Page 33 of By His Vow

“Ten minutes, my office,” I bark at my team. “I want an update about where we are with our latest campaign.”

A round of agreements rings through the air and I take off toward my office, the heat of their confused and concerned stares burning through me.

I don’t so much as slow until I’ve kicked my office door closed behind me. Once I’m confident that I’m alone, I blow out the breath I was holding and let my body sag.

I’m too fucking hungover for this shit.

Dumping my purse beneath my desk, I place my coffee on my mug warmer and open my laptop as I lower my ass into my chair.

As soon as I log in, my emails appear before me and I wince at the preposterous number staring back at me.

How is that even possible? It’s been six days since I got the call and my life turned into chaos.

But despite knowing it’s going to take me another six days I don’t really have to get through them all, I reach for my coffee and take a sip.

I can’t comprehend dealing with whatever is waiting for me in that inbox until I’ve managed to shake his irritating presence from my mind.

“Fuck it,” I mutter, reaching for the bag that’s holding my second pastry hostage.

By the time a knock sounds on my office door exactly nine and a half minutes later, I’m just swallowing the last bite.

“Come in. Take a seat.” I gesture to my conference table before walking around my desk to join them.

They continue to watch me curiously. No one dares say anything until Josh, one of my interns, pipes up the courage.

“We’re sorry for your loss, Tate. We’re here for whatever you need.”

I smile at him, feeling the sincerity in his words.

He started here fresh out of college and was pretty green with his knowledge of how the corporate world works. But he’s a fast learner and he’s beyond keen, and he works harder than anyone I’ve ever known. More than all that, he fits in. From his first day, he became part of our family, and I have high hopes for his future here.

Unease washes through me.

A future that’s being discussed right above our heads at this very moment.

I’ve no idea if Dad laid out plans for how he wanted this merger to work. My only interest in his wishes yesterday was what he’d planned for me. Professionally, he could be about to fuck me up too.

Callahan Enterprises already has a very successful marketing department. Their Chief Marketing Officer is incredible and has taken the company, the brand, way beyond where I think even Michael imagined they could be.

But having said that, he’s also a hard-ass. Something tells me that we’d clash. Badly.

Our CMO here is equally as good at his job, but he’s a little more—or a lot more—personable.

I look around my team as they begin presenting their ideas for our marketing plan for next summer and I can’t help wondering who will still be sitting beside me when we finally see our ideas come to fruition.

Is it wrong that I mourn their potential loss more than I have done for the actual loss of my father?

I love my team. We’re a tight-knit family that works seamlessly together. We bounce off each other perfectly and we come up with some kick-ass ideas, even if I do say so myself.

“What do you think, Tate? We’re torn,” Josh says, pointing at two ideas laid out before me.

“Ummm…”

9

KINGSTON

“They’re already in Mr. Warner’s office,” Judith says with a friendly smile when I march out of the elevator on the top floor of the building. Ignoring yet another text message from my mother, I drop my cell into my pocket and take off.

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