Page 12 of Boss from Hell

Chapter 6

Lillian

Iwas shaking with fury. I was so full of explosive anger I couldn’t even wait for the elevator. I ran up the ten flights of dank-smelling stairs to my fifth-floor apartment. I was panting by the time I reached my door. God, I’d never wanted to slap anyone before, but how my hand had itched to slap his arrogant face.

How dare he?

Never. Never had I ever encountered such an uncouth man.

Fuck the bet.

As for my mom’s mortgage, well, I still had some savings left. There was enough there to pay for the next couple of months. Surely, I would have found another job by then. Even one I didn’t like too much. Anything would be better than putting up with that bastard’s shit.

I closed my door and, leaning against it, took my phone out and opened my banking app.

What?

There was $3400.00 less. I quickly navigated to the statement screen. Slowly my body slid down to the floor. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Damn, I’d forgotten about mymother’s house insurance direct debit. I’d set it up to be taken yearly instead of monthly to save some money and now it had come to slap me in the face when I was most unprepared to pay it.

I took deep calming breaths.God doesn’t close a door without opening a window.I could do this. There was a way around this.

“Okay,” I whispered. “Okay, you can do this.”

Two options.

One: Tell the bastard to shove his job up his fine ass and concentrate harder on finding another job.

Two: Carry on working for him until I find something better.

With option one, there was a possibility I could come unstuck and put Mom’s house and finances, not to mention mine, in jeopardy.

No, option one was not worth considering. There was really only option two for me.

I could put up with him until I found something else. I would train myself to become immune to his abuse and insults. Like water off a duck’s back, they would slide off me.

In the end, I would be stronger for the experience. All I had to do was redouble my ability to stay calm in the face of any provocation from an unhinged maniac. I could do it. I know I could.

The sound of my phone ringing startled me. It was Maggie. It was almost like the universe was confirming I’d made the right decision. I clicked the green circle.

“How was your first day?” she asked cheerfully.

“Fine. It was fine,” I replied evenly.

“Fine? What do you mean?” she demanded, her voice bristling with surprise.

I crossed my fingers. “It went well.”

For a couple of seconds, a shocked silence ensued. Then…

“Oh my God. You’re lying,” she squealed happily. “You always were a terrible liar.”

I winced. Damn her for knowing me so well. “I’m not lying. Itwasfine. He even invited me to have dinner with him and his mother.”

“What?” she screamed.

I pulled the phone away from my ear and put her on speaker.

“Yeah, I met his mom,” I said casually.

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