Page 1 of Keep Your Friends Close and Your… Work Enemy Closer?

One

Annalise

My twenty-ninth birthday... absolutely nothing could bring me down today. My last year of my twenties, and I was on a cloud. The past several months had been the best of my life, starting my new job, getting out from under the shadow of my last name and the accusations of being a rich daddy's girl at my previous place of employment.

Abandoning my old name, getting a fresh look, and going undercover at Insight Ink was the best thing I'd ever done. I was even used to answering to my fake moniker Cordelia, not making the other person wait an odd beat while I looked around wondering who on earth they were talking to. That had definitely been awkward at first, and I'd had a few strange looks from my new co-workers in the beginning.

But now? Everything was perfect.

I'd put my nose to the grindstone and been the best damn acquisitions editor I could be, earning the trust of my new office mates and even a few words of praise from my tough-as-nails boss.

It was Friday, and I had a fun night and weekend planned, plus so much to look forward to at the office. I'd never worked somewhere before where birthdays were such a huge deal, and judging from Mona's big day two weeks ago, I was in for a treat.

Even the sun was shining brightly today. Although you mostly couldn't see it for all the skyscrapers perennially blocking out the rays. But that was okay. Just knowing it was there made a huge difference.

Walking into the building, I nodded at the cute security guard and made my way to the elevators, my excitement growing with each passing floor, not caring that we stopped at every single level or that it was so crowded I could practically feel the guy behind me breathing down my neck. At least he was keeping other parts of his body away from me.

There was jostling as someone from the back had to get off on the sixteenth floor, and the man behind me that I had just commended in my head for being a gentleman bumped into me. Hard.

I whirled around to glare at him. "Excuse me."

"You're excused," he said, dismissing me outright as he glanced up at the numbers above the door.

"Excuse me. What?" I huffed in reply, shocked at his audacity.

He deigned to look down at me, his dark eyes completely mismatched with his light hair, the most ridiculous mustache I'd ever seen on his stupid face.

"I said you're excused," he repeated in the most disdainful voice I'd ever had the displeasure to hear, like I was a complete idiot.

"Youbumped intome."

"No.Youbumped intome."

It was such a typical New York interaction that it was almost comical. If it weren't for the complete jerk of a man in front of me.

Right when I opened my mouth to tell him how absolutely wrong he was, he sidestepped past me and got off, not a word of apology or a polite excuse me, just walking by me as if I was a common housefly or, even worse, didn't exist.

What an asshole.

Looking up, I realized he'd gotten off on my floor, and I made a move toward the door. But it was too late. So now I had to get off on the next floor and wait an eternity for an elevator going down.

It was okay, though.

While I waited, I took some deep cleansing breaths. In and out. In and out. Then forced myself to relax my shoulders and stretch out the tense muscles of my neck.

By the time the elevator doors opened, I was almost back to normal. After all, dealing with entitled assholes in Manhattan was nothing new. It was practically an everyday occurrence. No biggie. Nothing was going to bring me down today.

As I arrived onto my floor, the bright and airy feel of the open-plan office immediately lifted the rest of my spirits. Sunlight streamed through large windows, illuminating the cheerful space that was filled with modern desks and books of course.

Books everywhere. On every desk. On every surface. Not to mention the large wall to one side that was lined with books, old and new, all non-fiction, a constant reminder of the empowering words and insights they contained that made my job so fulfilling.

Approaching my workspace, I couldn't help but smile at the sight of the colorful balloons and the banner that read "Happy Birthday, Cordelia!" I had known it was coming, but the excitement was still there. I'd never had coworkers who were so genuinely kind, considerate, and seemed to actually enjoy my company.

Mona, my best work friend, stood nearby with a grin. She was the mastermind behind the decorations, and even though the office had a pay it forward birthday policy and she kind of had to do all of this, her obvious enthusiasm shone through.

"Happy birthday!" she squealed, giving me a quick hug. "And this is just the beginning."

I already knew I was in for a lunch out, followed by an afternoon party break with cake and a gift.

---