Page 96 of The CEO Enemy

“This heart beats just for you. Furiously. Passionately. Unconditionally.” He strokes my cheek. “There’s no getting away. As long as this heart beats, I will continue to love you. “

“For the rest of our lives?”

“No. For fucking eternity.”

32

SEAN

The next day

Seated comfortably in my spacious office with a commanding view of the New York City skyline, my mind keeps drifting again and again. I gently shake off these distractions, reminding myself to focus on preparing for the upcoming board meeting.

It’s our quarterly review—and I’m bracing for my father to repackage the expired ultimatum. I’ve steeled myself for a confrontation and for what might turn into a heated showdown.

Over the past few days, I’ve been reviewing our earnings. The numbers from the Westerlyn properties show no dip in earnings or revenue. That’s good news, as changing owners or management generally leads to some kind of shakeup during the acquisition phase. We haven’t touched the out-of-state properties, which could account for the steady numbers, but the most important is the New York branch, and it’s in the green as well. Further proof that Jess’s leadership is solid and that the deal we made with her was a smart move. I hope once my father sees the figures in black and white, he and the board will realize the same thing.

Weeks ago, I would never have put the word “hope” in any kind of notation involving my father. I learned at a young age that hoping he will see things my way is useless and a waste of time. Maybe Jess’s silver-lining thinking has gotten to me more than I realize.

Knock-knock. Knock-knock.

I’m pulled out of my thoughts.

“Come in!” I call, rotating my chair to face the door. Jasmine is busy prepping the board room, or else she would have announced the visitor.

Connor strolls in, wearing his typical air of “here comes trouble,” and I welcome the distraction from my spiraling thoughts.

“Hey, how’s it goin’?” he asks. “Finally got the contract back from the place in New Orleans we were lookin’ at. Just need ya to sign off.”

I motion for him to come in and hold my hand out for the tablet as he approaches. He passes it to me and collapses on the seat across from me. “Is that the last big client you have on the hook for the rest of the month?” I ask, scrawling my signature as I talk.

“Yeah, for now. I’ve a couple of prospects, but nothin’ on the docket.”

“Okay, good. I don’t want you to pursue those prospects just yet.”

Connor raises his eyebrow. “And why’s that then?”

I hand the tablet back to him. “I’ve got some ideas I’m going to be presenting to the board on what our trajectory should be moving forward. And if everything goes according to plan, it’s going to cause a bit of a shakeup.”

“And by ‘a bit’, ya mean a massive one?”

“Exactly.”

“Okay, well, ya can’t just drop a bomb like that and walk away. Ya have to give me a bit more.”

“It’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while.” Working with Jess on the transition was eye-opening and has made me consider a lot of the practices we have as a company. Not that I wasn’t considering them before, but it’s made the necessary changes more apparent. Yes, it’s great to buy these places and gather them under the Blackwood banner. It’s our brand, it’s what we do. “There’s a significant amount of untapped potential in the properties we currently own and in the locations we tend to overlook during acquisitions.”

“Ah, right. And that’s why we’ve been goin’ all-in on Providence?”

“Yeah. We need to focus on the experience, at what guests take away from our properties when they leave. One of the reasons why I bought Westerlyn and what drew me to them was the familiarity, the comfort, and the homey aspect of the property. I believe we can find a way to blend these aspects to offer an experience that preserves the property’s welcoming charm while offering modern comforts and amenities.”

Connor sits silently for a minute, mulling over what I’ve said. After a few seconds of silence he says, “Jaysus, I never thought I’d hear ya say somethin’ like that.”

“What does that mean?”

Connor puts his hands up in surrender at my sharp tone. “Hey, I’m all for it. I think you’re bang on, and there’s a lot of untapped potential in the properties we could be examinin’. But sure, we both know yer dad won’t go for it.”

“He’s not going to have a choice.”

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