The Intern Ordered Me Around

The company just hired a new batch of interns. Wanting to make a good impression, I had my assistant order some good coffee for everyone and planned to run the orientation myself. But the moment the coffee arrived, the intern who'd scored highest in the interviews walked right up and smacked me on the shoulder. "Go grab the coffee already. Are you really that dense of a security guard?" I was a little stunned. It had been a long time since anyone talked to me like that. Before I could even tell her who I was, she shoved me again. "Didn't you hear me? Are you deaf? I don't waste my breath on community college rejects. Can't even carry a few coffees without making a mess of it. "Let me spell it out for you. My aunt is the CEO of this company. Cross me, and I'll have you thrown out before you can blink." I narrowed my eyes. Now, this was getting interesting. I owned a hundred percent of this company. Since when did it have a new CEO? Chapter 1 The intern, Mia Sinclair, jabbed a finger right at my nose. "If you understood plain English, you'd already be downstairs! Quit stalling!" Honestly, I had to admire her nerve a little. Seven years ago, I fought my own brother and sister for the right to inherit this company. Since then, nobody dared talk to me like this. Today's orientation was for the new interns, so it made sense they didn't recognize me. But regardless of recognizing me, no job title gave anyone the right to treat another person like garbage. I glanced around. People were already watching, whispering to each other. "Did you hear that? Mia's aunt is actually the CEO! Such an important person is standing right next to me!" "Mia just gave an order and the guard still won't go get the coffee. Does he have a death wish?" Someone turned and flashed her a greasy smile. "Don't waste your breath on a security guard, Mia. Guys like him couldn't afford one of your handbags if they worked their whole lives." Watching a room full of highly educated interns fall over themselves to flatter her, I realized something. A fancy degree doesn't always come with decent character. Mia noticed everyone watching and got even more full of herself. She flipped me off. "You hear that, Security? If you want to keep your minimum wage job, you better get down there and grab that coffee." "And if I don't?" I asked calmly. Mia clearly hadn't expected someone she assumed was an ordinary security guard to talk back to her in front of everyone. Her face went red with anger. "Then, I'm firing you right now! Get out of my sight!" Just when things were getting tense, a guy in glasses, Leo Smith, nervously said, "M-Mia, maybe don't give the guard such a hard time. He might have his own work to do. How about I just run down and grab everyone's coffee instead? No need to fire him." It was the perfect excuse for Mia to back down. Instead, she scoffed. "Is this guard your relative or something? Why are you so eager to help him?" She shot me a cold look. "I'll say it one more time. My aunt is the CEO of this company. I'm only interning here to pass the time. In a few days, I'll be a department head. You people are the kind of nobodies who'll never even get close to someone like me. "If you know what's good for you, you've got three seconds to get downstairs and bring me my coffee. Otherwise, I'll make sure you never work in this industry again." I wasn't the least bit intimidated. If anything, I almost laughed as I said, "Mia, why don't you go ask around and find out who actually runs this company? Your aunt, or me, Ethan Caldwell." I figured once I gave her my name, she'd either back off or go check for herself. Instead, she shoved me hard. "Who do you think you are, pretending to be the CEO? "Oh, I get it now. You heard my aunt was the CEO and decided you'd try to worm your way into her good graces, didn't you? Save yourself the trouble. The Sinclairs are old money. We wouldn't look twice at trash like you." Chapter 2 My eyes turned even colder. The last person who tried to spread filthy rumors about me was still in prison, running a sewing machine on the daily work detail. This girl had a real talent for picking the worst possible way to dig her own grave. Right then, the conference room door opened. Leo hurried in, struggling under the weight of several dozen coffee cups. He gave me an apologetic smile. "Mia, please don't be upset. I brought up the coffee." Then, he leaned toward me and whispered, "Hey, man, she's pretty worked up right now. You should probably just head out." I felt genuinely touched. At least one of these interns had some decency. I reached for a cup to hand to him, but Mia smacked my hand away. "Hey, Security. Just because you've never had coffee this expensive doesn't mean you get to steal it. My aunt bought this for everyone as a favor to me. A security guard like you doesn't get to drink it. Go get yourself some instant coffee." Since I started this company, I always pushed the idea that everyone here was equal, no matter their title. But Mia clearly thought of herself as a cut above, and a security guard as beneath her. I honestly didn't know how HR had let someone like her through the door. When I didn't respond, Mia went ahead and handed out coffee to everyone else. Seeing there was one leftover cup, she dumped its contents straight into a potted plant. "See that, Security? I'd rather pour perfectly good coffee into the dirt than let trash like you touch it. And somebody throw out that cup. I don't want him taking pictures with it later, pretending he's rich enough to hit on someone." I stayed calm and just watched her. Since walking into this room, I'd given her more chances than she deserved. But instead of backing down, she kept digging herself deeper. And then there was her aunt. I needed to find out exactly who had the nerve to impersonate me as this company's CEO. With that thought in mind, I decided not to rush revealing who I really was. Instead, I smiled. "Mia, you keep saying your aunt is the CEO. Who exactly is she?" Taking my calmer tone as a sign she'd won, she got even more smug. