My Arrogant Boss by Kylie King
Chapter Five
FINN
I was spending some time at Brotherhood Clubhouse, a place where rich men played cards, drank hard liquor, and smoked cigars. Often, business was debated, copious amounts of alcohol were consumed, and we spoke about rising companies to invest in to double or triple our money.
Jake Hunter was the one who told me about Brotherhood. We met once a week as a group of billionaires who used the night to escape their realities, marriages, and work.
I didn’t particularly care for the Brotherhood, but I made myself participate because it presented endless opportunities and had boosted my career tenfold. Because of the Brotherhood, I was able to buy a coffee company that was about to go down in ashes several years ago. I rebuilt and rebranded it (which took me quite some time, and at one point, I thought it was going to fail under my orders too), and now it was one of the highest-grossing coffee companies to date…but that didn’t come without a lot of borrowed money and sacrifices.
Jake had approached me five years ago when I was just getting started with the business, urging me to join the club and take advantage of its benefits. I'd finally agreed after a few drinks and a game of pool. Jake was only supposed to be helping me network at first, but he saw something in me and vouched for me to join Brotherhood.
Jake befriended me at a conference in Texas seven years ago, and we’d been really good friends ever since. I was strangely happy to have another friend I could hang out with since Aaron was living blissfully in Malibu with Katie. Aaron seemed to have less time to spend with me because he was always with her. It made sense, but it also made for lonely times. Jake came in handy when I felt loneliness sinking in.
“So, you’re on the hunt for another assistant, huh?” Jake asked.
We were seated at the bar, taking a break from poker.
“Yes. The former assistant was horrible. She double booked me and made me look like a complete ass in front of Wester. She had to go.”
“Damn, man.” Jake sipped his drink. “That sucks. You have to be careful with who you hire next.”
I took a sip of my scotch. “Yeah, I will this time. Audrey is doing the hiring process, but she knows to be meticulous about who to hire. She can’t have her job on the line too.”
"Wise choice. So,” he said, grinning, “making any progress with Ariel?"
My smile instantly disappeared at his question. I knew if I’d touched my forehead, I'd find deep lines gathered there. Ariel was my ex-girlfriend. She was also a social media influencer and the daughter of one of the billionaires who’d funded my company.
After our breakup—and because she’d cheated on me with some corny kid while she was in Paris—she requested that we kept up appearances to avoid scandalous stories about her. I didn’t so much care that she’d cheated. I wasn’t taking her seriously anyway, and we hardly spent time together, so it didn’t bother me. When she asked me to keep up appearances, I agreed out of respect for her father. It was getting a little tiresome for me, though. Sometimes she didn’t know the difference between pretending to be in a relationship and actually being in one. We were no longer an item, and as badly as I wanted to let her go completely, I knew it was too much of a risk for my company.
“Honestly, I think Ariel is the penance for my sins. Enduring her theatrics is the price I have to pay for the life I have now,” I said.
“Trust me, we all have prices to pay. But at this point, man,” Jake started, “you just have to play your cards right. You might not feel like it, but the reality is you're sort of indebted to her family. Her father is your biggest investor, and he continues to invest in your company, thinking you two are a happy couple. If he finds out you’re not or that you don’t want anything to do with her, it won’t just be about business to him. He’ll take it personally and cut you off.”
“I know.” I drew in a deep inhale before exhaling. As I did, my phone chimed. There was an email from Audrey with the subject line: I think we found the perfect assistant.
I opened her email to read over the forwarded application, and my heart practically dropped when I read the applicant's name.
Rachel Quinn.
Wow. Luck be damned.