Chapter 7: First Encounter of the Unwanted Kind

— Lilith POV—

'Make sure your cousin is reacquainted with the company,' my Grandpa had said over dinner, loud enough for everyone to hear.

'I need my heir back and not the sorry-ass temp that you are,' was what my cousin Lex heard.

It's not that I thought my cousin was my sorry-ass temp in the company while I was gone. It was Lex's words, not mine after we walked Alexander out of the house and he paced in my sitting room.

Over the years I kept tabs on the Durfort family the same way the public normally did, through business articles and gossip columns, and in my opinion, Lex was doing a great job.

The family had remained stable with him as acting heir at my Grandfather's side, there was nothing wrong with him, but for some reason, he still thought Grandpa found him inadequate next to me.

'I want her acting as your assistant,' Grandpa Luther told me and Lex later on.

He wanted me to learn the ins and outs of the company without alerting the employees. I agreed with his plan, I figured that it was our family's chance to truly learn what our employees thought of us and of the company.

That's what led me to where I was now, inside a heavily bulletproofed white sedan with several discreet bodyguards tailing me.

I just pulled up to the parking lot when Lex informed me that he was running late and was on his way.

His current assistant didn't know who I was, but she knew she'd be getting additional help, a second assistant, something Lex had apparently been requesting.

"You can do this," I told myself as I took a deep breath and slid out of the driver's seat.

From the corner of my eyes, I spotted some of my bodyguards casually scattered around the vicinity.

Despite my disappointment in my loss of privacy, I was thankful that my grandfather had placed them. I was afraid of what Jason and his family would attempt to do after I left. Having bodyguards around ensured my safety.

I'd chosen to arrive a little later and claim that my new boss had told me to arrive at this time. It wasn't exactly a lie, Lex told his secretary to tell me to come to the office at 10 AM, an hour after most employees had arrived.

The lobby was silent as I entered, there were only a few employees loitering around, some rushing through because they were late.

"Hello, Miss Clement?" I asked Lex's assistant as I pressed the phone to my ear. "This is Lilith."

"Ah yes, Mr. Durfort mentioned you would be starting work today Lilith, are you at the lobby already?" Cassandra Clement was at least ten years my senior and had worked for my Grandfather at one point.

When Lex started working for Durfort Inc., she was assigned to work as his secretary. They had been working side by side for the past three years but she was unaware of where the President's supposed heir was.

"Yes, I'm in the lobby, should I ask the receptionist for access to your floor?" of course, I already knew the answer to my own question.

Cassandra was supposed to meet me by the elevator doors when I arrived, but I still needed to play the role of a lost new hire.

"No, no, I'll meet you in front of the CEO's elevator, just go through, your data should be recorded in the facial recognition at the turnstiles," Cassandra informed me. "The receptionist also doesn't have access to the CEO's floor. It's a safeguard of the Durfort family."

An insurance that the receptionists didn't give away access to every person they favored, but then again, I doubted that Cassandra would tell me that just yet.

"I'll see you soon then!" I may have come off as a little bit too excited because I could hear my cousin's secretaries laughing in the background.

I didn't bother to hear what else they had to say, I was too embarrassed even if their opinions shouldn't matter.

I wanted to make a good impression with the employees, they would, after all, defend me and speak kindly of me to their colleagues later on when my identity was made public.

For now, I simply wanted a good working environment with them.

The clicking of my heels on the marble floor echoed across the lobby, I was almost at the turnstiles when I was pulled back, causing me to almost fall.

When I turned I could see my bodyguards rushing to my defense, but I quickly shook my head. I didn't want to risk what I could learn and what the family could learn from an accident.

But when I saw who had pulled me back, I went pale.

"What the fuck are you doing here, bitch?" Janet Young, aka the bitch that my husband had been harvesting my blood for, stood before me.

I had completely forgotten that her working at Durfort Inc. was the reason I met her brother and we had found out that I was a compatible donor to her.

Back then I had just completed my Master's degree and had a too kind heart, but now I knew better, now I knew not to repeat the mistakes of my past.

"I work here," I told Janet as I stood my ground, glaring at her.

"Right, like a company like Durfort Inc. would hire a failure like you," she chuckled, her friends, the other receptionists, laughing with her. "Are you here looking for a new husband, one richer than my brother, you social climbing whore?"

"Aren't you supposed to be in the hospital fighting for your life?" I asked her as I looked at Janet Young from head to toe, she looked to be in peak health. Then again, I didn't want to judge her based on her looks.

"And you'd rather—"

"What is going on here?" I couldn't help but smile as Cassandra came up behind me.

The smiles on the faces of Janet and her friends suddenly dropped as Lex's secretary approached, I couldn't help but smile.

"You should be doing your jobs rather than harassing Mr. Durfort's new secretary," Cassandra declared, announcing to everyone who I was.