. I can’t let this place fall. It means too much to me.
I’m at my desk going over the budget for the fifth time when I hear footsteps walking my way.
Looking up, I’m shocked to see Mason himself walking my way. As the CEO of The Williamson Group, I figured we would see him at some point, but I had no heads up whatsoever.
Mason Williamson is a force to be reckoned with. I have met him a few times at different events or when he would visit his mother on one of the rare occasions she was in the office, but I haven’t had to deal directly with him.
Seems like today I will.
The man at his side is just as recognizable. At least to me.
Elijah Samson is the CFO of The Williamson Group. He is known for being Mason’s right-hand man. He looks more like a bodyguard than a CFO with the way he stands, eyes scanning the room.
When they land on me, he sneers before making his face blank.
This isn’t good.
Standing, I greet Mason, ignoring Elijah.
“Hello, Mr. Williamson. I wasn’t expecting you today. Can I help you with anything?” I ask.
“Adrianna, good to see you. Can you call an all-staff meeting for ten? No excuses to not be there beyond family emergencies or physically not being within driving distance,” he tells me.
“I’m on it.”
He walks into his mother’s old office with Elijah, shutting the door behind them.
I get to work sending out an email to the entire office. Then I pick up the phone and start calling the heads of the departments.
By the time I’m done, I have several email replies asking me about what the meeting is for. That’s on top of the texts I’ve received from some of the employees I know a bit better.
The entire place is buzzing. We all want to know what this meeting means.
As ten nears, I knock on the door.
“Come in,” Mason calls.
As I walk in the room, I’m surprised to find Elijah behind the desk using the computer. Mason is on his phone as he sits on the couch off to the side of the room.
“The meeting is in ten minutes. I’ve set it up in the Orange meeting room. It’s the biggest we have,” I tell him. “I also set up a live feed for those working remotely or who were scheduled off. Everyone has agreed to be here one way or another.”
“Good.” Mason doesn’t bother looking up.
I hesitate, wondering if they want me to wait and walk with them.
Elijah looks up at me, that dead look in his eye.
“You’re dismissed.”
His cool tone has my anger rising. What did I do to earn that type of tone from him? It doesn’t matter. He can go fuck himself.
I can’t wait for him to be out of here.
Without another word, I close the door. After grabbing a pen and my notebook, I make my way to the meeting. Everyone is already inside. There is a lot of whispering. I find the seat left open for me at the front of the table. It’s where I always sit.
“Do you know what this is about?” Francine from accounting asks as I take my seat.
“Not a clue,” I admit.
She can’t say anything else, though. Mason and Elijah walk into the room, causing a silence to fall.
Mason takes his place at the front of the room as Elijah comes over to me.
“You wouldn’t mind giving up your seat, would you, Ms. Baker?” he asks in that same cold tone.
I want to tell him to go take a seat on his thumb then spin, but I don’t. I give him a tight smile, rising from my seat.
Everyone looks at me warily. They are used to me being the one to wield power in the room. Elijah practically took my wand and sent me into exile.
All the other seats are taken, so I step back into the wall. Kevin from marketing goes to get up, but I wave him off.
Elijah is making a point by making me stand. I’m lower than he is. He wants everyone to know it.
At least in his head. Truth is, none of these wealthy people are better than anyone else. We all shit the same. It’s not like their shit comes out easier because they are rich. I’m sure they get panic poops and the runs just like we do.
I keep that in mind as Mason starts talking.
“Thank you all for attending at the last minute. I know everything has been a bit chaotic since the news of my mother broke. We want to assure you that we are not writing off the foundation. We believe that good work comes from this place. With that being said, we do need a new captain at the helm. Someone who knows how to run the foundation the way it should be run. This will take time. Especially since we need to review what has been going on for the past several years to ensure my mother’s fall from grace will not tarnish all the good this foundation does for the community.
So while we hunt for a replacement, we have decided an interim CEO should be put in place. Someone who knows the company well.”
My heart starts racing in my chest. Maybe that’s why Elijah made me stand. Are they about to name me interim CEO? That would be the best-case scenario for me. I wouldn’t have to teach anyone anything, and then by the end maybe they would see I am the best candidate.
“It is my pleasure to announce that your interim CEO is in this room right now. Are you ready to meet them?” Mason asks, a twinkle in his eyes.
Several people yell out yes, playing into his performance.
“Without further ado, I introduce to you Elijah Samson. He is stepping down as CFO of The Williamson Group in order to get The Williamson Foundation back to its former glory. I hope you will welcome him with open arms. Eli, get on up here.”
Everyone claps, but not me. My heart went from hopeful to ash. This is the worst-case scenario.
I watch as the man stands, buttoning his jacket before he gets to the front of the room. When he turns and smiles, I can tell it’s fake. He surveys the room before his eyes land on me.
