“You have got to be kidding me, Olivia.” Peter’s face turns an unhinged shade of red. “I trained you. Mentored you?—”
“Shame on you for thinking that’s what you were doing,” I murmur under my breath, but he still hears me. And I might just be losing my shit because I smile when he looks like he’s about to blow.
“You’re aware you have a non-compete and signed an NDA. You can’t touch our clients for a year. Can’t say a word against our firm. If you do either, I’ll slap a lawsuit on you so fast?—”
“Stop, Peter. I’m aware of how NDAs work. Passed the bar exam on my first try, remember? And I’m not taking any of your clients with me.” Although I will be encouraging more than one of them to change agencies, my husband and my family included.
“What...?” he stutters, clearly confused. “What do you plan to do?”
This man doesn’t deserve that answer.
“You know what, Pete?” I smile. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”
“You were never going to be partner, Olivia,” he sneers, and I feel like I’m seeing him for the first time, suddenly disappointed with how much time I’ve given his firm.
“To be honest, Peter,”—I grin back at him—“I’m all right with that.”
Not making partner brought me my husband.
It brought Magnolia and the insane Langley family into my life.
It forced me to realize there was more to life than working for men who disrespect you.
That making partner wasn’t worth it if I sold my soul and my dignity to do it.
Working for this man showed me what I don’t want in life as much as it allowed me to figure out what I do.
“Truly, thank you for everything, and enjoy your retirement.” I close the MacBook and stare at the blue cover as shock sets in before I pick up my phone.
Olivia
Holy shit. I just quit my job.
Serena
Are you sure?
Olivia
Pretty sure.
Serena
Are you okay?
Olivia
Maybe not.
Serena
I’ll be there in forty-five minutes.
I feel him before I see him.
The same warm wave of awareness blankets my skin before a carton of ice cream is set on the table next to my MacBook. “Hey, beautiful. How was your day?”
I tug my sweater tighter as the adrenaline pumping through me subsides, and I realize for the first time in my entire adult life I don’t have a job. “Umm... well, I quit my job.”
