Eliza was ready by 8 am the next morning. She was so excited about the meeting, and not even the thought of her family was enough to bring the excitement down. This was her first time being in a proper office since she was basically disowned by her family. It felt good to get dressed, and prepare to use her business knowledge like she used to. It felt refreshing.
Alrik stepped out fully dressed, a smile on his face as he noticed Eliza’s excitement.
"I do hope your restlessness is from anticipation and not nervousness. You look radiant. I’m almost too jealous to let you attend the meeting. I’m sure the representatives from the Crestview Group, and even the employees at your family’s company will have a hard time keeping their eyes off you." He said as he came closer to wrap his arms around her midsection.
"Oh stop. I don’t look that pretty. I don’t even have any makeup on. Just some lipgloss."
"You don’t need make up, my love. You’re beautiful with or without it. And you’re dressed demurely. Now imagine how much attention you’ll get when you’re all glammed up. Now I understand why pretty princesses in books get locked up in towers. Maybe I should do that too, what do you think?" He asked and she chuckled.
"Enough joking/. We need to get going so we’ll make it on time. Let’s hope there’s no traffic. We’ll have to walk a bit to reach the bus station, and..."
"No bus for you. I already called a cab to get us there." He replied, and she smiled.
"Do you think they’ll come?" She asked quietly as they were being driven to the office.
"I didn’t want to go in and check, just in case they decided not to believe me after all, and weren’t preparing to leave for work. I think it would have made me angry, and I didn’t want to take that chance. I can’t have my mood ruined so early in the morning. I won’t take chances like that. This meeting is important to me."
"I think it doesn’t matter whether your family shows up for the meeting or not. Like you told them yesterday, you win regardless. And honestly, I wish you’d leave this company in the dust, forget the partnership and instead get the representatives from Crestview to offer you a big job for yourself. But I understand you want to be part of your family’s legacy, despite their shortcomings." He said and she sighed.
"My late grandmother would be horrified by the idea of me being kicked out. She willed me her shares before she passed on, and they’ve been taken from me. With her gifted shares, and my family allocated shares, I should have been a significant shareholder. But I was tricked into signing it away while I was grieving your loss after our wedding night. For my grandmother’s sake, I don’t want to see the company she loved and helped build crumble due to mismanagement. Dealing with the rest of my family is just an inconvenience I have to bear to achieve that goal, and at least recover part, if not all of my stolen shares."
He stroked her cheek at the sadness brought by her grandmother’s memory. Then surprisingly, she smiled.
"I do hope they come though. I’d really like to rub it in all their faces that I’m the one who got them the partnership deal they all wanted so badly. It would be nice to maybe even get an apology for doubting me, but that’s a step too far."
He chuckled in response. When they arrived, there were whispers following them from the lobby, till they got up to the executive floor, where the meeting was scheduled to be held. Employees who recognised Eliza were wondering why she was back when she had been publicly dismissed before. Some also recognised Alrik as he retarded husband that caused her fall from grace.
Eliza tried hard to ignore all the murmurs while they both made their way to the meeting room. They were a few minutes early, so she used the time to arrange all the necessary files that would be used in the meeting, and then asked for a cup of tea from the secretary closest to them, to soothe her nerves.
The woman scoffed, and then frowned. "Why should I get you a cup of tea? Am I your slave? You don’t even work here anymore, and yet you still act all high and mighty. We all know you’ve been disowned."
"And I wonder how you’ve kept your job this long with that attitude. I sent an email to inform every relevant staff of the important meeting that’s to happen in a few minutes, so you’d be adequately prepared. Even if I no longer work here, being part of the meeting means I should be extended the same courtesy as the rest of the clients we’re waiting f..."
"Don’t call them clients yet till we actually see them with our own eyes." Her father said as he walked in.
Her grandfather, two brothers, and her mother walked in behind him. Her brothers’ wives weren’t present because they neither worked for the company, nor did they have any allotted shares.
"If you didn’t believe me, then why are you all here? You could have just stayed home, so I could use the meeting for my personal benefit." She asked and Francis scoffed before speaking.
"You seem to have become more mouthy since you got your husband back.. But I guess it’s to be expected because of his low status. He wasn’t taught proper manners, and it has rubbed off on you. This is why we warned you to dump him long ago."
"I have no interest in trading words with any of you this morning. It’s too early for that. And it would leave a bad impression if our guests arrive to meet us bickering like immature delinquents. So take your seats. I’m sure they’ll be here soon."
Thankfully, no one argued with her. They all took their seats and waited. Two minutes before 9 am, the secretary led a team of three into the conference room for the meeting. Read complete versıon only at N0veI.Fiɾe.net
"I hope you didn’t hire actors to try and fool us by pretending to be Crestview executives, sis..." Their grandfather kicked Marco under the seat so he would be quiet.
Henry Pratt definitely recognised the three people that stepped into the room even without introductions. He had tried to meet up with Bruno several times, hoping to secure a partnership, but was always declined a meeting. Why on earth would three of the top executives for a group as prestigious as Crestview bother to come to his company by themselves to sign a partnership deal?