Jack's POV
I flicked through the documents on my iPad as I sat in the backseat of the car while Taylor drove.
I raised my head and frowned when he stopped the car suddenly.
He looked back at me before I said anything. "There is a traffic." He said.
I groaned. That was the last thing I needed at this time. I snorted. Was there ever a time that I needed traffic?
I hated things being out of my control and this was a typical example of that.
I sighed. "How long do you think the traffic will last for?"
He frowned. "I think it should clear off in the next twenty minutes." He said, peering at the road through the glass. "It seems like there is an accident there."
I growled. What sort of an idiot drove recklessly and caused an accident on a Monday morning?
I scowled. "I don't have twenty minutes to waste."
"You don't have a meeting until the next one hour. I'm sure we can get to the company before that."
"I hope so."
I checked the time and scowled as I got back to the documents I was reading earlier.
"What is my schedule for the day, Taylor?"
"You have a meeting in the next one hour, another with the directors by eleven, have to visit the chemical plant by three, and you have to go home by seven." He read out, without checking his tablet.
He was such an effective personal assistant that I couldn't stop being grateful that I employed him.
I frowned at his last words though. "Go home by seven? I don't go home until ten."
"Your family wants to see you." He said.
"Who is it this time? I am not about to listen to mum nag at me for overworking myself. I don't have time not to be busy if I want to achieve my dreams."
"I also think you work too hard."
"Because I have a lot to do. Being the CEO isn't a child's play. I have to show my grandfather that I'm capable of being the chairman after him."
"You think he doesn't know that?"
I scowled, wishing that the traffic would clear up soon. I hated how Taylor had become unnecessarily chatty.
"Cancel the appointment by seven and send an excuse to my mother. I need to work. I hope they will stop calling you to fix an appointment with me. It makes me feel odd."
"They wouldn't have to if you would pick your calls." He reminded me.
"I am always busy I don't hear the phone ring."
"I guess they will keep coming through me to get to you, boss."
Boss? I arched my eyebrows.
That word sounded strange on his lips. I was his boss but we were more than that. Taylor was my personal assistant and confidant. I would say he knew about me more than my family did.
"Are you taunting me?" I asked.
The way he had called me boss sounded like he was.
"The traffic is clear." He said instead and drove on.
I looked at him through the mirror and noticed that he was smiling.
The bastard. I grinned, shaking my head.
By the time Taylor wheeled into the company car park, it was already fifteen minutes past seven and I was angry. I used to get to work before seven and I felt like my day had gotten ruined already for being late.
I was out of the car before he was fully parked and walked to my office, my strides longer and quicker than usual. I had something to catch up on.
"Good morning, boss." Two of the employees greeted as they saw me.
I ignored them. They should get to work instead of wasting time to greet me. I wasn't paying them to walk around the company like idle snails.
"It seems like the CEO is in a mood." One of them said.
"When was he never?" the other replied. "Let's go."
I made a mental note to ask Taylor for a list of all the employees in the company. I was going to fire those two. They certainly weren't busy enough if they had time to gossip about me.
I dropped into my executive chair and got to work, knowing that Taylor was going to come to my office to remind me of my meetings.
A loud noise suddenly pierced the air and I frowned, wondering what it was until I realized that it was my phone.
What a strange ringtone that was.
I frowned as I dropped the pen I was using to sign and picked my phone up to shut it off. That noise was one hell of a distraction.
I sighed as I saw the caller ID. I had no choice but to take the call. "Hello, grandfather."
"Hello to you, too." He groaned.
I chuckled at his annoyed tone. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this early morning call?"
"To what do I owe the pleasure of having my request dismissed?" he fired back.
"I don't understand."
"Didn't your secretary tell you that I asked you to come home?"
"I thought it was mum he was referring to when he said family." I explained, clenching my fist and feeling like punching Taylor.
He should have clarified the person who wanted me home, especially when he knew I made a mistake. Not that I would have gone home anyway but I would have prepared my excuse for this moment.
"Why wouldn't you want to see her?" he snapped. "Family is family."
"You know how she is, grandpa."
"I don't know how she is. Be home by seven like Taylor told you."
"I already told him to cancel. I have something to do then."
"You always have an excuse." He groaned.
"It's not an excuse, grandpa." I defended myself. "It's work."
"Get to work then. I know what to do." He ended the call before I had a chance to respond.
I pressed the intercom and summoned Taylor in after the call.
"Why didn't you tell me it was my grandfather who wanted me to come home?" I snapped at him.
He remained cool and unfazed, probably used to my temper. "Would it have made a difference if I did?"
I exhaled. "What happened to my ringtone?" I asked instead.
"I changed it."
"When?" I arched my eyebrows at him.
"Last night when I was driving you home. You slept off in the car and I had a chance to do it."
"Why?"
He shrugged. "You don't have much people who know your personal line and still won't pick your calls because you are busy to hear. I thought the new ringtone would help."
I snorted. "It was too loud, too much of a distraction."
He smiled. "Then I guess it did the work that it was meant to do."
"I don't like it. The ringtone will be replaced soon."
"I don't like it when you overwork yourself too. You barely stirred last night in your sleep, even when I parked the car at your house. You are getting stressed. You need to start sleeping for more than three hours, Jack." He said, sounding concerned.
"Thanks but I know how to relieve my stress." I replied. "Get me the Lobin files."
I couldn't afford to sleep like a fish. I didn't need any unnecessary distraction at this moment.
He bowed and shook his head as he walked out of the office.