Page 23 of Dear Grumpy Boss

“Nice job, Lisie.”

Weston gave his brother a sharp look. Miles grinned at him, unfazed, but at least he stopped clapping.

“You’ll travel with me to California,” Weston clipped at me. “Renata will send you the details.”

My lungs squeezed in my chest. When I spoke up, I hadn’t imagined I’d be given the assignment. I’d only just started here, and now I’d be traveling?

That was…

Better than I could have expected.

All the more reason to ignore the Post-its.

Except they weren’t so easy to ignore. Wednesday and Thursday were more of the same. Seemingly harmless facts about elephants scrawled on yellow Post-its.

Fifteen years ago, these little notes would have made me smile.

Now, they brought back really crappy memories.

I spilled everything to Simon and Rebecca at lunch on Friday.

“Can I tell you guys something?” I asked.

They stopped eating, their attention immediately rapt.

Simon swiveled his wrist. “Please do.”

I sucked in a breath. “It has to remain between us, though.”

Rebecca mimed zipping her lips. “As long as I can tell Sam, I’m a vault.”

That made me laugh a little. “Spousal privilege. I’ll accept that.”

Simon lifted his shoulders and held his hands out. “The only people I gossip with are you two. I’m not going to tell anyone. You can trust me, Lise.”

I wanted to be able to trust these two. My confidence had been shaken by Patrick and his buddies, who I had considered my friends as well, but I wouldn’t allow what they’d done to keep me from forming bonds with other people. Simon and Rebecca struck me as straightforward and no bullshit. They were my allies at Andes, and right now, I needed them.

“Miles Aldrich and I went to school together. We weren’t friends, but we were in the same grade, so I’ve known him forever. He was always just…there. I never paid attention to him. But then we got to high school and everything changed. He teased and taunted me and riled the other kids up to join in.”

Rebecca and Simon’s expressions had gone from interested to horrified.

“That little twerp,” Rebecca ground out. “He bullied you?”

I lifted a shoulder. “I don’t know if I’d call it that. He started something and it grew like a wildfire.” Tucking my hair behind my ear, I swallowed down the lump in my throat. “When I was little, I was kind of obsessed with elephants. So much, Weston used to call me Ellie. I loved it back then because it was special between us, you know? But I guess he told Miles about it, and when he started calling me Ellie the Elephant in high school…well, it wasn’t so cute.”

Thick thighs and big butts hadn’t been in style back then—there’d been no chance of escaping school without being teased. Having it come from Weston’s brother while using his special name for me had been a unique kind of betrayal that had knocked me to my knees.

Simon’s expression turned thunderous. “What an idiot. As someone who was relentlessly bullied in school, I’m taking this really personally, Lise. I’d go homicidal if I had to work with any of those guys. I don’t know how you’re doing it.”

“I didn’t know he worked here when I accepted the job.”

Rebecca winced. “Yeah, I can see how that might have affected your decision.”

“I wouldn’t have taken it.” I rubbed my lips together. “I haven’t been thinking about him all these years, you know? And when I realized we’d be coworkers when we shared an elevator on Monday, I was prepared to suck it up. It’s been eight years since high school. I’ve matured and moved on. I was hoping he had too. But…”

Simon angled forward, his eyes narrowed into slits. “What did he do?”

I blew out a slow breath. I absolutely hated this. “All week, someone has been leaving Post-its with elephant facts on my desk. They’re anonymous, but it has to be Miles. It really couldn’t be anyone else.”

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