The Billionaire’s Tenacious Boss (The Maxfield Brothers Series Book 1) (16 page)

“Mother hated it because you were always here,” Nathan pointed out. “What are you doing here now?”

“It’s been awhile since a woman has yelled at me,” Duncan said finally. “I guess I needed it.”

“A woman yelled at you, and now you’re here?” Stephen asked, surprised.

“Men have done less for fear of a woman,” Duncan grunted. “I heard about your stunt at Alliance. And I’ve made sure that Mark Fine no longer has a job with Spenser either. So there is one victory. Now then, I’m not here to chat. We have an appointment to keep in ten minutes. So straighten your ties, gentlemen. Nathan, for God’s sake, do something with that hair of yours. Meet me in the conference room. Do not be late.”

His cane struck the floor hard as he rose from his chair and left the room. “What the hell is going on?” Gabe asked.

“I don’t know, but I’m guessing we’re going to find out in the conference room,” Stephen said.

Ten minutes later, they walked into the room. The members of the board were seated around the table, and the remaining floor space was filled with people carrying cameras and recording devices and tablets.

The press?

From the startled looks and the murmuring, it was clear the board didn’t know what was happening either. Stephen looked across to see Angie staring at him. His heart skipped a beat, but he forced his gaze away.

She’d made her choice.

“Good. You’re finally here,” Duncan grumbled from the head of the table. “Let’s get this over with.”

He leaned against his cane as he stood and cleared his throat. “Members of the board, and members of the press, welcome. It has come to my attention that I have been neglecting Duncan Enterprises. Several heart attacks have made me rethink my position on this organization and on life in general. So I’ve decided it’s time to make some changes. I’ve always been rather old-fashioned. Many of you can attest that not much has changed with this company over the years. I realize now that has been a mistake.

“There have been rumors circulating that I’ve been trying to sell off certain sections of the business. I can now confirm that Duncan Enterprises will continue at full capacity, and while we will be making some changes, we will not be selling off any departments or sections. First, I’d like to introduce my youngest son, Nathan Maxfield. He is at the top of his field in architecture and design, and I’m happy to announce that he’ll be working closely with our design department to create energy-efficient contemporary schemes that are far less wasteful and damaging to the environment.”

Nathan choked back a strange sound as all eyes turned to him. He nodded stiffly, growing pink in the face, and it was all Stephen could do not to laugh.

“My oldest son, Stephen Maxfield, has his own business to run, but he’s been spending quite a bit of time here on site to help out. Thanks to him, we’ve taken on quite a few new jobs including a job in Chicago for Snyder. I’m confident that this will open a number of doors, and Stephen will be in charge until Duncan Enterprises is back on its feet again.”

He bowed his head and looked over at Angie. “This is Angela Lopez. She’s been my Senior VP for quite some time, and she’s earned every second in that seat. I’m pleased to announce that she’ll be taking over as CEO of Duncan Enterprises with immediate effect. I have every confidence in her abilities to lead Duncan Enterprises into a successful and profitable future.”

Angie’s mouth dropped open, and it was all Stephen could do not to gasp. What the hell? All eyes turned on her, but when he looked at her, she was staring across at him.

She looked terrified.

“There will be no questions at this time. Thank you for your time,” Duncan said as he rose and moved out the door. For a moment, no one followed. And then Stephen bolted after him, and Nathan, Gabe, and Angie were right behind him.

“Duncan!” Stephen thundered. “What the hell was that?”

Everyone in the hallway froze as they stared at him. Duncan slowly turned. “As Angie pointed out to me, if everyone is standing on the other side, then maybe I’m the one that’s wrong. I thought this company was the reason that I’m the way I am. But it’s not. The only person to blame, the only thing to blame, is me. When your mother died, I had no anchor. And we all floated away. But maybe this is how I can make it right.”

“Angie said that?” Stephen whispered. Shaking his head, he tried to focus on the point. “And you’re going to walk away?”

“I’m not the one who is going to save this company, Stephen. You, Nathan, Gabe, and Angie are. I’m turning over the reins.”

Nodding his head, he turned and made his way down the hall to the elevator.

For a moment nobody spoke. Then clearing his throat, Gabe said, “We’ve still got a lot to do.”

Stephen turned and stared at him. Duncan hadn’t once mentioned Gabe in his little speech. What could his brother possibly be feeling right now?

Angie took a deep breath. “Well then. Let’s get to work,” she said. “Gentlemen, my office. Now.”

T
he next few
weeks were a blur for Angie. Duncan signed everything over to her, and she moved into his office. It was everything she’d dreamed of, and yet it seemed so empty. It was shadowed by the fact that Duncan Enterprises was still failing.

