Love Through LimeLight by Farrah Abraham Read Free Book Online

would like him as soon as I met him. Did you check out his
ass? I bet he can do squats for hours.”
    Arianna giggles and I can’t believe what I’m hearing. She
brought both of them in for such a stupid reason? This is a business, not a
dating service. I open my mouth to respond to that but close it without saying
a word. Arianna looks mildly confused when I walk past her and head for my
office.
    I come back less than two minutes later with a packet I have
already prepared. Truth be told, I prepared it weeks ago and have been torn
between using it and throwing it out. I give it to her in a motion that speaks
of confidence I didn’t know I had until right then.
    “What’s this? Tickets to something?” Arianna turns it over
in her hand, prepared to rip open the envelope.
    “It’s your severance packet and a copy of the non-disclosure
you signed, in case you’ve forgotten the legalities of ceasing your employment
here.”
    Arianna’s dumb smile stays plastered on her face, and it’s
painfully clear that she doesn’t understand what is happening. I decide to help
her out a little bit and head to the utility closet where we keep all of our
office supplies. I give her a big white box. “Please empty your desk. You can
carry all of your stuff out in this.”
    That does it. Arianna’s eyes go wide and fill with tears.
She opens her mouth and I hold up my hand. “Don’t. Seriously, don’t even
bother. I could fire you based on just what has happened today. You failed to
prepare the notes for my meeting. You left the conference room a mess. You
invited people in for a business meeting without consulting me and in the
process you potentially gave out sensitive information. Which, by the way, is
illegal according to the contract you’re holding. Just get out. Quietly. Leave
and this won’t have to get ugly.”
    Arianna’s mouth closes slowly and without another word she
heads toward her desk and empties it of all of her personal belongings. I have
no doubt that she would have either stolen or broken something on her way out,
had I not be standing right there. Instead, she makes her way to the door
without even looking at me again.
    When she closes the front door, I woodenly walk around the
office and turn off of the main lights. Then I lock the door and sit down
carefully on one of my couches. Laughter bubbles out of me before I can stop
it. It swells in my throat and spills out of my mouth in huge guffaws.
    It feels so good that I let it build and build until the
entire space is echoing with the sound of my mirth. I imagine that if anyone
else saw me right now, they would think I’m crazy. But I don’t feel crazy.
Stressed, worried about replacing my assistant, and tired of being beaten down,
yes. But I don’t feel crazy.
    Instead, I feel strangely empowered. Like Arianna was one of
the last vestiges of the old me. The me who cared more about people’s asses
than what was in their head. The me who didn’t think one missed deadline was
the end of the world.
    I am growing. As a woman and as a person.
    And that is a good thing. I lean back against my couch in
the dark, grinning like a fool even though I have an insane amount of work that
needs to be completed today. I feel liberated.
    And I have myself to thank for that. No one else.

Chapter Six
     
    “Are you sure that you know what you’re going to make?”
Giulia doesn’t bother to keep her voice smooth and even this time. Instead, she
practically laughs with her excitement, and I can’t help but mirror her
enthusiasm.
    After my break-up with Barry and firing Arianna, I’ve been
in a weird place mentally. It was good and I am happy but at the same time I
feel a little lost. Without the safety net of my old life and some of my bad
habits, I’m not entirely sure what to do with all of my boundless energy. I
need direction that won’t turn me into a fifty-year-old workaholic. I can’t
just live for my business goals but at the same time, it isn’t