Looking back, Jane had been eagerly setting me up with these “matches” for years. Out of respect for our friendship, I would at least entertain a few conversations with the men she introduced me to, even if I wasn’t interested.
But seriously – every single guy she picked was worse than the last, like she had a knack for finding the most unattractive, low-quality men.
Later, I got home to find a delivery of strawberry cake, along with a card.
It was from Jane.
“Don’t be mad, Bree. Come to my baby’s party tomorrow!”
For a moment, I felt touched.
Then, a new message from her popped up.
“Make sure to dress nicely. I have another great guy to introduce you to!”
Annoyed, I quickly typed, “Please, stop setting me up.”
Right then, my assistant called.
“Ms. Lee, should we still be paying John his usual salary? He’s been slacking a lot recently...”
John was Jane’s husband.
When I started my company in college, I hit the jackpot during a booming market and made a fortune.
After gaining financial freedom, I had been generous to those around me.
I was slow to warm up to people, so Jane was the only real friend I had. She had married young, right after high school, and her husband, John, was equally unqualified and unskilled.
To ensure Jane didn’t struggle, I’d given John a cushy job in one of my departments, paying him $10,000 a month to do practically nothing. The only condition was that he treated her well.
Thanks to my influence, John was a model husband to Jane. And despite our friendship, I never told her how successful I had become.
Out of consideration for our friendship, I never told Jane that I had successfully started my own business and achieved financial freedom long ago.
Under normal circumstances, I would’ve brushed this off, but Jane’s next message sent me over the edge:
Jane: [Tomorrow, I’m setting Bree up with a balding old man. This is going to be hilarious. You guys better show up!]
She had sent the message to me by mistake.
“Ms. Lee? Are you still there?” my assistant cautiously asked.
I took a deep breath, telling my assistant to wait for my call.
I had been too blind for too long. Since Jane saw me as her punching bag and wanted to play games, I was about to change the rules.
After retracting the message, Jane sent me a bunch of photos of her son, subtly probing if I had seen the message she accidentally sent.
I told her I hadn’t.