Page 88 of Hell Hath No Fury
I call my office phone with my cell. I'm so lame.
"Audra Sullivan, Human Resources." Fake pause. "What?" I look out of the corner of my eye and note the stares. "When was this decided? I didn't hear a word about," fake whisper, "cuts."
I hear a gasp. I'm an asshole.
"There has to be something we can do." Pause. "No. Well, no." Pause. "I still don't like it. I'll discuss it with them and see. Thank you. Bye."
I lean back in my chair, eyes closed, and hating myself for tricking my employees for personal purposes.
I decide I've got twenty-five minutes until the workday officially starts, so I grab my purse and make my way out of the building. Starbucks is going to be my best friend.
* * *
I step off the elevator and see the HR department gathered in a group. A few steps closer and I hear his voice.
Oh shit.
"So, you see, there'll be no employee cuts. In fact, Mark, Alex, and myself had a discussion yesterday and we'll be giving everyone a three percent interim raise. This will in no way impact your annual raises and bonuses," Derrick says.
I stand there dumbstruck. He looks at me and winks. Mark and Jamie—the traitor—are standing to his right and Alex to his left. What surprises me the most is Shannon sitting on top of a desk, her legs dangling, giving me a smirk.
Just what the hell is going on here?
"Ah, there she is," Derrick says and everyone looks at me. "Come over here, Audra."
I walk over to him stiffly, uncertainly. "What's going on?" I whisper.
Mark chuckles behind me. "You didn't really think you were going to get away with your so-called plan, did you?"
"What?"
"Relax," Derrick urges. "It'll all be okay. I promise. Now turn around and face your workers like the powerhouse I know you are."
I do as he says. "Sorry I'm a bit late. I went out for a coffee." I tip my Starbucks cup. "If I'd known Mr. Pierce were going to grace the department with an announcement like that, I'd have skipped the Starbucks."
"I wanted to wait for you to talk to your employees about this," Derrick tells me, resting his hand on my lower back.
I just nod. I know what he's going to do. I can't believe he's going to do it. I can't believe he's going to do it in front of everyone. I can't believe he's going to do it, knowing it might not work out and I'll look like an idiot.
"As I'm sure you've heard, Audra and I were spotted at The Vault together weekend before last."
There are murmurs and smirks that imply they think we fucked. We didn't. Not then, anyway.
"It's true. She and I are dating."
The murmurs get louder. Jamie raises her hand. I close my eyes. Lord have mercy on my soul.
"By dating you mean…" she trails off.
"In a relationship. A couple. Together," Mark interjects.
Jamie's smirk matches Mark's. Did they plan that? Of course they did. Damn them.
"That is correct. This isn't just a spur of the moment thing," Derrick continues.
"Nope, certainly not," Alex butts in. "They've had feelings for one another for quite some time but refused to act on them for obvious reasons, including what would happen if it didn't work out."
Derrick nods. "But we're not concerned with that anymore. We know it's going to work out."
