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Of Corporate Scandals

Chapter 11. Only Classy Girls

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"Five, four, three, two, one, send!"

Everyone cheered and clapped as Percy hit submit on the very last contract and documents for the Water World project. Annabeth smiled as she watched her boss excitedly fist pump the air.

Zoe Nightshade, head of the Operations Department, patted Percy's back with a knowing smile, "Well done, Mr. Jackson. You successfully completed a project without making a complete fool of yourself. Now I can relay back to your father that you are not an incompetent failure."

"Wow thanks, Zo."

She crossed her arms and said, dryly, "Do not call me that, Mr. Jackson."

Drew Tanaka, an executive in marketing retorted to him as she filed her nails, "Well, don't forget, Jackson, you still need to seal the deal with Atlas or daddy won't be happy with you."

He was about to reply, but Charles Beckendorf cut him off, "Don't be such a prat, Drew. We still have time for that."

Hazel nodded in agreement to Beckendorf as she jumped into their conversation, "Yes, we do, but the sooner we seal that deal as well the better."

The young CEO nodded; making a face of mild irritation as Annabeth surveyed the other executives banter back and forth.

Percy cut them off, "Alright, enough of that. That's a battle for another day. How about we go down to the village and have a drink or two?"

"–Can't, I have a date—"

"—Sorry, I'm seeing a show tonight—"

"—I have to pick up my kids—"

One by one, excuse by excuse, all the executives dropped out of Percy's celebratory happy hour. They all congratulated each other once more before going to their respective trains, cabs, and cars to head home to their families and significant others.

Percy sighed as they all left, glancing over at Annabeth, who had been sitting in the corner, typing away on her laptop.

He walked over to her and sat on the corner of his desk and faced her, "I guess it's just you and me, Annabeth. Ready to blow the alcohol budget on just us two.

Annabeth smiled, standing up and pulling her bag over her shoulder, "Hey, what else two is better than one, right?"

Percy nodded, grinned, "Right."

One cab ride to the west side and a handsome tip to a hostess later, Percy and Annabeth were settled at the bar inside a trendy West Village spot. It was lively for a weeknight, packed with the young professionals of New York flocking to happy hour.

"Two espresso martinis, please. Oh, and a round of tequila shots," Percy ordered at the bar.

The music and conversation was loud so Annabeth felt like she was yelling as she situated herself on the bar stool, "Why did you order shots? It's a Wednesday!"

"It's not a celebration unless we do that shot game!"

Annabeth took a sip of her espresso martini, "What the hell is the shot game?"

Percy thanked the bartender who handed them two shots of tequila and limes, "It's really easy. One rule: Whoever blacks out first loses. The winner draws whatever they want on the loser's face with a Sharpie."

Annabeth shot him a look, "You're not serious, are you?"

Percy laughed, handing her the shot, "Of course not." Though, it very much seemed like he did mean it, "Cheers!"

Annabeth clinked his glass, throwing the tequila back and biting the lime..

Percy made a face, "Wow, yeah, that was bad. I actually don't think I've done a tequila shot since college."

Annabeth agreed, "Yeah, let's stick these," she gulped down her espresso martini. "These go down way easier."

They went down a little two easy.

Percy lost count of how many martinis later, but they were collapsing in a fit of giggles at the bar.

"You're so funny, I can't even take it," Annabeth said, draping her hand over his shoulder. As the evening progressed, Annabeth had discarded her blazer and Percy had loosened his tie. Their knees brushed against one another as they chatted over their fourth? Fifth? Round of drinks.

Percy's cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling so much, talking with Annabeth was so effortless. It was like she was the only person in the whole bar, this hot, too crowded bar. Spending time with her made him feel warm, or was that the vodka?

"I'm going to use the restroom," Annabeth said, slipping off the barstool, "Whoa!"

Percy grabbed her waist, as she stumbled, giggling, "Careful."

Annabeth steadied herself on his arm, "I'm good. Wow, you never realize how drunk you are until you stand up."

"Do you want me to walk you there?"

"No, no, I'm fine. Just fine," She leaned over the bar, "Excuse me, excuse me, bartender? Where's the restroom? There?" Annabeth pointed in a completely different direction than the bartender was directing to her.

"Uh, I'm gonna go with you, Annabeth."

She took a step, stumbling yet again. "You know what, it's these damn heels. So impractical." Annabeth slid off her heels, handing them to Percy, "Will you hold these? Come on."

Annabeth took his hand, leading him and weaving her way through the crowd towards the back. Percy followed, trailing behind her and carrying her shoes. He waited for her, leaning against the brick wall outside of the restrooms. In true West Village fashion, it had gotten rowdier and rowdier as the sun went down, even on a weeknight. He checked his watch, it'd been awhile for Annabeth to be in there.

He craned his head, looking through the crowd for her blonde. Percy found his assistant chatting animatedly with a group of girls. She squealed when she saw him, pulling him over, "Percy, it's her birthday! Girls, this is my boss."

One of the girls, in heavy makeup and a crop top smiled at him, "Ooh, you're right he is so cute."

Percy blushed, "Uh, Annabeth—"

"It's her birthday, so we're going to do a shot with her."

"Annabeth, I don't really think that's a good idea—" Annabeth was already cheersing with the birthday girl. He'd never seen her like this, hair mussed, dress shirt unbuttoned, so friendly with strangers.

He grabbed her waist, guiding her away, "I think it's time we go home."

"Aww, no, Percy, please," she tugged the collar of his shirt, pouting, "I'm having so much fun."

He gulped, he did not stand a chance with the way she was looking at him. He said nothing, continuing to lead her towards the exit.

Annabeth was still a giggling mess as Percy helped her inside a cab, sliding in on the other side.

