The Ex Games
Chapter 1
“It’s one weekend, Katie. You’ll survive.” Meg giggled at the expression on my face. “I mean, it can’t be that bad…can it?”
“It’s going to be worse than bad.” I groaned and flopped down on her bed. “I may die. I mean it. I may literally die of embarrassment.”
“You won’t die. You may be embarrassed, though.” She gave me a sympathetic smile.
“I can’t believe this is happening to me.” I buried my head into her pillow. “Of all the jobs in all of the world, I had to get this one.”
“You were happy about it a few weeks ago.”
“That’s before I heard about this weekend training.” I groaned and stared up at her. “I had no idea he worked for Marathon Corp.”
“Well, he more than works for them now.” She laughed, and I shuddered.
“I should quit. I’m going to quit!” I cried out melodramatically. “You’ll have to take care of the rent for the next few months while I look for a job. I’ll cook and clean and be your housewoman.”
“Yeah, right. You can’t cook or clean for shit.” Meg collapsed onto the bed next to me and rubbed my shoulder. “And you know I’m saving up for my trip.”
“You’re not really going to travel around the world and leave me, are you?”
“You can always come with me.”
“But I have a job.” I whined and saw her grinning at me. “Fine, I’m not quitting. This is the job I’ve been waiting for my whole life. I’m not quitting just because he owns the company.”
“Here ye, here ye.”
“Don’t go being a lawyer on me,” I moaned at her, and she laughed.
“I didn’t go through three years of law school to just stop.” She jumped up off of the bed and grabbed my hands. “Come on, lazy bones. Let’s go shopping. You may as well look hot when you see him.”
“I don’t want to see him. Maybe he’ll have forgotten me.” The thought sent a ripple of hurt through me.
“There’s no way he would have forgotten you.”
“He’s going to hate me.” I gave her a pained expression. “Or he’s going to fire me.”
“He dumped you. He’s not going to hate you.” Anna brushed her long blonde hair as she waited for me to get up. “And we’re going to make him regret it.”
“Why oh why did Brandon Hastings have to buy Marathon Corp?” I slowly dragged myself off of the bed and looked into the vanity mirror. I wasn’t altogether displeased with my appearance, but wished I didn’t look quite so washed out. My long brown hair looked messy, but that was nothing a brush couldn’t fix. I examined my face and was pleased that my brown eyes looked bright and cheerful even though I was filled with inner turmoil.
“You look gorgeous, Katie.”
“I look like a little kid.” I groaned. “I don’t look like a manager.”
“Hey, it’s not your fault you’re super smart. So what if you’re 25 and an executive manager already? Anyone who cares about that is just jealous.”
“Brandon will care.” I sighed and I bit my lower lip as I grew serious and put my face in my hands. “Oh my God, Meg, what am I going to do?”
“It’s all in the past, Katie. You made a mistake. He can’t be holding a grudge for all these years.”
“It was a pretty big mistake.” I made a face. “Some may even say it was a lie.”
“Well, it was a lie.” Meg made an apologetic face as she spoke honestly. “But it was seven years ago.”
“Yeah.” I straightened my shirt and pushed my shoulders back like my mother had taught me. “I’m sure he’s not thinking about some silly girl he dated seven years ago.”
“You were 18, new to love! These things happen.”
“Yeah.” I nodded in agreement. “If he had half a brain he would have figured it out.”
“Exactly.” Meg linked her arm through mine and we walked to the living room. “He’s the one that broke your heart.”
“Exactly.” My heart beat slowly as I remembered the tears I had cried late at night. I had been devastated when Brandon had dumped me right before Christmas, in the first semester of my college year. Absolutely devastated. I hadn’t been able to sleep or eat for weeks. He had made my second semester of college absolutely awful. It wasn’t until the summer and a trip to London with my parents that I was finally able to accept that what we had was forever gone. He had been my first lover and my first love, but to him, I was just a little girl playing around in fairytale land.
