"That's why I'm worried. If we had half a brain, we'd go job hunting tomorrow."
"It is not that easy to find something else. I was one step away from being homeless when I found this job."
"You started here as a temp, right?" he asked.
"Right, and for two years, they wouldn't give me a raise because they had to pay the temp agency fee to get me."
Jim shook his head in disgust. "They punished you for that? Now I've heard everything."
"I wasn't supposed to tell anyone."
"I can see why. Did you protest?"
"I was afraid they would fire me if I complained, and this is my only American reference," Maggie admitted.
"All the more reason to get out before we get fired. You could always go back to that temp agency, right?"
"Right." Maggie went to the soda machine, dug some change out of her pocket, and made her choice. By the time she returned to the table, Jim was finished with his candy bar. He wadded up the wrapper and pretended to shoot it like a ball into the basket. When it went in, he smiled.
"Are all American companies like this one?" she asked, taking a drink of her soda.
"This is the worst one I've ever seen, but then, other companies don't let people like Nicole run them. They are scared of getting sued."
"No one sues this company?"
"Maybe they do, but we'll never hear about it. The owner's lawyer is his daughter and she doesn't talk to anyone but Nicole."
Maggie leaned forward. "Nicole actually brags about not celebrating American holidays. If she hates it here so much, why doesn't she go back to Germany?"
Jim reeled back. "You've been here for three years and you don't know? I'm shocked."
"Know what?"
"She lost custody of her daughter to her American husband."
Maggie's mouth dropped. "She lost custody? What did she do wrong?"
"Well, if you dress like a hooker, and walk like a hooker, I guess you're a hooker."
"That can't be true…is it? She talks about her boyfriend constantly."
When Susan walked into the room and went to the candy machine, both of them stopped talking. Jim finally said, "Nice weather we're having."
"A bit too hot to suit me," Maggie returned. "When do you think the air-conditioning will be fixed?"
"I have no…" Jim noticed Susan's glare as she walked out, and as soon as she was gone, he chuckled. "She probably thinks we were talking about her," he said, loud enough for Susan to hear, just in case she paused in the hall to listen.