Riley Harper was between jobs when she saw the ad. The 21 year old blonde had recently quit as a waitress at a local restaurant. She usually got great tips that she knew was more thanks to her curves than her service, but despised being hit on all the time, especially now that she was newly married. But it wasn't okay for her to be without a job. Yesterday her husband Ben came home early from his factory. Apparently he'd been furloughed for at least 3 weeks. They didn't have any sort of savings that would keep them in the black longer than a couple of weeks, so Riley stepped up.
She got on her phone and began job hunting, but quickly grew frustrated by how similar they were to every job she'd had before. Cashier, hostess, server, retail sales specialist. She wasn't qualified for much else, but just once she'd like to do something that didn't involve wearing a name tag. That's when she came across the ad for Del Corp.
Riley clicked on it, and read about a company that was a bit of a drive away. An hour. But it paid eighty thousand dollars a year. That was four times what her last job paid! Del Corp was looking for people who could do simple data entry, and no degree was required. Then the best yet. They would let you work from home 4 of the 5 days a week! This suddenly seemed too good to be true, but what the hell. For the hope of that much money, she'd take her chances.
Riley looked for a place to begin filling out her application online, but then read that the application and interview process would only be done in person, and that candidates would be seen during a small window later this week.
So that Friday, Riley found herself an hour away with a clipboard in her lap, filling out a paper application. She'd just written her new name and still got a thrill from it a whole five weeks later. That's how long she'd been married. Her mind drifted to Ben, standing there all handsome in his
tux, looking at her like she was the prettiest thing he'd ever seen. Her blonde, shoulder length hair had been adorned with flowers. Her face hidden behind her veil. She'd always cherish the moment when he'd lifted it over her head and mouthed, 'Wow.' She hadn't been able to stop smiling. The butterflies had been nonstop that magical day, and they returned quickly every time she thought about it.
She loved being Mrs. Ben Harper. Loved being married. She was at the part of the application that asked for the relationship status. Married or single. With a bit of a flourish, she brought her pen over the box that said married. She hovered over it dramatically. She was about to make an indelible x, when the applicant to her right, a pretty brunette, cleared her throat.
"Don't," she whispered. "Check single, or you don't stand a chance."
"Excuse me?" Riley whispered back. Companies were not legally allowed to hire people based on whether they were married or not.
The brunette scanned the room, making sure no other ears were tracking their hushed whispers, then said softly, "My roommate already works here. She told me discreetly that they only hire people who aren't married. Do what you want, but if you really want the job, don't let on that you're married."
"Thanks..." Riley said hesitantly. Why would a data entry job care at all about whether or not she was married? She looked around the room and saw a total of 11 candidates including herself. She didn't know how many would be offered a job. Maybe just one or two of them. She wasn't particularly proficient at data entry, but she was a fast learner. She'd do whatever it took to secure financial stability for her and Ben.
This could change everything for them. Ben wouldn't like that she'd have to lie about being married to him to get the job, but she wouldn't have to tell him. It's not like the company was going to come to her house. So she took a breath, and checked the box that said single.
The brunette whispered out the side of her mouth, "Good call. Best of luck in your interview."
"You too," Riley said.
A handsome man with dark hair and a thousand watt smile stepped out of the adjoining conference room. He picked up the sign in sheet with every applicant's name, and then scanned the room. "Josephine?" he asked in a clear, deep voice.
The brunette stood, smoothed her pantsuit and said, "That's me."
The man beamed at her. "Right this way," and gestured for her to join him in the conference room.
Before she went, Josephine extended a hand to Riley. "If we end up working together, you can call me Josie."
Riley giggled and took it. "I sure hope we do, Josie. I'm Riley."
Josie winked and gave Riley's hand an encouraging squeeze. "I know, I saw it on your application." With that Josie headed into the interview.
Ten minutes later, she came out with a confident smile on her face and gave Riley a big thumbs up. "Piece of cake."
"Did they offer you the job?" Riley asked with wide eyes.
Josie nodded. "On the spot. I'm to report back here on Monday."
Riley felt her stomach lurch as she thought about how this might affect her odds, but smiled gamely. "Congrats. I hope my interview goes as well as yours."
"Just be yourself." Josie leaned down and whispered in Riley's ear. "And be single."
Riley laughed softly. "Got it."
As Josie left the waiting room, Riley found herself wishing Josie could have stayed for moral support until it was her turn. She wished Ben could have come for the same reason, but that might have cost her her shot if her husband had tagged along.
Two more applicants came and went. One was a guy who came out with slumped shoulders. The other was a striking red headed woman who walked out with head held high and a confident swagger in her hips. It was clear that only one of them had gotten the job.
Riley observed that none of the men came out looking like they'd had an offer. Rather, it was only the women. Specifically, beautiful women.
Doubts flooded Riley's mind again as her name was finally called. She stood up and walked towards the open door, but as she did, she wondered if she was willing to work for a company that seemed biased towards looks, gender, and marital status. If she wanted that, she could just go back to her last job, or the one before that, or the one before that.
But she remembered quickly that none of those places were going to pay 80 grand a year, so she put on her game face. For that much money, she even went so far as to chide herself for not wearing something low cut to show off her impressive cleavage. Her jiggly chest certainly kept her husband's attention. But she'd opted for a pale blue blouse that gave her the conservative look she preferred to have in public. Hopefully that wasn't a deal breaker.
Finally it was her turn, and she stepped into the conference room for her interview. There were two people on the other side of a long table. The handsome man that called in the candidates, and a woman. The man came around the desk, and closed the door behind her, then offered his hand. "I'm Marcus," he said kindly. He gestured towards the woman that hadn't moved, but was perusing a file on the table. "This is Doris."
