Page 16 of Say It Isn't So

Yeah. Oh.

Well, it was nice knowing you all, see you on the other side.

“Meet me in my office,” he commanded and walked away, getting on the elevator to go to his floor.

I nodded and waited to release the breath I was holding until he was out of sight.

“What do you think it’s about?” Bianca inquired. “We have more advertisers in this next issue than we’ve had in a while. I call that a win!”

“I’m not sure. I thought maybe it was about some advertiser I was talking to last week who wanted out of his contract. But I dealt with it.”

She scrunched her nose.She looks so adorable when she does that.If there was ever a time not to have thoughts like that about Angelo’s daughter it was now. You know, when I was minutes away from walking the plank to my doom. “I wouldn’t worry about it. Maybe Daddy’s giving you a raise or something.”

Why did I sincerely doubt that? “Maybe.”

I walked the rest of my coffee to the nearest receptacle and called the elevator again.

“We’re still on for lunch, right?” Bianca asked, nearing the corner where she’d go to get work done while I confronted the one man who put me on edge.

I tilted my head.Lunch? Sure, if I’m still alive.“I wouldn’t miss it. It’s my turn to pick the place.”

She smiled before walking away. That was another thing I liked about her—her smile. It was quite literally blinding.And again, not the time.

When I finally got to Angelo’s office, I walked up to his receptionist, who told me he was waiting for me.

I knocked on the door anyway to announce myself and he ushered me in, stacking the papers he had in front of him and placing them to the side. “Close the door.”

Being called into the boss’s office was rarely ever a good thing, and judging by the way his eyes were narrowed and he leaned forward to address me, I would have said my Spidey senses were right.

Without preamble, he said, “It’s time for you to go.”

Notplease, sit down, let’s talk,but instead it was time for me to go.

He held his hands together on the top of the desk, probably waiting for me to speak. But I was in shock. “What?” was about all I could come up with.

“You came here to gain experience, and I think you’ve done that. I told you this wasn’t permanent.”

“Sure,” I treaded lightly, “but I didn’t know it’d end now.”

He gave me a pointed look. “All good things must come to an end.”

“So you’re firing me? Just like that?”

With a shake of his head, he explained, “I’m not firing you. I’m telling you I’ll accept your resignation. In fact, I’m even going to do you another favor.”

“What’s that?”

“I’m going to give you the name of another publication that’s hiring. WithBellissimaon your resume, you’ll have no trouble getting an interview. What you do with it from there is up to you.”

“Who is it?” I asked.

“I’ll tell you as long as you agree to leave Bianca alone.”

“Leave her alone?” I wasn’t following him.

He shook his head again. “I wasn’t born yesterday. Do you think I can’t see the way you look at my daughter?” He squared his shoulders and flared his nostrils. “If you agree to leave her alone, then I’ll tell you.”

Not sure I liked this, I dropped my gaze to my shoes, considering my options. “I won’t do that to her. She’s too good to me. She’s my friend. I won’t sell her out for a job I can find online.”

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