The Merger

Chapter 26

Lucas Handler

"What's your deal today?" Dad asks as he crosses his arms in his desk chair.

"What do you mean?" I respond, trying to keep my expression as neutral as possible.

"You seem agitated. Don't tell me you're stressed about the strategy to win you the CEO position. Do you think you can handle it?"

Ugh! There he goes again, questioning my abilities and thinking I don't have what it takes. "I'm not agitated," I say with annoyance gripping my voice. Keep it together, Lucas. Don't give him reasons to doubt you.

"You're being snippy. You're never usually this snippy."

I run through the thoughts that have eaten away my mental energy for the past two days. First, I have no fucking clue whether the woman I can't stop thinking about wants me. The signals are about as mixed as an Old Fashioned Cocktail.

Second, I had the chance to fuck her, but decided like an idiot to not think with my dick for once. Regret came in waves in the hours that followed. On the one hand, I want to do things the right way. Take it slow, make sure we build trust with each other. But on the other hand, all I want to do is forget everything and hear Talia scream my name in pleasure, unraveling under my fingertips.

Third, my dad created this whole mess when he decided to merge companies. Charles Handler is sitting in his chair so content to throw my life into a frenzy. He has no fucking clue what he set in motion and I can't say any damn thing about it. That'd just be asking for trouble. "I'm fine," I respond curtly.

He eyes me pensively for a moment before nodding and continuing. "What's on the agenda for the rest of the week?"

"More paperwork. And we're finalizing headcount for the layoffs next week."

"Good. How's the list coming along?"

"We're aiming for a ten percent reduction. Talia said she'd send over her list by today. And once we agree on it we'll loop in HR."

Layoffs are about as bearable as undergoing surgery without anesthesia. We've only done a few rounds in the past. Each time I was sick to my stomach having to tell an employee they needed to pack their desk immediately while HR stood by to make sure it happened. And this one will be a big one. While I mitigated fears amongst my staff as much as possible, layoffs during a merger are inevitable.

"Ten percent? That's it? I thought fifteen percent would be good."

"That's unnecessary. We're evaluating each role and ten percent is an adequate amount while still within our expense targets."

Dad shakes his head and I brace myself for the lecture that's coming my way any second. "You know leadership is all about making tough decisions, Lucas."

And there it is.

"You can't just settle at ten percent because you don't want to fire your friends."

I tune out the old man's voice as he continues his lecture. Glancing at my phone, I find an email from Talia popping up in my notifications. My heart skips a beat, even though the subject line simply reads, 'Headcount Reduction Draft'. Opening the email, I partly hope to find an essay-long love letter from her. But my heart dips slightly when I find a very professional email with a list of names and titles.

I don't really know what to expect from her. We'll probably just go back to keeping things professional.

Except... My mind reels back to her naked body in the shower.

Fuck. I can't see a world where we'd be able to keep that up. I don't know if I could keep that up even if Talia is as wild as the wind - always changing directions and moving through my fingertips with no promise of staying.