Page 134 of City of Sin (Men of Manhattan 1)

"My plan is to go over to his place tonight and talk to him. I have a lot to say too."

"He's already heard an earful from me. Unbutton the top button of your blouse, Bee."

"What? No." I put my hand in front of my throat.

"Trust me. Everyone uses their assets to land a good position. All the other hires are probably unbuttoning the top two buttons. The new boss is young. Make him drool. Then maybe we can be cubicle buddies."

I laughed. "You don't think I can land the job with my ideas?"

"I didn't say that. Suit yourself." She turned back to the T.V.

I sighed and unbuttoned the top button of my blouse. It couldn't hurt. As long as I made it clear that I was never going to give him sexual favors. I was not going to have another Mr. Ellington situation on my hands. I still couldn't believe someone was suing him. I should probably find out more about it so I could give my statement too. I quickly pulled on a pair of heels.

"How do I look?" I asked and walked in front of the couch.

"Hirable. Oh!" Kendra stood up and ran into her bathroom. She ran back out and tossed me a tube of lipstick. "Do the whole red lip classic thing. Guys dig that too."

"Is this how you landed your first advertising job?" I untwisted the lipstick from the tube and applied it.

"A girl never kisses and tells. Just kidding. Maybe. It's Valentine's Day, though. It wouldn't hurt to be a little flirtatious. Guys get sentimental about this holiday too, you know. He'll probably hire you just for batting your pretty eyelashes at him."

I smacked my lips together. "I'm not doing that. How do I look now?"

"Perfect. Drool worthy. I can't wait to hear how it goes."

"I think I'm going to get it." I made sure my notebook was in my purse before heading to the door. "Wish me luck!"

"You're not going to need luck." She winked at me.

I'm glad she was so confident in me, because I was getting nervous.

Chapter 65

Bee

It was hard focusing on the words written in my notebook. I was distracted by the thought of talking to Mason later. His words had hurt me. But with each day that passed, they stung a little less and I just missed him more and more. He had been partially right about me. I wanted to move on from Patrick when I had met him. I had been a little easy. Maybe a lot easy. I shook my head. I didn't see why any of that mattered, though. It didn't take away from how I felt right now.

I just needed to make him listen to me. I didn't care that he had stolen my idea. I didn't care that he had pushed me away. He was stopping by Kendra's every night waiting for me to show up. Clearly he realized he had made some mistakes too. But maybe tonight wasn't the best time to do that. I didn't want his judgment to be clouded just because it was Valentine's Day. Or maybe that would help my case. A little extra nudge toward romance never hurt anyone? Says the girl that's been burned.

I took a deep breath and tried to concentrate on the words in front of me. Getting this job would be great. Having a good salary would be great. But I'd still feel empty if I didn't have him.

I turned to the page I had written about fairytales. Maybe I'd pitch that idea today during my interview. Then I wouldn't have to separate out the thoughts of Mason rolling around in my head. My missing him would just make the pitch even more sincere. And it was appropriate considering the holiday.

The subway came to a stop. Normally it was jam-packed during my morning commute, but in the middle of the afternoon it wasn't crowded. I didn't have to shove through anyone getting off. The past few weeks before running away, I had been sharing a cab to work with Mason. If we could work though things, it was still going to be different. He'd be staying home and I'd be heading to work by myself back on the subway. I loved those cab rides. The way he kept his hand in mine and squeezed it whenever he wanted for me to look over at him. Not that he had to do that very often. I couldn't keep my eyes off of him.

I walked up the steps and lifted my shoulders, bracing myself against the cold wind that rushed toward me. If I did get this job, I wondered if any of my former coworkers would throw me under the bus and tell the new boss I was just a lowly secretary. I'd definitely have to prove myself.

I ducked my head down as I walked past a homeless person sitting on the curb. Today I didn't even have a penny to give him. I grabbed the handle of the door I never thought I'd be going through again. I still couldn't believe Mr. Ellington had been fired. I liked the new boss already.

My heels made that annoying clicking noise as I made my way toward the elevator, but it was better than the sound of my beating heart. I could feel it in my bones. This was the turning point.

When I stepped off the elevator, I was amazed by how different the office already looked. The Kruger Advertising sign was gone, and there were people painting the office a pretty shade of light blue. It already seemed more cheery. A large reception desk had been put at the front of the office and a woman was there organizing some papers behind the desk. I really hoped I wouldn't be working alongside of her. Not that she didn't seem nice. I just couldn't do that again.

I walked up to the woman. "Hi, I'm Bridget Cowan. I'm here for an interview."

"Oh, yes." The woman sifted through the papers. "Bee Cowan? Is that it?"

"Yes." I smiled. Kendra must have told them I preferred to be called Bee. I already felt a little more comfortable. I tried to focus on my breathing so that my pulse would be tricked into slowing down.

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