Page 71 of The Guy Who Became My Grumpy Boss

She handed the microphone back to Peter, who held up his hand. “Your three hours starts…” He paused. “Now!”

Peter lowered his arm, and chaos erupted.

“Peter, Peter!” Marissa tried to drive herself forward and managed to get out of my grasp, but she was headed straight for the edge of the platform, so I lunged forward and stopped her.

“Let go, you fat cow!” she screeched over her shoulder at me.

I didn’t let go, but I stared at her in shock.

There was too much noise for many people to notice, which was a good thing, because if a bunch of employees had been staring at me, I might have shoved Marissa forward and watched her crash.

Fat cow?

Marissa had made plenty of allusions to my weight in the past but never anything like this. I’d always wondered if she hada problem with curvy women. Apparently, she did.

“He isn’t yours,” Marissa said in a low growl. Her eyes darted to Peter, and I got the sick feeling that she knew we’d been making out in the office the night before.

Peter was there in a second. His expression thundered at a category five, but his words were calm. “Lance is here to make sure you get to see as much as possible.” He took hold of the wheelchair and pulled Marissa back.

“No!” Marissa didn’t quite screech this time, but her tone was high and, once again, desperate.

Half of the girls in the office had an ongoing bet that Lance had been a model before he’d come to work with us. He was single, funny, and an absolute delight to look at with his feathery blond hair and chiseled jaw.

Marissa sneered at him as if he not only wore rags but also smelled like an outhouse, then looked up at Peter and pawed at his arm. “You should take me around. This retreat wasourthing.”

Marissa flashed a quick glare at me, and I gritted my teeth.

Where Peter found the Zen to keep his cool, I’d never know. He moved in front of her and knelt down on one knee. “Marissa, I’m going to be checking in with each team. We’ll be moving fast, and we’ll be in the thick of the activity.” He touched her cast. “You’re recovering. We can’t risk anyone accidentally bumping you.”

She sniffed, and a tear ran down her cheek.

“Lance has agreed to make sure you talk to as many people as possible in the next hour, then you’re going home.”

Marissa jerked away from Peter. “No!”

The muscles in Peter’s cheeks jumped as he clenched his jaw.

To my surprise, Amelia intervened. “Marissa, I need you in tip-top shape and back at work as soon as possible. When I came to visit, your doctor said you’re not even supposed to be out ofbed, let alone out in public.”

Marissa sniffed.

“You must be in a lot of pain.” Amelia put her hand on Marissa’s shoulder. “In an hour, you’re going home.”

“I need to stay.” Marissa reached for Peter.

He leaned away and shook his head.

Lance, who had watched all of this with obvious curiosity, jumped up and got behind Marissa. “Come on, let’s go judge people harshly.” Before Marissa could protest too loudly, Lance turned her around and took her down the ramp at the other end of the stage.

An awkward silence surrounded me, and I didn’t want to look at anyone.

I wasn’t particularly ashamed of my weight—this was me, and I’d tried just about everything to be thin, but since nothing had worked, I’d long ago embraced my outer curvy girl. However, getting called a fat cow in front of the executive staff of the company I worked for hadn’t ever happened before. I had no words.

I wanted to back away and disappear and not be seen until the next Monday.

Tyrell broke the silence. “Hopefully that was the pain killers.”

“Hopefully.” Amelia’s voice sounded tight.

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