Where was Mr. Mayor? She'd not seen his face all day and from the look of things, perhaps she needed some space. She thought he would be thinking so.
Bill Mayan was at the office. Pacing around. He had lost track of everything. He had lost track of time. He had been distracted and he guessed that was even obvious to the clients he had had to deal with all day. He was hating himself.
Nothing was supposed to come between Bill Mayan and his work. Nothing and nothing at all. But this girl, she had come from wherever she had come, walked into his life, and disorganized it. He was hating himself. It had been long ago when he had vowed that he would not let a woman come in between him and what he stood for.
It was after Dibba, his first girlfriend at college had cheated on him. He had been cute and geeky, spending time doing work that she felt he was not doing enough to keep her. He had loved her yet she had turned her back on him. She had broken his heart. She had said all the hurtful things that he did not want to re-play even after so many years. She had boldly told him he was selfish, all he cared about was himself and his goddamn dreams. That he would never manage to take care of a woman. That he was doomed to fail when it came to maintaining one. then she had walked away from him like that. The next evening, he had found Dibba at their spot, where they used to hang out together, kissing another guy who was the captain of the swimming team not because he'd been the best swimmer in the world, but because he even had more money than Bill. It had hurt and stung.
After that, Bill had gone for a semester at sea program, then started his multimillionaire enterprise. The next thing he had done after that was to go for swimming classes and own the swimming team that he knew Dibba's guys worked for… And thank God the last time he had seen Dibba was three years ago on a plane to Rome. He had sat across while he watched her fumble with the two kids he knew right away she'd mothered. He did not look her way again.
This time, he wondered what he could do to feel better. He had seen the girl lying in his bed a few hours ago. She had been sleeping gracefully, like she had no trouble or care in the world. Still only hours ago she had been in the same bed. Calling her parents, yearning for them not to go. Fighting with invisible forces. Where were they? Was she always getting herself drunk? God, he was disgusted by the thought of it. It was one thing he wanted her to get rid of. But first, like he had promised himself, he would tame her, he would ensure that she regrets drinking before he developed any attachments to her, he would punish her for disgracing him and herself in his own way, then he would make her yearn. Yearn for him.