Page 57 of Not Safe For Work

The bedroom is probably bigger than Liv’s whole apartment and?—

“There’s only one bed,” she says, looking around like there might be another one hiding in the closet.

“Like I said…”

“But you called and asked for two, right?” I quickly explain the fiasco at the front desk and how we were able to upgrade. “Oh. Well, that’s okay. I can sleep on the couch.”

“I will sleep on the couch, Sparkles.”

“But it’s your trip.”

“That I forced you to go on.”

“Gavin.”

“Olivia.”

“Ugh, fine!” She dramatically flops down on the king-size bed and huffs. “I guess if you insist, I will have to endure the most luxurious sleep of my life.”

Liv meetsAndie for a drink by the pool while I take a nap in the luxurious bed. The drugs usually wear off after five or six hours so I should be fine for dinner tonight.

I’m just about dressed and ready to go when Liv bursts into the villa in a state of distress. I think I can see a vein popping on her forehead.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, finishing the last button on my shirt.

“Do I have to go tonight? Everyone’s talking about me.”

“Everyone? What do you mean?”

“Andie and I were sitting by the pool, and you know how water carries sound? Well, some idiots don’t seem to know that. Like everyone who’s here from the HR team.”

“What were they saying?” My voice comes out raspy, deeper than usual. There’s a part of me that feels fiercely protective over Liv. I can’t let anyone hurt her, not after I was the one that got her in this situation.

I motion for her to sit on the couch with me and she sniffles a few times but doesn’t let any tears slip. I hold on to her hands in between us and she stares down at the connection. After a few moments she finally looks up at me and lets our eyes meet.

“They said Ifinallygot a man to bring me here. And they called me a slut, which I’m used to by now but still.”

Yeah, that’s rough. Especially because I know how wrong they are.

“That’s really shitty, Liv. I’m sorry they said that. But you know they’re all just jealous of you, right?”

“What? They’re not jealous. They think I’m a joke. It’s not like this is the first time people at work have said that about me.”

“Was Stacey one of them?” I ask.

“Yeah, why?”

“She’s asked me out like ten times. Last year on this same trip, she showed up to my room in the middle of the night with a bottle of tequila. She’s jealous.”

“Really? You’re not just making this up so I feel better?”

“I swear. I can show you some of her Slack messages. For someone in HR, they are very inappropriate.”

Olivia starts to laugh. At first, it’s just a light chuckle but then it grows until her whole body is shaking with it.

“Thank you,” she says. “For telling me that. Even if it isn’t true?—”

“It’s true. Don’t you trust me?”

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