Olivia And Mr Billionaire

RYAN I was sitting in my office when the phone rang. I wasn’t in any hurry to answer it. There was so much paperwork to cover, most of it was tax-related, and that was all that my mind could handle at the moment. Comb through your taxes. That was the first business lesson my father taught me. Barely nine years old, but the old man drummed it into my head so often that it was impossible not to hear his voice whenever I tried ignoring them. The phone line blared again. This time, it rang with so much intensity, I wondered if somebody had finally figured out how to make urgent calls sound urgent. I cleared my throat and grabbed the receiver. “This better be good,” I muttered under my breath before putting the phone to my ear. “Hello.” “Being a billionaire shouldn’t make you ignore your phone calls.” The sound of my father’s voice flooded my ears like a haunting alarm clock. My body jerked upright like a programmed robot and I adjusted myself in my seat as if he were there with me. I rubbed my head thinking, I am an executive at a Fortune 500 company, managing several hotel chains and thousands of staff, yet he always made me feel like a child; a child that needed more polishing. He wasn’t in the room with me and I couldn’t even relax. “Hey, dad. Cherry stepped out for lunch and I’m here catching up on tax papers,” I replied, holding the papers up as evidence as though he could see them through the phone. “Excuses, excuses,” he said. “You can’t blame your assistant for everything, son.” I let out a sigh. Here we go again. “How can I help you, Mr. Elrod?” “Son, did you just call me by name?” he said, his voice reduced by a decibel. “I’m not sure what I’m supposed to call you, dad. Would an old man be more appropriate? You are old, after all,” I said, attempting a little joke to lighten the mood and prefer the kind of tense atmosphere neither one of us enjoyed. He chuckled but his mirth did not last. There was silence over the phone but I could still hear him breathing, so I knew he was still on. The silence was deafening enough that I knew what it meant. “Dad?” “Come home, son.” My heart sank. I could feel it lose its rhythm so I clenched my fists. “What did the doctors say,” I asked with the most leveled voice I could manage. “Nothing they haven’t said before, son. Damn it! These bastards are still saying the same thing.” Dad took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly. It was painful to hear, and even more was the fact that my father, the great and powerful James Elrod, could afford anything he wanted but the cure that could save him. “Son, you may be silent on the phone but I can feel you worrying. Don’t! I am not dying anytime soon but I need you to run things here.” He forced out the words before a series of violent coughs followed. “Dad, I—” “This company is your legacy. I know you’ve got your own thing going and have done amazingly well for yourself but that is all the more reason why you should be taking over from me. You have proven yourself so this is not something that is just being handed to you because you are my son. You know it’s time.” One thing about my father, he could give a speech good enough to encourage the most apathetic of souls to his side. It was one of the things I admired the most about him – when it wasn’t being used to influence me. I sighed as I let his words wash over me. He was right. I always knew this day was coming. I dreaded it with all my being but I knew it would happen sooner or later. There was no need to postpone the inevitable any further. “I’ll do it, dad.” I could feel his pleased smile seeping through the phone. Somehow, his satisfaction made my sacrifice worth it. He had finally worn me down after years and years of asking. “I already informed my secretary, Jessica, about his. She’ll go with you to Sydney along with four staff of your choosing.” “Come on, dad. What’s this about? Why would I need to go to Sydney?” I asked, surprised by it. Ignoring my question, he continued, “You’ll take the company chopper. All the accommodations needed have already been arranged; the car will meet you at the airport to take you to the hotel. The board meeting will begin at 9 am sharp. Don’t be late. The board of directors is waiting to meet their new CEO.” I exhaled loudly, clueless about what to say. I stared up at the ceiling. I couldn’t help but think, this old man had already planned this whole thing out. I don’t know how he does it, but did he not consider that I might not accept? He always anticipates the outcome of a thing before it happens. That’s my dad and I could not help but love him. I shook my head as he continued to speak. "You will get there by evening if you go now," Dad continued. "Yes, but..." I looked down at the amount of paperwork in front of me. "I haven't flown in a while. I'm out of practice." "Ahh, come on, I've already prepared for your arrival and the chopper is being prepped as we speak." I knew it! Damn it! I felt played. I sat up in my seat. "Dad!" "Please say you'll be there." He begged. My father's plea for me to obey his request, without sacrificing his pride was overwhelming, I felt myself caving, unable to resist the emotion behind it. Cherry poked her head into my office with an eyebrow raised. "Everything alright?" I could see in her eyes; she already knew what I was going through. If there was anyone in the world who understood me almost as much as I understood myself, it was Cherry. On paper, our relationship was one of an exec and his assistant but we were so much more than that. She was my closest friend and confidante and I liked to believe that I was hers too. While I presented a stoic and strong demeanor to the world and anybody else who knew Cherry might call her stuck-up, we allowed ourselves to be our most vulnerable in each other’s presence. Nobody could see the truths hidden behind her dark blue eyes like I could and nobody could analyze my thoughts like she could. I nodded at her and gave her a thumbs up. Understanding, she smiled warmly at me and turned to leave but then with a mischievous grin on her face, she stopped to say, “Ryan we are all packed and ready to go. Do you need me to prepare your luggage?” Immediately she said that, I raised one finger up to tell her to hold on and I returned to the conversation with my father. "I'll be there, dad," I said to him. "Well done, Ryan. The board is expecting you. Break a leg." “Cherry, how did you know we were going to Sydney?” I asked as I heard the call with my father disconnect. “I literally just found out.” “You know how your father works, Ryan. We were all informed this morning to prepare to meet with the board. So, we are all packed and ready to go,” she said. I slammed the phone in my hand on the table in frustration. “Whoa,” Cherry said, partly alarmed and partly amused. “When will I start recognizing my father’s plots before playing into them?” I asked. I had intended for my voice to come out as angry as I felt. Instead, it came out slightly frustrated and highly irritated. Cherry watched me from where she was standing by the door with a sympathetic look on her face, her black dress clinging to her slender frame and making her look like a tailor’s dream. After a few seconds, she moved closer and sat on my desk with her legs crossed right next to me so that her thighs were mere inches from my hands. “Look, Ryan, I know that your father’s scheming can make you feel powerless but you should not focus on that. You have been telling me for months now that you are already bored with this job. This might be just the challenge that you need. Take it and I promise you; we will make it work.” Sometimes I hated how rational Cherry could be but without her, I would crumble a little too easily. “I’ll give you a minute to tidy things up here,” she said as she got back on her feet. Before walking away, she kissed me gently on the forehead, and at the door, she winked at me. I stood up from my desk, still staring at the papers on it, I was feeling all sorts of emotions. I had always known I would take over my father's company but not this way, under these circumstances. Grabbing my briefcase, I headed out of the office, closing the door behind me. This was going to be a new beginning but a beginning to what?