Page 26 of Ruthless Ambition
When she graduated, I never thought about her again until I saw her at law school, and there, we continued to avoid each other as before. Then one day, I walked into my office as she was leaving. I knew my dad and Neil were looking for agents to hire, ones that had passed the bar and could sign off on my legal contracts. I never expected Angel Balan to be an applicant. I had left the details to them. I was deep in my studies, and I was also about to land a very big client, and between those two things taking all my attention, hiring a sports agent to dot my i’s and cross my t’s wasn’t my priority.
Everyone knew my contracts were good, and until I passed the bar, I only needed them signed off on my behalf.
It should have been simple.
Easy.
It shouldnothave been Angel who was offered a full-time position in my firm. Of course, she thought Neil was the owner, and she met with him and only him. My dad had been so confident in her ability. He told me later she’d practically been rubber-stamped on application before they even met her. I’d had some very strong words for my father that night, and he told me she would be a great asset because she was apparently that good but also because she was female, so it rounded out the diversity of the agency.
Diversity? I didn’t give a fuck if she was a piano-playing zebra; she was Angel, and I’d fucked her in college for a bet. She knew it was for a bet — afterward, granted — and she’d openly hated me ever since. I did not want her in my firm.
And my dad had refused to rescind the offer of employment to her. So, for the first time in years, I made contact with her and told her exactly who she would be working for.
The paperwork had been signed and returned the next morning with the comment “challenge accepted.” The collegeanimosity and rivalry had been ongoing from her first day in the office. It wasn’t constant, but it was always present.
Like she was.
Always there, trying to prove she was better than I was. Getting my JD and passing the bar meant I was now more present than I ever had been, and it was getting more and more heated.
I took her signing, and in return, she took my sponsorship.
The next move was mine.
For now, I would let her think she had gotten one over on me, and then I would rip her victory from her grasp as I did with everything else.
