“At least she won’t be fired. That’s something.”
“Yeah, but who wants to be a fifth-year junior analyst? It’s already bad enough—”
I shove the stall door. It crashes open with a loud bang. A redhead whips around, while her friend—a blonde—drops her compact in the sink. I recognize them. Both are from HR.
“Is it true?” I demand, my voice shaking.
“What?” the redhead says, her smile unsteady, while the blonde grabs her compact and shoves it into her purse.
“My dad’s the one who’s been blocking me from getting promoted?”
They look everywhere but at me. “Um. I have a memo I need to wrap up.”
“Yeah, I got to draft a hiring procedure for this year’s interns.”
Blood pounds in my ears, my muscles going tight around my neck and shoulders. No fucking way they’re leaving after saying all that crap. They’re going to tell me exactly what’s been—being—done to my career.
I leap ahead and block the door. “What’s going on? I have a right to know.”
The blonde flushes, still unable to meet my eyes. “You can’t tell anybody I said anything. I could get fired.”
Oh for God’s sake. “I won’t. I promise.”
She clears her throat. “Well… Your dad keeps vetoing your promotion. The managers have been wanting to move you up since your first year.”
First-year promotions are as rare as unicorns. My knees shake at the realization that I did that well…and was robbed of the recognition I deserve. “Why?”
“He just kept saying you weren’t ready.”
That’s bullshit. Not ready? “Is he the only one who didn’t want me promoted all this time?”
“As far as I can tell from the files. But…” She bites her lower lip, smearing her teeth with the pink gloss. “You didn’t hear it from me, okay? I’m going to get into so much trouble if you say anything.” Her friend nods vigorously.
I breathe hard, my heart racing with uncontrollable rage. A scream strangles
in my throat, and I swear my vision dims for a moment. I dig my nails into my palms. The pain anchors me. “I won’t say who told me, but I’m not going to stay quiet about this,” I say, then march out and toward my dad’s office.
Betrayal swirls inside me, as violent as a summer storm. Dad knows why I joined the firm. He knows how important it is for me to make my mark, to be recognized, to be somebody. And when I shared my dreams with him when I first applied for a position here, I didn’t mean I wanted to be a popular social media influencer. I want to make my path, using my own unique talents and skills.
And he, someone who should’ve been on my side all this time, made sure I could never have it. Never once did he hint he’d do this to me. Oh, no. And this explains the attitude of VPs. There’s no point in giving opportunities to someone who’ll never advance.
Megumi starts to smile, then stops when she sees my expression. “Are you all right?”
No, but it isn’t something I can unload on Dad’s assistant. “I need to talk to my dad right now.”
“He doesn’t have a meeting, but he has a client coming in ten minutes.”
That is enough for what I have in mind. I walk into his office and shut the door behind me.
He looks up from his computer. “Pascal.” He frowns. “Do we have a meeting?”
“No. I just need to know two things.”
“Yes?”
Every cell in my body starts shaking with nerves. Now that I’m here, I want him to tell me those women in the bathroom were mistaken. I want my dad to be on my side. Suddenly, I don’t even want to know for sure. But the question slips from my lips anyway, a lot steadier than I expected. “Is it true that you’ve been blocking me from getting promoted?”
His eyelashes flutter so minutely that if I weren’t staring at him so intently, I would’ve missed it. “Yes.”