Too Late for Regret

Let The Games Begin

Chapter 3

Analise’s POV

A knock sounded at my door, and when I opened it, I saw Gwen and Emily standing there. They both looked like they were ready to smack Roger around.

“Alright, Gwen said that jerk married Sasha. What was he thinking?” Emily asked as she set her overnight bag down under my computer desk.

“I will fill you all in at the same time,” I managed to say. They knew I had been crying; it was obvious. My eyes were red-rimmed, and I still had tears on my face that I had tried to wipe away.

“All?” Gwen asked.

A knock sounded on the door before I could answer. I looked through the peephole and saw my mother at the door. Dad probably dropped her off at the curb. “Hey, Mom,” I said as I opened the door.

She enveloped me in a hug before I could step back to let her into my condo. I let her hold me, breathing in her scent and reminding myself that I come from a line of strong women. I needed them tonight. Tomorrow, I will fine-tune my plan. I knew having them here was what I needed. I felt a little bad not telling Seth, but if I did. He would go find Roger and beat him up. I was sure of that. Right now, I couldn’t let them find out I knew what they were up to.

Another knock sounded on the door, and I opened it to see my father standing there. The delivery guy was just leaving. The pizza had come fast, and I wished I'd ordered another pizza, but I wasn’t hungry anymore. I was too angry to eat.

As soon as Dad shut the door, he asked, “Alright, what did that little worm do? He was never good enough for you, Ana. I know you cared for him, but you need to learn to read people better. I knew from the first time I met him that he had no talent. You have more talent in your pinky finger than he has in his whole body. You never needed him, honey; he needed you. If you hadn’t helped him, he would never have gotten his company listed. I hope you followed my instructions. He's wasted enough of your time. What do you need me to do?”

I hugged him. Just hearing how much he supported me helped ease the weight on my chest. I felt like a disappointment to them. I’m twenty-seven. I know they both wanted grandchildren, and we all knew that Seth wasn't ready to settle down. In that, he's just like Holden. Both were willing to sleep with whoever they wanted, no matter how vile the person actually was.

I was glad that I managed not to cry. “I'm going to show you something Holden sent me. It’s quicker to get you all up to speed that way,” I replied.

I asked my parents to sit down before stepping behind the couch to stand between Emily and Gwen. I had hoped it would be easier to see the video this time around, but I suspected it wouldn’t. I watched, detached, as it played much quicker without needing to pause the video multiple times, as I had to do. I guess I did that to try to bolster myself. To try to prepare for the pain I knew was coming. Once it ended, Dad immediately started the video over again. I could feel the anger radiating off of him in waves. He was furious, and so was my mother. When it ended the second time, there was silence in the room.

“That bastard. He utilized your talent and your money to grow his business. Now he wants to turn around and try to take it all away from you?” Gwen’s incredulous voice rose with each word she spoke.

“You can’t let him get away with this, Ana. Please tell me you have a plan. I'm happy to help you in any way I can,” Emily said.

“I have a plan, and I’m going to put it into play on Monday. Gwen is registering my designs in my name and on behalf of the company, as we will use them at Fashion Forward. I’m glad that Roger’s company finally went public, as it will make selling my shares that much easier. They should sell quickly, as the company is currently performing well. It won’t be once I’m gone. Roger’s taking Sasha on a honeymoon to Paris, and I will be putting my notice in next Friday. I don’t have to give the company too much notice. I don't need Roger coming back too soon. My company is performing very well. I’ll be selling my shares in his company before he even knows there’s a problem. Don’t worry, Dad. I’ve done as you, and Mom instructed. I’m glad you warned me, I would have lost a great deal if I hadn’t,” I answered.

“That heartless jerk, he was supposed to take you to Paris for your honeymoon,” Gwen replied with venom.

Gwen was my ride or die. She always had my back, and I knew I could trust her with my life. No matter what, she had my best interests at heart. She has run my company with integrity this entire time. My father had watched over it until we graduated from college. He had his man still in charge until Gwen felt comfortable. I should have listened to Gwen. She didn’t trust Roger from the moment she met him. I was just blinded by his good looks.

