“I’ve been on alert ever since Anna told me you’re cozy with the Bennetts,” he continues.
I swallowed hard. Should’ve know that bitch would go right to him.
“She was in San Francisco again a week ago,” Dirk adds. “She saw you and Bennett kissing. I waited for their show to be over to fire you to avoid a scandal. We are a serious marketing consultancy, Ava.”
“I know that.”
“Not an escort service. That clause is in place for a reason. We have a reputation to keep up.” Dirk’s voice is as dickish as it gets.
“I can explain.” My mouth goes dry, and I press my knees together to stop myself from shaking.
“I’m not interested.”
“This isn’t what it looks like.”
“Did you sleep with Bennett?”
“Yes, but—”
“Do we have a clause that specifically forbids it?”
“Yes, however—”
“Then things are exactly the way they look. You know very well the trouble that scandal caused us all those years ago.”
“There won’t be a scandal this time.”
“It doesn’t matter. It’s best to cut the evil right from the root.”
“What the. . . Damn it, Dirk. You can’t leave me without my job, and refuse to pay my bonus and termination deposit.”
“Yes, I can. It’s written in your contract.”
“I won’t be able to afford . . . I’ll lose everything.” Something hard settles in my chest, making it hard to breathe. Keeping my phone between my ear and shoulder, I swipe my sweaty palms on my skirt.
“That’s not my problem.”
“I busted my ass off for you all these years,” I say through gritted teeth.
“And then you opened your legs for Bennett and threw all that hard work away. I thought you were smarter than that.”
“You dick,” I yell into the phone. “You have no right to talk to me like that. The board might have named you CEO, but the reputation of the company was built on my back and on that of other consultants. Your incompetent ass wouldn’t have gotten you where you are.”
“Right. I was about to draft your recommendation letter, but I see one won’t be necessary anymore.”
I nearly swallow my tongue. “What? No, Dirk, look, I’m sorry I said that. I’m just—”
“Don’t bother putting your time with us on a resume.”
“I spent six years in your company,” I shriek.
“If you put us on your resume and someone calls, I’ll give them enough reasons not to hire you. You’ve been warned.”
“I am your best employee—”
“Were. Best of luck,” he says, before I hear dead air. The asshole hung up on me.
I stare into space, my mind blank, my entire body overcome by quivers. Reality seeps in slowly. Finding a new job will take me months. Without the bonus, there is no way I’ll be able to pay my rent, even if I move to a cheaper neighborhood. I’ll have to dig into my savings. Tears roll down my cheeks. The savings were meant to go toward a deposit for my own home. Good-bye, dream of owning my own place.