Chapter 7
Why are men called male sluts? Aren’t they just sluts, too? ~ Text from Suzie to Hailey
When the elevator doors open to the floor where the offices to You Cheat, We Eat are located, I can barely get out of the elevator as the hallway is completely and totally packed with people. What the hell is going on? We have interviews this morning. Our candidates aren’t going to be able to get through the stupid hallway. This is a disaster.
I start pushing my way through the crowd. “No butting in line, doll,” someone says and snaps her gum before moving to block my progress.
I’m late and I haven’t had my coffee yet. She needs to get out of my way – now. “I’m not butting in line. I’m trying to get to work.”
“Yeah, sure, doll. End of the line.”
My sleepy mind catches up. Oh, shit. Are all these people here to interview with us? My eyes sweep through the crowd of people. All women who are scantily dressed. And scantily dressed is putting it nicely. Provocatively is more like it. What the hell did Suzie put in the job description?
I start pushing my way through the throng once again. The woman who yelled at me for butting in line grabs my arm to prevent my progress. I glare down at her. “Get your hands off of me.”
“The end of the line is the other way.”
I get in her face. “Since I own the business, I don’t think I need to get in line. Now, get your hands off of me.” She drops her hand. “And get out of here. We won’t be hiring you.”
Her face falls. “But—”
I raise my hand. “Save it. You’re not who we’re looking for.” In fact, most of the women standing in this hallway are not what we’re looking for. Freaking Suzie. What was she thinking?
I watch until the woman turns around and leaves before making my way through the rest of the hallway. The crowd parts for me since they heard me shout down the place about me doing the hiring. I open the door to the office and then slam it shut and lean against it as if the horde was trying to barge in. They aren’t. Yet.
Suzie looks up from her desk with a huge smile on her face. “Did you see how many candidates we have? Way more than last time.” She frowns. “I don’t think I bought enough donuts.”
“What do you put in the ad?”
She shrugs as her cheeks turn a dusty shade. “Just that we’re looking for help.”
“Your exact words.”
“Um.” She bites her lip. “I don’t remember.”
I raise my eyebrows and cross my arms over my chest. Doesn’t remember, my ass.
“Looking for honey to add to our honeypot,” she mutters.
I pretend to clean out my ear. I could not have heard her correctly. “You put those words in the ad? No wonder the hallway is full of hookers!”
“Hookers?” Suzie claps. “I’ve never met a working woman before. This is fascinating.”
I stomp over to her desk, place my hands on it, and bend over to glare at her. “No, this is not fascinating. This is a disaster is what it is.”
“Come on. You have to admit a hooker is the perfect person for a honey trap.”
“Um, no. I don’t have to admit anything of the sort. The husbands of our clients are not going to pick up a hooker at an upscale bar.”
Suzie snorts. “Sure, they are. Men are pigs.”
I raise my eyes to the ceiling and beg whoever’s up there for a bit of patience. I get why she’s a man-hater. Her ex, Toby, did her wrong in all the ways a woman can be done wrong. But she’s letting it affect her work, which I can’t let happen.
Running honeypot schemes is one of our main sources of income. Unfortunately, the woman who used to serve as the honey in our schemes recently got engaged. Her fiancé put the kibosh on her picking up men in bars. Even though Renee didn’t actually do anything beyond a bit of flirting with the men, her man put his foot down. Which is why we’re now trying to find a new Renee.
“If you’d let me play the sexpot, we wouldn’t have to interview anyone.”
I bite my tongue from laughing out loud at Suzie. Suzie a sexpot? Sure, the woman is cute as a button. She’s also short and tends to trip on thin air when walking in heels.