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shows up
and gets handed the keys to the kingdom, just like that? I know I shouldn’t be
surprised. This is exactly how privilege and nepotism work. But honestly, I
thought Loudon was more principled than this.
    “Wow,” I manage to utter. “That’s... That’s really
something.”
    “It sure is,” Loudon replies, completely oblivious to my
distress.
    “It’s crazy isn’t it, Brody?” Jay smiles, casually taking a
sip of scotch, “We’re gonna be coworkers. Who woulda thought?”
    “Not me,” I smile tightly, taking a long swallow of scotch
myself.
    Though Loudon may not know or care how upset I am with this
turn of events, Jamison can read me like an open book. He knows exactly how
displeased I am with his sudden reappearance, and he’s getting quite the kick
out of it, too. Well, two can play at that game. I’ve been in this business
long enough to know that playing nice with people you can’t stand is just part
of the job. With that in mind, I meet Jay’s smug sneer with a placid smirk of
my own.
    Getting Daddy to give him a job at King Enterprises may have
been a piece of cake for Jamison, but that doesn’t mean I have to go
easy on him. Someone has to put the new guy through the paces, after all. And
who better to take on that task than me? No one else at work will have the guts
to stand up to the heir apparent. It’s up to me to keep the crown prince in
line. I don’t expect it to be easy, handling an arrogant sonofabitch like
Jamison, but hey—I’ve always been a girl who’s liked a good challenge.
    “So, when do you start?” I ask Jay, civil as can be.
    “Monday morning. Bright and early,” he replies, eyes
gleaming as he stares at me across the table. “Get ready.”
    His interest has been noticeably piqued by my response to
the news of his joining the family business. Surely, he didn’t really expect me
to throw some kind of temper tantrum at the dinner table? If he did, he’s
vastly underestimated me, that’s for sure. But though he looks surprised by my
reaction, he doesn’t seem put off by it. If anything, he seems intrigued.
Excited to have a worthy opponent. I guess not much has changed since we were
little kids, competing over every little thing we could think of. Only now, the
stakes are much higher. The company I’ve devoted the last six years of my life
to hangs in the balance. And I’m not going to give it up without a fight.
    “Priscilla and I will be spending the weekend on Martha’s
Vineyard,” Loudon says, interrupting my impassioned train of thought, “Next
week, we’ll start integrating Jamison into the goings-on at King Enterprises.
Maybe he’ll have some ideas for the YA series you just brought in for us,
Leah?”
    “Yeah, maybe he will,” I reply aloud (while screaming OVER
MY DEAD BODY on the inside, of course).
    By the time I arrive home again from the most draining
dinner in recent memory, I’m brimming with suppressed frustration and outrage.
Not bothering to take off my sleek cocktail dress, I flop onto my bed with a
heavy sigh. Galadriel pads across the tiny studio, puzzled by my despondent
behavior.
    “There’s a real shit storm brewing out there, Gigi,” I tell
my feline companion, falling into a boozy slumber. “Let’s just hope this is the
worst of it, huh?”

 
     
    Chapter Three
     
    “You might not want to go in there just now…” Pippa warns
me earnestly, trying to block my path as I head into my office.
    “Not now, Pips,” I dismiss her, “I have way too much work
to get through this morning.”
    “But Leah,” my assistant insists, grabbing hold of my
arm. “Don’t you know? This isn’t even your office anymore.”
    “What are you talking about?” I snap, yanking my arm out
of her grasp and storming past her. “Of course it’s my—”
    But as I wrench open the door to my office and step
briskly inside, my heart slams against my ribcage with the force of a wrecking
ball. My body goes stock still with rage as I take in