And officially too far.
“Right.” She choked. “I’m just gonna go freshen up.”
“I can grab your bags.” He reached for her bag but she swatted his hand.
“No.” Char laughed lightly. “I’ve got it. I’ll see you in an hour.”
He smile was smug as he walked off.
Char ran up the stairs as fast as she could. They had the suite. Her and Jake. It had to be some kind of sick joke. The one and only suite? Meant for Kacey and Travis, and she had to stay in it with Jake? The man-whore who screamed when someone said “commitment” and got drunk to purposefully prove a point to society that he was exactly what everyone believed—a player.
With a grunt, she pushed open the door and immediately dropped her bag onto the floor.
Something was wrong with her. It was like all the pent-up emotion of her childhood, her past, drama with her parents, and finally the pressure of losing her career, were finally hitting her.
Stupid flowers.
It was their fault.
They were yellow roses, just like the ones Jake had gotten her a few days ago. Damn him.
She pulled a rose from the vase and inhaled. For a brief minute she allowed herself to dream, that it was her honeymoon suite. That Jake was her husband, that he’d bought her flowers and hadn’t been puking just an hour ago.
When she opened her eyes, the reality of her situation hit her square in the face. In the form of a single king-sized bed.
So close, yet always so far away; that was the story of her life. She was so close to graduating with honors, but it was Beth who finally clenched the title of Valedictorian.
And when she had her first job interview, her parents had taken her out to dinner only to be disappointed that it was with a news station.
When Beth got her job, she was given a car.
It was as if all the things she’d ever wanted in her life were always close enough for her to want them, yet never close enough for her to grasp them.
She was like that damn hamster and his wheel.
She hated hamsters.
With a huff she sat on the bed and watched as the door swung open, revealing a very haggard-looking Jake. At least someone was having a worse day than she was.
“How you doing, princess?” she asked.
“I hate my life.” With a groan he stumbled to the bed and fell face down on top of it. “Best part of my day… Go ahead, ask me.”
Char leaned back on her elbow so she could see him better. “Almost getting arrested.”
He shook his head.
“Hmm, meeting the youngest state senator in Oregon history?”
Jake showed her his middle finger.
Laughing, Char guessed again. “Finally puking in a toilet like a big boy.”
He sighed and lifted his head so their eyes were locked. “Rooming with you.”
The teasing smile fell from Char’s face as her heart hammered in her chest. The room was silent except for the sound of her sharp intake of breath. She suddenly seemed to have an inability to inhale and exhale softly.
She finally managed an “oh.”