InstructionbySeduction by Jessica Shin Read Free Book Online Page B

door behind you, please.”
    “Am I in trouble?”
    Bob laughed.
    “No, not at all.”
    “Okay then, I’ll shut the door.”
    Bob laughed again.
    “I love your sense of humor, Leah.”
    “More laughs than a sitcom, that’s me.”
    Leah took a seat and stared at Bob across his desk. She was
still fairly sure she was in trouble despite his assurances.
    “Leah, how long have you worked for FoodSmart?”
    “Well, I was at the west side location for about a year and
half, then worked somewhere else for a while, then came here almost two years
ago.”
    “Good, good. I have to say that I’m very impressed with how
you present yourself. You’re responsible, professional, stellar with the
customers. I’d like to offer you a promotion to shift manager.”
    Leah blinked a few times, tempted to pinch herself. Was she
hallucinating? Was something good happening to her?
    “Are you serious?”
    Bob chuckled. “I’m very serious. It would mean more hours
for you so you’d be coming in on Mondays and Tuesdays to help me do scheduling.
Probably help with interviews and such as well. Oh, and a fifteen-percent
raise.”
    Leah thought of her withered bank account and smiled.
    “You don’t have to give me an answer today,” Bob continued.
“I know you probably need to think about it and weigh your school
responsibilities, so just let me know in the next couple of days. Any
questions?”
    “Who would I be managing?”
    “Whoever happens to be working that shift. You’d still be
working of course, probably helping wherever help is needed and assisting
customers as necessary. You won’t be running the register full-time since
you’ll be needed to handle issues as they come up.”
    “Okay.”
    “Go home, think it over. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
    Leah nodded and smiled. She floated out of Bob’s office and
outside to her bike. Manager? Were they crazy? Leah wondered what Hale
would say. Probably something like, they see what you’re good at…why don’t
you?
    * * * * *
    Leah sat on her bed staring at the box. When was it too
early to call Hale? Would he show up before dark? Leah checked her watch.
Sunset was still an hour away. She got up off the bed and paced. What would he
say to her? Would he somehow already magically know what had happened to her
the last two days? Somehow she suspected as much. He seemed to know her inside
and out…and it didn’t matter. He felt right in every way, so who cared if he
was Mr. Mysterious?
    Damn it I do , Leah thought. But when will I
have the guts to confront him about what he is?
    Bang, bang, bang!
    Leah jumped. She ducked into the bedroom and looked at the
box, which was standing wide open. She smiled and shook her head then dashed to
the door.
    “Hey,” Hale said with a smirk. He breezed into the apartment
and immediately sat down at the kitchen table.
    “No beer today?”
    “Maybe later,” he said. “I hear you’ve had an interesting
few days.”
    “You hear? From whom?”
    Hale shrugged. “Tell me about the guy at the party.”
    Leah shrank a bit at the memory. She sat down at the table
with Hale and raised her knees up under her chin, resting her heels on the edge
of the chair. She hugged herself.
    “I guess I gave him the wrong signals. He thought he could
do something with me and instead of letting myself get steamrolled like I have
in the past I told him to stop. It sounds like such a stupid, easy thing but it
really was hard for me. I had to think about the comfort zone and move out of
it to…I don’t know…assert myself.”
    Hale smiled and nodded.
    “I like it. I hope you told him exactly where to stick it.”
    Leah laughed. “I used profanity.”
    Hale smirked. “Good, good. Now what’s this about a
promotion?”
    Despite her earlier surety that Hale would already know all
about it, Leah’s stomach flip-flopped when he confirmed it. She’d spoken to no
one since leaving Bob’s office only a few hours earlier. Hale really did know
it all. You can be