Page 3 of Face Off With Fate

“Caleb, you piece of shit, give me back my⁠—”

The words died on my tongue as my eyes adjusted to the light, which steeped the room in varying shades of red glow from the LED strips tacked unevenly along the ceiling. Perfect setting for the horror-porno I’d seemed to barge into. I blinked a few times, trying to confirm what was in front of me—pale, bare ass cheeks.

My damaged shoulder collided with the flimsy doorframe, the smell of sweat and sex finally registering in my brain.

That thumping was not my heart.

Caleb whipped around, his usually blond hair a pale red under the lighting. “What the hell, Gracie? Why the fuck are you holding a wizard’s staff?”

I was too shell-shocked from finding our boss on all fours to respond.

The very woman who, not twelve hours earlier, had clasped my hand and told me I was “a shoo-in” for the position.

“Gracie!” Tyra scrambled, hair flying everywhere as she yanked the navy sheet around herself, clutching it in her manicured hand. “What are you doing here?”

A hollow laugh tumbled out. “Me? Pretty sure I should be asking you that.” I waved a hand. “But hey, now I understand why your email said I wasn’t the right person to fill the position.”

“That is not⁠—”

“Gracie, baby,” Caleb cut in, arms spread wide like he was posing for a photo. He even flexed, making his pec jump. “I didn’t know you were into this, but I’m down to try. You can watch, you can join…”

“Ew.” I tightened my grip on the hockey stick and swung at his balls. He jumped back with a strangled squeal. “Put your dick away, no one wants to see that.”

“What the hell! Did you just try to attack me?”

“Please,” I rolled my eyes. “I pointed in your direction…enthusiastically.”

“Gracie, you’re crossing a line. Stop while you’re ahead.” Tyra snapped, doing her best to appear in control despite being naked in the middle of a mattress piled with crumpled sheets and clothes. Damn thing wasn’t even on a box spring, much less a bed frame.

I barked out a laugh that bordered on unhinged, leaning on the tallboy dresser for support. Those words were code for shut the hell up. I’d spent eighteen years biting my tongue to appease others. I didn’t do that anymore.

“You had me fooled.” My hand shook as I pointed at her, orange nails appearing crimson. “I believed you when you said you wanted to empower women in the sports media industry. But clearly that was bullshit. Because you gave a mediocre white man a position he doesn’t deserve. He’s as shit in bed as he is at his job, and you know that.”

“Hey.” Caleb folded his arms over his muscled chest, shooting me a pathetic pout. “I’m n⁠—”

“Enough.” Tyra straightened her back, shooting daggers my way. “Your behavior tonight is completely unprofessional.”

“Funny, I was about to say the same thing about you.” I tilted my chin up with false bravado. “Have you told HR about you two, or should I?”

She didn’t even blink. “Consider this your notice, Gracie. You’re terminated, effective immediately.”

Her words hit like a sucker punch, knocking the air from my lungs. My knees threatened to buckle and I clutched onto the hockey stick like it was my lifeline. I just knew that when I unclenched my fists, there’d be perfect indentations of where my hands were.

“You’re firing me?” The words came out louder than expected. “For unprofessionalism?”

Of all the ways I’d imagined tonight going, this was not one of them.

“Yes.” Tyra’s head was tipped so high she was practically addressing the ceiling. Her blonde locks trailed down her back, and her lips pulled up in a sneer. “You’ve crossed boundaries and shown you can’t separate personal entanglements from work. That’s not someone I can trust in a high-visibility role—or in any role representing my company.”

She was flipping this back on me, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to stop it.

“HR will be in touch with the paperwork. Don’t bother coming in tomorrow.”

My mind whirled, unable to latch on to a single thought. Every solution slipped through like sand. The only thing that stuck was one question: what the hell am I supposed to do now?

“Tough break, babe,” Caleb added. Apparently, he had a death wish.

“Go fuck yourselves.” I spat the words and stormed out, the door slamming behind me, cutting off Tyra’s shouts. I needed to get out of there, fast, but my feet were suddenly made of cement blocks.