I pulled my hand away from my head and dropped it into my lap as fast as I could.
“Do you know what it’s like being in my position when you’re only thirty-seven, Miss Granger? Do you know what it means?”
I shook my head.
“It means that I have to work twice as hard as everyone else to prove myself. I’m sure you noticed that the average age in that room was fifty plus. It took me years to earn their respect and for them to stop seeing me as a child. As my father’s child who’d inherited a company just because he had the same name.”
I nodded.
“So when my assistant sends off an email like this, like we’re at some frat party, do you think it makes me look good?”
I shook my head again. I could feel the tears welling up inside me. He was so angry with me. I don’t think I’d ever seen him this angry.
“NO!” he almost yelled. “It makes me look like an idiot. It undermines me, it makes me look incompetent because I’m unable to hire the right person to do the job!” The words flew out of his mouth like venomous bullets and I wasn’t going to hold back the waterworks much longer.
“I mean, it looks like a horny SEXteen-year-old boy wrote this pile of pornographic crap.”
I felt my lip quiver and quickly bit it.
“Are you?” he asked.
“What?”
“A horny SEXteen year old?”
I felt the first tear escape my eyes and trickle down my cheek.
“Oh God, please don’t cry!” he said.
But he was staring at me in a way that made it impossiblenotto cry. More tears came, and no matter how hard I tried, they weren’t stopping. I buried my face in my hands and shook my head, wishing I could magic myself out of there.
“Seriously, Miss Granger, what the hell were you thinking about when you wrote this?”
I was totally getting fired for this! And frankly, I didn’t care anymore. I was so over this job. I was over the way he treated me. One minute he seemed kind, the next minute he looked at me the way he had when I was under the desk, and then the next minute he was shouting at me. This emotional roller coaster was getting way too nauseating to ride. I didn’t know if I was coming or going, if I was up or down. I didn’t know, from minute to minute even, what I felt about this man. One minute I wanted him to touch me, and the next I wanted to be as far away from him as possible.
“Well, what?” he pressed angrily.
This was it. I no longer cared about any of it. I threw my hands in the air. “Sex!” My voice was shrill. “Isn’t it obvious? I was clearly thinking about sex. Okay? Happy now?”
I stood up out of my chair and started walking to the door.
“Where are you going?”
“Home,” I declared loudly. “Home to think about sex some more. In fact, I think I’ll think about sex all night long since I’m so damn horny.”
“Wait!” He stood up quickly.
“Wait what?” I glared at him. “I’m sure you’re dying to get rid of me anyway, so here is your chance. Fire me, so I can go home and think about sex! Isn’t that what you’ve been wanting to do since I started working for you—fire me?
He stood dead still and didn’t move. I locked eyes with him and waited for him to open his mouth and say something, while my heart thumped against my chest.
But he didn’t.
“Oh, come on. What are you waiting for? Fire the mad sex deviant. Fire the woman who evacuates the office, screws up the emails, lets a pigeon loose in your boardroom, goes into your office when you’re not there.” I put my hands on my hips. “Do it.” I was egging him on now, and I didn’t care.
“I . . . I . . .” he stuttered.
“AH-HA!” I pointed at him. “Now look who’s stuttering,” I said smugly, relishing the fact I could call him out for it.
