Seduce Me ~ The Path To Forgiveness

Path One, Step Five: A Surprising Talent

"William wrote a letter of recommendation formally requesting that I fill the CEO position at Anderson Toys." The room is filled with shouts of shock and congratulations at his words but I don't find myself surprised, I've only known him a short time but he seems the perfect candidate.

"Settle down, it's only a recommendation after all. The decision will be made by the board of directors but I imagine Williams opinion will play a large role in their choice." He looks over to me, his eyes seeking my approval, and I nod.

"I think you'd do an excellent job running the company but are you sure it's what you want? It's a lot of work after all." He frowns at my question and seems to ponder something a moment before responding.

"Our father expected me to take his place when he died so I was raised to lead, running a business is something I am more than capable of."

"You make it sound like he's a gang leader or something." I laugh, half joking.

"Something like that." James smiles bitterly before shaking his head. I burn with curiosity but the uncomfortable looks on the boys faces make me bite my tongue, clearly it's not something they want to talk about.

"I'll still have my work cut out for me though, would it be alright if I took over your father's study for the rest of the week? I'd like to go through his documents to get a feel for how the company is run."

"Of course. Do you know if anyone else is applying for the position?" I frown as I ask. I know my fathers legitimate son will be pining for the job but I shudder to think what the company will become under his selfish influence.

"Not that I am aware but we most likely won't hear anything until after the funeral, they're waiting until then to officially announce the position." James takes his glass off and rubs his eyes, it's clear he has a lot on his mind. "I think I'll retire early this evening, it's been quite the day."

Not long after I find myself dozing off as the remaining men talk excitedly about James's announcement and excuse myself as well, stopping by my workroom before heading to bed. I take a picture of my finished sketch and quickly email it to Claire. I spend a few minutes making sure all of my tools are in the proper place when Erik's voice drifts to me from the doorway.

"You're not planning on doing more work tonight, are you? It's late and you must be tired."

I dust my hands off and turn to him with a smile. "No just cleaning up."

"You're finished then?" He asks. I nod and take his offered arm, finding myself becoming very comfortable with allowing him to escort me around like this. When we reach our rooms he slips his arm from mine with a warm smile.

"Sweet dreams, beautiful."

I'm awoken early by the sound of my phone. I reach over groggily and check the new email.

'It's perfect, as always! How long do you think it'll take to have a completed sample? I'd like to have it sent to manufacturing as soon as possible since we're on such a tight schedule.'

I groan as I glance at the time in the right hand corner of my phone, eight is much too early for me. I slide out of bed and take a long shower to give myself time to wake up before reluctantly getting dressed and heading downstairs. I check the dining room first to see if anyone else is up but it's empty so I make my way to my workroom. I pull out a binder filled with samples of all of my fabrics, sorted by color and material, but I still feel too tired to be motivated to work so I simply flip through them lazily.

"Not starting without me I hope." Startled, I turn to see none other then Erik standing in the doorway, a cup in one hand and the other stifling a yawn.