Myla walked into the conference room and took the empty seat between Carter, president of the local bank, and Scott, her husband's financial manager. Her husband moved ahead and positioned his chair at the front of the room. Jared and Beck walked over to him, and they started discussing something together in low tones.
One thing about Beck and Jared was that they always exuded an aura of dangerous, lethal ability. Maybe it was their military history or the fact that, apart from being major shareholders in the Oakley Group, they were co-owners of a highly rated private security firm. They were both above six feet tall, with Beck being like an inch shorter than Jared, and except for that and eye color, they could almost be twins. Both had brown hair, but Beck's eyes were green while Jared had brown eyes. Each provided a foil for her husband's curly blond hair and blue eyes.
There was no way around the fact that they were three very attractive men that had sex appeal. She blushed as she remembered the night in the pool room, the expressions of love and lust on their faces, their beautiful bodies, and the hot, dirty talk. To say she had been shocked was a gross understatement; she had met several of the beautiful women Jared and Beck had dated over the past few years and had never seen any signs that they were gay or fucking each other. In fact, if she wanted to be honest with herself, she had sometimes felt a surprising sense of jealousy toward those women.
Before she and Hayden married, she used to call them three musketeers in her head, because when you found one, you found all three, but after their marriage, they toned it down… a lot, even to the extent she was scared that she ruined their friendship, but when she had told Hayden her concern, he had said she was overthinking things.
Myla had lost most of her friends when she had become too busy with legal problems associated with the sale of her business and had little time for socializing. She lost the rest when she and Hayden married and moved to their estate in the mountains. After the accident, Myla had become more and more isolated, first while Hayden was in the hospital and then even more when he finally returned home. If it hadn't been for Jared and Beck, she would have probably gone crazy.
The meeting was called today because Hayden was soon going to have major surgery on his spine in about six weeks, and she knew he wanted to get some urgent business matters settled before then.
"Do you know what's up?" Scott whispered as he shifted his chair closer.
"No idea," she replied, moving her chair away from his. The smell of alcohol seemed to ooze from his pores. His face had mottled red blotches and sagging jowls and was framed by thinning, dirty blond hair. He used to be an attractive man before alcoholism ruined him. What's worse is that he still believed he was still attractive.
"Gold-digging bitch!" he mumbled beneath his breath as he caught her expression of disgust.
Myla only turned away from him; she was so not in the mood for his bullshit today. It was no secret that he never liked her since she broke a bottle over his head when he tried groping her when she and Hayden started dating. Even though she understood that Hayden kept him in employment because he was very good at what he did and he had been with him from the start of the company, she felt that he was due for a replacement. She looked up to see Beck and Jared angrily glaring at Scott. She smiled and shook her head when they glanced at her. They always have an uncanny awareness of when she is upset.
Hayden turned to the group as Jared and Beck took their seats on each side. God, when they were in the same frame, they looked good enough to eat, and she had heard many women and men say the same thing over the years.
"I've called this meeting because I'll be away for at least 2 months, or possibly longer, and want to make sure you understand that you will be unable to contact me at all during that time, so I will be assigning one person to stand in my place." He nodded at Anna, his attorney. 'That includes all decisions concerning anything involving Oakley Corp., both legal issues and financial."
Hayden paused and looked around to note their reactions to the news. He continued, "I discussed this matter with Myla…"
"Oh, please," Scott interrupted, "no disrespect intended, but don't you think that role is more fit for someone with business intellect? Your wife probably can handle household problems well, but she's definitely not qualified to handle the responsibilities you've outlined."
Scott looked at the others in the room like he was challenging them as he continued. "With my degree in finance and my experience in running my own business, surely I am the most qualified person in this room."
"Well, Scott," Hayden said in a cool voice. "Myla actually declined my offer for her to run my operations in my absence. She is in the process of finalizing the sale of another business of hers. You have heard of My-Design, Inc., haven't you?"
Myla watched with satisfaction as Scott's jaw dropped in shock.
"That's the business Myla started and built into the international business it is today with just an idea and her hard work. Myla is more than qualified for anything she chooses to do." He finished coldly.
He turned back to the rest of the group. "Deciding who would be acting on my behalf was a 'no-brainer' for me. But, because my first option said no, effective the twenty-fifth of next month, all financial and corporate problems should be referred to, and decisions will be made by Beck Garner. Jared Lotto will be handling all finances related to the estate and other properties."
Before anyone could say anything, Scott jumped up, his face red. "I don't believe I am the only one who thinks this is the most ridiculous decision ever. You can't seriously be giving all of that power to some glorified bodyguards?" he sneered, looking around the room, hoping to see that the others will agree with him. But they all looked at his outburst with disgust.
"No, seriously, what experience does either one have in dealing with major financial decisions or running a business, or anything else for that matter? They're just hired muscle for Christ's sake."
Hayden's body stiffened, and his eyes narrowed in anger as he watched Scott.
would
"Walker," snarled Scott to the manager of the company. "You can't tell me that you want a bodyguard coming into your office, telling you how to run the company."
"Well, Scott," Walker drawled coldly, "those mere bodyguards are also the owners of the thriving J&B Security firm, plus they handled things well when Hayden was hospitalized and know exactly what Hayden would do in any given situation concerning the corporation."
Scott's face got redder at his words.
"And," Walker continued, "we've all seen Beck and Jared make several suggestions over the last few years that saved Oak Corps more than tens of thousands of dollars. I admit I would hire him in a minute as my vice president if I wasn't sure he'd have my job within a month, or less."
Everyone laughed as Beck made a slight bow to Walker.
Hayden grinned and said, "Walker, I can assure you your job is safe from Beck." He turned to Scott, his smile disappearing. "You, I wanted to do this in private, but since you decided to be so open today, let me follow your lead…" He turned and nodded at Anna.
Anna smiled. "Mrs. Oakley noticed some inconsistencies in the accounts and called our attention to them. We investigated and discovered that you have been siphoning funds from the company. Care to explain?"
Scott looked wildly around the room. "This is a fucking setup! Everyone knows that these two bitches never liked me. Y'all can't possibly believe them over me—'
"Enough!" Myla shouted as she shot up from her seat, glaring at Scott. "First, we have enough evidence against you, so I suggest you prepare your lawyers. Secondly, you have no right to question any decisions we make. If we wanted your opinion, we would have asked for it. Now, either sit down and shut up, or get out."
Hayden's chest expanded with pride as he watched his wife. Jared and Beck exchanged a smile before they turned their attention back to Scott.
Scott's face was contorted in rage, spit spraying from his mouth as he screamed, "Ooh, I get it now. Hubby can't get it up, so you're fucking the bodyguards. Everyone has heard the rumors that the three of them used to share their women all the time, and it looks like they're still sharing!"