Page 9 of Pure Recklessness

And I could only assume that she found my mention of dolls funny because Sated probably produced blow-up ones. But after how badly I’d embarrassed myself, I wasn’t about to ask Melissa whether that was part of their product range.

Anger bubbled in my chest.

Instead of teasing me and making inappropriate and unprofessional jokes, she should’ve briefed me on Sated’s products and services.

Now she was going to miss out on precious commission because she didn’t do her job properly.

And now I’d have to leave London because I didn’t get the position.

Maybe it was for the best. My parents would freak if they heard I’d even come to a company like this for an interview.

‘Yes, Sated publishes steamy romance and erotic novels and audiobooks.’

‘That sounds really, er… interesting.’ I swallowed the lump in my throat. I hadn’t read any steamy novels before.

‘Clearly your recruitment agency didn’t brief you properly, but the Content Writer role is for Sated’s website. Our customers love our articles. They keep them updated with news on our latest novels and products, as well as tips and advice to ensure that they are always… satisfied.’

‘That’s… great!’ I shifted in my seat uncomfortably.

I assumed that Melissa was referring to orgasms, which were something I had very little (okay, zero) experience of.

Although I wasn’t a virgin, I was hardly experienced.

Thanks to my parents watching my every move, I’d only been with two men.

My first time was a brief and disappointing dalliance at uni which ended abruptly when Dad texted to announce he’d arrived early to pick me up.

And the second guy I slept with was my ex, Jarvis. He was one of the few young people in the village and, like me, he wasn’t a very sexual person.

Despite being together for three years, I could count on one hand the number of times we’d been intimate, so I’d never reached that ‘pinnacle’ which zillions of people raved about. Which meant I definitely wasn’t qualified to write about it.

That’d be like hiring someone who couldn’t swim to be a lifeguard.

I’d already made a terrible first impression and the more the interview went on, the more I realised I was out of my depth.

We both knew how this interview was going to end, so it was better to put myself out of this misery sooner rather than later.

‘I’m sorry to have wasted your time.’ I stood up to leave. ‘Thanks for the opportunity.’

I’d been so used to saying those words at the end of every failed interview that they rolled off my tongue effortlessly.

‘Where are you going?’ Melissa’s brows furrowed.

‘I’m leaving. Obviously, you’re not going to hire me after how I embarrassed myself in front of Mr Devlin.’

‘We all make mistakes,’ Melissa said softly. ‘And now it’s clear that you weren’t about to pleasure yourself in the meeting room. Or on the Tube.’ Her lips twitched with amusement. ‘Your CV is interesting. Yes, your experience is limited, but although she’s been sick most of the morning, when Kitty, Sated’s Digital Content Editor, glanced over your CV and read the articles you wrote for that Surrey lifestyle magazine, she agreed that your writing had potential.’

‘That’s kind of her to say, thanks.’ Warmth flooded my cheeks. ‘Sorry to hear that the team is sick.’

‘Yes. Most of the company went out to celebrate the fortieth birthday of one of the editors last night and got struck down with violent food poisoning. They’re so sick they can’t even work from home. It’s literally coming out from both ends.’ She winced. ‘Anyway, the point is, we need someone to fill in.’

‘But I don’t know anything about sexy novels or toys!’ I blurted out.

What the hell was I doing?

Although I was completely out of my depth, by some miracle, Melissa was still considering me, so the last thing I should be doing was talking myself out of a job.

If the money was decent and I worked here for a few days, that’d be enough to cover an extra week’s rent. I’d also have another editorial job to add to my CV which could help me secure a full-time job elsewhere.