Page 5 of Daddy's Best Friend

I didn’t need his help with getting a job. I just needed the motivation to care. The past six months I’d done nothing but party and study. He paid for everything, and I hated that I lived under his shadow.

My bed called to me, despite my bursting bladder. I flopped onto it, getting a rude reminder to my rib cage that the sex toys were buried in the mess somewhere. Alan wouldn’t be so bad to work for. Summers at his house hanging out with Alex and Trevor hadn’t been so lame. And it wasn’t my dad’s company—that was a huge bonus. I just needed to pee and then sleep this hangover off.

Otherwise, Alan could kiss my ass.

4

ALAN

The phone call rattled me a little. I laid the receiver on the cradle as the shock settled in. Rene, head of accounting and the woman responsible for training Ella, had been in a severe car accident that morning on the way to work. Her husband had called to inform me she was in the hospital and had survived the surgery to repair a ruptured spleen but would likely be in the hospital for weeks.

It was always a shock to me when these sorts of things happened, but today it left me a bit flustered. I opened the files on my computer to see what sort of plan Rene had laid out for Ella’s training, but access to her account was password protected. It was company policy, so I should have expected it, but it was frustrating, nonetheless. I had specifically asked Rene to handle Ella due to a few shifts in our fiscal budget, and the two other accountants I had on site were very busy actuating accounts.

I was so busy clicking away at my keys, looking for a solution to my problem that I didn’t even hear Heather knock. When I heard her throat clear and looked up, Ella was standing right beside her. Nearly matching Heather’s 6’2” height, Ella had legsto spare, and the pencil skirt and blazer she wore accented every curve on her body. I found myself having to pry my eyes away from her hips to look up at a scowling Heather.

“Ah, I see you two have met. Heather, this is Ella Vance, our new accounting intern. Ella it’s nice to see you again. This is Heather Ailes, my personal assistant. I’m sure you two will end up spending time together over the next several months.” I stood and gestured to the chair across from my desk as Heather backed out of the room. She wiggled her fingers in a goodbye and vanished, and I focused on Ella’s prim smile.

“Thank you for this opportunity,” she said stiffly as she sat. “Mr. Vance told me you needed help, so I’m here to do just that.” I couldn’t help but let my eyes wander to the slit in the side of her skirt that crept upward as she crossed one leg over the other.

It was strange seeing her so proper when her father had told me so many things that painted her in a different light. I sat, folding my fingers in front of myself and leaning on my desk. Her outfit for the day did seem a little racy for an office—short skirt, low-cut top—but she carried herself well. And she was only 21, so it was understandable that she would want to stand out a bit.

“You don’t have to be so proper, Ella.” I smiled and she straightened, clearly the professional. “You can call me Alan, and you can refer to your father as ‘Dad’ or whatever it is that you call him.”

“I appreciate your candor, Mr. Walters, but I prefer to be professional if that’s alright.” She cleared her throat and relaxed a little, then added, “At least until I get to know everyone a little.”

Todd had raised a very proper young woman. I didn’t know what he was so worried about with her. Every young person hada wild streak that they hid from their parents. Judging by first impressions, I believed Ella would do fine.

“Alright, so we have our first curveball.” I sat back and rubbed my forehead, but Ella leaned forward and looked ready for the challenge.

“What’s that?”Eager, I liked that.

“Well, my head of accounting was involved in a car accident and will be taking some time off, and my other accountants are slammed with some other things. So, it looks like I will be mentoring you here until you get the hang of things.” I watched her for any sign of a reaction, but she remained fixed and stoic. “Have you ever used QuickBooks?”

“Who hasn’t? Challenge me, Mr. Walters. I’m not a child. I know what I’m doing.”

Her confidence had me chuffed. “Well, Ella, I think you and I will get along just fine. How about we go meet the rest of the staff?”

She grinned and stood, shaking my hand as I rounded the end of my desk, and I led her out of my office into the hall.

“So, your father told me you prefer not to work for him?” It wasn’t the small talk I was certain she expected, but she didn’t shy away from the topic.

“Yes, well, I’m sure you understand what it’s like to want to make something of yourself.” There was a tinge of bitterness to her voice as she spoke, but I didn’t press. I let her continue as I directed her down the hall toward accounting. “I don’t want to live under his shadow. I want to be my own person, do my own thing. And I am very independent.”

“I can respect that. It’s the way I felt when I was your age too, granted my father’s legacy has been dwarfed three times over by what I’ve built, but I built it on my own.” Gesturing into the accounting office, I showed her around. She met Keith and Terry, and I explained to them the news about Rene, and both offered their sympathy and promised to help Ella settle in if needed.

As we exited the accounting office, Trevor barged in all smiles. “Dad—oh, Ella!” He dived in for a hug and she held up a hand to fend him off. “Sorry.” Trevor grimaced and backed up. “Good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you too, Trevor.”

“You working here now?” He glanced from me to Ella and back.

“Yeah, Trev, she’s going to be doing some accounting. What’s up?” He looked like he wanted to keep talking to Ella, but he addressed me.

“Can I get like 50 bucks? Some guys are going out for a beer later and I wanted to join them.” He held his hand out expectantly and I couldn’t help but wish he was a little more like Ella—driven, self-sustaining.

I took out my wallet and slapped a hundred-dollar bill into his palm and he smiled briefly before his eyes locked on Ella again. I could see where he was looking, the same place I had looked. And when she cleared her throat, his gaze popped upward to her face.

“So, you want to go out with me and the guys?” He shrugged and pocketed the money. I thought I saw Ella roll her eyes and I could almost read her thoughts. The angle Trevor was working would not work with her. She was fiercely independent, and herexpression told me she was not enthused with Trevor begging for money. “Maybe we could hang out at our place later… chill or something?”

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