Page 105 of The Dicktionary Club

I paused, realising I hadn’t taken any of this into consideration. I was so invested in getting revenge for Katy that I hadn’t even considered how our website would make the men feel.

‘But hey, congrats! You’ve driven up all the publicity you’ll ever need for your new site. I hope it works out for you,’ Philip snarled bitterly, then turned and headed through the park.

‘Oh, yeah, sure. Walk away. You won’t let me explain. But do you know what, I may have done that, but how many women have you hurt over the years, eh? Don’t pretend you’re innocent when I’ve just heard Natasha’s speech!’ I snapped back.

He held up one hand and continued into the park, not once looking back.

When he was out of sight, I felt my body lower to the ground. I was beaten, empty, and I felt utterly sick. I couldn’t comprehend what had just happened.

‘Ella!’ Andrea’s voice shrieked from behind.

I stumbled back to my feet and turned to face her.

‘You have ruined everything for this campaign! Everything!’

I nodded, fully agreeing with her. ‘I know,’ I said weakly.

In the distance, Katy and Zola bounced down the steps, hurtling as fast as they could in their heels.

‘Come to the office first thing in the morning. Get your shitoff your desk and HR will be ready for you!’ Andrea yelled. ‘How dare you embarrass me like this!’ Venom was seething through her teeth.

‘No! You can’t do that, Andrea,’ Katy yelled back, eventually stepping past her and wrapping her arm around me. ‘This wasn’t Ella’s fault. You saw that girl steal the mic. What could Ella do?’

‘Look at the drama she’s caused!’ Andrea ranted. ‘This is a fucking PR nightmare!’

Zola tutted, wrapping her arm around me from the other side. ‘You can’t fire her for this, Andrea. We set up the site, too; it’s not all on Ella.’

Andrea levelled her gaze at us, her beady eyes narrowing until they were mere slits. It was the craziest I had ever seen her. ‘Nine o’ clock tomorrow morning, the conference room. All of you!’ She turned on her heels and headed back up the steps to the gallery. ‘And don’t fucking dare go near Alexander. I’ll deal with this shitshow!’ she roared as she reached the top step.

I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. As a gasp escaped me, my two best friends tightened their arms around me. I cried and sobbed into their shoulders.

‘What the fuck was that?’ Zola murmured.

‘I think we might actually be getting fired this time,’ Katy said, sounding as much in disbelief as I was.

‘I’m so sorry. I will sort it with you guys and Andrea. I’ll explain everything tomorrow and take the blame. You two don’t deserve to be involved in this,’ I said.

Zola shook her head. ‘No. We’re in this together, yeah? The Dicktionary Club was all of us, not just you. And anyway, we hate that bitch! How many times has she threatened to sack us over the years? But even she wouldn’t risk losing her three top employees. Once she calms the fuck down, she’ll be fine, OK?’

I gulped, trying hard to regain my composure.

‘We should go, Ella,’ Katy whispered, edging her head to thereporters who had followed the tempestuous scene down the steps. ‘Come to mine. We all need to stay together tonight.’

My friends gazed at me, and as much as the thought of Katy’s crumby, piss-stained couch revolted me, the thought of being alone after tonight felt far worse.

I couldn’t speak, so I just nodded. My two friends grabbed my hands and we stumbled through the park together. Each time I felt myself sobbing, I’d feel an arm hold me tighter until, eventually, we reached Katy’s.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Ella

I woke early the following morning sticky with sweat. On either side of me, I could hear the deep-sleep breathing of my two friends. Eventually, I sat up in Katy’s bed, realising I was still wearing last night’s dress. My face felt tender from all the tears and confusion of everything that had happened.

‘Hey, you OK?’ Zola murmured, stirring as I moved.

‘Tell me that didn’t happen last night?’ I could feel my bottom lip tremble.

Zola looked weary. She nudged her head towards the door. We slipped out of the bed and headed into the living room so we could talk and leave Katy to sleep.

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