AllFreeNovel
Share Us
After giving her the paper, Rory managed to explain the details of the “game” and the code.
Brenda’s lip curled. “So they stared at your tits and tried to touch your ass.”
Rory swallowed hard. “They made a game of it. John even cut off a piece of my hair.”
“Can you prove that?”
“There’s a four-inch piece of my hair missing.”
“How do I know you didn’t cut it yourself?”
Tension gripped Rory’s stomach. “I’m telling HR about this.”
“No, you are not.” Brenda tore the paper in half. She crumpled the pieces into a ball and threw them in the trash. “If you want even a hope of getting the Principal Engineer position, you’re not going to file silly complaints about your team members. You’ve been here for, what, a little over a month? And now you’re going to whine to HR that the boys are pulling your pigtails and chasing you on the playground?”
“That…” Rory’s hand shook as she pointed at the trash. “That is harassment and a personal violation. I won’t pretend like they were just havingfun.”
“You don’t have to pretend anything.” Brenda put her fists on her hips, her features hardening. “I’ll tell you what you’re going to do. You’re going to go back to your desk and get to work, and you’re going to forget you ever saw that stupid paper. Every single person on your team is a high performer, and I will not have this project jeopardized because poor little Rory couldn’t take a juvenile joke.”
Brenda stepped closer. “I told you that you need a thick skin to survive here. You start filing complaints now, and not only will you get yourself a reputation as a whiner, you’ll kill any possibility of becoming Principal Engineerever. In fact, you’ll be conveniently transferred off any development team and get stuck reviewing code and doing maintenance until you get so bored you quit. And chances are high that a number of men in this company will do whatever they can tomakeyou quit. I guarantee it won’t be pleasant.”
She unlocked the door and yanked it open, tossing Rory a hard look over her shoulder. “Get back to work. We have a project update meeting at four.”
She strode out, letting the door swing shut behind her.
Rory turned on the sink faucet and splashed cold water on her face. Her heart thumped a heavy beat, like a drum warning her of some horrible consequence.
She grabbed the torn, crushed paper from the trash and left the bathroom. It was close enough to lunch that she ignored Brenda’s command and headed outside to wait for Joanna. She needed a few minutes to compose herself before facing Grant’s mother.
Grant.
She ached to call him, if only to hear his deep voice reminding her that she was valued. But God only knew what he’d do in retaliation on her behalf. She needed to figure out how to handle this alone.
“Hello, Rory!” Joanna’s cheerful voice came from the parking lot. “Beautiful day, isn’t it? Have you been to Bird Dog before? They have a seasonal menu, but the last time I was there they had this most wonderful trout that reminded me of Grant’s…my dear, are you all right?”
Rory blinked. She couldn’t seem to form a coherent thought.
“You’re quite pale.” Joanna stopped and peered at her over the tops of her sunglasses. “What on earth is the matter?”
“N-nothing.” Rory waved a hand in front of her face. “It’s just warmer here in the sun than I was expecting. Did you have trouble parking?”
“No. I’m just over…” Joanna’s gaze skirted to the crumpled ball of paper that Rory was clenching and unclenching in her fist. “What are you doing with that?”
“Nothing.” Rory shoved the paper into the side pocket of her bag and forced a smile. “Shall we go?”
She walked toward the parking lot, feeling Joanna’s frown like a burn.
