“Your parents aren’t going to be disappointed he’s not a doctor?” I tease.

Amy smiles. “Given how much money JD must make, I think they’ll live with it.”

“He imports chemicals?” I recall.

“Something like that. It’s kind of boring.”

She grows quiet.

“Something the matter?” I ask.

“Just that he seems stressed from work lately. My Cantonese is a little rusty, but it sounds like a recent shipment isn’t going well, and he might lose out on a lot of money. Maybe I should go over to The Lotus tonight in case he needs cheering up.”

While Amy gets ready to go to the club, I get a call from Darren about coming over to view the outfits Cheryl will have picked out for me. The flight’s on Sunday, so there’s not a lot of time left.

“Maybe tomorrow,” I reply. “I need to finish my health policy paper, which is due tomorrow, and I’d like to finish at least one grant application.”

Secretly, I also want to find a way out of this outfit business.

“How’s the paper coming along?” he asks.

“Pretty good. I’m just having second thoughts about my conclusion.”

“What’s your conclusion?”

“That, had the US done a fraction of what Taiwan did, we could have saved hundreds of thousands of lives.”

“You don’t really believe that?”

“There’s always the issue of scaling up. Taiwan’s population is a small fraction of the US’s.”

“We’re the richest country in the world. Why should that stop us?”

“It shouldn’t.”

“We’re supposed to be badass, right?”

“That’s a compelling argument. The United States can replicate Taiwan’s success on a larger scale because we’re ‘badass.’”

“Don’t we have the resources?”

“We should. Our GDP is much larger. In fact,” I plug some numbers into calculator app, “our per capita GDP is fifteen percent higher. I could argue that the US has more issues to deal with, but ultimately it’s a matter of prioritizing what’s more important. Okay, I feel better about my conclusion. Thanks.”

“So I’ll pick you up tomorrow at nine.”

After hanging up, I sit down on the bed. I’m proud of myself for the amount of work I finished this week, even though thoughts of Darren crept into my mind often. I called Coretta to let her know I was going to Thailand. She asked me to check in with her daily. I assured her I would. Coretta always treated me as if I were one of her own.

“You want to come with me to the club tonight?” Amy asks as she applies another coat of mascara.

It’s tempting, but I shake my head. “I told Darren I’d come over tomorrow.”

“I still can’t believe we’re going to Phuket. In just a few days!”

I flop down onto my pillow and stare at the ceiling. I can’t believe it, either. Phuket. Thailand. And all I have to cover is meals?

Just then, I remember the one payment Darren would accept: a night at the BDSM side of his club.