Ashley had a wide smile on her face when they arrived at the office. Koji arrived not too long before when Tiny was parking the car, so it was good timing. Tiny was about to get out of the car, but Koji got there first, so decided to let him go since Tiny doesn’t want to get scolded.
"You are beautiful! I mean a beautiful morning to you!" Koji jokingly greeted Ashley. His smile was so big that his dimples could be seen on both cheeks and his teeth looked like it was straight out of a toothpaste commercial.
Ashley was surprised that Koji was the one who opened the door for her instead of Tiny. Even so, she didn’t show her surprise on the outside and accepted the hand which Koji extended to help her get out of the car.
"Good morning to you too!" Ashley greeted back with a simple smile.
After Ashley got out, Tiny approached her and gave her a lunch box that Mrs. Gusman wanted to give to her. "Ma’am, your lunch! Mother Fely says you should finish it or else..." That was all Tiny said before returning to the car to go home and guard the twins.
Everyone said that Ashley no longer needed bodyguards. They thought that since they were in America, the office was secured. That’s why Tiny was only tasked to be the driver of Ashley and the bodyguard of the twins. He didn’t reject the task so that he could relax when he was at home.
===
"So, are you ready? You’re not nervous?" Koji playfully asked while still smiling.
Ashley breathed deeply before saying, "Even if I am not ready, I am here. Besides, you are here to guide me, so what should I be scared of? Hahaha!" Ashley replied cheerfully with a loud laugh.
A few moments later, they entered the office where all the employees were standing at the front, waiting for their new President’s arrival.
It was a huge shock when she arrived at the office and one-by-one the heads of different departments approached her and gave her flowers.
"Welcome, Mrs. President Jones!" Manager Hoshi proclaimed while standing beside his wife Celia.
Ashley smiled and accepted the flowers. "Thank you very much! Please take care of me!" After that, she turned her gaze to Celia so that she could greet her.
"How are you? It’s been a while." She then nodded as a greeting.
Celia was happy that Ashley gave her attention. "I’m okay Mrs. President. Welcome! If you have something you need, please don’t hesitate to call me." She then bowed to show her respects.
All the department heads followed her lead and gave flowers before congratulating her and bowing to show their respects. Koji couldn’t help it but tease everyone.
"Wow! You guys are heartbreaking. Why don’t I have flowers too?" he complained while looking pitiful but then suddenly smiled widely.
Everybody simultaneously bowed their heads, and nobody had answers for Koji. The woman employee’s face blushed red at the sight of the handsome President of the whole company of the THJ Group.
"You guys are boring, you know! I was just kidding. I know that you guys love me, right? Hahaha!" Koji joked again while he helped Ashley carry some of her flowers while they entered the office of the President.
The employees started to leave one-by-one and return to their own jobs when Ashley and Koji entered the office.
===
"SURPRISE!!!" Fumika and Sato shouted when Ashley and Koji entered the office.
Ashley was stunned and couldn’t believe that Fumika and Sato were there. When she regained herself, she pushed the remaining flowers onto Koji and rushed the two to hug them.
Fumika was at first embarrassed, but when she got embraced by Ashley, she also returned the embrace while tears flowed from her eyes.
Sato’s gayness surfaced and kept screaming like a wild hyena. "Oh my God!!! Ma’am, if you just know the hellish experience I went through when I never heard anything from you. Especially Sir Jones. oh my!!!" Then he hugged Ashley tightly while crying loudly. "Huh-huh-huh! It was fortunate you are safe and nothing bad happened to you. Huh-huh-huh!"
Koji decided to put the flowers inside the office of the President and leave the three for their reunion. Koji’s face lost the color when he saw how close Ashley was with her new assistant and secretary.
He was worried that the two would be an obstacle to his plans. He needed to befriend the two and they might also be a help to his plan.
While Ashley, Fumika, and Sato were busy, Koji was preparing for their first meeting. He called for a meeting to assess the current situation of the company.
These past few days he was in America. He was going back and forth to different subsidiaries of the THJ Group. That’s why he didn’t have many chances to visit the THJ marine division, even though he lived there.
A few moments later, the three finished their chitchat. Fumika returned to her place and Sato and Ashley entered the office of the President.
They saw Koji being buried underneath a mountain of documents he was reading. When he heard the door open, he raised his head and looked at Ashley and Sato entering the office.
"Good, you’re here. I called for a meeting so that you can familiarize yourself with the operation of the marine division," Koji said seriously while talking with no trace of the wide smile from earlier.
Ashley nodded while looking at the whole of the interior of the office. It changed greatly compared to the last time he was with Tanaga.
Back then, there was only one table – now it became two. One for Sato and one for herself. There was also a sofa set and a coffee maker and cups.
The whole room had a double mirror where one could see the outside but not the inside. Because of this, Ashley was amazed. "WOW!"