Regret is a powerful drug.

Over the past two days I’ve played out every possible scenario that could have occurred after Mya overheard me talking to Mr. Lavin.

I should have picked her up, thrown her over my shoulder and forced her to hear me out. I should have told Andre Lavin to back off my girl instead of being diplomatic about it. I should have told James that the client was expressing personal interest in Mya and let him handle it.

Should have done doesn’t change what happened though. All the should haves in the world won’t make her talk to me.

I’ve called her so many times that I’m pretty sure a restraining order is forthcoming.

When I stopped by her place, I could hear the TV on in the background but no one would answer. I knocked on the door until an older woman stuck her head out into the hallway and gave me the evil eye.

Sometimes you have to know when to admit defeat.

Now I’m here at work getting absolutely nothing done while my co-workers tiptoe around me. Yeah, I’m in a shitty mood. And I’m not even bothering to hide it.

We’re not going to get the account and I’ll be lucky to still have a job once James finds out why.

My phone rings and I wince when I see James’s name pop up. I’ve been avoiding him all day. Guilt will do that to you. But if this is it, then I might as well face the music with dignity.

“Hey, James.”

“If you’ve got a second, can you stop by my office?”

“Sure. I’ll come now.”

Walking down the hallway, I start noticing things I’ve never paid attention to before. The paint is fading slightly. I remember when the color was changed from white to something called ecru, whatever the fuck that is. The carpet is still the same though.

Funny the things you notice when you’re on your way to be fired. I have the urge to yell out “Dead Man Walking” at everyone I pass.

When I get to James’s office, he motions for me to close the door.

“I’m not sure how to say this,” he begins.

“You don’t have to be delicate. Just lay it on me.” If I’m about to be sacked, I’d rather hear it upfront then after an hour of bullshit.

“Fine. Andre Lavin called me asking for Mya’s phone number. I gave it to him but I didn’t feel right about not saying something. I get the sense that he wasn’t interested in calling her about the campaign.”

My relief that I’m not fired immediately morphs into sick jealousy. The very thing I was trying to prevent when I started this whole thing in Vegas has happened anyway.

“He was interested from the moment he met her. I guess it was inevitable that he’d only wait so long.”

James looks disturbed. “I have to say, I’m surprised that you’re taking this so well. And I’m very surprised that Mr. Lavin would pursue her despite knowing that she’s already engaged.”

I can’t very well explain that Mr. Lavin is going after Mya because he knows our engagement is fake. If he hasn’t blown the whistle on us yet, then maybe he doesn’t plan to.

He probably doesn’t feel the need to. After tonight, he’ll have what he wants, Mya designing his campaign and warming his bed.

My hands clench into fists.

“Did he say anything else?”

James shakes his head. “Not to me. But Anya said he asked about good local restaurants before she transferred his call.”

After a minute passes and I’m still sitting there, James throws his hands up in the air in frustration. “Why the hell are you still sitting here?”

It’s too hard to explain the whole thing when I can’t tell him the whole truth. So I settle for the most important part. “Maybe this is what Mya wants. A rich, handsome guy. Isn’t that what all women dream of?”

“I’m pretty sure Mya wants the man who actually cares about her. The one who’ll be there in good times and in bad.”

‘It’s too late. She won’t talk to me. I lied to her about something important and let’s face it, I didn’t exactly have a good track record to start with.”

James fixes me with a glare. “I may have failed at marriage but at least it taught me a little something about what not to do. Communication is key. Everything you just said to me, you need to say to her. Go fight for your girl! Maybe if I’d done that, my marriage wouldn’t have fallen apart.”

As he speaks, an energy grows until I’m too restless to sit. Mya changed something in me over the past few weeks. She brought out the best in me while teaching me that it’s okay to not be perfect. Maybe a rich guy is what she wants but maybe it isn’t.

And if there’s even a chance she wants me, I need to know.

I turn back to James. “What was the name of the restaurant Anya recommended?”