James Callaghan thought life was pretty good until he met his new boss. Now the man who took pride in the vast number of women that had shared his bed is trying to become the perfect catch, but only so he can get the job he always wanted; his boss' job. He'll do anything to be executive director of Mirage Productions...anything.

“I’m leaving.” She said as soon as I entered through the door of my studio apartment. Like if there was a reason for her to tell me she was on her way out.

I nodded and continued walking inside toward the kitchen to get a beer out of the refrigerator. Then I thought, as long as she was out she could get me something to eat, so I asked her.

“Where are you going?”

“Didn’t you hear me? I said I was le-av-ing.” She answered cutting the word into syllables like if I was an idiot. The truth is I really wasn’t sure that was the correct way to cut the word. But I understood she was leaving, which meant she was leaving me.

“Wait a second you can’t leave me!” No one leaves James Callaghan. James Callaghan breaks up with women all the time but no woman breaks up with him. “You aren’t leaving I am letting you go.”

“Of all the things I had imagined you would say this was the last thing that crossed my mind! You arrogant jerk!”

She had a point there, I really didn’t care whether she left or stayed. After three months of “living” together she had been the longest relationship I had had in years and the truth was I had gotten bored after the first two weeks. It was convenient to let her stay she did the laundry and made sure I paid my bills, you can think of it as having a personal assistant except she also assisted with physical recreation.

“We are through!” She screamed at me picking up the suitcase she had filled with her belongings.

I laughed at her need to make such a drama over the situation. It wasn’t as if she had expected me to propose to her, had she? Hannah knew I would never propose to her or any woman for that matter.

“How about a kiss goodbye?” I asked between laughs. She let her suitcase drop on the floor and returned to slap me. She tried to at least, my hand held hers in the air. If she wasn’t going to kiss me then I would have to kiss her. I got close to her lips and barely brushed them, she pulled away.

“And just to let you know you are a lousy boyfriend and a bad photographer”

“Okay Hannah I think you’ve been drinking.” I said to her “Turn around, pick up your suitcase and leave.”

She did just as I asked without protest. However not five seconds after she had closed the door behind her she popped her head back in.

“And not that good in bed either!” She shouted at me angrily.

Okay that did it. One thing was to insult my morale and my work, but she was messing with my sexuality, now that was off limits. And if I was not a good lover then why did she stay for three months? I don’t think I imaged her screaming for more all those nights. My Bob that was the only thing we enjoyed together! What the fook was wrong with this woman! Saying I am not a good lover, bull crap!

“Out!” I screamed furious.

Now, why exactly she left me, excuse me… why exactly we broke up I will never know. It was for the best but it would have helped to know what she did wrong so that I could keep my eyes open against that in the future. Whatever, at least she had time to do the week’s laundry before she left. Just in time too, I have an important meeting with Nathaniel Rogers, my boss, the next day.

Regina Thomas rushed back to her office, closed the vertical blinds, and plopped down on her desk chair; what the hell was she going to do? Rogers thought she was engaged! How was she going to explain that the ring on her finger came not from a fiancé, but a fake jewelry machine outside the subway?

She had been waiting for her transportation to arrive when she spotted a row of vending machines not very far away from her. It was not something she did everyday but the sudden urge to go there and find a snack took possession of her will. Next thing she knew she was facing the pictures of soda cans, chip bags, and chocolate bars. Abruptly overwhelmed with all the choices she shook her head and decided against purchasing anything. It was the best decision; she still had ten more pounds to shed from all the indulging she did during the holidays. Yet the craving was still there and it refused to let go of her. So she did what any woman on a diet would have done; she took out a quarter from her purse and headed for the bubble gum dispenser.

“Ma’am is this yours?” A man asked behind her. She turned around to see he was holding a hat in his hand.

“No, it’s not mine.” She answered popping the quarter in the machine without paying attention “Thanks for asking” She said trying to look back at the man and turning the machine’s knob at the same time.

The round object that fell from the womb of the machine made a rattling sound that forced Regina to look back at it. When at last she lifted the lid to receive her gum ball she was surprised to find a fake diamond ring inside a round container instead.

“So much for stopping the craving.” She said opening the thing and taking the ring out.

