Chapter 1

Ten years ago, he interviewed me. Ten years later, I poached his biggest client.

Sales Director John Carter stood at the conference room door, his face dark with anger.

"Lynn, you can't do this," he said.

I looked at him and smiled. "Mr. Carter, it's been ten years. You taught me one thing."

I grabbed my bag and strode right past him. "To those who are good to me, I give my all. To those who aren't, I leave."

Behind me, he couldn't say a single word.

*****

The projector was still glowing in the conference room. On the screen was this year's list of promotions.

I took a quick look. My name was nowhere to be found. Third year in a row.

"Lynn." John's voice rang out from the front of the room. "Why aren't you clapping?"

I looked up. Everyone in the office was staring at me.

I gave a small, polite smile and offered a couple of half-hearted claps. "Congratulations."

The one getting promoted was Emily Lane. Just a newbie who'd only been with the company for two years. Rumor had it she was somebody's niece upstairs.

After the meeting, I went back to my desk. An email from a client was still open on my screen. It was from President Todd Warren at Grandway Group.

The e-mail said: [Ms. Parker, could you please review the proposal for next week again? Our chairman specifically asked for you to present.]

I stared at the screen, doing nothing.

My colleague Fiona Lewis leaned over from the next desk. "Lynn, are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine," I replied.

"Emily..." Fiona lowered her voice. "Everyone knows her deal."

I didn't say anything.

"Lynn, how many deals have you closed? It's got to be 15 million dollars this year alone, right? And her? What's the biggest deal she's ever pulled off?" Fiona asked.

"Just drop it." I closed the email and stood up. "I'm going to the restroom."

The restroom was empty. I stared at my own reflection in the mirror. Thirty-five. Fine lines at the corners of my eyes.

It had been ten years. I joined this company back in 2014. Back then, there were only 50 people here. Now, there were five hundred.

I watched it grow from a tiny startup to one of the top three in the industry.

The very first big client I landed was still renewing their contract with us.

I mentored my sales team; now three of them were supervisors.

And me? I was still stuck as a sales manager. Ten years, and I hadn't moved up once.

My phone rang. It was John.

"Lynn, come to my office," he said.

I took a deep breath and walked out of the restroom.

John's office was at the end of the hallway.

The door was open. I knocked on the doorframe. "Mr. Carter, what can I do for you?"

"Come in. Have a seat." He motioned for me to sit on the sofa.

I sat down.

He stayed silent, pouring himself a cup of coffee. He moved slowly, like he was waiting for something.

"Lynn," he finally spoke. "You saw the promotion list for this year, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I saw it," I replied.

"Any thoughts?" he asked.

I looked at him. "I don't have much to say."

"Really?" He chuckled. "After ten years here, you honestly have nothing to say?"

I stayed silent.

"Lynn, let me be straight with you." He set down his cup. "You've got the skills, and your results speak for themselves. But—"

Here it comes. I'd heard that line for three years straight.

"But being a leader takes more than just numbers. You need the full package." He looked at me. "You get what I mean, right?"

Yes, I did.

What he meant was: you can do the work, but you have no connections.

His point was: You're a workhorse, but workhorses don't get to be leaders.

In other words: Just keep waiting. Eventually, you'll get tired and leave on your own.

"Mr. Carter, I get it." I stood up. "If that's all, I'll get back to work."

He looked taken aback. "What's with that attitude?"

"What attitude?" I turned and shot him a look. "That's my attitude, Mr. Carter. I still have the Grandway proposal to finish."

"Lynn—" he started.

I walked out before he could finish. When I got back to my desk, Fiona was still there.

"Lynn, what did Mr. Carter say?" she asked.

"Nothing," I replied.

"The usual?" she pressed.

I didn't answer. I fired up my computer and got back to work on the proposal.

Grandway Group was our key account this year. The contract was expected to be worth nine million dollars.

If I landed it, it'd be my biggest deal of the year. And the biggest for the whole company, too.

But I knew the drill. If I landed the deal, John would get all the glory. If it fell through, the blame would land on me.

Ten years. This was how it had always been.

I threw myself into working on the proposal and kept at it until nine o'clock at night.

The office was empty. Just me.

I rubbed my eyes and saved the file. My phone buzzed again. It was my mom.

"Lynn, have you eaten yet?" she asked.

"Yeah, I already ate," I replied.

"Are you working late again?" she asked.

"Yeah," I replied.

"You're 35 already, working late every day. When are you going to start dating or settle down?" she asked.

"Mom, I gotta go," I said.

"Just listen to me—" she started.

I hung up and leaned back in my chair, staring up at the ceiling.

Ten years. I gave all my best years to this company. And what did I get in return? A 'Sales Manager' title. A mediocre salary. A promotion that never came my way.

My phone buzzed again. I thought it was my mom. But when I looked down, it was an unknown number.

After a moment's hesitation, I picked up.

"Is this Lynn Parker, Sales Manager?" the voice on the other end asked.

"Yes," I replied.

"Hi, I'm a headhunter. I wanted to see if you'd be open to discussing a new opportunity," the person said.

I was taken aback for a second. "What kind of opportunity?"

"Would it be okay if we added each other on WhatsApp and talked more?" the headhunter asked.

I paused to think. "Sure."