Page 25 of Inevitable Secrets

She tilted her head. “Don’t like my decision,” Taylor asked, “or don’t like Henry?”

“Mostly Henry,” Derrick clarified.

She rolled her eyes. “Why?”

“Because he totally has the hots for you,” Derrick told her like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Derrick watched Taylor’s jaw drop open, and then close and then open again. Finally she shook her head. “You can not be serious.”

“Oh, I am totally serious,” Derrick said.

“Derrick, I can one hundred percent assure you that Henry does not have the hots for me.”

“See, but you thought that I wasn’t into you so you aren’t exactly great at reading cues,” Derrick reminded her.

“Yeah, well be that as it may you are apparently bad at it, too,” Taylor quipped and then held up her hands to stop him. “I need to go and update Todd and Charlie about the closure, so no more of this foolish discussion.”

“Okay, make sure you protect your ears,” Derrick told her as he relaxed back on his pillow.

“Protect them from what?” Taylor asked with her brow furrowed.

“Todd and Charlie’s shrieks of protest.”

Seven

And shriek they did.

“Taylor, stocks are already down pretty significantly,” Charlie said in a voice that saidI am trying not to panic but the struggle is real.

“I understand that there has been a downtrend, but this is not the most significant drop in all of Preston Corp history.”

“No, that was the Great Depression, and that happened when Preston Corp never even shut its doors,” Todd remarked in total snark. “You want to shut down just tocheck?” Todd shook his head. “That’s bad business.”

“I have to agree, Taylor,” Charlie said. “Shutting down Preston Corp—”

“Will give me peace of mind and it is not negotiable,” Taylor said flatly. “Besides, I am shutting down the main building. That does not mean all work must cease. We can still work remotely behind the scenes,” Taylor reminded them.

“Taylor, as the company’s advisors—"

“You advise,” Taylor said through her teeth. “The decisions of Preston Corp lie ultimately with me. And my decision is that Preston Corp will shut down the main office and any other facilities needed so that they can be thoroughly and completely evaluated for any threats.”

“Taylor, be reasonable,” Todd shot back.

“Taylor,” Charlie said more gently. “I understand that current events in your life have left you rattled. But those are in the past. The culprit has been found and killed. It is time for you to move forward, show the world that this will not take us down. That we will work hard to persevere. Thatyouwill work hard to get this company back on its feet.”

Taylor pinched the bridge of her nose in order to not lose her mind on the two men before her and took a few deep breaths. In through the nose, out through the mouth, in through the nose, out through the mouth.

Finally she looked up at the two men who were desperately trying to get her to make the “right” decision, in two completely opposite fashions.

“You two need to listen to me very clearly,” Taylor said in a flat tone. “Stocks are going to drop and rise no matter what. Preston Corp will have good days and bad days. This is something that we will be faced with forever and I am willing to give my all to fixing that. But I am not willing to put people at risk. And checking to make sure that the proper security measures are in place and in top working order is not something I am willing to be advised against.”

“But, Taylor,” Todd implored, “the stocks will continue to drop.”

“Dammit, people could die!” Taylor exploded. “Do you realize how many new copycat threats have come down through security since the gala shooting, let alone Tappen’s attempt? This world is full of attention seekers who hurt people just to say they have! I am not willing to save us from a few drops in the market just because it may look bad.”

“Your grandfather would have never shut the—"

“Stop.” Taylor cut Charlie off before he could finish his words. “You stop what you are saying right now.” The men before her were so silent that her voice echoed around the large room.

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