Page 7 of Boss Agreement

A very loud feminine voice says from the doorway we’re approaching, “Nope. There’s no way I’m seeing Chuckle-Fuck ever again.”

What kind of madness did I step into?

“Look Victoria, you don’t have to enjoy it, but you have to do it for me. I am living vicariously through your antics, and you have not provided me nearly enough chaos in the past few weeks with the single exception of Chuckle-Fuck.”

We step into the break room, and two women are leaning against opposite counters, coffee cups in each of their hands as they smile and turn to see us.

“Who’s the new girl?” asks the tall, blonde woman who I now know is Victoria. She’s the kind of woman you imagine working in the business world. Every inch of her skirt-suit is perfect. Her nearly platinum hair falls just below her shoulder, with little curls that seem to cling to each other.

Sera drags me to the center of the room and presents me like some kind of debutante. Or maybe a sacrifice. The looks the two women give me don’t give me a lot of confidence that it’s the first.

“This is my new cubicle-mate, Addison. Junior editor extraordinaire. At least I hope so, since she’s in charge of doing the edits on old Jefferson’s new attempt at inspiring the nation’s youth into revolt.”

The second woman sighs. “I can’t stand Jefferson’s books. How he ever got signed is still beyond me, but they just keep publishing them. My condolences for any excitement you may have because that book will kill it. Then it’ll roll your dead excitement into a pit and set it on fire. Or at least that’s how I feel every time I open one of his manuscripts.”

I grin at the shorter woman who is possibly the very definition of soccer mom. Granted, she’s still wearing business casual, but her red hair’s a bit of a mess, and unlike Sera and Victoria, she’s wearing flats that have a few scuffs. She looks tired in a way that all parents do, even though she’s grinning.

“Nice to meet you Addison. I’m Trish, the official office hooker.”

I blink at that comment as Sera and Victoria burst out laughing. “That’s an… interesting job title,” I say.

She gives me a chuckle. “I’m a senior editor, but I specialize in hooks. When other editors know that a section, especially the beginning, needs a little something to draw the reader in, they call me. Hence,” she grins and points at herself with both thumbs, “official hooker.”

I can’t help but laugh alongside the rest of them. “Anyway,” Victoria says, turning back to Trish, “there’s no way I’m going to see Chuckle-Fuck again. And that’s final.”

I still don’t understand this conversation. Sera stops them and says, “You can’t just leave Addison out of the conversation like that.” She turns to me and says, “Victoria went out with a hot guy last week.” Immediately, Victoria has her phone out and is scrolling through pictures. My eyes follow her movement, but I’m doing my best to pay attention to Sera at the same time.

“They hooked up, and right when he was finishing…” Sera continues.

Trish interrupts. “He chuckles like freaking Seth Rogen.” She bends over, puts her hands on the counter and looks behind her—something I wouldn’t have imagined happening on my first day at the most famous publishing house in the world. “Just imagine that. Oh, that’s it, baby. Harder. Then, instead of grunting, groaning, or moaning, it’s just this goofy laughing from behind you.”

It's impossible to hold back the laughter. Maybe it’s the crassness and hilarity of the moment, but all the stress I’ve felt for the past three days just evaporates as I laugh. Maybe working at Loughton House won’t be as serious as I’d imagined.

Trish continues, “I’m going to write a romcom one day just based on Victoria’s terrible and amazing love life. It’ll be like the hot chick version of Bridget Jones’s Diary.”

Victoria just shakes her head. “You know, Addison’s first hour here shouldn’t involve my terrible love life. She’s going to thinkI’mthe official office hooker when I’m really just terrible at picking men. How could I have known that this guy would do… that?”

She shows me her phone, and there’s a selfie of her and a guy who could have been in a movie. Maybe not as an action hero, but at least the goofy sidekick who’s actually cuter than the main character, even if he can’t lift a car. Like a Paul Rudd. Great smile, gorgeous eyes, and probably way nicer than the hero.

“Okay, yeah, I don’t think I’d run away from him.”

She holds her hands out and looks around the room. “See, even the new girl doesn’t think I’m crazy. How can I just be that unlucky?”

Trish looks at her for a second, and her lip curls up. Then, she just slowly starts chuckling, and all of us burst out laughing again.

“You’re the worst friends,” she says as she slides her phone into her purse and grabs her coffee. “I get no support from any of you.”

As she walks out of the room, Trish calls out, “I’ll support you and Chuckles forever. Please!”

It’s hard not to keep laughing, but I feel like I should go apologize to Victoria. These three seem to have been friends for a long time, and none of them are rushing to tell her sorry.

Sera catches my eye as I glance at the door again and says, “Don’t worry about Victoria. She knows that we’re all just playing.” She glances at Trish with a grin and says, “You should have been here the time that Trish walked into the break room with a giant chocolate stain on the back of her skirt.”

Trish’s grin turns into a glare. “Three-year-olds are supposed to eat the chocolate, not smear it across Mommy’s ass when they give her a hug. It’s not fair that I can love someone whose entire purpose is to cause chaos. Absolutely not fair at all.”

Sera takes over the conversation then. “Victoria was ruthless. What was it she called you? Oh, right…”

“Good morning,” an annoyed and tired man’s voice says from behind us, interrupting Sera. A voice I feel like I know, but I can’t place.

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