Haven

Chapter Forty Five

Alex

I was officially the worst parent and role model on the face of the planet.

Well, after her mother.

But I couldn't do it again. Even as I sat in the meetings I'd postponed the day before, all I was thinking long about fixing the next mess. Everything I did seemed to create another problem.

Nonetheless, I was sat in my last important meeting of the day waiting for time to pass so I could just get the fuck out of there and cancel all my other meetings.

Finally, 11am rolled and I hightailed it to my office where I found my daughter actually being subordinate and doing her homework as requested. I knew the school would give her some leeway given the recent trauma, but she'd run out of free passes eventually, so her doing what was needed was not only good for me but it made me feel like I was actually influencing her at all.

I greeted her briefly, kissing the top of her head before I went back out to the foyer that entered into my own office. Melissa, my personal assistant was sat at her desk, engrossed in the MacBook before her as I approached. 

She looked up, forcing a smile on her face at the sight of me. Admittedly, she had her work cut out for her with me, but she was paid well and as a business major, she was getting all the right experience.

"Alex." She nodded by way of acknowledgement. "Nothing major for you, just some incessant woman from Jaida's school called about scheduling a meeting." She tells me, and I roll my eyes. Join the fucking queue lady.

"Cool, I need you to clear my schedule today." I tell her firmly, knowing she was gonna push back on that request. She was a younger sister of one my closest friends, and a real pain in my ass. I had let her live with me for half a year of college and then given her this job and while I managed to teach her professional etiquette to a point, she was just that little bit too familiar with me to not bust my balls about everything that inconvenienced her day.

She opened her mouth to protest and I held my hand up immediately. "Don't even start, Mel," I say firmly again, hoping she'll too be subordinate. Her brown eyes narrowed on me as she tucked a lose tendril of brunette hair behind her ear.

Pointing a manicured finger in my direction, she started her inappropriate rant to her boss. "Don't YOU start, Alex!" She more or less shrieks. "I cleaned up yesterday for you, rescheduled this morning to suit YOUR associates and I bumped this morning back which caused nothing but hardship. I'm a glorified receptionist, NOT a therapist!" I raise a brow, wondering what I did to deserve it.

This constant onslaught of abuse from the women around me was getting out of hand. Melissa was a fiery woman, but a damn good assistant. At only 22 years of age, she still had that little heart shaped baby face and when caught off guard she did look like the student she was. But the minute she stepped into my office she was pristine. Her make up done, every hair in place and she knew how to dress appropriately for work. Pity she didn't know how to behave that way.

"Firstly, thank you for rearranging my meetings today," I begin, giving her a pointed look before I squashed every argument she had thrown at me. "But that is your job, I'm all for constructive criticism but you might like to remember that I am in fact your boss." She rolls her eyes, nodding as she painted a smile on her face. 

"You're right, I'll reschedule your whole day again." She says, turning her attention back to her MacBook, and clicking away before she turns the screen out to face me. "And when exactly suits you to be the CEO and have meetings?" She says, waving her hand across screen to show my precarious schedule for the next two weeks.

"Tell them I've had an unexpected family emergency and someone will reach out to reorganize in the coming days." I tell her, raising a brow, daring her to challenge me again.