Page 68 of Return on Love

I nod. There has to be something. We’re so close. I know she’s behind it and I need to prove it. For Bernard and partly for me.

“It’s late. Let’s think about it in the morning. Okay?”

Ryan pulls me to him. The warmth of his arms and the earthy smell of his body are enough to relax me as I melt into his arms. Only then do I realize how tired I am. I lie down on the soft bed with Ryan spooning me from behind. It’s a good feeling. I have to remind myself that this will last only for a day more. Then he has to go to Boston. That’s how I wanted it, in any case. No room for men in my life, just as there's no room for relationships in his. We had a fling, and it was good while it lasted. I drift off, thinking about my time in Boston.

When I wake up, I see Ryan, wearing only his jeans, talking over the phone. His bare chest, as he sits by the window, looks so inviting. He nods when he notices I’m awake. No smile? Who is he talking to? Some girlfriend I didn’t know about? And why does that sting? Not that we’re in any kind of relationship here. He can talk to whoever he wants.

I step out of bed and freshen myself. There’s work to do. I check my phone and see that Gabriel has sent the updated presentation of MooreGames to Weber. I can only hope that Weber doesn’t decide to go through it in detail. The first few slides are the same, in any case to give a sense that it’s the same deck. I also see an email from Nora. Apparently TheLochnesstard, aka Greg, the creep from the party, has done a video review of the new game and trashed it, like real bad. The others have spoken well about it, but Greg has a large following. This could be bad. Maybe that’s what Ryan is worried about.

I’m about to open my laptop when Ryan comes over to me.

“That was Priscilla,” he says.

“Priscilla?”

Why the hell is she calling Ryan? All the pain she caused me when Bob dumped me came back in a flash. I glance at Ryan, urging him to continue but dreading his words. That woman does something to me.

“She has seen the presentation. The revised one.”

“How? Who sent it to her? Weber?”

Ryan shrugs. “Well,” he says and sits down on the bed. His expressions are strained, brows furrowed, and he cannot meet my gaze. It’s Bob dumping me, part two. I raise my eyebrows and stare at his slumped figure. “She said the presentation impressed her.”

“So what? Her being impressed doesn’t mean shit.”

“Um. Actually it does. She’s part of the partner’s meeting. With voting rights.”

“But she’s not a partner.”

“Yet. But she will be by the time the funding decisions are made.” Ryan raises his eyes for a brief second and glances at me. The confusion is evident in his eyes. “Stephen Stratham has made it a condition to have her as partner effective immediately, and Bernard’s investigation results don’t look good. So….”

I still can’t understand what this is all about, or rather, I don’t want to understand it. “Okay. So she’ll have one vote. And she likes your presentation. That’s good for you. Right?”

“In a way. I mean, she wants a few things to support the funding. She says she has spoken to others and most have agreed to back her in her decisions.”

Sensing trouble, I patiently await what more he has to say. Partners agreeing to Priscilla is new, but money has power, and that’s what she’s bringing to the table.

He finally looks up and meets my gaze. “It’s a very high valuation that we’re talking of. Almost 1.5 times what we had discussed.” He pauses, then looks down again. “That’s a lot of money, Eva. I can hire some good people instead of using freelancers. I can produce more games and perhaps even work on that education bit.”

“What’s the catch? Priscilla does nothing for free or out of the goodness of her heart.”

Ryan walks over to the window and looks out. “She wants me to state that you’ve not given any inputs to us.”

“You mean she wants you to say that I sucked as a consultant?”

“She also wants me to mention officially that you and Bernard have been in touch, even though you were specifically told not to. Because of conflict of interest, etcetera.”

“How does she even know about that?”

I can feel my veins throbbing in my head. Priscilla! She’s doing it all over again. Removing the people who’re close to me from my side and taking them for herself. Luring them with what they want. Now that she controls the money, she thinks it’s her death star. The dark side is always so strong. I look at Ryan. He doesn’t even have the guts to look me in the eye. He’s going to leave me out to dry, like Bob did, and take Priscilla’s offer. Men! That’s what they do. Why did I ever think he could be any different?

“Did you tell her I spoke to Bernard?”

Ryan turns around to face me but doesn’t reply. He has a look of pain in his eyes. Those eyes that I found so beautiful. My God! How foolish have I been?

“I trusted you. Well, that was my mistake. Have you been working with her and Weber all along? So, you just played me? Was sleeping with me part of your dirty plan? And for what? For money? I was right in hating you, Ryan Moore. I should’ve continued to hate you. Instead, like a teenage girl, I fell for your charm. Guess what, I won’t give up. Tell your Priscilla that I’ll expose her and her nefarious schemes one way or another.”

I pick up my laptop and stomp out of the room. I hear Ryan call out my name, but I’m too angry to wait anymore. Just as the elevator doors are closing, I see Ryan running toward me. “Eva, at least, hear me out,” he yells.

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