chapter 3

Kathy

I woke up the next morning, still entangled in the arms of the handsome man I had spent the night with. He stirred in his sleep as I slowly got out of his grasp and reached for my phone to check the time.

“Damn it,” I cursed under my breath. It was already 7 A.M. and I had to show up for my first day at work in two hours.

I began to tip-toe out of his room, careful not to make any noise that would wake him up. Last night was fun, but I wasn’t sure whether it would be the same in the harsh light of day. We hadn’t exchanged numbers, and maybe that was for the best. I gathered all my discarded clothes from the night before and quickly got dressed. Luckily for me, his apartment had mirrors everywhere. I caught my reflection in one of them and groaned at the sight.

I was a total mess and my head pounded from my hangover. I ran my hands through my hair to smooth it out so I wouldn’t look completely unpresentable when I walked out of his place.

The window where he’d fucked me caught my eye and I paused. Now that the sun was out, the view from his apartment looked even better. Given how ridiculous the rent was in New York, I could guess that this guy was probably very wealthy. I couldn’t afford a place like this even if I had double, triple the salary I currently earned.

I called a cab and exited his apartment, feeling grateful that he didn’t wake up in the process. The night with him was exactly what I needed, but I couldn’t get distracted now. I had to focus on the workday that was ahead of me. I had to make a good first impression.

“Maybe I’ll see you again,” I muttered as I left, already planning to visit that same bar with the hope of running into him.

With little time to waste, I swiftly changed into suitable work attire as soon as I got to my place. I carefully picked out my favorite pair of high heels and fixed my makeup. After a quick cup of coffee while brushing my hair, I felt refreshed and ready.

I walked into the office, exactly on time and dressed to impress. Just by the looks of it, no one would even guess that I’d had such a wild night.

“You must be Kathy, the new hire,” a warm smiling face greeted me at reception. “I’m Marsha, I’ll be your supervisor.”

“Great to meet you,” I smiled brightly, ignoring the thumping in my head. She must’ve been waiting for Kathy’s arrival.

“Why don’t we go into my office, and I’ll brief you on your role?” she said.

I nodded and followed her, glancing around my new office. It was undoubtedly an upgrade from my last. Just the size alone was at least twice as big.

“We have a very dynamic workplace and everyone’s really friendly. I’m sure you’ll fit right in,” she said as she handed me a few documents to sign.

“I just need your initial here,” she pointed to the document.

I nodded and signed the papers. “I’m excited to get started.”

Marsha returned my smile with ease. “I’m sure you’ve already been notified of this, but you’ll be working directly under the CEO. But he’s usually busy, so I might step in every now and then as your manager.”

“Is he here now?” I was curious to meet this man I had heard so much about.

“Actually, he’s a bit late today and hasn’t come in yet,” she said. “But don’t worry, I’ll set up a meeting for you to meet him later.”

I felt nervous. Now that the excitement of moving to a new place was wearing off, I started to realize that everyone in his office seemed super competent. I knew I was going to have to bring my A-Game.

“Of course, that would be great,” I smiled.

“Your office is right outside of his,” she told me. “So, I’m sure you’re going to see him a lot in passing anyway.”

I nodded, glancing over some of the paperwork she had laid out in front of me.

“You were an urgent transfer from the other office. Your supervisor there spoke very highly of you and I’m sure you’ll be a great fit in this role,” her tone was more serious now.

“I’m ready to take on whatever challenges lay ahead,” I assured her confidently.

“Since this was an urgent hire and you were called in to replace a previous employee whom we had to let go, you’ll be taking on the projects that she was looking after. So, there might be some tight deadlines for you in the coming week,” she told me.

“Yes, I was told that there might be some extra workload in the first few weeks,” I replied. “But I’m confident that I can handle it.”

“Good. That’s what I like to hear,” she grinned. “I’m not gonna lie—It’s a high-pressure job and we want people that know how to handle it. But you can use the morning to get acquainted with the place.”

Loud laughter filtered into her office and I looked over to where a few staff members were talking on the floor.

“You can go now and get to know some of your co-workers if you want,” she said. “They’ll help you settle in.”

My last role was more relaxed, and I had a lot of downtime to myself. From the sounds of Marsha’s brief breakdown, it didn’t seem that it was going to be the case over here. My mind automatically went to my ex-boyfriend. He would throw tantrums whenever I had to stay back at the office. Now that I was single, I had a lot of time to give to my work.