It was a harmless reaction to put the ring on. She had not even noticed she had chosen her left hand and ring finger until Roger’s raised it for James Callaghan to see.

“I’m in deep shiet.” Regina exclaimed burying her face in her hands.

She had not intended for anyone to believe she was engaged. It was a fake ring for Pete’s sake! If they had taken a deeper look they would have realized it. Now she was not sure she wanted anyone to know the ring was not real. They would accuse her of trying to fool Rogers into giving her the promotion, and then Callaghan would be named executive director. Of course the first thing he would do after that would be fire her. He hated her just as much as she hated him. No, make that less; no one could hate more than Regina hated James Callaghan.

He was the most arrogant, despiteful, and immature, man she had ever known. He was known as the ‘The Hunk of Mirage Productions’, a name she was sure he was very proud of. Sure he was handsome but whatever beauty his face possessed was overshadowed by his ego and disgraceful nature. The man was a womanizer, a true playboy if someone ever was. He virtually walked the halls of Mirage looking for his next victim among the interns every year. Never had he intended to woe Regina, but she was certain it was only because he knew he would be instantly rejected. She would surely first kill herself than go out with Callaghan.

Now at last she had the opportunity to show that man what a disgrace to the human race he was. She was his boss and would be for the next few weeks; during that time he would have to abide by her rules and such rules would not be less than fierce. The thought of having power over him was so comforting Regina found herself fantasizing with the notion of making it permanent. But for that she needed to convince Rogers that she was the better candidate for the job. She needed to demonstrate her abilities as leader in the month he was away, and she needed… a fiancé.

Rapidly, Regina grabbed the phone on her desk and dialed a number. After only three rings a male voice answered her call.

“Hello?”

“Hi.” She responded

“Hey Reggie! It’s been a while.”

“How are you?” Regina asked

“Good, how about yourself?”

Regina ignored the question.

“Can I ask a favor from you, it’s a life or death situation?”

“Sure.” The man said confused.

“Peter, marry me.”

“What?” He exclaimed stunned.

“Marry me. I need to get married.”

“Are you crazy? Why on Earth would you need to get married for?”

“My boss has given me a promotion and to keep it I need to be married as soon as possible.”

“He actually told you that?” Peter asked in disbelief.

“No.” She admitted “But he might as well have, the only reason he is even considering me is because he thinks I am engaged.”

“Why would anybody think that?”

“It’s a long story.” She told him; one that surely would not make sense to a man like Peter so there was no point in even bringing it up. “Would you marry me or not?”

“Regina I’m your first cousin!” He said stupefied with her insistence.

“So?”

“So it’s illegal, not to mention publicly unacceptable.”

“You are right.” Regina acknowledged “You wouldn’t make a good husband anyways.” She teased “Sorry I bothered you.”

“Reggie why don’t you come visit me tonight? I think you need some counseling.”

“Not from you I don’t. Haven’t you ever heard that psychologists are more messed up than their patients? That is why they can get into their heads and extract all the juicy stuff they keep hidden.”

“That sounds disgusting.” Peter said “Just come over for dinner then.”

“Well I have nothing better to do; I guess I’ll be there.”

When she hung up the phone she was no closer to finding a solution to her problem. There was no one else she dared ask to marry her. The sole idea even sounded ridiculous now that she had time to consider it. But if she was still single by the time Rogers returned from his vacation Regina would end up humiliated and jobless. She needed to find a way to keep the position. She needed to do something drastic to secure herself as Callaghan’s boss. She needed to find a fiancé; she needed a man…any man.

“You are amazing!” She screamed into my ear as she pressed herself against my back; the bike breaking through the wind serving as an echo to her words.

Well if she felt compelled to say it, then it must be true. Then again what woman wouldn’t find herself excited being that we were on our way to my apartment?

Yes, it had been a great idea to forget about finding a fiancé for one night. The night was young and the woman whose arms were around me was beautiful. This was going to be a long, interesting night. She giggled as I sped up to cut between the cars waiting for the traffic to move.

“Where is the elevator?” She asked as we walked into the building minutes later.

I laughed and pulled her into a kiss.

“Come on.” I said with my lips still on hers.

She seemed to like my apartment but noted that it had not been what she expected. I guess she thought I had money. I won’t say I am completely broke, I mean I’m not, but until the possibility of the promotion came up my home had been more than enough for me. I slept here and that was about it. Well, maybe not just sleep.

