Total pages in book: 30
Estimated words: 28781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 144(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28781 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 144(@200wpm)___ 115(@250wpm)___ 96(@300wpm)
He was clearly out for blood this year. I imagined Dustin wouldn’t survive one more year if Max continued to torture him this way, but part of me felt like maybe keeping Dustin below the forty-seventh floor made him try so hard that no amount of money in the world would compete? Work ethic, one hundred percent.
Nervous breakdown—too soon to tell.
“So…” Max popped back, actually popped back on his heels and rubbed his hands together like he went to school and majored in villainy. “Let me announce the teams.”
I took another deep breath and tapped my pen against the table while he paired off every intern around us, bored out of my mind and knowing that any minute one of the interns was either going to pass out or just walk away from the opportunity.
“And Ace, as a special bonus for you, I’m pairing you up with Bri, she was the only intern that didn’t mark down her zodiac sign so I had to just go for what would be the best pairing.”
The hell? Zodiac signs?
Did I pass out for two seconds?
Interns had to put down their Zodiac signs now?
“A Taurus and a Virgo! The perfect pairing. Congrats, and now I’ll explain the rules.”
I should not have blacked out from boredom.
Max continued, “For the next week interns will compete as partners with their superiors in…” Please no drum roll, please no drum roll. Bri looked down at her lap, I could see the deep swallow, the terror in her eyes, the way she fidgeted like she wasn’t sure if she should walk out, bite her nails or actually finally make eye contact. “The Emory Games Maze Runner Challenge!”
Oh shit.
She hated games and got lost driving home at least three times during the year we dated.
She also got lost at Wal-Mart and one time, at a corn maze for kids, asked a five-year-old for help who then in turn thought she was trying to kidnap him, yelled stranger danger causing the entire place to shut down and the fire department and police to show up.
No. No. Not gonna work. We were already losing before starting.
I almost raised my hand and begged to change partners, the past between us was too much to get through, add in a maze, and me being her partner on top of being her boss, no.
Max continued completely oblivious to the fact that every single intern looked ready to puke and every single superior wanted to quit, we’d already done our time in his weird games and while they almost always went viral and made the news, they took away from real work and were oftentimes dangerous, despite all of those actual facts—other companies started their own games to follow suit so now it was almost like this corporate TikTok challenge only worldwide. I swear on my dear sweet grandma, bless her crotchety soul, that Max Emory could take over the world if he had the time. Imagining him with a giant red button actually kept me up at night.
I crossed my arms and attempted to pay attention again, despite having Bri standing next to me. She hadn’t changed her perfume, damn it.
Max grinned and held out his hands. “Dustin will pass out red folders with consent forms, an NDA, and you know the accidental death form where we aren’t liable as a company if you have a heart attack out of fear, and I assure you that has never happened, we’ve had a few close calls, but the interns were past thirty-five and we all know that’s when things start to go downhill.”
Wow, how encouraging.
Max waited for Dustin to hand out the folders, then adjusted his tie. “The first game begins in five minutes. Again, this helps provide a good company culture and also gives you an opportunity to earn more money. We’re so happy you’ve signed on this year. Please read the documents and sign them as fast as you can. If you look at the bottom of your folder, you’ll find a key to the Emory Hotel properties where you’ll be staying for the next year for free, just part of a company bonus we always include. If you fail the games, you’ll still of course work for us but won’t get the prize money set at, a record high of one hundred thousand dollars on top of all of your student loans getting paid off, if you still have them, and if you don’t, a marginally large down payment toward a car or house. And not to quote Hunger Games…” He laughed. “But may the odds be ever in your favor.”
Shit. The odds weren’t even close to being in our favor by the look on Bri’s face when she stared at the folder and pulled out the documents, hands shaking.
Part of me felt bad because I knew she wanted to pay off her loans, but another larger part of my brain and heart told me it would be better off if we lost right off the bat, because a week by her side would probably kill me, even if she was cruel and hateful, I’d still remember the good times and all it would take would be one smile in my direction.