The Lemonade Charade

Chapter 1: Another day, another lemonade

You know when it's about to be one of those meetings. Honestly, I should've known the second I walked in the office. My boss, Alison Miller, greeted me at my desk with a kind of lopsided smile, the kind of smile you give to someone whose dog just got hit by a car. And I didn't have a dog, so I probably should've realized this was a big, fat red flag.

"Hey, girl! I got you a Wendy's Lemonade, our favorite!" Another red flag. Yeah, I mean Wendy's Lemonades are our favorite, we drink them together every day. But here's the thing –she always makes me go out and get them. Almost every day after lunch, she hands me the corporate card and says, 'Let's get some afternoon treats.' But today was not one of those days. Today I walked into the office and found a delicious Wendy's Lemonade waiting for me on my desk. I should've known right then and there this day was about to go sour.

So, I started to get settled in and pull out the latest tax report I'd been working on. It wasn't a glamorous job – I'd never say I was passionate about accounting – but I was really good at it. Better than I've ever been at anything else. My plan was to put in ten more years at this firm, become a partner and then have the time travel the world, discover my true passions, and hey, maybe even open my own Wendy's.

Just as I pull out the report, my boss, Alison, pops her head over the edge of my cubicle.

"Hey Laura, I know you're probably super busy, but could you meet me in the big conference room in 5? The partners and I would like to talk to you for a quick sec."

"Got it, thanks Alison!" I did not in fact get it. What could this possibly be about? I've never missed a deadline, all of my clients love me, I've even helped score some major new accounts. Maybe they were offering me a promotion, but I thought that was at least another year off, maybe more. I mean, it's not like they were firing me, right? Right?

As I slurped down the rest of my lemonade I started to panic.