Chapter 2 - Father's Proposal

Inside the Benson Group headquarters building, Mr. Taiye Jackson sat in the front seat of the meeting hall, where they held a meeting with their various board members.

He spoke softly to his personal assistant, his voice a whisper, "Introduce the new head to them now."

They waited in the meeting hall to meet the newly appointed CEO, whose name had been announced but whom none of the workers had seen yet.

Mr. Taiye Jackson served as the former CEO, while his late father, Mr. Benjamin Jackson, had first established the Benson Group of Companies—which meant Benjamin and Sons Group of Companies.

They sat waiting to witness the transfer of company ownership to Mr. Taiye's only son, Liam Jackson.

Rumors painted Liam as cold and unfilial. The workers knew once he assumed the position of new CEO, he would deal with them harshly.

Some had heard Liam was arrogant, mean, and unappreciative. Nonetheless, he was hardworking and ran several private businesses in the States, before his father finally announced his retirement plan and asked him to return to Nigeria to run his multimillion-dollar companies.

Liam had first refused. He didn't want to return to Nigeria, as he found nothing interesting there—well, except for his mother, a God-fearing Christian woman who dressed modestly and never skipped attending church to pray for her husband and him, her only child.

Liam understood that his mother had endured a lot of marital crisis at the beginning of her marriage. His grandfather, Mr. Benjamin Jackson, had refused to let his son, Mr. Taiye, marry his mother, Mrs. Juliet.

But because his father truly loved his mother—even though women flocked around him, trying to seduce him and calling his mother barren—his father still insisted and married only her, without having extramarital affairs.

Taiye stuck to only his wife, Juliet, and stood by her even though his family rejected her and claimed she couldn't bear him another child even after ten years of Liam's birth.

Juliet suffered many miscarriages, and Liam knew she worried so much about his father leaving her and marrying another woman that she lost all those babies she had carried in her womb, except for him. He had just turned 30 years old, while his mother was 60 and his father 68.

Liam loved his parents nonetheless, but his father had tricked him by lying that he was sick. He even arranged a fake doctor who called and told him of his father's ill health over the phone, asking him to return from the States.

Annoyed, Liam returned home to his homeland and saw his father hale and healthy, moving around and even attending business class meetings.

Liam boiled with anger that his father had tricked him into returning and refused to let him go back to the United States.

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Inside the headquarters of the Benson Group of Companies—where they managed oil manufacturing, gas plants, steel production, and the production of other basic amenities, and where their company earned global recognition—Liam stood in one of the private rooms on the second floor, adjusting his necktie. He wore a crisp white shirt and black trousers; his black suit lay on the table.

His father had spoken to him about introducing him to their various board members and partners managing their businesses.

Liam breathed out heavily and picked up his suit to wear. Just then, his assistant, Brown Anderson, whom his father had first assigned to him on his first day at the company, knocked on the private room door.

"Come in," Liam responded.

"Boss, it's time for the introduction to begin," Brown informed him.

Liam nodded and pulled on his black suit properly.

Just as Liam stepped out, his father's spokesperson announced to the prominent men and women sitting in the large meeting hall, "Welcome Master Liam Jackson, New CEO of Benson Group of Companies Limited."

The hall immediately erupted into a round of applause as Liam stepped forward and climbed onto the podium. His father sat in the front seat while his father's assistant, Mr. Silas Greystone, handed him the microphone to give a few words to their staff.

"Thank you all for honoring our invitation and witnessing my appointment as the new CEO of Benson Group. Well, I would like us to continue with our integrity and work hard to keep building our company into a brighter recognition of transparency and guaranteed products. Thank you all for being a part of my new journey. Thank you."

Liam handed the microphone back to Mr. Silas and stepped down from the podium. The round of applause increased as he walked to take his seat.

Several top executives swiftly stood to shake hands with Liam as he approached the seat reserved for him.

Liam shook hands with them before sitting, and they returned to their seats. His father, Mr. Taiye Jackson, smiled faintly at him and stood to deliver his own speech before Silas gave the final closing remarks.

"Thank you all for honoring my invitation and witnessing this new beginning with our new CEO, who is none other than my son, Liam Jackson. I appreciate all our past workers who have worked hard to uplift our company's name and create transparency that marks us as one of the best production companies in Nigeria. I ask you all—both old and new workers, and those in retirement—to respect and work amicably with our new CEO, and to follow whatever decisions he implements to grow our company globally, as you can all see he has just returned from the States to be with us. Thank you all once again. Silas, I hand it over to you to close the meeting for today."

Mr. Taiye handed the microphone back to Silas, who read out some briefs about the new products and prices. After that, he closed the meeting with his ending speech. The invitees and workers stood and exited the meeting hall.

-----

Liam remained in the meeting hall with his father after most of the guests and members had left, with only a few remaining to discuss. He stood and walked up to meet his father, who was talking with his friend, Mr. John Patrick, one of their managing accountants.

"Father, I want to have a word with you," Liam told him, hoping he would wrap up his conversation with Mr. John Patrick, whom the company trusted deeply with their funds.

"Okay, son. I will be with you shortly," Mr. Taiye responded.

Mr. John then turned to face Liam.

"Oh, Master Liam, congratulations on your new position," Mr. John smiled faintly.

"Thank you, sir. It's an honor meeting you and working here with you all," Liam replied.

"You can count on us always, Liam. Your father is my boss and very good friend, too. I'm so happy to see you taking over his position. I know you will lead us to much better growth than your father and grandfather ever did."

"Thank you, sir," Liam smiled faintly. He loved words of praise from his friends, colleagues, and even elders; they motivated him to work hard.

"You're welcome, Liam. Mr. Taiye, I'm leaving. My daughter will be very upset with me for not showing up at her school convocation today, even after she called me to come with her mother to the university," Mr. John said as he turned to face Mr. Taiye.

"You know I couldn't miss your son being introduced to us as the new CEO, so I asked her mother and her elder brother to attend her convocation on my behalf. She will be very annoyed with me for that."

"Oh, I'm so sorry about that, Mr. John. I hope she understands," Mr. Taiye apologized.

"Yes, she will." Mr. John nodded with a faint smile, ready to leave.

"How about I make up for that and have her introduced to my son? Maybe we can extend our family friendship into marriage. I'm sure she will be happy about that," Mr. Taiye proposed.

Liam frowned immediately from where he stood, waiting for his father to finish his conversation with Mr. John.

"Oh, thank you, Boss, but only if my daughter will accept," Mr. John quickly rejected, knowing how stubborn his daughter was. He didn't want her to cause any problems between him and his boss.

"Why won't she accept? Liam is handsome, and every girl wants him. What did she study in the university again?" Mr. Taiye asked.

Liam's frown deepened as he stared from his father to Mr. John. Women didn't interest him, and he disliked how his father tried to pair him with a lady he hadn't even met and doubted he would like—just because he was friends with her father.