Miss CEO

CHAPTER SIX

ZARA

When we get closer to my family , I notice how my mother and my uncle are standing with uncomfortable expressions and it doesn't take long to find out why , next to them are the Carrolls , the siblings belonging to the family that controls the largest number of shares after we , who , needless to say , hate me to death , and I return their hatred in equal parts.

I do not understand what the hell they are doing here , they completely opposed my appointment as CEO , they made it quite clear during the boards of directors , that they considered me an inept , capricious little girl with attitude problems , which was never going to be qualified to take control of the company , even though my family owns seventy percent of the shares , which makes us majority shareholders of the company.

They spoke of nepotism , they even dared to state that because I was a woman , I was not going to be able to manage such a large company , because I was going to be very distracted thinking about what to wear for work meetings that I was not even going to worry about preparing them first , also , that it was only a matter of time until a man broke my heart and that caused the company to go down the drain , and that the best option to replace my uncle was Frederick , the oldest son of the Carrolls , who also has a diploma in business , with an emphasis on international business.

Of course , none of this was told to my face , I found out when one of the minority shareholders recorded the conversation they were having when I left the boardroom , and since I am not famous for my tolerance for other people's s**t , I just confronted them about it at the next meeting , and when they had the audacity to deny it , I played the entire recording in front of them and the other board members.

After that , they had no choice but to accept my appointment as my uncle's successor to the position of CEO of the Graham Group , but even though they had already grudgingly accepted this , it never crossed my mind that they might attend the appointing ceremony. Eleanor , the younger sister , who is a year older than me , spends her days shopping , traveling , going out to parties , and f*****g every man who crosses her path , Frederick , who is four years older than her sister , does basically the same , only that he also has time to study and work , he is a very intelligent , calculating , cruel , manipulative and greedy man , not to mention that he is the head of the subsidiary we have in Germany , where his fame precedes him , and his employees have already complained many times about his mistreatment.

This is why having them under strict surveillance and being aware of every move they make inside and outside the company , was one of the first pieces of advice that my uncle gave me , he always had to deal with Francis , their father , who is even worse than his children , so he gained a lot of experience and repeatedly stressed to me to be cautious when it comes to them.

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" What are you two doing here? " I ask them in a cold tone , and although my family and Tom are a bit surprised to see that I speak to some shareholders of the company in such a discourteous way , Dominic and my uncle seem to be used to it , and the Carrolls , in turn , seem to have been expecting an even worse reaction from me , after all , my animosity against them is no secret to anyone.

“ Well , we came to the appointing ceremony of our new CEO , it is hardly logical , right? After all , we are shareholders too, ” Frederick responds , and I raise an eyebrow at him.

" Well , the ceremony is over , you are late, " I blurt out , and Eleanor lets out a fake laugh.

" The traffic was horrible, " she says in her shrill voice.

" You live a couple of streets from here, " I remind her.

" Oh no dear , we weren't at home , we were coming from the airport , you see , we were visiting our mother in Switzerland, " She explains to me in her usual condescending tone , and I have to use all my willpower not to laugh in her face.

Their mother is a crazy alcoholic , flamboyant , and worldwide known for being the patron of young and handsome artists in need of money for their careers , which she provides them in exchange for s****l favors , her life is one scandal after another , and she hates my mother because she once caught her trying to seduce Joshua in exchange for paying his tuition at the conservatory , so my mother moved heaven and earth until she was removed from her position on the board of directors , and since then , she has been exiled in Switzerland , while her daughter replaces her at board meetings , that is , when she feels like attending , as she says those meetings are too boring.

" Well , there is nothing to see here , the ceremony is over , so you can go now to … I don't know , shopping , I suppose … dear, " I reply , emphasizing that last word with the most scathing sarcastic tone of which I am capable of.

" Yes , we are leaving , we just wanted to wish you good luck with your new position , after all , it is not an easy task, " Frederick tells me with a malicious look.

" Thank you , but I don't need you to wish me good luck , that only serves those who are not prepared, " I reply , and he laughs scathingly before replying in a mocking tone:

“ Precisely , even if you try to look like a decent CEO , we all know that in a couple of months you will return crying to your uncle because you were not capable of delivering , and I will be more than willing to take on the role that is clearly too big for you , but don't you worry , I will take care of cleaning up any mess you have left behind, "

I clasp my hand , and just when I am about to slap him , Tom slightly squeezes my arm , and when I look at him he shakes his head slightly to indicate that it is not worth it , although he looks clearly annoyed , a gesture that does not go unnoticed for Eleanor , who is now looking at Tom as if he were the last pair of the limited edition Chanel boots , which I was able to get because the general manager of the store gave them to me , and since she could not get them , one day she threw frozen yogurt on my feet and totally ruined them.

Tom shouldn't have done that , and I shouldn't have paid attention to him , now she must suspect that he is someone important to me , and she is going to want to have him anyway or destroying him if she can’t , just like she did with the boots , only this time , I will not let her have her way , I need to divert the attention from him , but I have no idea how.

Just at that moment , Dominic decides to intervene on my behalf , and snaps at Frederick in a mocking tone:

" Speaking of leaving disasters in the companies , how are the lawsuits against you for workplace harassment going? "

Frederick pales with anger , and after muttering an awkward goodbye , he turns and leaves , but his sister stays behind for a moment to ask Tom's name , and after he tells her his name , she responds with a:

" What a nice name , although I like your last name better , it matches my name , don't you think? " she says , beating her lashes at him , and Tom seems dazzled by this gesture , which makes me clench my teeth because even if I hate Eleanor , I must admit that she is quite pretty , with her strawberry blonde hair and big blue eyes.

But I decide not to show any kind of reaction to this , because I know that is exactly what she is looking for , instead , I turn to Dominic and smile sweetly at him to thank him for standing up for me earlier.

Tom looks at us with annoyance , and that makes Eleanor even more interested , and before saying goodbye , she gives him her card and tells him to call her.

Dammit! Could it be that there is no man who is able to control his emotions for a damn second? And then they say that women are the sentimental ones.

When Tom accepts the card and puts it in his pocket , before saying goodbye to the others , I give him a dirty look , but he just smirks and walks away with the other workers.

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