Chapter 2
Current Day
Los Angeles, CA
Elly
The file in the middle of my desk may as well be electrified, and maybe in one of those red file folders with a stamp that says ‘Caution’. It’s almost an inch thick and represents the part of my father’s business I hate.
My father is the founder and CEO of Royce Enterprises, and one of the divisions of his company deals with business acquisitions, the type of acquisitions that can and does destroy lives and families.
I’ve never been personally involved in any of them, but I’ve been responsible for the data entry and read the files.
Anger is twisting the muscles around my spine in circles as I take deep breaths: in for three, hold for three, and out for three. I’ve always told myself that I would be a part of the business to keep my father happy, but my promise to myself was that I would stay far away from this.
It’s one thing if a business is going under and the owner is looking for a way out, but it’s another thing entirely when a business, or in this case, a farm that has been in the family for generations, is weaseled out from under them.
A dark figure appears in my office door and leans against the frame. I lift my gaze to meet the eyes of a man I used to think of as a friend, but the moment I graduated with honors and my father brought me into the fold, I became his enemy.
“Did you get this assigned to me, Harris?” I manage to keep the quiver of anger from my voice but only just.
The dark silk suit that was tailored specially for him should have a snake scale print weaved into the fabric. I can’t believe I ever thought he was a good person; I hate it even more that he knows more about me than the average man.
His slimy half-smile tilts up on one side as he levels me with a glare from his almost black eyes, “What’s the matter princess, can’t handle it?”
He wants to get a rise out of me, he wants me to screw up so I won’t get the big corner office next to my dad that he’s been drooling over for the last year. I can get that office with a smile if I want, but if I get anything it will be on merit, not because my father assigns it to me willy-nilly.
Showing weakness will only give him power over me.
Giving him a show-stopping smile, I say, “I can run circles around you, I’ve already proven that.”
The mention of his failure in the Enderson, Inc.
case wipes the smug smile off his face, I think even some of the oily shine from his coal-black hair may have dulled some.
I managed to get the signatures needed when he couldn’t and the anger from that has been fueling his campaign to show me up to my father ever since.
He narrows his eyes, I swear if we were in a video game he would shoot lasers at me, and tilts his head to the side a bit. “Game on, princess. Arrangements have been made and we fly out next week.”
My only response is lacing my fingers on my desk as I sit up straight and cross my legs while cocking my brow, he smiles and pushes off the door. I listen as his footfalls recede on the carpet and when I know it’s safe the smile drops from my face, and I slump back in my chair.
Damn it.
Leaning on the arm of my chair with my chin on my fingers, I look at the damn folder like it’s a bomb.
I’ve always told myself that I can live this life as long as I don’t cross the lines I don’t agree with but fuck if he hasn’t pulled me into a pissing match to prove to my father that I’m not worthy.
He knows I hate this part of the business; I made the mistake of confiding my hopes and fears in him before I realized he wasn’t worthy of my trust.
With a deep breath, I sit back up and open the folder for The Harlow Springs Ranch. Four hundred acres that was at one time a cattle ranch but now it’s a horse ranch. It’s been in the same family for over a hundred years.
Flipping through the basic info, I scan the file to find the real reason my dad wants it. Ah, there it is, natural springs are in some of the property’s hills, and he already has two buyers bidding for it so they can build luxury spas for rich people who have more money than they do sense.
A little more digging reveals that the rich Native American heritage combined with the natural springs will put a spin on advertising that will have them paying big bucks and booking out in advance to experience a piece of lost history.
Resting my head in my hands, I try to push the anger down.
I can do this. I inhale a deep breath as I count to three, hold it for three, and let it out for three. I’m going to need my yoga today; I can feel all the muscles in my back bunching and twisting by being in the same room as this file.
Just as I’m wrapping up my day, I quietly walk past my father’s office to the elevators and let out the breath I’m holding when I don’t see him at his desk. But my relief is squashed when I hear his voice.
“Elly, you got a minute?”
