Her Secret Santa - Miley Maine Page 0,5

my five feet seven and he was skinny. I would have said gaunt, even. And pale. So pale it was like he’d never seen the sun before. Well, that was the smog for you… making people paler by the day.

I tried to focus on what he was saying, uh, screaming at me. “Are you fucking crazy? What the hell? Watch where you are going. Why did you slam on your brakes? Don’t you see what a fly ride this is? Are you going to pay for those kinds of damages? Ah, you are damn lucky! Damn lucky you did not scratch my fucking ride!”

I felt the anger welling inside of me just then. I was done being nice. The day had already pushed me past the limit and now this jerk was taking it to another level.

“Shut the fuck up!” I screamed.

The look on his face was so priceless. He stumbled back a step, surprised by my sudden outburst.

“Your ride is a piece of shit, just like mine. No damage is done. Now stop riding my ass and pay attention to what’s in front of you. Fuck!”

I left him standing there and got back into my car. I slammed the door, put it in gear and drove off down the road since the traffic had suddenly started moving again. I was still going to be late to this interview, but I did feel less nervous than I had a few minutes ago. Now, I was just royally pissed off. I would have loved to slap that prick’s mouth shut.

Surprisingly I arrived at Caplan Industries about fifteen minutes early. After my little issue with that annoying driver, the traffic seemed to thin out a bit and I was able to make up some time. Of course, several traffic laws were broken, but I was in too big of a rush to sweat the small stuff.

I turned the engine of the car off and sat there staring blankly ahead for a good ten seconds. I tried to control my breathing and push my breath out in a shallow, easy manner while I closed my eyes and prayed that I would somehow make it through this without any problems. Hey, maybe I might even impress the man. Maybe in the few minutes from my car to the elevator and to the top floor waiting area I might actually become a much suaver and more charismatic individual. It would be like some Hollywood movie. I would release my alter ego.

I snapped back to reality and realized just how sweaty my palms were at the moment. Damn. I was wasting time. Taking a swig from my bottle of water, I slipped out of the car and closed the door behind me. I pressed the lock button on my key fob with authority and then I marched towards the building and what I felt was probably impending doom. He might dismiss me the moment he laid eyes on me.

When I made it to the reception area upstairs, an annoyed woman who looked as if she had far too much work and a nicotine addiction that needed satisfaction right now glared up at me. I tried not to pay any special attention and put on my best smile. “Hey,” I said. “I’m Julie Ashby. I have a meeting with Tony Caplan.”

She rolled her eyes. “Just hold. I’ll let him know you are here.”

I stood there a moment as she picked up the phone and dialed a number. “Hey, Jill. A Julie Ashburne is here to meet with Tony.”

I didn’t bother to correct her on the name. It didn’t seem to matter. She would probably bite my head off at any moment if I asked the slightest thing of her. Some people hated their life. I prayed that would never be me. If I hated a job, then I would just find something else. And I would actively seek it out as if that was my second job. Most people stayed put and did nothing but bitch about their circumstances. I really hoped I would never find myself following down that road at any point in my life.

“Ok, they are running a bit behind. Just have a seat,” she said to me after she hung up the phone.

I didn’t say anything. I sat down in a chair and waited. There was no one else waiting but me. The room was a large one, about the size of a doctor’s office waiting room with rows of chairs all around,