Iwalk into the office a couple of days later to find the whole floor dark. I fumble around with the buttons until I finally manage to turn on the lights.
“Surprise!”
Jake, Luke, Linda and Daniel are standing in the middle of the office and the entire ceiling is covered in balloons. I grin and try my best to hide the emotions I’m feeling. Daniel walks up to me and sweeps me into his arms, twirling me around in a tight hug. I giggle and kiss him as he puts me down.
“Congratulations, CEO dearest,” he whispers. The rest joins us excitedly. Linda is clapping and jumping up and down with a wide smile on her face. The official announcement was made early this morning, but I’m still in disbelief.
“Thank you,” I whisper. They all hug me one by one and Daniel hands me a large gift. I frown and unpack it slowly, grinning when I see what it is. I run my fingers over the new nameplate. It says Alyssa Moriani, CEO. I’m giddy as I stare at it and smile at him, my heart overflowing. He presses a kiss to my forehead and pulls me into his office.
He takes the nameplate from me and places it on my dad’s old desk. I stare at it incredulously. When did he move this back in here?
“I’d like to take credit for the gift, but your dad actually had it made years ago. He knew you’d need it one day and he was as impatient as you were for you to get here.”
I trace the letters with my fingers, my eyes filling with tears. “He had this made for me?”
Daniel nods and wraps his arms around me. I inhale deeply and try my best to smile. My dad wouldn’t have wanted me to cry today of all days.
Linda walks in with a bottle of champagne while Luke carries the glasses. I smile at them and shake my head as I pull away from Daniel. “It’s only 9 am guys,” I say.
Daniel shrugs and pops the cork, a grin on his face. “It’s five pm somewhere, baby.” He hands me a glass of champagne and the five of us toast.
“To our new CEO,” Daniel says. I giggle and clink my glass against the others. I’m pretty sure we won’t get any work done today, but I’m not even remotely upset about it. I glance back at my dad’s desk and sigh. I always thought he’d be here with me to celebrate when this finally happened. I hope he’s looking down at me and feeling proud.
I glance at Daniel and smile. I might not have my dad here, but once again he’s proven himself right. Daniel is indeed the best partner I could ever ask for, both in life and at work.
The morning passes by quickly, and Daniel had to get back to work at DM. I would’ve loved to have him with me all day, but both our schedules are far too hectic to allow it. I spend most of my day answering congratulatory calls from old friends and business partners. I smile when I see Vincent calling me.
“Hey, kiddo. I knew you’d do it, but even I’m impressed with how quickly you were appointed CEO. I’m so proud of you, and I know your dad would be as well.”
I smile to myself. “I know he would be. I wish he could’ve been here to celebrate with me, though. I would really love to share a glass of champagne with him. We’ve both worked towards this most of my life. I can’t believe it finally happened.”
Vincent sighs and clears his throat. “I wish you could have as well, sweetie. Speaking of your dad, you and Daniel have now fulfilled the terms in the will. You’ve been appointed as CEO, so the shares are unconditionally yours. You two are free to get a divorce. I’ve had a copy of the papers prepared since the start, so I’ll send those over to you.”
I freeze, all the cheer draining away from me. I don’t really know what to say to that. Daniel hasn’t brought it up, and I haven’t either. We’ll need to talk about it, but I’m scared of how that conversation might go. Even if he doesn’t want a divorce, will I always wonder if he’s only with me because circumstances forced us together?
I’m absentminded for the rest of the day. All I can think about is whether Daniel will choose to divorce me.
