A Work In Progress

Chapter Eleven: An Aftermath

Two hours later, the car stopped at the front door of my building and Joe, the night doorman, opened the door for me.

Evening Miss Adair. He tipped his cap but I barely noticed. He rushed around me to push the elevator button. I hope you get to feeling better, Miss Adair. The elevator doors closed on Joe.

I had never spent such a miserable evening any where. The doors opened to my floor and I rushed to my door feeling a combination of frustration, humiliation, and rage. I slammed the door closed and locked it behind me. I had spent the night talking and certain that maybe a tenth of everything I had said had reached the ears of my colleagues and co-workers, or at least the male ones. John O Brien, a man whose job I wanted and was doing for him already, had spent all of a ten minute conversation with me trying to find a way to look down my blouse. I caught a CEO of a real estate firm staring at my ass. Man after man had ogled me and it got more obvious the longer the night went on. I could have standing there talking about Nuclear Physics, world famine, or just grunting like some monkey and they would have all heard the same thing. All they cared about were my boobs. All they could thing about is getting me out of my panties. A few men from other companies had made lewd offers the longer the alcohol flowed. When I threw my drink on one that offered to let me have the ride of my life on his bed, he had the nerve to be angry and call me a bitch!

By the time someone squeezed my ass, I had had more than enough. I could feel the tears threatening and I knew crying would ruin me in my career, so it was time to go. I charged for the door concentrating on the rage. Once in the car, the humiliation set in. How could they treat me like that? Most of them acted as if I should be honored at the crude advances and open attempts to see more of my body than I was willing to display. By the time the car stopped, I knew that was what they were thinking because I had thought it too. I had even grabbed the occasional ass at a party, just as someone had grabbed mine tonight.

I washed myself twice in the shower. There was no exploring of new sensations this time, only the burning urge to wash those looks off of me. I was not sure how I was going to be able to work on Monday. Then I recalled that my co-workers were only a small part of that gathering and there was no drinking in the office, so most would be able to act professional. It was my first time to be on the other end and it was not the honor I had thought women should feel it was to be treated like I was.

When I got out of the shower the phone was ringing. I had one of those feelings like it was ringing urgently, but, of course, a phone just rings.

Hello? I asked into the receiver.

Jamie! It was Mari Willbanks. She and I were equals and working hard to get to the top of the ladder faster than the other. It had been a bitter rivalry before, now I saw you rush out and I was worried about you girl!

I m okay. I said quietly into the phone.

Jamie, she said in a lecturing tone, I am outside your building.

Okay. I hung up the phone and called down to Joe to let her in the building. I knew I had a few minutes so I got a long tee shirt that used to hang to just above my knees before and now it was halfway down my claves, swept my hair up into a towel built turban and made my way to the door just as a soft knock sounded from it.

I opened the door and Mari instantly hugged me, and fiercely. I saw Reily reach and your eyes shot open wide, that little bastard. She patted my back and I closed the door as she headed for my sofa. You still haven t redecorated from tossing out that creep you had?

No. I shook my head and sat on the sofa as well. The truth was I had no idea what she was talking about. I had tossed out a live in girl-friend before, but then she had started being frigid and No, I tossed her out so I could fuck other women and not listen to her crying when I got home reeking of perfume from an interlude. When she wept telling me how she loved and needed me, I had packed her shit up and tossed it out into the hall. Too busy. I swallowed.

First thing Monday, we file a complaint. She waved a finger at me.

And you know that will get you and I both fired, Mari. I stared at her. Oh don t act so naive. That s why Susan became free when she came to our place looking for work. Russel Thayer was feeling her up in the copy room and she filed a report and he got canned instantly, it took them six months to make her quit before they had built up enough of a case to terminate her.

They can t so that, Mari shook her head at me, it s the law.

No one writes down that you fired them because they filled a complaint, Mari I shook my head right back. You get it for having nothing to do because they made you manager of a new department that they then phase out because it is a duplication of effort or something like that. The real reason that complaint.

No wonder we get paid less than they do for the same amount of work. She shook her head slowly. I need a drink, you?

A sti a drink sounds nice. I smile to Mari.

"Maybe we should tell Mrs. Reily what her husband is doing?" Mari offered as she poured us both a brandy.

"And what makes you think King Phillip Reily isn't going to tell his doting pampered housewife that I wasn't shaking my ass on table tops?"

"But you are a professional woman," Mari was horrified at the thought, "how could she think you would jeapordize your carreer by doing that?"

"Phillip," I said imitating Fancine's nasally voice, "has just added number four to his current rotation of fuck buddies." I took my glass from Mari. "There is a part of her that knows he is cheating on her, and is okay with that as long as she has the lifestyle she wants."

"S'not fair." Mari puffed and took a healthy drink.

"Never is, hon." I lifted my glass to her and joined her in the drink, not about to tell her I knew about Phil's adding his secretary to the list of women he was sleeping with because James the man had walked in on the two of them with her having a mouth full of his hard dick rather than her note pad covered with a dictated letter, or that I had then joined in. How humiliating that must have been for Stephanie.

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