I was literally shaking when I left Michael Sole’s office. I was surprised I still had the job!

Gathering myself quickly, I rushed down to the reception desk to look for Rebecca again. She took me up to introduce me to Silvia and the three of us sat down together to discuss my role. It was mainly Silvia’s task, but I could sense that Rebecca wanted to sit with us and gossip.

The two of them must have noticed the lack of color in my cheeks, because Rebecca turned to me, looking concerned. “Oh, no. You look like somebody who’s about to quit.”

I shook my head, forcing a weak smile on my face. “No, I’m alright. It’s just first day nerves. That’s all,” I told her.

She exchanged looks with Silvia, who turned to me now. “It’s okay, Aria. You can tell us if he’s being difficult with you. We’ve all experienced it. He expects superhuman achievements from all of his employees,” Silvia stated and sat back with a thump on her chair.

We were gathered around a small table at the staff canteen. Rebecca had poured coffee into three cups and brought it to us. I shook my head again. It was my first day. I didn’t want to be gossiping about my boss on my first day.

“He was fine. I have no complaints,” I insisted.

Rebecca smiled and put a friendly hand on my own. “It’s okay. We won’t tell. We’re not rats. We’ve all heard the rumors about him and his secretaries,” she said and exchanged another knowing glance with Silvia.

My heart seemed to be leaping out of my chest. Did Michael hit on all his secretaries? Was that what they were trying to tell me? “What rumors? What does he do to them?” I asked, looking petrified.

Silvia laughed. “Becky! You’re scaring the poor girl. He’s not dangerous or anything. It’s not like you should be afraid for your life around him. He’s just never satisfied with anybody’s work,” she told me, and I tried to hide the relief that was washing over my face.

I shouldn’t have been offended by that. So what if he hit on all his secretaries? It would prove that I was nothing special. It was just his nature. But somehow, I didn’t like the idea of him trying to seduce all the women who worked with him.

“Well, I guess I’ll have to wait and find out,” I told the women, who smiled sympathetically at me.

“He’s going to make you work like a mule. He’ll make you do all his dirty work. Be prepared to fetch him his lunch and get his clothes dry cleaned and send flowers to all the women around the city he’s offended!” Silvia continued and the two girls giggled.

The last bit caught my attention. If I was a dog, my ears would have perked up. I tried to sound casual. “What do you mean offended? What has he done to them?” I asked.

Silvia laughed indulgently. “Are you serious? You’re telling me you don’t know what Mr. Sole’s reputation is around town?” she asked, gawking at me.

I shook my head. It was the truth. Until a few minutes ago, I didn’t even know who he was. I knew what his mouth tasted of and how his fingers felt all over my body . . . I could still feel the sensation of his velvety tongue running down my neck. But other than that, I knew nothing about Michael Sole.

“Oh, Aria. How do I put it sensitively for you so that you’ll understand? He likes women and they like him,” Rebecca said, and the two women giggled amongst themselves.

I should have known. What else did I expect to hear? I breathed in sharply, sucking in my gut as I stared down at my coffee cup. “Oh, right. That,” I mumbled while the two of them continued.

“Yeah, but it’s not like he’s a serial dater or anything that honorable,” Silvia added and rolled her eyes.

“No. If the relationships with these women were anything close to legitimate, it wouldn’t make the situation so bad. Mr. Sole is . . . He basically has a lot of sex with a lot of women,” Rebecca continued.

I didn’t know where to look. I hoped they couldn’t see on my face how close I was to be one of those women.

“You mean in the office, too?” I asked and Silvia shrugged her shoulders.

“Not that we know of,” she said.

“Never anyone from this office,” Rebecca added.

“If only we were that lucky!” Silvia said and the two of them sighed. I was surprised to hear them talking about their boss like that. One minute they were dissing him for his bad behavior and attitude, and the next minute they were practically drooling over him.

“I mean, have you seen that jawline?” Rebecca hissed, leaning closer towards us.

“I once had to deliver some papers to him at his penthouse. You know, he has an indoor swimming pool in that building,” Silvia added and Rebecca gasped.

“No, you didn’t!” Rebecca exclaimed and her friend nodded her head, a victorious look on her face.

“I saw him in nothing but his swimming trunks. I know exactly what he’s packing under . . . ” Silvia said as I stood up from my chair with a jerk. I’d had enough. I couldn’t dare to sit there and listen to another word. I could feel the tightness in my belly . . . Was I jealous or just uncomfortable?

“I think I should go find my desk and get started with work,” I exclaimed.

Rebecca and Silvia looked up at me with disappointment, like I’d just crashed their private party.

“Sure. Yeah, I’ll show you up. There’s a lot of stuff you need to sift through,” Silvia warned me as she stood up.

I threw Rebecca a smile of gratitude and carried my coffee mug with me as I followed Silvia. Not that I needed any caffeine to get through the day. My adrenaline was doing the job for me already.