THE ULTIMATUM

Mia's POV

The whole day was a war inside my head.

Every time I tried to work, send an email, eat something, my mind went straight back to seven o’clock.  

Go. Don’t go. Go. Don’t go.  

Maggie’s voice kept cutting in (this is unhinged, Mia, promise me) and every time I almost texted Tom to cancel, my ultimate revenge plan didn't make me to.

By four I was pacing my bedroom like a caged dog.

I told myself — It was more like ‘lying to myself’ that I was only going for answers.  

Nothing else.  

Just information.

But deep down I knew what I had intended, yet the idea of Chris using his father to finish me off was overwhelming.

At six I gave up pretending and stepped into the shower. Hot water shaved everything smooth because my hands moved on autopilot.

Out of the shower I stood dripping in front of my closet and reached without thinking, fingers closing on a little black dress.

The one that hugs every curve and stops just high enough to make anyone lose their mind. I pulled it over my head, let it slide down my body, and zipped it up.

I opened the vanity drawer and picked the perfume I have always loved, the one that cost way too much, two sprays at my throat, one at the back of my knees. 

The room filled with that warm vanilla and spice that used to make me wet and felt seen.

I sat at the mirror, twisted the cap off the red lipstick, and brought it to my lips.

My hand stopped halfway…

Shit…

My mind was on autopilot… I thought I'd be seeing Chris — My mind prepared me to see him.

He had gotten me that little black dress — That's the dress he almost ripped off the first time we went out on a date.

And the perfume? He had introduced me to the brand, I was always buying it to get his attention… He doesn't miss telling me how godly I smelt nice.

And the lipstick in my hand? He got it for me and I always wear it anytime he wants it all sexy.

That's when I realized…

The girl in the mirror was looking ready for a date with Chris on her fucking mind.

Even my hair was loose the way he liked to fist it while he pounded me hard.

*Mia, Chris is gone — You aren't meeting him tonight.* I told myself.

The tube slipped from my fingers and clattered into the sink.

My heart ached all over again for no particular reason…

I clenched my thumb hard on my left eye and my index finger on my right with a mission to stop the tears I knew would fall soon.

“Oh, how stupid of you, Mia. You gave him your all, see where it landed you?”

I sniffed hard as I felt my eyes hurt from enough pressing.

I stared at myself for a long second…

My cheeks were burning with something between shame and fury.

Then I grabbed a makeup wipe, scrubbed the perfume off my neck until my skin was clear.

I yanked the dress over my head and threw it to the back of the closet like it was on fire.

Five minutes later I stood in a simple gray cotton dress that reached my knees, flat sandals, hair twisted up in a messy knot, face bare except for a swipe of tinted lip balm.

I looked into the mirror before leaving — Now, I looked like someone going to get answers and not someone trying desperately to be wanted.

6:30PM, I was out the door.

6:57PM, I walked into Shake Shack and spotted Tom. He was standing a few feet away from the entrance as if he’d been waiting his whole life for me to show up.

I took one breath, squared my shoulders, and started toward him.

Whatever game he was playing, I was done dressing up for the wrong Reid.

“You clean up simple.,” he said. “I like it.”

“Thanks,” I muttered, adjusting the purse hanging on my shoulder.

He pulled out a chair for me like it was nothing and I sat down calmly. 

I leaned in. “Let’s skip the small talk. How do you have my number, and what exactly do you want?”

Tom sat back, relaxed. “Dinner first. You let me crash at your place. I pay debts. Simple.”

I gave him a flat look. “You could’ve just said thank you.”

“I don’t do nice,” he answered, shrugging. “I do burgers and honesty.”

He waved the server over, then turned to me again.

“So, Mia. You always this suspicious, or am I special?”

“Only when strangers track down my phone number.”

He laughed. “Fair. What do you do when you’re not rescuing drunk bikers?”

“Sports marketing. Mostly motocross and shifter events.”

His eyes lit up. “No kidding. You going to the Eastern Pack inauguration next weekend? New alpha gets crowned, then the charity race the day after.”

“I’ve got paddock passes for the race,” I said before I could stop myself.

“Same. Front straight, turn one. Best seats in the house.”

We slipped into easy talk about the new alpha, the rookie riders everyone was betting on, the insane crash from last season that still lived rent-free in my head. It felt… normal — Exceedingly too normal.

Chris and I used to have these exact conversations. The coincidence made me suspicious, but how can I prove everything was planned?

Tom leaned forward. “I actually dragged you here for a reason.”

Here it comes…

He lowered his voice. “Like I told you the other night, my kid is getting married next month. First time I’ll see him in years. Kid wrote me off when he was sixteen, now suddenly I’m invited to the big day.”

I stayed perfectly still.

“I want to walk in there with someone on my arm who makes him swallow his tongue,” he said. “Fake fiancée. Six months or a year tops. We smile, we dance, we let him wonder what the hell he missed out on. Then we’re done. So, name your price.” He announced.

I couldn't help, but ask myself, “where was he when Chris needed all the money he got from me? Now, he wants to pay for a fake marriage contract?”

But, sadly, I can't let him know about all these, I don't think I want anything tied to Chris.

I stared at him. “You want to rent a stranger to piss off your son?”

“Pretty much.”

I laughed once, I stopped the next second. “That’s insane.”

“I have been called worse.”

“It won’t work. He’ll see right through it.”

Tom just steadily looked at me. “Maybe. Maybe not. But the offer’s on the table, Mia. Whenever you feel like making young Reid regret something… you know where to find me.”

I pushed my chair back and stood. “Thanks for the burger I didn’t eat. I’m out.”

I walked away without looking back.

But his words followed me all the way to the door, even to my apartment, and worse? In my dream.

I was left with two choices and both were at extremes…

I want to make Chris regret leaving me so badly, yet, I don't want to ‘fake date’ an older man because of revenge.