Page 80 of See You Maybe
“What exactly does Kyle do here?”
“He’s the vice-president.”
Declan stared hard at the man. Nepotism was common, but Declan couldn’t find anything that weasel did to warrant his job title.
From what Brady had discovered over the last eighteen hours, Kyle spent most of his time either on the golf course or fucking his girlfriend in his office.
“He oversees… You aren’t thinking of getting rid of him?” Richard looked shocked.
“Some of your C-suite will have to go. What are your thoughts on Stuart Pruitt?”
The older gentleman gave his feedback as Declan jotted his notes.
“And your CFO? Olivia Adler?” Declan looked up from the financial reports in front of him. “Some of the reporting is… creative.”
“Olivia is not dishonest.” Richard’s voice was firm.
Declan had zero doubts about Olivia’s honesty. He leaned back in his chair and rubbed a finger across his lip. He was curious. Olivia was smart. Too smart to have put the company at risk the way she had.
“It was her decision to fund the company by selling small blocks of stock to your extended family. Those sales ultimately put your company at risk for takeover. Olivia sold over fifty percent, which meant you and your immediate family lost your power.”
Richard coughed and shifted in his chair. “That wasn’t entirely her fault.”
“Olivia is the CFO. Things like funding and ensuring a solid financial foundation are her responsibility.”
Declan waited for the man to defend his former daughter-in-law. To advocate for her to keep her job the way he had for his son. He had yet to see why the man had inspired such loyalty from Olivia for all these years.
“Yes, but it was a group decision. We faced some obstacles in securing funding through traditional methods for our expansion. Olivia suggested approaching a venture capital group, but we’ve always been a family company. I wanted only family to own stock.” His mouth twisted bitterly. “I guess I overestimated family loyalty.”
“Olivia doesn’t own stock.”
The older man squared his shoulders. “No.”
“Wasn’t she married to your son until recently?”
“Yes, but she was never given stock in her own name. She never even took our last name, and then she chose to leave our family.” The man glared at him. “I allowed her to stay in her position here because she is loyal to this company, even if not to my son.” Self-righteousness rang in the man’s tone, and Declan stilled.
Cecile seated next to him must have noticed, but other than a quick glance, she ignored it. For a moment Declan considered rescinding the offer to buy the sanctimonious bastard’s shares. “As she is not a family member, would you object to her position being eliminated?”
Declan kept his face blank as emotions warred on Richard’s face. “No, if it is between her and Kyle, I don’t object.”
Hurt for Olivia surged in him. Declan knew how excited Olivia had been about this job and how she felt about this man. Declan vowed she would never find out how easily Richard Armstrong had abandoned her.
Declan kept his disgust to himself, but when the door closed behind Richard, Cecile snorted. “What an asshole. That woman has essentially run this entire company for years.” Cecile had read the same scouting reports he had. “And he allowed her to keep her job. Do you think he’s an idiot or just a misogynist piece of shit?”
Declan arched a brow at her.
“Sorry,” she grimaced. “It’s unfair, and it pisses me off.”
Declan closed the file folder in front of him and held out his hand for her to put a new one in it.
“Who’s next?”
The meeting with Stuart Pruitt held no surprises. Declan assured him that, as the head of Research and Development, he would be kept on for the time being. However, unlike Richard, Pruitt defended Olivia... strongly.
“They forced her to do it,” he said bluntly. “She was still married to Kyle, and Richard had just gotten his first diagnosis. Olivia is phenomenal at her job.” He met their eyes. “But with the family dynamic component, she was put in a bad spot.”
“If you were deciding who to keep from the board, would you choose Kyle or her?—”