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing. Trying to pump me for information so you can go after my aunt, aren't you? Listen, Security, I've met plenty of guys like you. Not every bottom feeder gets to swim in our pond. Why don't you go find yourself a delivery driver to settle down with instead?" Her words made it crystal clear how pointless it would be to keep playing along. I dropped the act completely and reached for the door, planning to call actual security to deal with her. But Mia slammed her hand against the door first. "Figured out I'm onto you and now you want to run? Not a chance. Here's the deal. Get on your knees and bow to me twice, and I'll let you walk out of here. Otherwise, you can kiss your career in this industry goodbye." I stared her down. "I hope you don't regret what you just said." A second later, she hurled her coffee straight at me, staining my custom suit. I didn't even think twice and slapped her. Furious at being slapped in front of everyone, Mia grabbed my arm. "You want to die? Everyone, look at this! This piece of trash tried to hit on me, and when it didn't work, he attacked me! Does he think this is his house? Is there any order left around here? "A community college reject like him thinks he can touch someone who studied abroad? He's lost his mind! Whoever can get this lunatic on his knees in front of me gets a promotion, I guarantee it!" The second the word promotion left her mouth, every intern's eyes lit up. "I'll hold him down! Let's make him bow to Mia ninety-nine times!" Chapter 3 "This trash obviously wants to get close to the CEO. Bet he only got this security job by selling himself!" "Mia gave the order. We have to make this ungrateful guard apologize!" Leo still had some sense left and tried desperately to stop them. "This is illegal! Even if Mia's aunt really is the CEO, you can't treat someone like this!" But nobody listened to him. He got shoved to the ground almost instantly. I pulled out my phone to call security, but Mia snatched it out of my hand and smashed it on the floor. "Trash, who were you calling? Some old woman to come save you? Too late for that. In this company, what I say goes. I'm the law here." I couldn't stand her reckless behavior for one more second. She had a good education, sure, but her character was rotten. She needed to be fired and blacklisted immediately. And every intern who'd helped her today was never getting hired. Before the rest of them could pile on, I kicked Mia hard in the stomach and yanked the door open. I'd planned to go find actual security to clear everyone out. But the next second, the interns dragged me right back into the room. Mia clutched her stomach, her face twisted with rage. "You... you piece of trash! How dare you kick me! I'm going to end you today!" With one look from her, several interns grabbed my arms, pinning me in place. "Mia! This man just disrespected you! We need to teach him a lesson!" "Honestly, we should just strip him and dump him on the street. That'll make him famous." A few of the more educated guys crowded around her, looking worried. "Mia, are you okay? Want me to take you to the hospital?" Mia grabbed a fistful of my hair. "Maybe you need a little lesson before you understand you're in the wrong. A filthy man who sells himself for a living thinks he can lay a hand on me? You must be tired of living." She gestured for the others to force me to my knees. "You'd better get down there and apologize properly. Strip off your clothes piece by piece and give us a good laugh. Otherwise, I'll have you killed and nobody will ever know." My eyes went cold. The last time someone talked to me like that, it was my own brother and sister. These days, one of them can never set foot back in the country, while the other has been completely erased from the family registry. I had no problem letting Mia find out what that felt like. Maybe something about the look on my face finally got through. The interns backing her up exchanged glances, and not one of them moved to force me down. Mia looked ready to do it herself. But just then, the conference room door opened. Chloe White walked in, arms full of thick folders. The second she saw what was happening, her face went pale. She shoved through the crowd and pulled me up. "What is going on here? Who gave you people the nerve to do this?" None of the interns had ever met me, but they'd all seen Chloe before. Nobody said a word. Mia misread the situation completely. She assumed Chloe was there for her and patted her on the shoulder. "Chloe, at least you know how things work around here. Good to see you looking out for your future supervisor. Seriously, how did this company even hire a security guard like this? No manners at all. Get HR on the phone, I need to have a word with them..." Before she could finish, Chloe had already helped me into a chair, her face tight with concern. "Mr. Caldwell, are you alright? I'm calling the police right now."