It’s A Man’s World. Polly Courtney

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СКАЧАТЬ it for a couple of seconds, then slowly pushed it away. ‘Um . . . actually, no. I might just . . . leave it for a bit.’

      Alexa looked at her friend. She knew what the problem was.

      ‘I’ll pay.’

      ‘We could . . . share?’

      Alexa laughed. She could just imagine the barman’s face when they asked for a cocktail with two straws. Then she realised that Leonie was being serious.

      ‘My round,’ she said firmly. ‘What’re you having?’

      Reluctantly, Leonie pointed at one of the martinis on the list.

      ‘Thanks,’ she said quietly.

      Alexa ordered the drinks, grateful that Kate wasn’t here to witness the moment. Public sector teaching salaries were an embarrassment, particularly compared to the rates that could be commanded in their field of work.

      Leonie grasped the slender stem and gently tapped her glass against Alexa’s.

      ‘So,’ she said. ‘What’s the summit in aid of?’

      ‘Well, I—’

      ‘Hi!’ screamed a voice from the doorway. A swoosh of short, raven-black hair could be seen from inside a cloud of suit jackets, laptop bags and rucksacks, all of which were shed in rapid succession and dumped on the bewildered-looking doorman. Kate had arrived.

      ‘Hey, guys!’ Kate leaned forward and threw her arms around the two of them. Alexa smiled as her shoulders were squeezed, aware of the dirty looks they were attracting from other customers. That was the thing about Kate. She had no shame.

      ‘Sorry I’m so late. Bastard project. All the partners have buggered off, leaving me to “just quickly update the pack”. I think tonight might be another all-nighter.’

      Alexa pulled a face. ‘You’re going back to the office after this?’

      Kate nodded, waving to catch the barman’s eye.

      All-nighter. Alexa thought back to her early years at TDS, when, as a fresh-faced graduate, working through the night had been a regular occurrence. She shuddered, remembering how it felt to be trapped in that stale, airless office at three o’clock in the morning, feeling your brain grinding to a halt, filling your bloodstream with caffeine and taurine in an effort to ward off the inevitable exhaustion. Never again. Alexa had done her time. However tempting the salary, she would not be going back to work at a ‘big five’ firm like TDS.

      Kate drew the sugar-coated cocktail towards her. ‘One can’t hurt, can it? Might help me be a bit more creative with my strategy.’ She grinned and wolfed down about five pounds’ worth of drink. Alexa watched, marvelling at her friend’s stamina. She was showing no sign of slowing down as she neared the end of her twenties.

      Sipping her drink, Alexa became aware of Leonie’s eyes on hers. She was still waiting for an answer to her earlier question. Alexa took a deep breath and looked at her friend.

      ‘I’ve been offered a new job.’

      Kate stopped drinking, mid-sip, and lowered her glass to the bar.

      Leonie leaned in excitedly. ‘Where?’

      ‘Within Senate. It’s . . .’ Alexa found herself struggling to say the name out loud. ‘It’s . . . you know the lads’ mag, Banter?’

      ‘Oh my God!’ Kate gasped. ‘Of course we know it! Are they asking you to be editor of Banter?’

      Alexa hesitated. ‘Sort of. It’s similar to what I’ve been doing at Hers. Finding new revenue streams, new channels, that kind of thing.’

      ‘Oh. Wow.’ Kate rocked forward on her bar stool, looking respectfully into Alexa’s eyes. ‘Lex, that is amazing.’

      ‘Well done, mate.’ Leonie raised her glass. There was hesitation in her voice.

      ‘But . . .’ Alexa squirmed, avoiding Kate’s open-mouthed stare and Leonie’s wary expression. ‘I don’t think I’ll take it.’

      ‘What!’ yelped Kate.

      Leonie just looked at her, waiting.

      Alexa sighed. She had been half expecting this set of responses. For Kate, the most important thing in life was career progression. Her beliefs were based on a kind of post-feminist mantra that went along the lines of: women should feel the same pressure to succeed in the workplace as men. She intended to become a partner at TDS before she hit thirty next year and, as far as Alexa could tell, there wasn’t much standing in her way. Leonie, however, was naturally cautious and saw life through the lens of a secondary school teacher – always thinking about the bigger picture.

      ‘Have you ever looked at a copy of Banter?’ asked Alexa, by way of explanation.

      Leonie replied with a loaded nod.

      ‘What’s wrong with girls showing a bit of ass?’ Kate was clearly outraged that Alexa might be considering turning down such an opportunity. ‘That’s what men want! It makes money! Banter is one of the UK’s biggest brands.’

      ‘Yeah. For all sorts of reasons,’ Leonie said pointedly.

      Alexa ignored this comment and turned to Kate. ‘It doesn’t make as much money as you might think. I looked at their financials. Even stripping out the cost of lawsuits, they only make a few pence profit per copy.’

      Kate looked at her, smiling a little. ‘So, you’re already looking at their financial model, then? You want to take this on, don’t you?’

      Alexa shrugged helplessly. No, she wanted to say. No, she didn’t want to take on the role because it was inappropriate and unethical. But there was something inside her that wouldn’t let her rule it out. Peterson had given her two weeks to decide and she had already used up one of them, yo-yoing between the arguments for and against.

      Leonie cleared her throat. ‘I can see why you wouldn’t.’

      ‘What?’ cried Kate, staring accusingly at Leonie. ‘Sorry, but what’s wrong with working for Banter? We’re not prudes, are we? There’s nothing wrong with lads’ mags. Hey,’ she nudged Alexa in the ribs and lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, ‘it’s less shameful than saying you work for Tedious Consulting.’

      Alexa smiled lamely. Kate was wrong. It was far, far worse to tell someone that you worked in the soft porn industry than one of the soulless but highly respected consultancy firms like TDS – especially when that someone was your mother.

      ‘Have you told your mum?’ asked Leonie, right on cue. She knew Alexa’s mother from their school days.

      Alexa raised one corner of her mouth in a wry smile. ‘What do you think?’

      Leonie matched her expression. ‘I think she’d disown you if you told her.’

      Alexa sighed. Leonie was probably right. A sudden, unwanted image flashed across her mind of the two of them, aged nine, scrambling up the stairs СКАЧАТЬ