The Bitter End
By Misha
Disclaimer- Not mine, I’m just borrowing them for a little while.
Author’s Notes- There was a discussion amongst the Tumblr community about how badly the “three suitors” thing was handled in Rules of Engagement, so this is my idea of a solution. I played my game without encouraging the bartender at all (I never even kissed him except the one time you don’t have a chance) and that’s reflected in this story, but that still leaves one suitor too many. This can be considered a sequel to “The Heart Knows”.
Pairing- Businessman/MC, implied Prince/MC
Rating- PG-13
Summary- Before Maya can accept one proposal, she has to turn another one down.
Words- 842
It’s time.
Maya took a deep breath and then turned to approach William. She knew she owed it to him to have this conversation before she spoke to Leo and accepted his proposal.
She had already let Dean down gently, but that conversation had been a lot easier than this one would be. She didn’t feel any guilt when it came to Dean. She had gone out with him, yes, but she’d never slept with him and until he’d proposed, she hadn’t realized that he’d read that much into their relationship. She had been sorry to hurt him, but she didn’t feel like she’d done anything wrong.
With William it was different. She’d given William every reason to believe that she’d accept his proposal. She’d encouraged his grand romantic gestures, had welcomed him into her bed and had participated in conservations about their future together. A future that would never come to pass.
Maya had told herself that she was being smart, letting both William and Leo romance her, since she’d needed to get married, but she knew now that she’d let it go on too long. This wasn’t a game, it was real life and William was going to end up hurt, because of her.
With a huge lump in her throat, she stepped towards William. He smiled wildly at the sight of her, but it quickly vanished as he took in her expression.
“Can we talk?” She asked him quietly.
He nodded and guided her over to a quiet spot, away from the hustle and bustle of the gala. His hand was warm and familiar on her arm it left a little ache in her heart.
“Your answer is no.” He said as soon as they were alone.
She nodded, trying not to cry. “I’m sorry.”
“I knew there was a risk,” he told her, letting go of her arm. “You never lied to me, Maya, I always knew I had competition. I just… I guess I hoped that you felt the same way I did.” He took a deep breath and then stared into her eyes. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” Maya answered immediately. As much as she hated hurting William, she knew she had made the right choice. The only choice, actually. Because she didn’t want to hurt William, but she also didn’t love him. She loved Leo.
For a second, she considered explaining her reasons or even defending herself and voicing her belief that William didn’t really love her, that she was just a new challenge for him to conquer, but she bit her tongue. Because, maybe it was true, but it didn’t erase her mistake and it wasn’t fair to try and turn it around on him.
There was a long silence and William turned to leave and then suddenly turned around again so that he was facing her once more. “Was any of it real or was I just the backup plan?”
She can’t blame him for the bitterness in his voice. She let the situation get out of hand. As much as she kept telling her that all three men knew about each other, she still encouraged them, at least William and Leo, and let them think that they could have a future when she knew that she could only choose one of them.
“It wasn’t like that,” she defended quietly, “I… I could see our whole life together, William. When we were in Napa, I could picture our future so clearly. You offered me the perfect life, but… It’s not the right life for me.”
He looked at her for a long moment and she could see the pain in his eyes before he put his defenses back up and his face went blank. “Rashad will be relieved. After all, now there’s nothing to keep me away from my work.”
Maya just nodded, wanting to say something and knowing there was nothing to say. He had every right to be bitter.
“Goodbye, Maya.” He said after a moment before turning to walk away.
She watched him go, full of guilt and self-recrimination. She could tell herself that she didn’t love him and that she doubted that he really loved her, but it wasn’t enough to assuage the guilt.
After a moment, she took a deep breath and turned to go back to the party. She needed to go find Leo and accept his proposal. She reminded herself that this was supposed to be one of the happiest nights of her life, but even as she plastered a smile on her face and went in search of the man she loved, she couldn’t erase the lingering guilt.
She had gone into this scenario with the best of intentions, wanting to fulfill the terms of Nana’s will and find happiness, but somehow she had lost sight of the fact that there were real people and real emotions involved. As happy as she was to have found the love of her life, she knew she would always bitterly regret the hurt she had caused in the process.
- End
