Chapter 2

That night, Emma took the whole department out to dinner at The Capital Grille, where it’s $500 per head.

She really went all out.

Everyone was happy with the free food—except me, of course.

“Claire, it’s over. Stop acting like the world owes you something.”

I shot Ryan a glare. “There’s something wrong with my paycheck. I didn’t get my project bonus.”

Ryan avoided eye contact, which sent a wave of unease through me.

I grabbed his arm. “Where’s my $30k project bonus?”

Ryan finally muttered, “The project’s Emma’s now, so the bonus goes to her.”

No wonder she was feeling generous tonight.

Fine, I could live without the promotion.

No bonus? Okay, I’d even swallow that.

But no promotion and no bonus? Hell no!

Ryan, sensing my growing fury, leaned down and whispered in my ear, “Keep your cool. We’ll talk about this later.”

I picked up my glass of red wine and tossed it in his face. “Keep your cool? Screw that. And screw you.”

The room fell dead silent. All eyes were on us.

Ryan gritted his teeth but forced a laugh. “Haha, no big deal, everyone. Claire just slipped. Enjoy your dinner.”

Emma was quick to grab some napkins, rushing to dab the wine off Ryan’s face. “Claire, come on! You’re a grown woman. How are you still this clumsy?”

I used to feel sorry for her—fresh out of school, baby-faced, always speaking so softly. I’d go out of my way to look after her.

Turns out, I looked after her too well. She even took my boyfriend.

With how cozy they were, no one would believe there wasn’t something going on between them.

After Emma finished cleaning up Ryan, she turned to say something to me, but I beat her to it. “Don’t yell at me. I’ve been scared of dogs since I was little.”

Ryan slammed his hand on the table and stood up, pointing at me. “Claire, enough! We’re here to celebrate Emma’s promotion. Don’t ruin this for everyone because of your attitude.”

Amazing. Helping the other woman yell at his girlfriend. What a guy.

They took my promotion, my bonus, and I was expected to sit there, swallowing my pride and toasting the people who robbed me.

I’ve got feelings, too.

And tonight, no one’s getting off easy. Especially Ryan and Emma.

I swatted Ryan’s hand away. “Your happiness is none of my business.” Then I turned to Emma. “Don’t act like you earned this with skill. Whatever shady tricks you used to get it, just stay quiet and keep your head down. It’s disgusting.”

Emma’s face turned red as she stammered. “Claire, I understand you’re upset about not getting the promotion, but you’ve misunderstood. I don’t blame you.”

Then, as expected, the tears started falling. The classic “poor me” look.

The men at the table immediately started defending her. “Claire, you’re out of line. Emma’s been nothing but great. The company must have had a good reason for promoting her.”

Emma knew exactly how to play them. The guys ate up her “sweet girl” act, calling her “little sis” and everything.

“Oh yeah, you’re so generous. Maybe next time you’ll give her credit for the projects you complete. Last month, you got a $20k bonus, right? Transfer it. Let me learn a thing or two about generosity.”

I stood up on my chair, towering over him, holding his phone out.

He stood there, frozen, not saying a word.

“What did you drink tonight? Windshield fluid? Stop with the cold takes. Use your brain before opening your mouth.”

I turned to another male coworker who had been running his mouth. “I get that you’re straightforward, but that doesn’t mean you should talk out of your ass.”

Ryan tried to step in, using his “boss” voice. “Claire, I’m ordering you to apologize to Emma. Now.”

I’d been too busy with deadlines to put Ryan in his place lately.

“I’m not a customer service rep, Ryan. I don’t apologize for things that aren’t my fault.”

At that, Emma’s tears came down harder. She sobbed out, “I’m sorry, Claire... I didn’t mean to upset anyone... It’s all my fault.”

I couldn’t help but poke at her more. “Exactly. It’s all your fault.”

“If you don’t want to eat, Claire, you can leave,” Ryan said.

Who said I wasn’t eating? The food’s free, so why not? I called over the waiter and ordered more dishes. The way he glanced at us told me he knew something was up.

After all, at this table, we had people with clenched jaws, others hiding tears, and me with a grin I couldn’t suppress.

I’d pissed off so many people at this dinner. Sorry, not sorry. I’ll do it again next time.

You know, I might not make everyone happy, but I can definitely make sure everyone is equally pissed off.