Page 53 of Insufferable Boss

"These are our terms, and we think that they are mighty favorable."

I received the folder and began to look through the document.

"Publicly dispelling any rumors that he was fired in the first place with an internal memo issued out to all employees?"

"Yes," his lawyer replied. "This will help to repair Mr. Mercer's tarnished reputation."

"Tarnished?" I raised a brow as I kept reading.

"Yes," the lawyer said, and I shook my head.

"In exchange for this, we're willing to drop the damages claim so that all things can become amicable once again, and we can proceed with business as usual."

I continued to look through it, almost amused, and then I pushed it aside.

"I hear you," I said. "But what's in it for me?"

The room went silent until Kate let out a low laugh.

"Kane, let it go. He didn't embezzle any money or start a fire. He was late for one meeting. I wasn't here either."

At her words, I went silent, knowing that I was about to lose control of my temper.

Eventually, I was able to regain control, so I looked around the room and initiated the voting.

"All in favor of restoring Dylan Mercer," I called, and my sister put up her hand, much to Dylan's wide-grinned glee. Soon enough, however, that smile began to falter. I turned and saw that Lena had kept her hand down and was staring straight at him, completely unapologetic.

"Are you serious?" he called, but she didn't respond.

"Lena!” He raised his voice, and I turned to face him.

"Currently, you're not eligible to be reinstated in this company for a year. I've replaced you with appropriate staff, so your contributions and interruptions are no longer needed."

"What?" He interrupted me, but I kept going.

"Any more of these antics from you, and it will be extended by an additional month.”

At this point, I wanted to end the meeting outright, but Lena's proposal was too important, and the decision to make was one that would allow us to move forward. Dylan's lawyer took his leave, while Dylan remained, and Lena began her presentation. She briefly went through the materials she had prepared, proposed budget, and first products. It took all of fifteen minutes, and by the time she was done, I was convinced that it was indeed a viable proposal. I had been looking for a way to expand in this way, but this hadn't come to mind with fragrance, so I was incredibly intrigued.

At the end, however, she rose to her feet, and I looked at the other two board members present. This was going to be difficult since I didn't kiss Dylan's ass, but after what I had just heard from Lena, I was more than willing to give it a go.

"The offer to buy her company is off the table, and in return, we get her experience and contribution in this field. All not in favor of her joining, please raise your hand."

The results were expected. Kate had thrown questions at her throughout the entire presentation, but Lena had kept her cool and eloquently explained how this would benefit us. However, Kate's hand went up as well as Dylan's, and the answer was clear. I was somewhat amused.

"She's not allowed to vote, right? Just like Dylan wasn't allowed."

"Majority wins," I said and folded the file. Then, without any further word, I rose to my feet, grabbed my files, and left the room.

24

Lena

I understood now what he had been dealing with and why he hadn't even hesitated for even a little bit in firing Dylan. Having to do serious business with these kinds of people sure had to be a great waste of time and energy, and it made me truly wonder what our fathers had been thinking by leaving each of us an equal share of the company.

Without a word, I got up as well, surprised that Dylan hadn't brought up meeting me at Kane's apartment. Somehow, though, I knew it was going to come back to bite me in the ass, so I began to exit the room. But then he stopped me with a call from across.

"You really couldn't back me up?” he asked, and I turned around to see both him and Kate staring at me.

---