And that Stephen never said a word to her outside of their business meetings.

“It’s going to take money to pull us out,” Gabe said with a sigh. “More money than we have stashed away. Nathan wants to overhaul the entire architecture department, and Stephen’s got this crazy idea to do a housing development in the middle of Chicago.”

“Crazy, but kind of brilliant,” Angie said. “It will set a whole new precedent for us.”

“But that takes money,” Gabe said with a sigh. “Of course, there’s always money in real estate. I could sell the holdings that I have on the back burner. We’d still need a loan, but it would help.”

Angie looked at Gabe sadly. He’d been holding onto that land for his own plans, and she was never quite sure what he had in mind for it. Whatever it was, it must break his heart to give up that dream now. “Gabe,” she said softly.

“No, it’s fine,” he said as he rubbed his eyes. “You’re CEO now. If you need the money, then you’re going to need the land. And it’s yours.”

There was a heavy moment of silence between them. “We can leverage the holdings in San Francisco,” Angie said briskly. “Your father even offered to throw in the mortgage on the house. It lets the board members and the investors see how serious we are about things. If we get the loan, we can pull it off.” She leaned back and shook her head. With a sudden smile, she said, “Jesus, I think we can pull it off.”

“Not if you miss your meeting,” Gabe reminded her as he glanced at the clock. “At least the loan amount will be much lower now.”

Panicked, Angie grabbed at her purse and stood. “Okay. I’ll call you as soon as I’m done. Do you think…” her voice faded off. She’d never given Gabe a direct order before. It seemed almost odd.

“What do you need, Angie?” he said wearily.

“Do you think you can get Duncan to do another press conference? Having his public support could go a long way in spreading the news and boosting confidence in the business.”

He nodded his head, and she smiled in relief. Aware of the time, she raced down the hall to her car.

Stephen was leaning against the door. “You’re late.”

She shot an annoyed look at him. “And you’re going to make me even more late. What do you want?” she snapped.

He opened the door and slid into the driver’s seat. A spark of outrage flew through her, but she didn’t have time to argue. Frustrated, she moved around the car and got into the passenger side. “What are you doing?”

“Coming with you,” he said, holding his hand out for the keys. “I thought that was obvious.”

“Nothing about you is obvious,” she grumbled as she passed the keys over.

“I could say the very same about you,” Stephen remarked easily. They drove in silence, and she flipped through her paperwork to make sure everything was in order. By the time they got to the bank, they were five minutes late.

“Ms. Lopez? Mr. Johnson will see you,” the receptionist said with a smile as they walked in.

“I’m so sorry I’m late,” she said, as she stretched her hand out to the waiting man. He lounged behind the desk and rose to shake it.

“That’s quite all right. Traffic is always a bitch at this time.” Johnson smiled. “Well. This is quite an honor. I believe this company gave Duncan Maxfield his first loan.”

“Yes, and you can see how well he’s done. But times change, and so must we,” Angie said as she sat down.

“I saw the press conference. Congratulations on your promotion.” He turned his head. “Stephen Maxfield, correct?”

“Just here for moral support,” Stephen said as he flashed a grin. Angie stiffened uncomfortably. Was there something he knew that she didn’t?

“Right. Well, if I may speak man to man, your father is a brave man.”

“Because he put a woman in charge? Or because he’s making so many changes to the company?” Stephen asked evenly.

Angie bristled. Johnson obviously doubted her abilities to run the company. Stephen wasn’t there for moral support. He was there to make sure that Johnson didn’t try to walk all over her. Well, she would show him that she didn’t need him. She earned this position, but it would seem as though she was never going to be done proving it.

“His father is not here right now, so his bravery is inconsequential. Duncan Enterprises is my company, and I’m the only person you need to deal with,” she said sharply.

Johnson widened his eyes in surprise as Angie slapped the file down on his desk. “Down to business, then?” she said with a wry smile.

One hour later, she rose and shook the man’s hand.

“Ms. Lopez, it’s been a pleasure meeting with you. We look forward to all the changes Duncan Enterprises is ready to make, and we’re more than pleased to be a part of it,” he said nervously.

“Excellent. Please call me if there is anything else I need to do.” Spinning on her heels, she stalked past an amused Stephen.

“Don’t start,” she warned as soon as she was out of earshot.

“What? I thought you were great in there,” he chuckled.

“You had your doubts though,” she said as she stopped to slap a hand on his chest. “You thought I wouldn’t be able to handle one chauvinistic bank representative.”

