Page 46 of Boss of Me

I’m spending the weekend at my old apartment with Quinn and Sansa. After the maddening encounter with Gunner, I don’t trust myself not to sneak into his bedroom tonight and strangle him in his sleep.

When I answer the phone, Ember whispers excitedly in my ear, “Oh, my God! I’m still in shock over the bombshell you dropped earlier! I’ve been dying to call you back to get all the deets!”

I frown. “Why are you whisper-shouting? Where are you?”

“In the bathroom at work.”

“It’s almost nine o’clock there. You’re still at the office?”

“I’m an overworked first-year associate. Where else would I be but at the office?” The trace of bitterness in her voice makes me wonder, not for the first time, if she loves being a lawyer as much as she claims.

“Mom couldn’t stop talking about your new boss. Has she called you?”

“Yes. Twice.”

“You didn’t pick up?”

“What do you think?” Hearing the sound of a toilet flushing, I wrinkle my nose. “Are you doing number one or two?”

Ember snickers. “Relax. I just had to pee and change my tampon. Anyway, I can’t believe you work for an actual billionaire!”

“Don’t get too excited,” I say darkly. “It’s overrated.”

“Are you crazy? How can working for Gunner Ransom be overrated?”

“You’d be surprised,” I grumble.

“What do you mean? Is he an asshole?”

I toss another shirt in my bag. “Let’s just say we got off to a rocky start.”

“What happened? And don’t tell me you don’t want to talk about it,” Ember warns. “You’ve been keeping secrets for three freaking weeks, and that’s simply not how we operate. Unless you want me to fly down there and kick your ass, you better start dishing.”

With a sigh, I proceed to tell her the whole story, starting with the night I met Gunner and ending with today’s vexing office encounter.

“Holy shit,” Ember says when I finish. “Ho-lee shit.”

“Basically,” I mumble under my breath.

“So let me get this straight. The hot guy you mistook for your date—and almost fucked—turned out to be Gunner Ransom, the billionaire you now work for?”

I grimace. “It sounds even worse hearing it summarized like that.”

My sister laughs. “I don’t know what shocks me more—the shady stunt he pulled or his outrageously generous job offer. He’s got some serious balls.”

“You have no idea,” I mutter.

“Oh, I can imagine.” Ember cackles lasciviously.

I bite my lip. “Do you think I’m crazy for accepting the job?”

“Are you kidding? He’s paying you two hundred grand. I don’t know anyone who would have turned down that kind of money, especially in your predicament.” The sound of running water can be heard as Ember washes her hands. “What are your hours?”

“Seven-thirty to four. I’m off on weekends.”Except next weekend, I think sourly.

“Since you’re in grad school, does he offer flexible scheduling?”

“Yeah. My work schedule will be adjusted once classes start. He’s also paying my tuition. All of it.”