"Address?" The cab driver asked.

"Where do you live, Annabeth?" Percy asked as he buckled her in.

"My shoes!"

"I have them. Where's your apartment?"

Annabeth stuck her foot up, "My shoes please, sir." Percy sighed, sliding her heels onto her feet like the prince to Cinderella, "I live in New York."

Percy could tell the cabbie was getting irritated, but he couldn't help but smile at this carefree version of Annabeth, "I know, but what's your address."

"I'm not telling a stranger where I live, silly."

Percy cursed, silently, knowing he wasn't going to get any information out of her. He wished he hadn't left his phone at work or else he would've called Thalia. He sighed, finally sliding in beside her and telling the cabby his address, "I guess I'm taking you home."

It wasn't a very long ride uptown, but when Percy looked down to where Annabeth had rested her head on his shoulder, she was fast asleep.

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The light was too harsh for this to be a good start to the day. Her head ached as if every pulse in her body was a blow to her brain. Her mouth was so dry.

The first thing that registered in her brain was that these weren't her sheets. Annabeth still had her eyes closed, but she could still tell these were not her cotton sheets. Or her bumpy old mattress from college. These were soft, much too soft to be the cotton she owned...more like silk.

Annabeth sat up. She was lying on a high, king-sized bed with blue silk sheets. The right side of the wall was not a wall at all, but a floor-to-ceiling window of the beautiful Manhattan skyline. A window that was letting in way too much light for her eyes at the momentt. There was a sleek, black nightstand next to the bed with a silver, chrome alarm clock. 7:36.

She could hear the sound of a shower coming from the door on the left. She wracked her brain for any clue of what had happened last night. All she could remember was having drinks at the bar with Percy.

Oh my God...

Did we have sex last night? No! Wait, I'm still fully clothed so of course not.

Annabeth glanced down at herself. The buttons on her blouse were unevenly buttoned and her charcoal skirt was hitched not-so-modestly high, but she was still clothed. She saw her heels perched at the end of the bed and no doubt her hair was a disaster, but that still didn't answer what happened.

Just then she heard the shower being turned off and whistling. Her boss stepped out of the bathroom dressed in a white T-shirt and boxers. She almost drooled at the sight of his damp curls, perfectly mussed and plastered to his forehead.

Percy pulled the towel off his head, "Oh, Annabeth, you're awake."

This was weird. This was definitely weird. This was definitely a 'morning after' situation. She was in her boss's bed and he was standing a few feet away from her in boxers.

Annabeth climbed out of bed, smoothing her skirt down and trying to tame her hair into a ponytail, "Mr. Jackson...what happened last night?"

Percy looked away, clearing his throat, "Um, you know, we were drinking a lot and you wouldn't tell the cab driver where you lived. SoI just took you here."

Annabeth's cheeks reddened as she looked down. She buried her face in her hands with a groan, "Oh, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have drank so much. I'm so embarrassed."

Percy waved off the apology, "No, I'm the one who kept buying." He quickly added, "And don't worry, I slept on the couch."

If possible, her cheeks reddened even more. She glanced at the clock and her eyes widened, "I need to get home and get ready for work!"

"Relax, I called in and said we were going to a meeting and we wouldn't be in until later."

"Oh, that's—that's good. I still need to go home and shower."

"You can get ready here."

"But my clothes," She looked down at her wrinkled blouse and stained skirt, which was ripped in the back, by the way, "I can't go to work like this."

Percy said, "I have that covered," He led her over to his dresser and pulled out the second drawer from the bottom.

Inside was an assortment of women's clothes; from lingerie, to work attire, to cocktail dresses, to casual clothes.

"...And why do you a drawer full of random women's clothing."

Percy cleared his throat, "Um...Personal circumstances..."

Annabeth rolled her eyes, knowing what he meant. All of the clothes were souvenirs of the numerous one-night stands Percy had had.

Annabeth crossed her arms, "If you think that I'm going to wear the same clothes a girl you had intercourse with wore, you can think again. This is disgusting."

Percy looked taken aback, "Hey! I washed these. They're clean. Besides, I only sleep with classy girls."

Annabeth raised her eyebrow and picked up a lacy, red thong, "You call this classy?"

Percy snatched it away and threw it back into the drawer. He rummaged around and pulled out a few items, "Here, these look like your size and I don't even remember where these are from."

Annabeth sighed, "Fine." She picked them up and went into the bathroom.

Annabeth took her time in Percy's giant bathroom with a rain shower. She breathed in the clean, familiar scent of his shampoo as she washed her hair.

Annabeth examined the clothing Percy had chosen. She fingered the soft material of a pale blue blouse with a ruffled top and a chic gray pencil skirt. She pulled the clothes on. Percy had been right on the dot; the size was perfect. The skirt was a little shorter than she usually wore, ending at mid-thigh.

She threw her hair up in a bun and fixed her makeup with the spare makeup in her purse and slipped on her heels before walking out of the bathroom.

She exited the bedroom into a wide, open bachelor pad.

One of the walls was, like his bedroom, a floor-to-ceiling window with a perfect view. All the furniture was black leather and the flooring was dark wood. Posters of the Beatles and Led Zeppelin were all over the place as well as pictures of Percy growing up.

She walked around until she found her boss sitting at a stool in the kitchen. Everything there was made from black, obsidian granite and stainless steel.

Percy looked up from his phone, "Hey." He grinned, "I told you they would fit. You look good."

Annabeth blushed, "Thanks."

"I ordered breakfast from the bakery downstairs," Percy pulling bagels out of a brown paper bag.

Annabeth smiled as she sat down on the stool across from him.

"Coffee?"

A/N: Please leave your questions, comments, and constructive criticism in a review below!