“I never said that.”

“Why are you still here?” They stood in the middle of the parking lot, and she squared her shoulders to face him. “You’ve done what you came to do, Stephen. Don’t you have a company to run?”

“Do you want me to go?” he asked softly.

Did she want him to go? She had no idea what she wanted from him. “I’ve got too much going on, I don’t have time for this,” she said softly as she pushed past him.

“That certainly sounds familiar,” he grumbled. She froze and looked over her shoulder at him. He was shaking his head sadly. “Maybe it is the company. It hardens everyone who touches it.”

“The things that you said to me,” she said through clenched teeth.

“But you walked away,” he said. “And this is me now. Walking away.”

She watched helplessly as he did just that. Leaving her in the parking lot with her keys in hand, he walked across the street with his phone up to his ear.

It was lonely at the top.

* * *

T
he champagne popped
, and everyone cheered. Stephen stood in the corner of the boardroom as everyone laughed and hugged. They were finally out of the woods. In one month, they’d completely changed their image, and they were flooded with work. They had done it.

She had done it.

No one would dare underestimate Angela Lopez now. She’d proved to the world that she was capable of running Duncan Enterprises. And she didn’t need him anymore. After this afternoon, he would say his goodbyes and head back home.

He had his own company to run, and a house to finish.

She didn’t need him.

“You don’t look like you’re celebrating,” Gabe said as he passed a glass of champagne to him. “You did it, Stephen.”

“It wasn’t me,” he said ruefully. “It was us. We did this. The Maxfield men and one ruthless women.”

“Ah.” Gabe lowered his arm and stared at him thoughtfully. “So that’s what this is about. Angie.”

“It’s not about Angie,” Stephen protested. “I’ll probably go home after this. Kind of bitter-sweet.”

“Go home? Why?”

“Maxfield Construction,” Stephen reminded him softly. “I have a company to run.”

Gabe shrugged. “We could always buy it from you. You’ve made a name for yourself in a small period of time. We could buy it, and you could run the Duncan/Maxfield construction business together.”

“No,” Stephen said automatically. “I need them to stay separate. I guess I need to make sure I’m known for more than Duncan Enterprises.”

“Suit yourself,” Gabe said as he took a swig of his champagne. Stephen noticed Angie was making her way to him. “You know, I doubted Angie a lot these past few years. That was my mistake. But there was only one time that she outright lied to me.”

“When was that?” Stephen asked.

“When she told me that she didn’t love you.”

Stephen whipped his head around, and Gabe gave him a knowing smile. He slipped away as Angie reached him.

“Hey. I wanted to have a word with you,” she said nervously.

“It’s okay,” Stephen said hoarsely. “I’m actually leaving right after the meeting. So you don’t have to worry about any awkwardness.”

“Leaving?” She jerked her head up. “I hadn’t heard that.”

“Well, I’d only made that decision now.” He took a deep breath that rattled his chest. Had she really told Gabe that she didn’t love him? It’s not like that should have surprised him. But it still hurt.

“Stephen, wait,” she whispered. “I can’t…I don’t know…” She set down the glass of champagne. She looked up at him and bit her bottom lip. Finally in a low voice, she said, “Don’t go.”

“I have a whole different company to run,” he said gruffly.

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it. Shit.” She reached out and grabbed his hands. “You were right. I’ve always put this company first, and now that I have it, it feels amazing. It feels like I’ve conquered the whole world, but there is still so much missing. I don’t want to be like your father. I don’t want this to be all there is. When I love something, I need to embrace it. I can’t keep running away from it.”

Stephen’s heart hammered in his chest. “What are you talking about?”

“I would understand if you hated me. I really would. I kind of hate myself too. But if you think that, this might work. If there’s even the slightest chance that we could make this work, I’m here and willing to try.”

He stepped closer to her, and by now, everyone had stopped talking. But it didn’t matter. In that moment, she was the only one in the room. “What are you asking me to do?” he said softly.

“I’m asking you to love me. The way that I love you,” she said shakily. And with that, she rose up on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to his.

No one moved. No one said a word. Stephen froze. It didn’t even seem possible that after all this time, he’d be able to have it all.

But he had watched his father push love away. And he’d done it himself. Stephen wouldn’t do it anymore. Before she could get away, he wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up in the air to deepen the kiss.

“About damn time,” Gabe hollered as everyone laughed and cheered.

Stephen broke apart and stared at her. “I think you’ve finally made our relationship public,” he murmured in her ear.

“I did,” she said wickedly. “But this time, it’s you who’s sleeping with the boss.” He laughed and bent down to capture her lips again.