“It’s one weekend, Katie. You’ll survive.” Meg giggled at the expression on my face. “I mean, it can’t be that bad…can it?”
“It’s going to be worse than bad.” I groaned and flopped down on her bed. “I may die. I mean it. I may literally die of embarrassment.”
“You won’t die. You may be embarrassed, though.” She gave me a sympathetic smile.
“I can’t believe this is happening to me.” I buried my head into her pillow. “Of all the jobs in all of the world, I had to get this one.”
“You were happy about it a few weeks ago.”
“That’s before I heard about this weekend training.” I groaned and stared up at her. “I had no idea he worked for Marathon Corp.”
“Well, he more than works for them now.” She laughed, and I shuddered.
“I should quit. I’m going to quit!” I cried out melodramatically. “You’ll have to take care of the rent for the next few months while I look for a job. I’ll cook and clean and be your housewoman.”
“Yeah, right. You can’t cook or clean for shit.” Meg collapsed onto the bed next to me and rubbed my shoulder. “And you know I’m saving up for my trip.”
“You’re not really going to travel around the world and leave me, are you?”
“You can always come with me.”
“But I have a job.” I whined and saw her grinning at me. “Fine, I’m not quitting. This is the job I’ve been waiting for my whole life. I’m not quitting just because he owns the company.”
“Here ye, here ye.”
“Don’t go being a lawyer on me,” I moaned at her, and she laughed.
“I didn’t go through three years of law school to just stop.” She jumped up off of the bed and grabbed my hands. “Come on, lazy bones. Let’s go shopping. You may as well look hot when you see him.”
“I don’t want to see him. Maybe he’ll have forgotten me.” The thought sent a ripple of hurt through me.
“There’s no way he would have forgotten you.”
“He’s going to hate me.” I gave her a pained expression. “Or he’s going to fire me.”
“He dumped you. He’s not going to hate you.” Anna brushed her long blonde hair as she waited for me to get up. “And we’re going to make him regret it.”
“Why oh why did Brandon Hastings have to buy Marathon Corp?” I slowly dragged myself off of the bed and looked into the vanity mirror. I wasn’t altogether displeased with my appearance, but wished I didn’t look quite so washed out. My long brown hair looked messy, but that was nothing a brush couldn’t fix. I examined my face and was pleased that my brown eyes looked bright and cheerful even though I was filled with inner turmoil.
“You look gorgeous, Katie.”
“I look like a little kid.” I groaned. “I don’t look like a manager.”
“Hey, it’s not your fault you’re super smart. So what if you’re 25 and an executive manager already? Anyone who cares about that is just jealous.”
“Brandon will care.” I sighed and I bit my lower lip as I grew serious and put my face in my hands. “Oh my God, Meg, what am I going to do?”
“It’s all in the past, Katie. You made a mistake. He can’t be holding a grudge for all these years.”
“It was a pretty big mistake.” I made a face. “Some may even say it was a lie.”
“Well, it was a lie.” Meg made an apologetic face as she spoke honestly. “But it was seven years ago.”
“Yeah.” I straightened my shirt and pushed my shoulders back like my mother had taught me. “I’m sure he’s not thinking about some silly girl he dated seven years ago.”
“You were 18, new to love! These things happen.”
“Yeah.” I nodded in agreement. “If he had half a brain he would have figured it out.”
“Exactly.” Meg linked her arm through mine and we walked to the living room. “He’s the one that broke your heart.”
“Exactly.” My heart beat slowly as I remembered the tears I had cried late at night. I had been devastated when Brandon had dumped me right before Christmas, in the first semester of my college year. Absolutely devastated. I hadn’t been able to sleep or eat for weeks. He had made my second semester of college absolutely awful. It wasn’t until the summer and a trip to London with my parents that I was finally able to accept that what we had was forever gone. He had been my first lover and my first love, but to him, I was just a little girl playing around in fairytale land.