CHAPTER ONE
Smiles really shouldn’t hurtthis much. And yet the pain wasn’t going to stop Kat from doing it. She was twenty-five and would be historically one of the youngest CEOs in the country. Mark Zuckerberg had become a CEO at the age of twenty-three. Two years difference wasn’t bad at all.
Her office was the second best one in the building that housed her father’s fortune five hundred company. The first best? That went to the current CEO, her father.
One side of her office had floor to ceiling bookshelves filled with books from her college days and some from afterward. There were even a handful of books on the law, but she’d opted to steer clear of law school all together. On the other side was a leather couch that sat beneath a beautiful painting of a farm at sunset. The colors were vibrant and practically glowed on the canvas. But the floor to ceiling window was her favorite view. Even though it overlooked the city, she loved the blue summer sky on a day like today.
Kat had picked out her desk when her father had hired her after she graduated summa cum laude from Harvard. It was a richmahogany color and as she ran her fingers across its smooth surface, she could imagine what it would be like when she eventually moved it to the bigger office down the hall.
In five minutes, she’d be meeting with her father to accept the promotion. That was what he’d called her to his office for. It couldn’t be anything else. Over the last year and a half, he’d been guiding her toward taking over his company. Tatum Jerris didn’t have any other children. She was his legacy just as much as his business was.
And it was finally happening.
She got to her feet and tugged at her dress shirt until it was free of wrinkles. Then she ran her hands down her slacks and moved toward the window. The New York skyline greeted her. Below, people scurried back and forth like little ants. They were the kinds of people that made the world go round—especially with the help of someone like her.
The smile still wouldn’t fade. Not when someone knocked on her door. Not when Kat wandered down the hallway toward her father’s office. And not when she stepped inside.
It wasn’t until she saw Chaz that her happiness faded.
Charles Jr. had to be the worst human being on the planet.
Okay, he wasn’tallbad.
He was the son of her father’s best friend. He’d gone to school for business just like she had and her father had hired him as a favor to his friend. He was actually pretty smart.
The problem?
Chaz Weitz wanted the promotion, too. He’d been dropping hints for the last couple of months. Her father hadn’t said a word regarding the possibility which made her think she was in the clear.
Kat’s jaw tightened when her eyes locked with Chaz. He flashed her his award-winning smile from where he sat. His arms were draped casually along the back of the leather couch. One ankle was crossed over his knee.
“Ah, Kathleen. Good, you’re here.”
She grimaced at the use of her full name. He knew she didn’t like it. Ever since her mother had passed, she’d gone by her mother’s nickname for her.
Kat.
That was who she was now.
Her eyes flicked to her father. He stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows behind his desk. He had one hand in his pocket and a soft smile on his lips. He loved her. She knew it in her soul. So why did she feel like he was about to drop a bomb on her?
She swallowed thickly.
“Charles, why don’t you give me a minute with my daughter?”
Chaz locked his gaze with her and for a moment she thought she saw the hint of a smug smile on his lips. What had he done?
Kat frowned, turning her attention to her father. What had they both done?
She fidgeted, tempted to wring her hands together. Thankfully, she fought the inclination and forced herself to straighten her spine so she showed her strength rather than her anxiety. Thesecond Chaz shut the door behind him, she stepped forward. “Dad? What is this about?”
For the first time in a long while, her father looked…tired. When had he gotten so old? He was barely into his sixties. Had the business really taken that much of a toll on him?
He rubbed his finger and thumb together, studying his hand as he did. Then he lifted his gaze to meet hers. “You’re a smart girl, Kathleen. I raised you as such.”
She bit the inside of her cheek to prevent herself from reminding him to call her Kat. “This is about the promotion.”
Her father smiled, nodding. Tatum Jerris was nothing if not a ruthless businessman. But moments like this one reminded her that he was also just… dad.
