“They pulled it off good,” another said. “They never did any flirtatious touching and never left a traceable trail of their tryst. No notes. No e-mails. Can you imagine the insane sexual tension? They acted like strangers.”
“Until the post-shift cocktails,” another laughed.
“Think they made out in the elevators?” Daryl asked.
“Dude, there are security cameras.”
“Hey, Jack’s the boss. He can have them discreetly turned off.”
They all burst out in laughter.
Britt peeked her head over the cubicle and glared at them. “I see our relationship is the center of office gossip. Nothing is juicier than other people’s love lives, especially when it's supposed to be a secret.”
“We’re sorry,” Joe said. “We didn’t know you were standing there.”
“Obviously not. You know what? Dating the boss and all the gossip that comes along with it can be quite daunting. But I love Jack and we’re taking the leap of faith to pursue a serious relationship. We’re not hiding it anymore. We love each other and we vowed to keep it very professional at work. If you can’t handle it, then I suggest you quit. Because Jack is the boss and he wouldn’t want to hear this kind of talk. And I won’t work around all this gossip.”
“We’re sorry,” Daryl said.
“Did I mention I’m fighting for Jack to keep this company? He’s mentioned selling it or closing it down because he has no reason to keep Creative Consulting. And that means you won’t have a job. I fought for your jobs. If I wasn’t his girlfriend, you’d be out of a job right about now, so you should be thanking me, not cracking jokes. Because I’m fighting for you.”
“Wow,” Joe said. “I feel so bad. I’m such an idiot.”
“Have a nice day, guys.”
Blushing, they rushed off as she sat down.
Later, when she went to talk to Marj, she found that some changes were being implemented already.
“Looks like they’re getting a replacement for Fitzsimmons,” Marj said. “A whole team is doing interviews next week for a COO to run the place.”
“Isn’t it fantastic news? Jack’s saving the company. I couldn’t be more thrilled or thankful.”
“We’re all very thankful. I swear I’m sending him a fruit basket and card.”
Britt smiled. “Jack has a good heart.”
“I know he does. He doesn’t want to see any of us lose our jobs.”
“He doesn’t.”
“And I want to thank you too. I know you had a huge part to play in keeping this place open.”
“I just simply asked.”
“Thank you.”
“I love this company. I didn’t want to see it go down the drain.”
“Me, neither. Did you know the second conference room is being repainted for Jack to have an office? Supposedly it’s a standalone satellite thing for his freelance work, not part of the company.”
“So why wouldn’t he put that on another floor?” Brit asked. “He owns the whole building.”
“No shit? He owns the entire building? Well, no wonder you didn’t want that guy from Tinder. You had, like, that millionaire from Pretty Woman all along!”
Britt laughed. “You just compared me to a hooker.”
“I did not!”