Page 6 of Mister President

He sat back in his seat with a long sigh. Rounding his desk, I sat on the edge of it and looked at him.

“You just insist on going against the lifestyle your mother and I have worked our asses off to give you.”

As much as I wanted to respond, I didn’t. If I did, it would lead to a disagreement and me not getting either of the things I wanted. I didn’t mind Daddy funding my lifestyle, but this job was my way in with Elias, and I was going to take full advantage of it—regardless of how Daddy felt. I knew he wanted me to get used to being taken care of so I’d have the right expectations and role when I was married, but if I played my cards right, Elias would be proposing to me in less than a year.

“Will you just think about it, Daddy? If Elias needs the help, I think we should help. You know I did two years of work-study at your company, so I know how to be an office manager or executive assistant even though I’ve never really worked before. I really want to do this.”

With a huff, Daddy tilted his head and looked over at Elias. “Would you be okay with my princess working at your firm?”

“Of course. I can’t technically hire her, but I can put in a good word for her with our head of HR. As long as she can catch on quickly, she shouldn’t have any issues. And we do need the help.”

Daddy’s head bobbed once. “Alright. If you can get the job, you can work there, but don’t get your hopes up. You did the work-study, but you have no other real work experience.”

I squealed and hugged his neck. “Yay! Thank you, Daddy.” Shifting slightly, I turned to face Elias. “And thank you. I promise I’ll catch on easily and be all the help you need.”

He gave me a soft smile before standing. My eyes lowered to his pocket as he went inside to retrieve a business card for me. After telling me to call the number listed and ask for Kyle to set up an interview, he left.

“Now that it’s just the two of us, to what do I owe the pleasure of my baby girl coming to visit her old man?” Daddy asked as I returned to my seat.

“Paisley, Emily, and I want to go to Malibu. Can I have some cash to put into my bank account?”

“Anything for you, princess.”

With no hesitation, he stood and went to his office safe that was behind a large painting he’d gotten from Neko. As he pulled one stack of cash out behind another, I said, “If that’s true, can you make sure I get this job, Daddy? And if possible, I’d really like to work with Elias. I would be more comfortable with him since I already know him.”

“I’ll see what I can do, but that’s his domain. Even though he and I have been in business together for years—”

“He wouldn’t have that business if it wasn’t for you,” I said. “You gave him the money he used to open it with his brother. I think he owes you more than a share in the company for that.” As I stuffed the five ten-thousand-dollar stacks into my tote bag, I added, “So thank you in advance because I know you’re not going to let me down.”

All he did was smile because that was true. Whatever I wanted, Daddy provided. This job as Elias’s assistant would be no different. That…I was sure of.

4

Elias

The Following Night

Since it wasNeko’s last weekend in the city before he and Mally Mal went across the world, the guys and I decided to take him out. I knew he planned to propose, so it was also a pre-celebration for him and sis finally getting their shit together. Though we all met atThe Lucky Lounge, which was probably the best lounge in Rose Valley Hills, the rest of the single men in the crew and I were going to the gentlemen’s club afterward.

As we finished the last of the whiskey, I filled Neko in on us potentially having a replacement for Parker. I still couldn’t believe she’d been stealing from us, but I was grateful Malorie had caught it. What was crazy was we paid our staff exceptionally well. Parker admitted that she wasn’t in debt and did it just because she could. Out of everyone that we started with at the firm, Parker being behind the missing money had never crossed my mind.

“I’m cool with Fiona working on my floor, just as long as she doesn’t need to have her hand held. I would prefer someone withexperience, but you said she did a couple of years of work-study, right?” Neko confirmed.

“Yeah, and you know Declan doesn’t play about his business. If she wasn’t qualified for the position, he wouldn’t have agreed.”

Though Neko nodded, I could tell by his expression he wasn’t fully onboard, which I understood. Neither of us wanted to bring someone new into the fold after Parker, but we didn’t have a choice. We needed the help. All we could do was pray we brought in someone worthy of our trust.

“If it seems like she’s not getting the hang of things at a rapid pace, I’ll bring her to my floor, and you can have my assistant,” I continued to ease his mind. Neko had a very particular way of doing things at the office because he didn’t want to be doing them to begin with.

He was cool with me being the president of the company and handling everything outside of the creative niche. When it came to our artists, auctions, and consignments, that was all him. Neko hated sitting in on meetings or having to do any kind of paperwork, so I knew the last thing he wanted to deal with was an assistant that needed him to teach her how to do her job when he came back from East Asia.

“Aight, that sounds good. Enough of that work shit though. We gotta make the most of tonight before me and my sweet girl head out.”

And that was exactly what we did. While he and Malik got another bottle, the rest of us settled on shots since we had another destination in mind. We left the lounge a little after midnight after wishing my brother wellness and safe travels. I was truly happy that he’d finally gotten his girl.

When we made it toThe Black Diamond, we instantly received the royal treatment. Amanda was like royalty here, even after she retired, and since I was her baby daddy, they fucked with me tough. Some of the OG dancers from her time here keptit respectful and only offered me dances when I came through, but there were others and newer dancers who didn’t give a fuck who she was to me and offered whatever they thought I wanted to get a bigger bag.

Once we were seated comfortably in our VIP section, two bottle girls came over, and we immediately got the weed and liquor flowing. The vibe tonight was pretty chill. Red and purple lighting bounced against black furniture and walls all over the main room. There was a small dance floor by the DJ booth, a main stage where the top dancers performed, several poles positioned in corners of the main floor and in every VIP section, and a bar on the opposite wall of the DJ booth that poured only top-shelf liquor.

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