Page 7 of The Boss Problem

Helen:I’m shopping for gifts for Lucas before I land in New York. Any suggestions?

Helen and I shared joint custody of Lucas, for whom I’d gladly give up making surprise deals that shocked many. I wanted his admiration and attention the way I used to look up to my dad when I was seven. But Lucas was a closed book around me, and I knew nothing about his likes or dislikes. He hated me.

Sean:I think I saw him playing with an old set of Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head in his room. Perhaps you could buy him a newer one?

I didn’t ask her how she liked Australia. We’d gone there for our honeymoon eight years ago, and reminders about that time were just painful.

Her response came swiftly.

Helen:From what I remember, he hates lovey-dovey things.Are you sure he’s playing with those toys?

She was right. I’d seen him hold Mr. Potato Head on his first day with me, but now that I forced myself to think of it, I’d probably seen it in the trash the next day.

Helen:I was wondering if he had a new toy obsession, but it looks like he hasn’t developed one so soon. I think I’ll fall back on his favorite Spider-Man toys. How about this one?

Every day in the past three weeks of living with Lucas had been a lesson in how little I knew him. How little quality time I had spent with him all these years. I bit back the urge to curse myself and instead looked at the picture of the toy Spider-Man she’d sent me.

Sean:Sure, you could buy that. You know him the best.

I felt a pang of envy as I admitted the truth.

From the rows of figurines in the background of the picture, I realized that she was at Paddy’s Markets, the famous shopping marketplace I’d taken her to during our honeymoon. Was she taking Matt to every place we’d been together? What next, the Bondi to Coogee Walk and a ferry to Watsons Bay for one of their many seafood restaurants?

There was no response from Helen. In the silence, as I stared at her message, my assistant, Amelia, peeked into the office.

“Everyone’s assembled in the Orion conference hall,” she said, eyes darting between me and the door, as though she wanted to make a run for it before I gave her another disagreeable task to do.

I turned my phone off and set it in my pocket. Recently, I’d registered just how little emotion I felt when I saw Helen’s photos, and it struck me as a grave reminder of the effects of love.

Love was just a false high. There was always a low that followed.

I had seen that with my dad and mom. Dad had been head over heels for Mom, but somehow, it wasn’t enough for her. After Mom cheated on Dad and left us, it had been incredibly lonely—not to mention disheartening—to live with a father who was depressed and silent.

I’d lived through the low myself. When Helen revenge-cheated on me after accusing me of having an affair when I was simply overworking, I was hit with a divorce. In short, I was a mess. After Helen had left, taking Lucas with her, I never entertained thoughts of falling in love again. Love happened only once, and when it was done, all that was left was bitterness and a child who hated you.

“Is everything okay?”

I looked up to find Amelia gazing at me in concern. I’d never confided in anyone about my pain of losing out on time withmy son. After the divorce, he spent most of his time with his mom. He was so unhappy to spend time with me in my home—the home he’d grown up in—that I voluntarily gave him more opportunities to stay with his mom instead. Opportunities Lucas would grab without hesitation. Now, I was left with a stinging regret for all those times and a child who was as emotionally distant from me as possible. It hurt.

No one could understand this.

I drew in a deep breath and shook my head.

“All good,” I said gruffly, but Amelia’s worried face reminded me of my job here.

“Everyone in the conference room? Good. That wasn’t so hard, was it?” I asked, fixing my tie and walking around the table to stand next to my assistant. “I assume no one bit your head off in the process?”

“They’re worried,” she said in barely a whisper. “They think this merger means that some jobs are going to go.”

“Well, they aren’t wrong,” I said with a frown.

When Mindwell Inc. had merged with Tassater Inc.—the company I ran—we had duplicate teams. Two marketing teams, two analytics teams. It was a mess for sure. Layoffs were inevitable.

“But my job is to build the best tech company in the e-marketplace business, and I’ll make sure the best of the teams stays on.”

“There are two executive assistants for the CEO,” Amelia said, lowering her voice even more and giving me a pointed look. “Mindwell Inc.’s CEO has an executive assistant, too, who is waiting in the same conference room as the others. So, do I wait to see who you think is the best, or should I leave right away?” she asked in a shaky voice. When I didn’t answer her, she disappeared out the door, looking miserable.

I stared at her retreating figure until the hallway outside was quiet, without the usual bustle of chairs and papers from Amelia’s desk right outside. No doubt, getting the two companies to sit down together in a single room had been too much for her, or she would never have harbored thoughts of me replacing her.

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