Chapter 5 Lily's POV

My knees nearly gave out when the boardroom doors slammed shut behind me.

I leaned against the wall as I tried to grasp what was going on in my life right now.

Alexander Thompson, the man who had made me forget my own name in that hotel suite, was the same man whose inheritance I'd 'stolen'?

"Miss Rose?" I heard Janet call from behind, "Are you okay? Should I get some water?"

Shaking my head, I pushed myself off the wall.

"I'm fine. I just need a moment,"

"Okay,"

Seconds later, we made our way back to my office.

Well, I'd barely made it. My legs were like jelly as I walked past ten rows of curious faces watching through glass-walled offices.

They'd definitely heard.

Janet closed the door behind us, giving us some privacy from prying eyes.

"That was quite an introduction," Janet said as I settled in my chair, " but don't let Alexander intimidate you. Trust me, his bark is worse than his bite,"

In other circumstances, I would have laughed, but right now, that provided way less comfort than it was intended to.

"Is it? Because that felt like a pretty serious bite to me,"

Janet smiled, "Alexander had been in that company since he learned to walk. Mr. Richard often brought him to the office when he was a child. He sat in board meetings and learnt every aspect of the business. We all assumed he'd inherit,"

I rubbed my temples, feeling the onset of a bad headache. I groaned – the last thing I needed was anything to make this day worse than it already was.

"This is impossible, Janet. I don't know the first thing about running a company. Maybe the board is right. Maybe I should..."

Janet cut in, "Miss Rose, I'll have you know that Mr. Richard was a lot of things, but foolish was not one of them. He had his reasons for choosing you. And Alexander...well, he's angry now but he's also brilliant at what he does. Perhaps –"

A sharp knock on the door interrupted her. A middle-aged man poked his head in.

"Miss Rose? Marcus Chen, VP of Client Relations," said, "I'm afraid we have a bit of a situation that needs your immediate attention,"

Already? I'd barely recovered from the board's interrogation.

"What type of situation?" I asked, dreading his next words.

"Our biggest client," He said as he stepped into the office fully, "Grand Palms Hotels has just sent a notice stating their consideration to terminate the contract. They're concerned for stability what with the...transition in leadership,"

Well, damn. The irony of it all. The same hotel where I'd met Alexander threatening to abandon ship because of me.

"How much is the contract worth?"

"Approximately forty million annually. If we lose them, it'll send a message to the other clients that Thompson Enterprises is in chaos,"

I stood and walked to the windows to think.

Alexander's mocking voice echoed in my head: You're going to learn how to run a billion-dollar corporation? How charmingly naive.

At the same time, I remembered something Mr. Martinez always said, If you're lost on the technical answer, go back to the human element. People respond to honesty.

I turned back to Marcus.

"Schedule a meeting with Grand Palms' CEO. Today, if possible."

Marcus stared at me like I had just said the most incredulous thing, "Today? Miss Rose, perhaps we should arrange a formal presentation and have the board review..."

"No. I just want to have a conversation with the person worried about their investment. Can you do that?"

"I'll try,"

"Don't try. Just do it. Tell them the new CEO wants to discuss their concerns. Use whatever leverage you need to use,"

"That was decisive," Janet said when Marcus left.

"That was terrifying," I slumped on my chair, "Janet, I need you to be honest with me. Can I really do this? Do you really think I wouldn't run Thompson Enterprises to the ground?"

"Miss Rose, I've worked here for fifteen years. I've seen executives come and go, watched board members play politics, observed Alexander grow from an ambitious young man into... well, what you saw today," she stepped closer and leaned on my table. "And you want to know what I think?"

"Desperately," I said,

"I think Mr. Thompson saw something in you that this company has been missing for a long time. Not ruthlessness or corporate strategy, we definitely have plenty of that. But genuine care for people. The kind of leader who sees employees as humans, not numbers on a spreadsheet." She said, "I, for one, need that. I'm tired of these insufferable pricks,"

Her words didn't provide any comfort. Instead, it made the weight on my shoulders even heavier.

The rest of the afternoon faded in a blur of meetings, paperwork, and things my brain fought to process.

"Go home, Miss Rose," Janet said to me when the time turned 6:00pm, "Tomorrow will be another long day, especially if that meeting with Grand Palms is arranged. You need the rest,"

So I gathered up my things and made my way to the elevator.

The parking lot was nearly empty. I had taken a cab to work this morning but Janet had informed me that Richard's car was now mine.

But I didn't take the car – the thought of driving something that cost more than I'd earned in five years wasn't exactly pleasing to me.

So I called another cab.

Thirty minutes later, I closed the door of my modest apartment behind me.

I pulled out my phone and called the one person who could help make sense of insanity.

"Lily, hi girl," Sophia's bubbly voice filled my ears when the line connected, "Gosh, I've missed you. Did you actually go through with it?"

"You would not believe what happened," I launched into the whole story, leaving out no detail, most importantly, Alexander.

"Wait, wait," Sophia cut in, "The Alexander Thompson? The one from the hotel?"

"The very same. Oh my God, how is this my life?"

There was a pause on the other end and when Sophia spoke again, her tone had shifted lightly,

"So... what's he like? I mean, besides being gorgeous and angry?"

"Arrogant. He's convinced I'm some kind of con artist," I said, "I can't really blame him though. If I dedicated my whole life to something only to have it pulled away from me, I'd go berserk too. It's all complicated,"

"Complicated," Sophia said slowly, "Lily, it was given to you. There's a difference,"

"Well, tell that to Alexander,"

Another pause. "So what happens now? Are you going to stay? Try to actually run this company?"

I remembered the look on Marcus's face when I told him to schedule the meeting with Grand Palms.

I thought about the fifteen thousand employees whose livelihoods depended on Thompson Enterprises staying stable.

"I have to try," I said finally, resigning to my fate, "Richard chose me for a reason, even though I don't get it yet. And I'd hate to disappoint him,"

"That's my girl," Sophia said but she sounded off. "Listen, I have to run, but we should get together soon. I want to hear everything. And I mean everything."

"Of course, thank you for listening, Sophia. I'm lucky to have you,"

"As I always say,"

After we hung up, I pulled up my email to find dozens of messages already flooding my new corporate account.

Most were the normal welcome messages.

But one caught my eye.

It was an eternal memory of tomorrow's executive strategy meeting.

Required attendees included: Lily Rose, CEO, and Alexander Thompson, President of Operations.

My stomach twisted at the thought of seeing Alexander again, in less than twelve hours.

But this time, I had to be ready.

I turned on my laptop and began reading everything I needed to know about Thompson Enterprises.

I was determined to walk into that meeting less of a novice than I am today.

I was ready to give Alexander a war if he desired.

But as I studied the reports, I couldn't stop my mind from wandering back to that night at the hotel.

When Alexander had made me forget who I was.

And now –

The same hands that'd brought me pleasure wanted to push me out.