Page 2 of Stumped

He scoffs. “If you could have been less crass and mouthy, and more demure and sweet, I could have loved you. I would have loved you if you wanted what I wanted, but…you didn’t.”

I do want those things, but I refuse to beg this man to give me another chance. He used me and my generous heart, now blames me for not being able to love me andcheatedon me for at least six months. All while I was giving myself a chance to fall in love.

“I hope your new wife is everything you want her to be,” I spit and get out of the car, my legs wobbly as I do my best to walk away from where he’s parked. When I hear the engine start up, the tears start to fall, because of course he doesn’t care. I look over my shoulder and he’s already gone.

Hugging myself, I replay his words:I would have loved you if you wanted what I wanted.

Then came Rakesh.

We met at a conference in Delhi, flirted the entire weekend and parted ways. Little did I know that he lived in Chennai until he was texting me with dinner plans. One meal led to another and we fell into bed together. It was supposed to be casual, but feelings got in the way. He was ambitious and dedicated to his job as a management consultant, handsome and so fucking charming. When we attended parties and events together, people flocked to Rakesh because he had thisthingabout him. My friends and their partners liked him too, and most importantly, my parents thought the world of him.

I was four years into starting my own company at our first encounter. Five when he asked me to be his girlfriend and six when I believed he might bethe one. It had taken me a long time to move on after Ajay and I avoided relationships like the plague. Rakesh changed that. He loved my drive and passion, my need to build an inclusive business and be one of the top ranked companies in the country.

It was all a lie.

He brought up marriage one day and broke things off the next—okay, it was actually a few months apart, but whatever—leaving me absolutely shattered.

Apparently he didn’t appreciate being my ‘second choice’ and thought I worked too much. The whole time he was praising my work ethic and business acumen, he was lying through his teeth. He wanted a pretty little wife who would be waiting for him at home with dinner, not a boss lady in pantsuits who could keep up with the big boys.His words, not mine.

There’s no telling how long he spent criticising my life choices before he packed up his things and left. I committed myself to someone forthree yearsand he walked away because he wasn’t the centre of my universe. I’d always known that men had fragile egos and seeing a woman doing better than them was a point of contention, but I never expected that from the man I loved.

“Vee?”A knock follows and I stand. “Are you alive in there?”

“Gimme a minute!” With a quick scrub of my face—glad I took my makeup off after work—and a brief pep talk, I pull open the door to find three concerned faces.

“This isn’t even the best bathroom to cry in,” Millie tells me and the first genuine laugh spills out. Then their arms are around me in tight hugs and I sink into their embrace.

It might have taken me a week to process Rakesh’s words and actions, but the minute I started crying at work, I was calling my friends. There was zero hesitation when plans were made for me to drink myself stupid and cry about my broken heart. Krystina, Millie and Tamara—the latter also being my first cousin—are three of the best parts of my life. They might have partners and busy schedules, but when one of us is falling apart, everyone shows up. Tamara and I have been attached at the hip since we were kids, then Krys and Millie joined the fold in college. We’ve been inseparable ever since—going so far as to move to the same city.

“Thanks,” I whisper and attempt to extract myself from their grasp, but they won’t let me budge. “Okay, time to let go.”

“A little longer,” Tamara says as a hand holds the back of my head in place.

“I can’t breathe,” I tell them, gasping loudly until they finally release me.

Of the four of us, I’m least touchy-feely and hug only when necessary. And they’re also the only three people who could probably get away with hugging me without my permission.

“Still want more wine?” Millie asks.

“I rolled a few more Js,” Krys adds with a smirk.

Tamara loops her arm through mine. “And Jonathan said that we can burn shit in the pit if we want.”

Jonathan is Millie’s fiancé and one of the best guys I’ve ever met. He would let us burn the whole house down if it meant we’d be happy. But we like him too much to destroy the beautiful home he built for our friend.

“I tossed everything in the trash already,” I tell them as we return to the veranda where more wine is poured and a thick joint is handed to me. “Didn’t want to pollute the city with his shit.”

Lighting up, I settle into my chair and let the hash calm my mind and loosen my muscles. This is all I need.

“Good riddance,” Krys says. “Because if he can’t handle you as a boss babe, he doesn’t deserve you as anyone else anyway.”

I raise my glass and then gulp it down. Changing to fit someone else’s requirements or demands is not my style. Both men I committed myself to didn’t appreciate all that I could offer, but there has to be someone out there who will. However, the idea of giving myself to another person scares me. Casual sex has never really been my thing, maybe now is a good time to give it a shot.

No commitments, lots of great sex? I can get behind that.

First Innings

when she bowls him over

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