“Thank you. I look forward to getting to know all of you. Know that it is not my goal to be a dictator. I only want this foundation to run smoothly while Mason and I find a suitable replacement. I’ll be around to talk to everyone. For now, let’s get back to work.”
Everyone starts moving, but I am stuck in place.
This is bad.
I’m fucked.
ELIJAH
I watch as everyone filters out of the room.
I don’t want to be here. Mason knows I don’t want to be here, but I have no choice.
Mason needed me, and I will never let him down. He is more than my friend. He is the brother I always wanted but never had.
Besides, it made sense to place me here. Optics look better.
Mason decided that he doesn’t want to run The Williamson Group anymore. He would rather spend time at home with his family. I don’t blame him. I would too if I had Olivia and Arianna waiting for me.
It left a slight problem. He needed somewhere to work, and the group needed a CEO. He offered the position to me at first, but I turned him down. We both know who deserves it.
That’s why Max is now the CEO of The Williamson Group. It will be announced later today. Along with that announcement is the fact that I am stepping down as CFO to take an interim CEO role at the foundation. It is good publicity for the foundation since Gloria went and fucked it.
I can’t complain too much, though. The foundation keeps me in Boston with Mason.
It helps that Brantley is here too. For the first time in a long time, we are all three living in the same city.
Not only that, but we get to watch Mason’s daughter grow up.
I can actually be an uncle to her rather than a distant memory that she calls uncle.
The only annoyance is having to be here to clean up someone else’s mess.
After news of Gloria’s transgressions broke, the foundation took a hit. With her running the place, people have started to question whether or not the foundation was legit. There have been accusations about her skimming money from the donations.
It is a possibility, which is why I’m here. I’m doing a full audit over the last decade on this place. Along with getting rid of anyone who helped Gloria on her terror rampage. Starting with that assistant of hers.
You can’t tell me that you are the assistant to the CEO and you had no idea that she was doing all of these horrendous things.
No, that woman was complicit, and I’ll be getting rid of her today.
“You good?” Mason asks me.
“Yep. I’m going to stay and do some work. Why don’t you get out of here?”
He nods. “I probably should get to the hotel. With Max handing over the reins, I should show my face a bit more. People are still scared of me.”
I snort. “Well, you can be strict when you want to be.”
“Whatever, man, don’t chew any heads off. Especially not that pretty little brunette.”
I glare at him, which only makes him smirk.
“Yeah, that’s the look you keep giving her too. Remember the foundation can’t take another public scandal, so don’t be too hard on her. Any of them, really.”
“You trusted me to do this job, so leave already.”
He laughs, heading out the door. “Good luck, buddy.”
I give myself a minute before I follow him out. Instead of heading toward the elevator, I make my way back to the office I will be using. I’ve already started my dive into the financials and have found nothing. I was hoping that she would have left an obvious trail for me to find and then fix.
No trail has been found, so now I’m going to have to dive deeper. It’s exhausting.
Adrianna is at her desk when I get to the office.
“Ms. Baker, in my office,” I bark at her.
I’m being a dick, but I hate people who mess with my family. I won’t go easy on her knowing that she likely knew what Gloria was doing.
“How can I help you, sir?” she says, sounding like she is chewing glass.
Good. She doesn’t like me either.
“You have been here six years now, and yet you are still an assistant. Why is that?” I ask, bluntly.
“I do not have the education to qualify for most of the other positions. I do well at helping run things.”
That’s the admission I needed. She helped Gloria run this place.
“Maybe your skills would be useful elsewhere. I think your time at this company has run its course.”
Her eyes widen. “Seriously? You’re firing me? This place will fall apart.”
Lead fills my gut. Does she mean it will fall apart because she is gone or because she will ensure it falls apart?
“We will manage.”
She snorts. “We will see about that.”
A threat then. How disappointing. The foundation really cannot use the bad publicity as Mason said. I guess I will need to keep her then.
“Fine, you will stay then. You can be my assistant, but rest assured that I’m onto your game, Ms. Baker. I’ll be watching.”
She throws her hands up. “What does that even mean? I’m not playing games. I’m doing my job. So do you want me to do that, or should I pack my desk?”
No one squares off with me the way this woman is. It’s thrilling in a way. I cannot wait to crush her. She only needs to slip once. I’m sure I’ll have my evidence before too long. Then I can fire her without repercussions.
“Stay. I’d love to see this job you have been doing. In fact, we will be working very closely together, so you better get used to it.”
She glares at me. “Oh joy. My birthday and Christmas have come all at once. If you need me, I’ll be at my desk finalizing the budget.”
“Good. Bring it to me for approval.”
She looks like she wants to say more, but she doesn’t. Instead, she turns to head out the door. Before it can close behind her, I call out.
“Oh, and Ms. Baker? Bring me a coffee with a splash of cream and two sugars. That is all.”
I can hear her muttering to herself as the door closes.
That woman is a poison in this company. One I’ll be rooting out one day at a time.
I’m a patient man. I don’t mind the long game.