Not The Boss of The Year (The Annoying Hot Bosses Club #2)
Chapter 1
Chapter One
S kye
Dear Diary,
This is the year I want to achieve at least one of my dreams. I’m not picky about which one.
Travel to Australia - Need to save $5000. I have $52.
Have an epic love affair - I have zero prospects.
Run a marathon- I need to lose 30 lbs and start training. Maybe I’ll do a 5K first.
I need to figure out a way to manifest at least one of these things. Unfortunately, I have to go to work right now and don’t have time to plan anything. I’m so fed up with my sucky jobs and horrible bosses. Something has to change or I will jump off of a cliff. Not really, but you know what I mean.
Chat soon,
Skye
“Why don’t you just quit?” My best friend, Elisabetta, stands at the entrance to my bedroom and pouts as I hurriedly brush my hair and attempt to put red lipstick on. “You know you hate that job.” Her voice is pained, as if she were the one rushing to get to another dead-end job.
“I can’t quit until I find another second job.” I stare at my reflection in the mirror. My long red hair is shiny and straight and my green eyes stand out against the gold eyeshadow and black eye liner. I put the hairbrush down and grab the white shirt that is a part of my self-proclaimed uniform. “It’s not the job of my dreams, but it’s better than nothing.”
“Let’s agree to disagree.” She plops herself down on my queen-size bed and sighs. “I wanted us to go out tonight.”
“I can’t quit my job just so we can go drinking, Elisa,” I shake my head as I gaze back at her. “We don’t all have rich dads that are willing to pay all of our bills.”
“It just sucks that you have to work Friday nights.” She sticks her tongue out at me. “We never hang out anymore. You’re always working.”
“That’s because I have three jobs.” I try to stifle a yawn. “I’m Queen Skye of the many jobs. That’s what tons of debt and dreams to travel will do to you.”
“But you hate all of your jobs,” she reminds me, as if I forgot in the last five minutes. “I have no idea how you can work nine to five as a personal assistant at a law firm each week, then two nights a week as a server, and as a dancer some weekends.” She waves her finger at me. “How are your student loans not completely paid off yet?”
“Because none of the jobs are paying me Elon Musk’s salary.” I tap my forehead. “Even though we have the same brain.”
“Sure.” She giggles as she stares at her nails. “Well, I hope I actually get to spend some time with you soon.”
“We will hang out on Sunday when we go on our picnic,” I remind her. I pull on my black slacks and stare at myself in the mirror. I don’t love the outfit, but Five Star Fresh Fish, the restaurant I work at, demands I wear slacks or a short skirt as a server and I’m not wearing a short skirt. “And maybe tomorrow evening as well, depending on how my blind date goes.”
“So that’s still on?” Elisabetta brushes her long black hair back and stares at her shiny red nails like she’s already ready for another manicure, even though she only got them done two days ago. “Have you decided what you’re going to wear yet?”
“No.” I purse my lips as I shake my head. “I don’t know if I should dress casually or super sexy. Camden says he likes his women in heels, but I don’t know if I want him to think he can dictate what I wear.” Camden is a guy I’ve been speaking to on a dating app for the last three weeks. His profile says he’s an investment banker looking for a woman to travel the world with. His photos show a cute blond man with baby blue eyes and dimples. The conversation has been mediocre, but I’m hopeful that we will have chemistry in person.
“I think it’s weird that a man you’ve never met before wants you to wear heels.” Elisabetta rolls her eyes. “I bet he has a foot fetish and just wants to suck on your toes all night.”
“I bet he doesn’t.” I laugh, though now my mind is filled with images of Camden on his knees begging to suck my toes. “I guess I should get a pedicure tomorrow morning, just in case though.”
“You’d let him suck on your toes?”
“When you put it like that, you make me hesitate, but honestly, I wouldn’t say no if I liked him.” I shrug as she gets up and heads toward me, a concerned look on her face. Elisabetta has been my best friend for ten years. We met on the first day of high school and she allowed me to move in with her after we graduated from college. “Don’t judge me,” I furrow my eyebrows as she makes a face. “It’s not like I’m saying he can lick my ass.” I pause and make a wicked face. “The only man I’d make lick and kiss my ass is Kingston Chase, my boss at the law firm. He’s such a jerk.”
“If he’s such a jerk you should quit.” She grins as she wrinkles her nose. “Or maybe you want him to kiss your ass...didn’t you say he’s cute?” She pulls her hair up and wraps it in a loose bun. “What am I supposed to do tonight?”
“No, he’s not cute,” I lie. “You can see if Carrie is available to hang out.” Carrie is another one of our best friends from college. She works as a gopher on a TV show, so is rarely available, but is always fun to hang out with.
“Yeah, I guess I’ll text her,” Elisabetta says reluctantly. “What good is it that I live with my best friend and yet I never see her?”