“You take pictures.’ She said looking at the portfolios on my small desk and the frames on the walls. She walked to the corner where my cameras were hanging and ran her finger over one “Are you a photographer?”

“No.” I said hugging her from behind and playing with her ear “I do it for fun. It relieves stress.”

She turned around to face me.

“I know of another way to relax.” She told me with a wicked smile.

“You do?”

“Yes.” She answered kissing me fervently.

Okay so you can imagine, and only imagine because I will not go into details, what happened next. Let’s just say it was very very entertaining and impressively enjoyable. I had thought that maybe my present troubles would get in the way of my performance but I was wrong, dead wrong. Wrong enough that at the very edge of the cliff, just before jumping, she screamed my name. Cheeses I think I even heard the heavens singing halleluiahs. I would have screamed her name as well, it was the least I could do she was very amusing and I was in swing of things too, but I just couldn’t remember what it was. Does that make me a bad man?

No? I didn’t think so either.

A while later I found myself staring at the ceiling as I waited for her to wake up so she could get going. Letting a woman sleep over was a bad move, something they took as a sign to take an encounter further. That is where I had gone wrong with Hannah; I had let her stay after a casual encounter and then I couldn’t get rid of her. That was not going to happen to me again, as much as I needed a woman right now. I barely knew the one that was sleeping next to me. The experience had been pleasant but she had not demonstrated any unique skills and sincerely I don’t think I could deal with her ordinary ways.

“As soon as you wake up you need to leave.” I told her sleeping form.

To make sure she complied with my wish I had to stay awake. I checked the illuminated clock on the wall and saw it was 11:15pm. I would give her thirty more minutes of sleep.

Just then I noticed the email signal on my laptop’s screen was blinking. I always left it on because I hated having to turn the damn thing on and off every time I used it.

Who would send me email at this hour of the night?

I stood up from the bed and went to sit on the chair facing the laptop. I touched a key and instantly the screen brightened. The email browser was already waiting for me, one of the little conveniences of having left the thing on all day. I shook my head in disbelief; it was a note from Marcus.

I clicked on the message and read it:

‘James I’ve found the solution to your troubles. Click on the link, you can repay me later.’

M.

I stared at the hyperlink he was talking about. LoveGame.com

Was he serious? Did he really expect me try a blind search again after the newspaper incident? Online Dating was far more dangerous than voicemail. Online I would not even know for sure whether I was exchanging words with a man or a woman. False identities and possible stalkers, not to mention thoughts of assassins, crossed my mind. No. Marcus was insane, this suggestion confirmed it.

And yet I still clicked on the link. I got to say I had always been curious about this kind of things. What kind of people actually fall for it?

After a few minutes of browsing around the site I found myself wondering if maybe I was wrong and this was a real way to meet people. The testimonies seemed real. The pictures of the girls that had included them in their profiles were gorgeous. It was like a big night club except it was open 24/7.

“Why not?” I asked out loud “Why not give it a try?”

Choose a login name, read the first line on the registration from.

I thought about it for a few minutes. It was harder than it had been to choose which girl to ask back to my place at the club. I was dry out of ideas and then… I looked over at my cameras. I was laughing as I typed CamArtist into the slot. It was a stupid name but it was the best I could do. Also it amused me to think of the play on words with con artist; after all I was trying to trick Rogers into believing I was getting married.

There were 36 areas of interest that I had to type answers for. What food I liked, what music, etc… Then there were hobbies which I found easy to respond to.

‘I like taking photographs, hence the name CameraArtist’, I typed in.

Before I knew it the half hour I had decided to give my sleeping friend turned into an hour and I was still typing answers into the site. There were some things I had to think really hard about; like how I liked my eggs in the morning. I never have eggs in the morning. Was that a trick question?

Finally I managed to click Enter and the site began the search for my soul mate. Within five minutes I received a message saying I had four matches. I smiled thinking how easy that had been. One lick… I mean, one click, and I already had four women wanting me.

Two of them had 78% compatibility with my interests, another 86%, and one had miraculously reached an astounding 98%. Could it be possible? I wondered as I clicked on her name: A-Muse