True story: “I schemed my way into having sex with my boss to get a promotion”

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At nearly every job I’ve had, I’ve been hit on by my male colleagues and bosses. I dress well, and I have an attractive body because I’m obsessed with staying in shape, but otherwise, I’d say that I’m pretty average looking. I’ve been told that I’m confident and outgoing, though, so I suppose that’s why guys are attracted to me.

Just over two years ago, I joined a top company in what seemed to be a dream gig. The position was a relatively junior one, but because I was so keen to work at this company, I accepted it, thinking that I could work my way up the ranks and score a more senior position down the road. Right after I started the job, I could tell that my supervisor, Alex* had a thing for me. He was always extra sweet to me, and when he talked to me, I picked up on a flirtatious tone he didn’t use with anyone else. He didn’t act this way with the other women on our team.

Seducing the boss

I could’ve just ignored how Alex treated me but, being the ambitious person that I am, I decided I had to take advantage of it. The ultimate aim? Getting him to recommend me for a promotion at the end of my first year. As my supervisor, he was the only one who could recommend to his bosses that I be promoted, so he was certainly important to nailing my career goals.

My attempts to seduce Alex were subtle. Besides, I knew he liked me anyway, so he was like putty in my hands. I lapped up his sweet talk, engaged in lunchtime chitchat with him, and even accepted his after-work drink invitations. It wasn’t long before we got really close, although I’m pretty sure it was lust and not love on his part. I could tell that Alex wanted to have a sexual relationship with me but was holding himself back for fear of coming across as unprofessional.

But I encouraged him by asking him for rides home after work, inviting him out to drinks with my friends on Saturday nights, and even suggesting that we become gym buddies. The more time we spent together, the more attached he got to me.

From colleagues to lovers

Several months after I started working for the company, Alex confessed that he had fallen for me. Of course I didn’t feel the same way but I lied, telling him I fancied him too but that I wanted to take things slow. We agreed to keep our budding relationship under wraps because we didn’t want others in the company to find out, so we stopped lunching together and he stopped giving me rides home after work. We also started to behave more professionally around each other, so gone were the jokes and flirtatious banter. 

The more serious things got between us, the more I tried to press Alex for his thoughts about recommending me for a more senior position with better pay and more perks. He said he’d always believed that I was the best one on his team, anyway, and I knew he wasn’t just saying that because he liked me. I was a seriously good worker – I knew my stuff, I put in the overtime, and I presented myself well to clients. But I also knew that my good work would be for nothing if I didn’t get pushed up to the next level.

I had not become physical with Alex yet at this point. Mindful of my suggestion that we take things slow, he held back from making any moves. But now I was ready to do it with him. One weekend, I booked a staycation for us at a hip boutique hotel. We had sex pretty much the entire time, not even leaving our room to eat. The sex was quite sensational, I must admit – Alex was an attentive and generous lover who knew what to do to get me going.

A fair trade?

Our sexual relationship intensified over the next couple of months. We usually had sex at his place, although sometimes we would book a hotel room for a night and just do it there. I enjoyed the sex very much but that’s really all it was for me. Sure, I liked Alex enough to do it – but I just wanted that promotion recommendation, and soon. Of course, I knew that I couldn’t be too obvious about my intentions because I didn’t want Alex to think I was using him that way (which I was, if I’m being perfectly honest).

One night, after we had sex, my golden opportunity came up. Alex told me that my happiness was all that mattered to him. He asked me what would make me happier more than anything in the world. Without skipping a beat, I told him that I wanted to be promoted and rise up the ranks at the company. Then I lied, telling him that if I got promoted, he and I could look forward to a more secure future together. That seemed to sway him in the direction I wanted him to go. He seemed excited about the prospect of a future with me and agreed that I deserved to be promoted to a more senior position.

By the end of that year, Alex had recommended that I be given a new title with more responsibilities and recognition. He prepared an impressive report of my job performance and told his bosses that I had what it took to lead a team of my own and take on a more supervisory role. My promotion was pretty much confirmed by this stage – I only had to do a couple of minor interviews before it was mine.

Shortly before I got promoted, Alex told me that he’d gotten a new job at another company. He wanted a more serious relationship with me and couldn’t stand to keep our almost-year-long affair a secret from our colleagues any longer. He felt that the best thing to do was to work elsewhere so that we could be more open about our relationship.

I agreed that it was a good idea too, but, as I expected, we grew apart after he joined the new company. We both just got busier in our new roles and stopped having time for each other. We worked on opposite sides of the island, too, so it was hard to even meet for lunch on weekdays. In a matter of months, our contact with each other decreased and our relationship fizzled out. Last I heard, he has a new girlfriend.

I don’t regret what I did with Alex to get what I wanted. I know how it all looks, but the sex was consensual and we were both attracted to each other. Plus, I was an excellent worker who deserved that promotion. Alex thought so, too, and I believe that that’s why he recommended me for it in the end. I agree that the sex sweetened the deal in a way, but the quality of my work spoke for itself and I don’t see my behaviour as being manipulative or predatory.

*Names have been changed.