“You see me, bitch.” I giggle as I grab my handbag and lipgloss. “I just can’t hang out all the time.”
“I can ask my dad if he’s willing to support you as well,” she says, only half-joking. “I bet he’d say okay.”
“Seeing as I’ve never met your dad, I’m going to have to say no.” I shake my head. “But thanks for the offer.” I’ve often wondered why Elisabetta’s dad is never around, but all she says is that he’s very busy with his many businesses. Her mom died when she was young and since then, he’s thrown himself into his work; which may or may not be above board. She said she thinks he’s part of the mafia, but he’s never confirmed any of his dealings to her. Her three spinster aunts Lucia, Gabriella, and Evelina raised her with her stepbrother, Romeo, who she keeps saying she wants to hook me up with.
“You will meet him this summer.” She grins. “At my princess ball.”
“I still can’t believe you’re going through with that.” I shake my head as she twirls around my room, then grabs my hand in an attempt to get me to dance with her. “You’re really going to get engaged to some random man?”
“If I like him enough.” She nods. “There will be at least fifty men there, all vying for my hand.” She spins me around. “You should do it with me. It will be so much fun.”
“No one is coming to a princess ball to get engaged to me.” I laugh loudly. “I have nothing to offer except a hundred and fifty grand in student loan debt.” I groan as I think about the latest statement I’d received. I’ve been paying on it each month, but the balance never seems to go down. “Speaking of debt, I have to go now or I’ll be late for work and then Fabricio will go off on me again and I’ll have to throw a jug of water on his pompous head and then I’ll end up on the news.”
"I'd pay to see that," Elisabetta says as she stops dancing. "He sounds like an asshole."
"That's because he is an asshole," I say, thinking of Fabricio, the greasy manager that loves to treat me like I'm his personal servant and not just a server at the restaurant. I can't stand the man, but the tips are pretty good. However, I've been having conflicted feelings about working there since I found out the items listed on the menu are not accurate. "Anyway, we can bitch about him later when I get back from work. Maybe we can watch a movie or something." I lean over and give her a quick hug. "Have a fun evening."
"I'll try." She follows me out of the room and grabs her phone. "Maybe Carrie wants to grab dinner or something." Her voice trails off in a sad fashion and I watch as she walks across the white oak hardwood floor and drops onto the large white sectional that sits in the middle of our living room.
I love our apartment. It's beautifully furnished and looks like it came out of the pages of a magazine. Elisabetta's dad had given her a credit card with an unlimited credit line to get whatever she wanted and she and I had picked out the best of everything. She grabs the pink silk-covered throw cushion and flings it at me. "I'll miss you, goof."
"Not as much as I'll miss you, Lady Elisabetta." I curtsy and she laughs. "You want to come with me to the center tomorrow?"
"What time again?" She wrinkles her nose and I already know her answer.
"Eight AM." I give her a look. "That's when older people have time."
I grin at her as I explain to her, once again, why I go to the Let's All Read Literacy Center so early on a Saturday morning. My biggest joy in life comes from volunteering to help adults learn to read and write. It helps me to feel like a productive member of society and that I didn't waste $150,000 on student loans for nothing. "I promise you will feel rewarded if you come."
"Maybe…" She makes a face and I would bet my last dollar that she's not going to make it out in the morning. "I'll meet you for brunch afterwards though."
"I'm meeting Camden for brunch," I remind her. "Then we're going to a museum."
"Seems like a lot for a first date," she says nonchalantly. "But I'm sure it will be fun."
"I hope so. I need a good date." I head toward the front door. "What about you? Not calling Bobby back?" Bobby’s the man she's been seeing on and off for the last six months. She can’t stand him, says he has the personality of a washrag, but supposedly he has a long tongue that knows its way around her body so she sees him every couple of weeks when she’s feeling horny.
"I'm not calling him for a week." She winks at me as she holds her phone up. "Bobby has to know that this hot mama is not interested in his games." She leans back onto the couch and shakes her legs back and forth in the air. "He has no idea who he's messing around with. Elisabetta Franco is nobody’s plaything."
"You tell 'em." I grin as I open the door. "Have a fun night. Tell Carrie I said hi if you see her. Invite her to Sunday. My law firm friends Lila and Juniper are going to join, as well as Marie, Lila’s quasi-sister-in-law."
I head out the door and toward the elevator quickly. I have twenty minutes to get to work or I'm going to be late. And Fabricio hates it when employees are late. I don't have time to take the subway or a bus, so I'll have to grab a cab, which is not ideal. I enter the elevator and check my phone. I have three missed calls from my mom in Florida, who's most probably scared I've been mugged or kidnapped for ransom. I know that I will have to call her as soon as I step out of the elevator.