Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 78304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 392(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78304 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 392(@200wpm)___ 313(@250wpm)___ 261(@300wpm)
“That’s true. So, if you blame the company for everything, why is it so important for you to work there? I’d think it would be the last place you’d want to work.”
Anastasia chuckles humorlessly. “I should probably hate Kingston Limited because he always chose it over us, but instead, I find myself wanting to be a part of it because of that very same reason. I grew up there. My dad would let me sit in on meetings, and I learned of my love for numbers there. Every night when he would get home, he would continue to work in his office, and I would hang out with him. He would explain it all to me and promise that, one day, I would work alongside him.
“But then I became a surly teenager, and his absence made me lash out, wanting nothing to do with Kingston. I got into the college of my choice, but I damn near failed out my freshman year. If it wasn’t for my mom temporarily moving down there and reining me in, I probably would’ve failed out,” she admits.
“She told me that the business owned him and if I wanted a relationship with him, I’d need to be a part of that world. She begged me to let my dream of working for Kingston go, but I couldn’t do it.
“So, for the next few years, I busted my ass in school so I could go to work for him when I graduated.” She sighs and shakes her head. “But then Mom was killed by that drunk driver, and I blamed my dad and ran away, not wanting anything to do with him or the company he’d chosen over us.”
“And yet here you are, wanting to work for Kingston,” I say, trying to understand.
“You know how I found out he was stepping down?” she asks. “From a friend who had read it online. I’m his daughter, his only blood relative left, and he didn’t even offer me the position, knowing I’d been studying and working in this industry for most of my life. And when I called, upset, he told me he didn’t feel I was the right person for the position.”
“He said the same thing to me.”
“But you aren’t his child. You didn’t sit with him every night, begging for his attention and hoping you would finally have it one day when you were running the family company together.
“To be honest, when I called him, I didn’t even think I wanted the position, but then he told me I wasn’t right for it, and something inside of me just … broke.” Her hazel eyes meet mine. “I shouldn’t want or need his approval, but I do. I, Anastasia Belle Kingston-Webb, want my dad’s approval. I want to prove to him I’m worthy of working for the company that means the most to him. The company he chose over his daughter and wife, the company he lived and breathed for my entire life.”
She chokes out a sob, and I wish we weren’t in the car so I could pull her into my arms and hold her. She cries for a few minutes and then takes a deep breath and lifts her head up, squaring her shoulders and looking into my eyes.
“I understand you’ve worked for Kingston for a long time, and you probably, in a lot of ways, deserve this position,” she says, “but this is personal for me. I’ve never felt like I was enough for that man, but I’m going to show him that not only am I capable of running Kingston, but I’m also worthy of doing so.”
I open my mouth, unsure of what I’m going to say, but before I can get a word out, she stops me.
“And before you point out my daddy issues, I’m already aware, and I accept them. My dad has gone soft, and he wants me to get married and pop out a couple of kids so I can do shit differently than he did.
“He wants a relationship with me, and he doesn’t want to mix business and family, but what he doesn’t get is that I might be like him in a lot of ways, but we differ in one big way. I’m not selfish enough to get married and have kids, knowing my work is my life. He destroyed his family because he wanted it all, but I know better.”
Fuck, this woman. I can see the pain in her eyes, her desperation to prove herself to her father. And I can’t even say I get it because my stepdad and I have a close relationship and I have no desire to have any type of relationship with my sperm donor. But what she doesn’t understand is that I can’t just walk away from this, which leaves us at an impasse.