Chapter 7

Jamarion said with a smirk, "He probably told you that your job as vice president is just handling admin stuff.

"It's one of those positions that looks good on paper but doesn't actually give you any real power. Just there to keep people happy."

I smiled back. "So what?"

"So, what are you going to do about it?" he asked.

The elevator stopped at the eighteenth floor, and the doors slid open.

I stepped out, turned back to him, and said, "Mr. Bolton, do I look like I'm just here to take it easy?"

Jamarion looked at me, his smile growing a little wider.

My father's office was on the top floor. When I knocked and walked in, he was on the phone.

When he saw me, he gestured for me to take a seat on the couch.

I sat down and glanced around.

I'd been in this office a few times before, but I'd always just stood by the door—never even offered a seat.

"Alright, that's settled," Hector said, hanging up the phone and turning to me. "Just got here?"

"Yeah," I replied.

"I've already told HR, so you can just head over and finish the paperwork," he said, flipping through a file. "By the way, your VP office is on the twelfth floor, right with the admin team."

The twelfth floor was the lowest floor for executives.

I nodded. "Okay."

Hector looked at me, a bit surprised at how quiet I was.

"Adelaide." He paused for a second. "Don't take what happened yesterday too personally. Martha... she's been with us since she was a kid, so she's always been part of the family."

"I know," I said. "I don't blame her."

Hector breathed out, relieved. "Good. Just do your best here, and I promise I won't let you down."

I stood up. "I'll head out then."

As soon as I stepped out of the office, my smile disappeared.

Not shortchange me? Really?

He handed me an empty VP title and parked my office on the lowest executive floor. That was his idea of not shortchanging me?

I stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the twelfth floor.

Just as the doors were about to close, someone stopped them.

This time, it was Martha who stepped in.

She was dressed in a Chanel suit, carrying a Hermès bag, her hair styled in big waves. She looked every bit the pampered heiress.

When Martha saw me, she froze for a moment, then flashed a smile. "Hey, what brings you here?"

"I'm here for work," I replied.

"Work?" Martha giggled, covering her mouth. "Weren't you the lobby manager at the hotel? Why the sudden change? What made you come work here?"

"Didn't Dad tell you?" I said. "I'm the vice president at the Shelton Group now."

Martha's smile froze.

"Vice president?" She looked me up and down. "Adelaide, you never even went to college, did you? Is hotel management even a real college major? Do you even know how business works?"

I didn't get mad. Instead, I just smiled. "Nope, I don't. That's why I need you to show me the ropes, Martha."

Martha snorted. "I don't have time to teach you. I'm swamped with work in the marketing department."

"Weren't you in the design department?" I asked.

"Got promoted," Martha said, tossing her hair. "Dad thinks I'm talented, so he moved me to marketing as the assistant director."

So she was the assistant director.

Technically, it was a step below me, but marketing was the heart of the company. My VP gig in admin couldn't even compete with that.

The elevator stopped at the twelfth floor, and I stepped out.

Martha called out from behind me, "Hey, want to have lunch together?"

"Sure," I replied.

She looked a little surprised that I agreed so quickly, then smiled. "Alright, it's settled then."

The elevator doors slid shut.

I headed toward the admin department, a smirk curling at my lips.

She should enjoy what she had now while she could.

Soon, she wouldn't even have the chance.

The admin team clearly wasn't thrilled about having a VP parachuted in from nowhere.

They'd just cleared out a spot for me, and there wasn't even a computer set up on the desk.

The admin manager, Janet Cook, gave me a fake smile. "Sorry, Ms. Shelton, things have been crazy around here lately, and we're short-staffed. You'll have to make do for now."

"No worries," I said. "I brought my own laptop."

I pulled out my laptop, hopped onto the company Wi-Fi, and got right down to business.

Janet paused when she saw me actually working, then shuffled off, looking a little awkward.

I opened a document and started outlining a plan.

This was what I'd been preparing for the past six months—the Shelton Group's administrative restructuring blueprint.

On paper, it was all about streamlining management, but underneath, I was mapping out the ownership and cash flow between every single subsidiary in the Shelton Group.

This was exactly what I need.

At noon, Martha appeared right on cue on the twelfth floor.

"Come on, let's go eat," she said brightly.

She linked her arm with mine, looking for all the world like we were real sisters.

People in the office started gossiping as soon as they saw us together.

"Is that Mr. Shelton's eldest daughter? How come I've never heard of her?"

"I heard she was brought back from the countryside. She was working as a hotel manager."

"So how did she suddenly become vice president?"

"Who knows? Maybe Mr. Shelton just felt sorry for her."

I pretended not to hear a thing.