“Hey,” a woman with short, layered bob haircut greeted me as I walked out of Marsha’s office. “You look lost. Can I help with anything?”

“It’s my first day here,” I told her.

“Oh, new girl,” she grinned and then gestured for another employee to join us. “I’m Caitlyn, by the way. And this is Jeff. We both work in sales.”

“I’m Kathy,” I introduced myself timidly.

The guy named Jeff strutted over to us and did a dramatic twirl for his entrance. His eyes widened when he saw me. "Are you the new hire that's replacing Gemma?"

"Um," I fidgeted with my hands. "Yeah, I guess so. I'll be working directly with the CEO."

Caitlyn and Jeff exchanged a knowing glance among themselves.

"Well, good luck to you," Jeff scoffed. He seemed almost sorry for me.

And Caitlyn was actively avoiding eye contact. It all felt a little too suspicious for my liking. I remembered Marsha talking about having to fire the previous person who had my role, and my anxiety spiked.

"Am I missing something?" I asked, suddenly curious to know what they knew.

"I just think it's really brave that you decided to take up this position," Jeff replied, solemnly clasping both his hands in front of him.

"Oh, quit scaring her,” Caitlyn slapped Jeff lightly on the shoulder. "It's her first day here."

"I’m just being honest," Jeff replied, rubbing his arm on the spot where Caitlyn had swatted him just moments ago. "She should know what she's getting into."

"Someone really needs to explain what's going on here," I reasserted myself.

They were so busy talking about the horrors of my position that they seemed to have forgotten I was still standing there.

"Don't listen to him," Caitlyn turned to me with a warm smile. I didn’t know her, so couldn’t tell if it was fake or not. "He’s totally exaggerating."

"He must have some reason to," I countered, looking between the two of them for an actual answer.

"It's just that your role is one that requires close contact with the CEO, and he's known to be a bit..." she sucked in her bottom lip, contemplating her word choice before settling for, "...particular."

"In a bad way?" I questioned, raising my eyebrow.

I didn’t have much experience with it but had heard stories about higher ups and their unique ways. If all I had to deal with was a man and his over-inflated ego, then I think I’d manage just fine. However, if it was more serious than that, I deserved to know. Preferably before he showed up to work.

"The last girl in your position was fired just after a month of working for him," Jeff said in a hushed voice. "Dylan was never happy with whatever she did and one day, he just fired her on spot."

"Was she not good at her job?" I asked, feeling a nervousness settle in the base of my stomach.

"Oh, she wasn't that bad," Caitlyn interjected. "It's just that Dylan has really high standards for all of his employees."

"He’s notoriously hard to please," Jeff added. "And a total workaholic."

"Yeah, I've seen him put in 12-hour days whenever there’s an important project that needs to be completed," Caitlyn nodded.

From the descriptions these guys were giving me, I was beginning to paint a horrendous picture of my boss in my head. My concern probably showed on my face, because Caitlyn put a comforting arm over my shoulder.

"But don't let us put you off," she said. "Maybe he'll like you. You never know."

I masked the nervousness I was feeling and put on a brave face. I didn't want my new co-workers to see that I was terrified on my very first day. Impressions matter and I wanted to be taken seriously in this office.

"I think I'm up for the challenge," I feigned confidence, even though I was having all sorts of doubts already.

Jeff passed Caitlyn a look before turning back to me.

"I'm impressed by your grit, woman," he laughed. "Usually, this would be enough to send anyone running."

"I like pushing myself," I shrugged and then looked down at my watch. "Speaking of the boss, where is he? He hasn't come in yet and it's almost ten-thirty."

"He was probably working late again," Caitlyn chuckled. "Even on the weekend."

"Seriously," Jeff joined in, "Does anyone even know what he does in his personal life?"

"Maybe you should ask him," Caitlyn teased Jeff, nudging him playfully with her shoulder.

Just then, the main door to the office opened and a man walked in. He had a confident stride. Even if you had no clue about who he was, you’d know he was in charge just by the way he carried himself.

"There he is," Jeff mumbled out of the corner of his mouth. "He's finally here."

As he got closer, I managed to get a glimpse of what he looked like. I felt myself grow pale and adrenaline shot into my veins immediately. Suddenly, I knew the answer to what my boss was doing this weekend. Because I had been with him.

Dylan—none other than the man I had slept with last night—was my new boss.