Squaring my shoulders and painting a smile on my face, I turn around and peek around his door to find him sitting in one of the chairs in his conference area. He is looking at the view from his floor-to-ceiling window.
“Sure, what’s up?” I drop my shoulder bag with my computer and that damn folder in it onto the couch by his desk and walk to the conference area to sit in one of the chairs close to him.
He doesn’t look at me, his usual authoritative air and reminder that he would rather pretend I’m the boy he never had sitting next to him. I got used to his disappointment long ago, but I would be a liar if I said it didn’t sting on a deep level every time.
“You got your next assignment?” It’s an innocent question, it’s meant to sound conversational, but this is him feeling me out and looking for any chink in my armor.
I nod my head knowing he’s watching me in his peripheral, looking for any sign of weakness, “Mm-Hm, I was reading through it this afternoon. Do you want to go over it?”
“No, I don’t think that’s necessary.” He takes a calculated breath and sets his arms on the arms of the chair, letting his hands dangle at the ends. “I don’t need to tell you that this is an important deal and has to be closed.”
My chest squeezes as I think about the people that live on that ranch, I Googled them and read about what they do with the horses. In hindsight, it probably wasn’t a good idea, but I refuse to destroy anyone’s life without walking into it with eyes wide open.
Nodding my head again, I link my fingers in front of me, “You don’t, I saw the amount of money on the line.” I try to come across as agreeable and confident, but I know if I heard the sharpness in my tone, then my father did as well.
He turns his attention to me, his sharp amber eyes zeroing in on mine, “Harris has argued that you are doing so well in other areas of the business that you will pull this off, should I be worried?”
Of course he did. I have managed to keep myself far away from that part of the business and he knows that his best shot of reducing me to a disappointment in my father’s eyes is to push me into what I told him I could never do.
Biting the inside of my cheek and keeping the smile on my face, I ignore the urge to curl my fingers into fists and push my nails into the skin. “Of course not. But I was wondering, is it necessary for Harris to go with me?”
“We always send two agents for assignments like this.” He raises his eyebrows, “You realize you are going to Oklahoma? They carry guns like they carry their car keys.”
My father’s elitist attitude makes me flinch on the inside, but I keep the smile that I’ve rehearsed since I was a young girl painted on my face, “Yes, there is a bit of a cultural difference, but last I heard, they are people just like everyone else. It’s Oklahoma, not the old west.”
“You’re not going there for a cordial visit, Elly, you’re going there to take their land.
” His rebuke stings like a slap in the face, making me feel like I’m still that little girl that needs to be reminded my mental bandwidth is lacking because I don’t have a penis, but the only reaction is that I tip my head to the side a bit like I don’t have a care in the world.
“Just give me a few days and then you can send Harris, it will be fine.” I wave my fingers in the air as I say it.
His stare is like an x-ray machine, I can see the wheels turning in his head, he doubts me, he thinks Harris is the better person for the job. He is, but I’ve spent my entire life trying to prove my worth to this man and I’ll be damned if Harris is going to knock it all down in one swoop.
For a fucking corner office.
“You’ve got four days and if you haven’t sealed the deal, I’m sending Harris.”
“Just watch, you won’t need to, I’ll take care of it.”
He watches me for another moment before he gets up to walk to his desk, as he does, he puts his hand on my shoulder and lightly squeezes. The only offering of affection he will ever show. “Good, don’t make me regret it.”
One yoga class, a sauna set, and a glass of wine later, I’m still tied in knots. The folder is on my lap as I sit on my balcony watching the sun setting, my feet up on the ottoman, and my second glass of wine in my hand.
With the alcohol in my system in the safe space of my condo and my suit of armor discarded at the door, I look over the details of what I need to know for the company and the printouts of the business that the family has been running for decades.
Can I do this? How can I do this? If I pull these people’s home and livelihood out from under them, can I live with myself? Just to prove to my father that I’m as tough as him? I lift my glass to my lips, but my wine glass is empty, so I set it on the table next to me.
Will it even matter? Would it matter if I got him all the land in Oklahoma? Would he still look at me with the same disappointment in his eyes?