“My father didn’t leave me the company,” I said.
We sat down at the table in silence and ordered our drinks. I could tell Greyson was mulling over what I’d said. His eyes were staring out the window behind me before a confused furrow rippled through his brow, and I sighed when I realized he got it.
“It’s insane, right? I mean, I’ve been groomed from the time I was young to lead this company. I’ve already met with the lawyer, and he’s drawing up paperwork for me to consider when I take my stepbrother to court.”
“You think that’s a good idea?” he asked.
“What?”
“Taking your stepbrother to court. I mean, your father made a smart move,” he said.
“Wait. You think my father made the right move in handing the company over to Christian?” I asked.
“Do the two of you know what you’d like to drink?” the waitress asked.
“I’ll have a Pepsi, and she’ll have water,” Greyson said without hesitation.
“Scratch that, I’ll have a Pepsi as well,” I said.
“You sure? Carbonation makes you pretty bloated,” he said.
“I don’t need a man making my decisions for me, Greyson.”
“You let me make decisions all the time. This restaurant, for instance. You didn’t fight me one bit when I asked you to meet me here,” he said.
“Because you asked. You didn’t assume I would simply follow your command,” I said.
“But I phrased it in such a way that you simply… responded the way I thought you would,” he said. “It’s why your father made a smart move with the company.”
“So, two Pepsis?” the waitress asked uncomfortably.
“Apparently so,” Greyson said.
“I’ll be back with them in a bit,” the waitress said.
“I don’t think I understand what you’re saying, Greyson,” I said.
“Usually, men hit the nail on the head. Sometimes they don’t, like right now, but usually, they do. It’s why they're more prone to run companies. A man’s gut feeling is like a woman’s intuition.”
“Women use their intuition all the time to run companies,” I said.
“Actually, an article in a psychological journal I read the other day stated that a woman’s intuition is more prone to picking up a person’s emotional disposition. Women are much better at men when it comes to picking up on and interpreting nonverbal communication, but the interpretation only goes so far as to dictate what emotion the other person is harboring. Men are wonderful at manipulation tactics; it’s what helps them thrive in business. The emotional disposition of the other person doesn’t matter, and if the man is truly skilled, he can shift his emotional disposition in order to fool the other counterpart. Your father probably encountered a great deal of that when building what he did, and he understood that a man’s hand would be necessary to keep moving the company forward.”
“Two Pepsis for the lovely couple,” the waitress said, smiling. “Do either of you know what you would like to eat?”
“Yes,” Greyson said. “I’ll have the pan-seared duck breast and she’ll—”
“I’m not be staying for lunch,” I said.
“What?” Greyson asked.
I grabbed the Pepsi and chugged it down, choking back the burn as it surged down my throat. I blinked back tears as I drained the glass, the carbonation prickling down my throat as I digested what Greyson had just spewed. He had, in one disgusting monologue, not only told me I was incapable of running my father’s company because I was a woman, but also threw some bullshit scientific argument into the mix just to make his point.
Holy fuck, I needed out of this restaurant.
I slammed my glass down before I drew a deep breath in through my nose. I stood up from my chair and grabbed my purse, and I watched Greyson stand with me as the waitress backed up from the table.
“Come on, Stella. You know as well as I do that your father was an incredible businessman. He was just doing business.”