Chapter 182 First day

Chapter 182 First day
ANASTASIA POV

It was my first day handling the company, and no one told me it was going to be harder than I thought. I had spent the past two hours introducing myself to the team and going around checking everything out. My feet were absolute murder from carrying four-inch Christian Louboutin heels around for hours.

It had been seven years since I last stepped foot in this building. Even back then, I rarely came here. Once I married Alexander, we practically ran his businesses together—even the darker operations within the Brotherhood before he gave them up. Now that most of the bad players who tried to ruin the Brotherhood and turn it into a lawless bloodbath were gone, things were quiet. Not that the Brotherhood business was ever decent or legal; it was a shadow syndicate for people in power, orchestrating things from the inside, choosing exactly how the world should rotate.
Hopefully, Kade gets to run things well now. He has always been so calculating, but in a good way. The bastard always held all the cards, he knew exactly how things would play out and didn't interfere until Jessica tried to strip power from him.

Desperate for a break, I bypassed my assistant and went straight to the breakroom to grab my own coffee. I wasn't comfortable ordering people around to fetch my drinks just yet.

Sipping the bitter dark roast, I finally headed back toward the executive wing to continue the rest of my day. I gripped the handle to my private office and pushed the door open.
The moment I stepped inside, I almost flew backward in pure shock.

My office was gone. In its place was a literal jungle. Massive glass vases of flowers were laid out across the entire marble floor, crowding the couches, stacking the shelves—every single type of flower you could think of.
Roses, tulips, hydrangeas, orchids. And right in the dead center, sitting on my mahogany desk, was a towering arrangement of white lilies. A small envelope rested against the glass, right beside an expensive, glossy black shopping box.

I set my coffee down, grabbed the envelope, and peeled it open.

"Congratulations on your first day at work. Break legs and arms, Ana. Give them shit. I hope you like your flowers. I only know Rory’s favorite flowers, but I don't know yours yet—so I bought everything I saw."

Of course. It could only be him.

I rolled my eyes at the dark, messy scrawl. He was so incredibly insufferable. How dare he send me flowers when he was supposed to be signing our divorce papers?

Defeated, I picked up the lilies and sniffed them gently. They smelled exactly like my favorite shampoo.

I turned my attention to the box resting on the desk and tore the wrapping paper away. Lifting the lid of the Chanel box, I parted the crisp tissue paper. Inside was a pair of quilted black leather ballet flats.

There was a second tiny note tucked into the tissue. I picked it up.

Just in cause your feet hurt.

“Of course they hurt, you bastard,” I muttered to the empty room.

I let out a heavy sigh, quickly kicked off the torturous Louboutins, and slipped into the flats. The immediate, heavenly relief that washed over me was out of this world.

I grabbed my phone, pulled up his contact, and shot him a text.

Me: Stop sending stuff to me. You’re annoying me.

In less than a second, the screen lit up.

Skull Collecting Husband:How’s your first day going?

Look at how he completely flagged my text away and went right ahead asking about my day.

Me:Stop sending me stuff! The food you sent last night tasted like shit!

That was a blatant lie. It was so good I had eaten most of it last night and even microwaved the leftovers this morning.

Skull Collecting Husband:Thanks for the review. I’ll have the entire kitchen staff fired. They clearly don't love their jobs.

My eyes went wide. God knew he would actually do it.

Me: I was kidding! Don't fire them!

Skull Collecting Husband:Too late. They’re fired.

Jesus fucking Christ.

Me:Stop it, Alexander! Let them be or you will never see me again.

The typing bubbles appeared. Then disappeared. For over two minutes, the screen remained blank, making my chest dip with a sudden, anxious weight. When his text finally popped up, my heart skipped a beat.

Skull Collecting Husband:You can threaten me with anything else, Ana. Not that. That’s a threat to my life.

I sighed, staring at the screen before locking the phone and dropping it onto the desk without replying.

Should I block him?

I buzzed the building's maintenance staff to help clear out the room. A few minutes later, two building employees walked in.

They froze at the door, their eyes wide as they scanned the floral sea. “Wow... these are beautiful, ma’am,” one of them said, carefully lifting a massive vase of orchids. “Your admirer must be incredibly thoughtful.”

“Nope,” I replied flatly, adjusting my desk calendar. “They’re from my husband, whom I’m divorcing very soon. The man just doesn't get the memo.”

The employee winced slightly, looking sheepish. “Oh... well, tough luck to him then.”

“Take whatever you can fit into the back of my car,” I told them, gesturing to the rest. “And whatever doesn't fit, please take them home. Give them to your wives or girlfriends if you have them.”

“Thank you, Ms. Ana!” they said, practically beaming as they packed up the arrangements and left.

The moment the door clicked shut, the silence rushed back in. I leaned back in my leather chair, grabbing my head in my hands as the exhaustion of the day settled deep into my bones.

A sharp, firm knock rattled the wood.
I straightened my posture, pulling my hands away from my face. “Come in.”

The door opened, and Richard Brown, the Senior Vice President of Operations, stepped into the office. He was a man easily my father's age, wearing a sharp grey suit and a slick, corny smile that immediately put me on edge. He walked over, looking me up and down with a gaze that lingered a second too long.

“Welcome on your first day, Ana,” he said, stretching his hand out across my desk for a shake.

“Thank you, Mr. Brown.” I reached out and shook his hand, keeping it brief.

Even with the flats on, a sudden wave of uneasiness clawed at my nerves. I had been shaking hands with executives all morning, and the physical contact alone was starting to trigger the raw edges of my trauma.

He let go of my hand, but he didn't take a step back. “Yes, well, I came in a bit late today, so I missed your morning address to the staff.”

I nodded awkwardly, keeping my hands resting firmly on my lap where he couldn't see them trembling. “I noticed.”

Mr. Brown leaned against the edge of my desk, his smile turning entirely too familiar. “I heard about the situation with your husband. Sorry to hear that. If you don't mind... maybe we can hang out sometime outside the office? Grab a drink, talk things through?”

I stared at him, a cold disbelief washing over me. I couldn't believe this. It was my literal first day on the job, and a man my father's age was actively hitting on me in my own office.

“No, Mr. Brown,” I said, my voice dropping into a razor-sharp, icy calm that mirrored the exact tone I used to hear Alexander use. “I am not desperate for a man’s affection. And if I divorce my husband, that does not mean I am available to be involved with my employee. I hope you understand that perfectly?”

I watched the immediate, ugly shift in his face.
His smile vanished, his jaw tightening as the word employee hit him like a physical slap. He was clearly offended. Good. The bastard needed to learn his fucking place.

“Very well... Mrs. Miller,” he said, his voice practically dripping with malicious sarcasm.

He intentionally used my married surname, knowing damn well I was trying to end things with Alexander.

An asshole through and through. But if he thought he could intimidate me, he picked the wrong day.

“Before you leave, Mr. Brown,” I called out smoothly, tapping a thick stack of folders on the corner of my desk. “Since you arrived late today, I assume you have plenty of energy. I need the entire Q3 financial audit reviewed, cross-referenced, and a hard copy on my desk by eight o'clock tomorrow morning. I’m sure a Senior Vice President can handle that without an issue.”

His face flushed a dark, angry red. He stared at the massive stack of work, his fingers twitching at his sides.

“Sure,” he gritted out in pure, unadulterated frustration.

He spun on his heel and marched out of the office, slamming the door shut behind him.