SHE CANCELLED HIS DREAM JOB INTERVIEW… BECAUSE SHE WANTED HIM HOME He finally got the opportunity he’d been waiting for… then found out his own girlfriend emailed the company and cancelled his interview.

I reached my mother's house in twelve minutes.

Darius was gone.

My mother stood behind the locked door, clutching her phone.

When she saw me, she pulled me into the house.

"He was polite," she said. "That's what frightened me. He smiled the whole time."

I checked the windows and locks before sitting down with her.

"What exactly did he say?"

She repeated the conversation.

Darius had claimed he was worried about me. He said I was throwing away a good relationship over a misunderstanding and that my career would suffer if I continued accusing people without proof.

Then he'd mentioned my mother's retirement savings.

He knew she had recently withdrawn money from an investment account to repair her roof.

That detail made my stomach twist.

"Did he ask you for anything?"

"He wanted me to convince you to meet him."

I shook my head.

"He won't get near you again."

I stayed the night.

The next morning, Elaine called with an update.

The recruiting company's security team had traced the withdrawal email to a session that appeared to originate from my home internet connection.

That didn't identify the person who sent it, but it confirmed that the message had not come from an unfamiliar overseas login.

The company was also reviewing the suspicious attachment.

"They haven't cleared you yet," Elaine explained. "But they haven't rejected you either."

"Can I still get the position?"

"It's possible. However, you need to prepare for the possibility that they may choose another candidate while this investigation continues."

I understood.

Even if I proved my innocence, the opportunity might disappear.

That afternoon, I received an email from the recruiter.

They had temporarily suspended my application pending review.

I read the message three times.

Then I closed the laptop and stared out my mother's kitchen window.

All those nights of studying.

All those weekends spent preparing presentations.

All those sacrifices I'd made because I believed hard work would eventually give me a chance.

Someone had taken that chance from me with a few clicks.

My phone buzzed.

This time, the message came from Keisha.

PLEASE. I NEED TO TELL YOU SOMETHING IN PERSON.

I didn't respond.

Five minutes later, she sent another.

DARIUS ISN'T THE ONLY PERSON I LIED TO.

I stared at the screen.

Then a final message arrived.

I DIDN'T MEET YOU AT THAT FUNDRAISER BY ACCIDENT.

My stomach tightened.

I called her.

She answered immediately.

"Andre?"

"What does that mean?"

She began crying.

"I wanted to tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"When we met, I knew who you were."

"How?"

"My brother had been researching companies that needed logistics contractors. Your previous employer was one of them."

I gripped the edge of the counter.

"So you approached me because of my job?"

"At first, yes."

The honesty hurt more than another lie would have.

"What happened afterward?"

"I fell in love with you."

I laughed bitterly.

"You expect me to believe that?"

"I know how it sounds."

"How long did you plan this?"

"I didn't plan everything! I was supposed to get close to you and find out whether you could introduce Darius to people at your company."

"And when I couldn't?"

"Nothing happened. I stopped helping him."

"Until my interview."

She went silent.

I understood then.

Whatever feelings she'd developed, she'd never fully abandoned the arrangement that brought us together.

"Why did you send that email?"

"Because Darius said your new position would finally give him the opportunity he needed. He told me you would forget about me once you got promoted."

"So you destroyed the promotion to keep me?"

"I panicked."

I closed my eyes.

"Keisha, love isn't supposed to require someone else's failure."

"I know."

"No, you don't. If you did, you wouldn't have done this."

She sobbed.

"I never wanted you to get hurt."

"Then why did you help someone forge evidence against me?"

"I thought it would scare the company away from hiring you without ruining your entire career. Darius said he could make the documents disappear afterward."

My hand tightened around the phone.

"You knew about the fake conversation."

"I knew he'd created something, but I didn't know exactly what he was sending."

"That isn't a defense."

"I know."

For several seconds, neither of us spoke.

Then she said, "There's something else."

I waited.

"Darius has been telling people you agreed to help him get the contract. He has messages that make it look like you promised him."

"I never promised him anything."

"I know. But he says he can make them look real."

I felt sick.