How to be loved

50 - Muffin!

How to be loved

50 – Muffin!

Becky's POV

We arrived in Las Vegas at exactly seven in the evening, the city already alive with its flashing lights and restless energy. There was no time to settle in; we headed straight into the meeting with Allegiant Air to discuss a potential partnership. I wasn't prepared at all. To be honest, the entire setup felt like a trap—something my stepmother had orchestrated without my involvement. It was as if she had thrown me into the lion's den, expecting me to fail. The thought gnawed at me, and I could feel the weight of it pressing down on my chest.

But that wasn't the worst of it.

What worried me more—what I couldn't shake—was the nagging fear that my girlfriend was furious with me. I had promised to catch up with her for lunch, but the chaos of the day had swallowed me whole, leaving me no chance to make it. Now it was hours later, and I had no way to even let her know what had happened.

I lost my phone earlier, of course, because fate has a twisted sense of humor. No phone meant no contact. I didn't have her number memorized. Hell, I didn't even have my best friend's number committed to memory. The only number lodged in my brain—the one I could recite in my sleep—was my ex-girlfriend's. Friend. And, of course, there was no way I could call her. That would be opening a door I had no intention of walking through again.

So here I was, stuck. Sent into a high-stakes meeting I wasn't prepared for, worried sick about the fallout with my girlfriend, and helpless without a phone to make it right. The city outside sparkled with opportunity, but all I felt was a sense of impending doom.

The meeting room felt even colder without the safety net of familiar faces. They looked sharp, professional, and every bit as intimidating as I expected. I had no one to fall back on, no guiding hand to steer me through this.

The lead negotiator, a man in his mid-forties with a polished air of authority, opened the conversation. "Thank you for making it on time. We're looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the partnership."

My throat tightened. I wasn't sure what to say. This whole thing had been thrown together without my input, and I could already tell they expected more from me than I was ready to give. The talking points were buried somewhere in the files I had barely skimmed, but my brain was a mess, tangled up with thoughts of my girlfriend, my missing phone, and the sickening feeling that this was all about to go downhill.

I nodded, pretending to be calm, as I opened the folder in front of me. Pages of data stared back, but none of it seemed to register. The silence stretched uncomfortably, the ticking of the conference room clock suddenly deafening.

The Allegiant team exchanged glances, clearly waiting for me to take charge. My heart pounded in my ears. This was supposed to be my stepmother's deal, not mine. But here I was, left to fend for myself. And worse, I could practically feel the weight of judgment in their stares.

"Well, we're very interested in exploring synergies between our companies," I managed to say, though my voice sounded far more uncertain than I wanted it to.

"Great to hear," the lead negotiator replied, his expression unreadable. "We're particularly curious about your thoughts on the regional expansion plan."

My thoughts? Panic flared in my chest. I hadn't even had time to grasp the full extent of the plan, let alone formulate an opinion. My stepmother had set this up for me to fail—of that, I was sure. I could already feel the pressure building.

But even through the haze of panic, one thought kept resurfacing, louder than the rest: *How can I fix things with her?*

The meeting continued, questions flying my way, each one a test I wasn't sure I was passing.