Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 55599 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 278(@200wpm)___ 222(@250wpm)___ 185(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55599 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 278(@200wpm)___ 222(@250wpm)___ 185(@300wpm)
She holds my gaze in silence for a few seconds. “That’s your problem—you just want everyone to like you. You’re too much like your mother.”
“Finally some honesty.”
She points at me and raises her voice, her face reddening. “Watch yourself, Josie.”
“That’s all I’ve done since the day you hired me.” I fight back the lump in my throat. “Since years before that, actually. I admired you when I was growing up. Not that you care. I wanted to be like you. Why do you think I’m here?” I gesture around the office. “You told me when I was in high school that I could own a business one day, like you, and I—”
I look away, unable to continue.
“You’re not tough enough for this business.”
I scoff. “Monica’s not tough. She’s a bitch. But she kisses your ass and you fall for it every time.”
“I hope this hockey player is worth losing your job.” Her tone is loaded with smug satisfaction. “You won’t be able to manipulate him like your mother manipulated my brother, you know. You’re one of a thousand to him. He won’t even remember your name at this time next season.”
“I quit. And it’s not about him; it’s about me. I deserve better than this. Every single person out there”--I point at the main office area and glance out there, where I see half a dozen startled expressions of eavesdroppers--“deserves better. Linda shouldn’t have to pay for your pastries and eight-dollar coffees when you don’t send her with enough money and no one should have to take calls in the evenings when it’s not even urgent. And here’s an idea—be nice. Treat people who work here like people whose personal lives matter. When Andi’s mom was sick last year, you made her quit instead of working part-time and you lost a great employee over that.”
She sniffs and looks away. “I know it all seems so easy when you aren’t the one behind this desk.”
“I know it’s not easy. But if you want to get loyalty, you have to give it. I’d rather wait tables full time and be treated with respect than put up with this place.”
She points. “There’s the door.”
“I’m starting my own business.”
The words poured out of my mouth before I had time to think about them. I can practically feel Dane beside me, encouraging me to not just walk away but fight.
My aunt laughs. She actually laughs.
“Good luck with that.”
“Thanks. I’ve already got an investor.”
She narrows her eyes. “Which you spread your legs for.”
Even with as far as I’ve come, it hurts. Cruelty from the only family I have left cuts deep, but at least I know now that this is all she’s capable of.
You need to do this. You’ve got a great mind for it. I’ve got your back.
Dane’s encouragement propels me to stand up for myself in a way I never have before.
“You said Dane won’t remember my name in a year, but you know what? You will. You’ll curse my name every time you walk into this office and find out I signed one of your clients or secured another top-tier account. I’ll have the best people in the area working for me because they’ll know they’re part of a team with a boss who values them. You can keep Monica; she’s worthless anyway.”
My heart is pounding harder than ever before as I turn and open the door to the office, blood rushing in my ears.
Holy. Shit. I just did that.
I keep my chin up as I stride back across the office. My coworker Damian is crouched down in his cubicle, out of sight as he grins and gives me a thumbs-up. Another colleague, Erin, is holding up a piece of paper for me to read with a message written in black marker.
That was fucking AMAZING!!
I smile because it was amazing. I was amazing. And while I’m terrified about whether I can really do this, I’m also excited. Hopeful.
“I’ll send someone to pick up my things,” I tell Linda.
She nods, not willing to risk being seen talking to me, but the smile she’s fighting gives her away.
What will I name my new company? I think about it as I step back onto the elevator. I suppose FJG Publicity lacks subtlety, so I’ll have to pass on that one.
It sure has a nice ring to it, though.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Dane
Not only has Monica taken over the counter of my hotel bathroom with cosmetics and hair products, but she left a cloud of hair spray and stank it up with her perfume.
I just want her to leave me alone, but she talks nonstop. Last night, when I was texting Josie from my bed, Monica chattered about herself the entire time. She’s twenty-three, but it feels like I have a teenage girl attached to my hip.
“You know that plan I was telling you I came up with to turn around your image? I got it all written up and we can go over it on our next flight. It has nine actionable steps for you.”