Page 4 of The Bonus

I bite my lip to hold my tongue and make my way out of his office. I take a seat at my desk, deflated.

He doesn’t like my perfume.

Well, fuck him!

I do, asshole, and I’m going to slather it all over myself tomorrow until he throws up.

I might even spray it in his eyes for added effect.

One by one, the office fills up, and then, like clockwork, right on nine, his office door opens, and he marches out like the king of the people.

Gabriel Ferrara in all his bossy glory.

“Gretel,” he barks.

“Yes, sir,” she stammers.

“Why isn’t the advertising report in my email?”

“I…I…”

“You what?”

“I haven’t finished it yet, I thought you didn’t need it until tomorrow.”

“You thought wrong.” He strides through the office and stops in front of Allen’s desk and his eyes roam over it. “Why does your desk look like a fucking dumpster fire, Allen?”

“Ahhh.” Allen begins to nervously collect the coffee cups and stacked papers. “Sorry, Mr. Ferrara. I’ll clean it now.”

Gabriel glances up and his eyes meet mine. He strides back to my desk. “Miss Porter.” He calls me Miss Porter in front of everyone, I’m only ever Gracie in private.

“Cancel my one thirty appointment,” he demands.

He wants to extend his lunch date with fucking Veronica.

“Impossible, Mr. Ferrara, I told you that already. Please listen,” I fire back.

You have one hour with her, motherfucker.

That’s it.

“Then you can go in my place, because I won’t be at the meeting.” He marches back into his office and slams the door.

The staff all let out a collective sigh of release that the tyrant is gone. I tap my pen on the desk while my blood boils.

Asshole.

The sun shines down on me as I sit in the park. My lunch break is the best part of my day. I love the fresh air, watching the dogs play off leash and the birds fly around. I never realized how much I loved nature until I hardly saw any. As beautiful as New York is, it’s the city of concrete.

When I moved here seven years ago, I was going to work for twelve months, get some experience with a big firm and then move back to the suburbs somewhere.

Being infatuated with my jerk of a boss was never in the plan.

A dog runs up to me and I bend and pat him, he’s big and brown. “Hey there, cutie.” I smile as I pat him.

His owner walks up. He has a beard and longish hair with a big warm smile, he has a real chilled-out hippie vibe about him. “He likes you.”

“I like him.” I smile.

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