He was the oldest in his family at twenty-eight years old. He was in his senior year when we met. He was handsome, with his chiseled features, blonde hair, and blue eyes, which made me fall hard. I had always felt oversized, especially in groups, but Roger acted like he could see me, that he accepted me. He had poured on the charm, and I fell for it. I had always wanted someone to be proud to show me off, and he did, at first.

I could see it all clearly now. He needed me. My professor had let it slip in my senior year that he had mentioned to Roger what a talented designer I was. That was how I got on his radar. Roger actively pursued me, not because he liked me. He knew I liked him, and he made sure to use that against me. He was a handsome man, but watching the video the last time, I could see the glaring flaws. His weak chin, his narrow lips, his ability to lie right to my face and make it sound like the truth.

I’m a smart person; I should have seen what he was doing. Except I was so happy that someone I found attractive had found me attractive, too. It blinded me to the truth. I thought I had finally found the man who would love and take care of me for the rest of my life. Even two years ago, when he started to pull away when I turned twenty-five, I excused it. His friends never respected me, and he never made them stop taking digs at me. He let them drive me away, as I didn’t like to hang out with them. They were just as disgusting as he was.

I had protected my own designs. They all had a copyright in my name. I allowed my designs to be used by Cook Custom Jewelry. Now, I’ve changed my mind. I'm no longer allowing them to use them. I will now use the best ones at my own company. Since Sasha wants to run the design department so bad, I’m going to let her. Whatever they come up with, they can use. I’ve always tweaked what my team in the design department came up with. I provided them with suggestions on how to improve their designs, offering a few hints and tricks. That's over with. From now on, I will focus solely on growing my company.

“I’m going to bury Cook Custom Jewelry. I know that Roger’s father, Scott, has been interested in acquiring a stake in the company lately. I will make that happen for him by directing my broker to start with him. I believe Scott will be only too happy to be able to get his hands on the proverbial golden goose,” I said with a smile.

“I’m sorry, honey. Neither of us ever liked Roger, but you know that you can still go forward with the arranged marriage with Holden. He obviously cares for you, or he wouldn’t have sent the video to you to warn you,” My mother stated.

“No,” I said sharply. I had to force myself to calm down. I spoke more gently to her, “I’m sorry, Mom, but I just got my heart broken. I don’t want to be with Holden. I won’t force him to honor the arrangement between families. I’m sorry, but things between Holden and me will never work out. There was a reason I cut him out of my life. He has no respect for me, and knowing that, I just can't marry him. There’s no need to push him to honor it. I already know his feelings on the subject.”

I see the frowns on both my parents' foreheads. This was news to them. I never told a soul what happened, and I would rather not get into that right now. I had once adored Holden. I looked up to and admired him. I know I might have just said too much as I was upset, but I can’t take the words back now. Holden had made his decision, and I would respect it. It should be enough that I shielded my family from what happened. It would have torn our families apart. He wouldn’t be Seth’s best friend anymore if that happened.

Our families had been close friends with each other my entire life. I made excuses to not join their dinner parties over the years. Things became much easier when Holden left five years ago. I started to show up after he left, unless I knew he was in town. My parents and Seth were suspicious, but I always excused myself by saying I was too busy. I truly was busy. Running two companies myself, Roger had no idea what he was doing. We both had business degrees, but he was almost completely clueless.

Additionally, over the last eight months, I had been planning our wedding on top of it, with no help from him. They accepted my excuses without argument, but they didn’t like it. I knew they were concerned, but they left it alone. I think that they are all aware that if they actually pursued it, it might end up blowing up in their face. They knew I had a good head on my shoulders. I inwardly scoffed at that. I thought I did, but clearly I had no clue when it came to Roger. Was I so focused on replacing Holden that I was willing to accept scraps for the rest of my life? No, I wasn’t. I was going to live for myself from now on.

“Your mother and I will help you, Ana. I will never allow someone to hurt you without paying the price for it,” my father said. I know that he means Holden, too, but at the moment, I'm caught up in gratitude. I can always count on my parents to love and support me. I know in my heart that this will be much more than I can handle on my own, so I’m glad for their help. It’s time to show them all who I really am. So, let the games begin.