Rachel’s eyes widen and she steps back. I instantly miss the feel of her body pressed against mine.
“Jude.” Jenese wraps her arms around my waist, and slides between me and Rachel. Damn. Where the hell did she come from? Seriously, she appears out of thin air. A perfect cock block. More likely, I completely lost awareness of my surroundings when Rachel and I almost kissed.
She pushes onto her toes, her lips at my earlobe. “I’m horny,” she says much too loudly, and cups my junk.
Jesus. I hold back a groan of frustration, which I attempt to convey to Rachel as I peel Jenese off my body, but she’s staring everywhere except my way.
My ass cheek pinches with pain. What the fresh hell? I jump, then realize it’s Jenese, who might as well have an extra limb, what with the way she’s groping me.
“I think we’ve had enough fun for one night. Let’s get you home, yeah?” I say to pacify Jenese and her wandering hands. I hoist her onto my vacated barstool, then turn my back to catch Rachel’s attention. It might be rude, but I won’t lead the wrong woman on. It’s not my style. “Rachel, I—”
“Rae! Here you are!” A young woman interrupts, grabbing Rachel by the arm. “We’re all hungry. Gonna hit up that food truck on Overstreet. You coming or—?” Her gaze studies me with her unspoken question. Does Rachel want to stay with me? I already know her answer.
“No, I’m ready to go.” She turns from her friend to meet my gaze. “Thanks again for the drink.”
“Yeah.”
“See you around.”
I lift my brows. “I’ll see you Monday morning.”
“Right.” She laughs, but it’s tight with discomfort. “Yeah. See you then.” She takes a step away, and for a split second I wonder if she regrets not kissing me.
I already do.
“Night, Rachel.” I lift my hand to wave.
“Night.” She turns and walks away, leaving me with two things I don’t want: my unsettled thoughts and a very tipsy Jenese. A wry end of the deal, yet I’d do it all again to have Rachel in my arms for another song.
17
Rachel
Monday mornings are the worst. At least they used to be. Even after this weekend, when I’m more irritated than usual at most of my roommates, there’s no room in my mind for negative vibes. Not when I have a new job on a movie set! It’s the only thing on my mind.
Not true.
It’s the only thing I want to be focused on, but somehow my brain can’t get on board. It keeps drifting back to Jude and our almost kiss on Saturday night. My teeth clench in annoyance at the memory, but my body shivers with excitement. Stupid body.
He was at the club with another woman. I don’t know why it bothers me so much, but it does. Until that moment, I thought—I don’t know what I thought. He was there for me? Ridiculous. Yet on the dance floor I completely shed my inhibitions, and with the courage of a few drinks I almost gave him everything. If he had kissed me—if she hadn’t interrupted—I might have gone home with him. I know I would have.
Maybe that’s what pisses me off the most. I’ve worked so hard to get to this point. To be the independent woman. But one dance with Jude and I was willing to throw it all away.
I consider asking him not to drive me today. Part of me hopes he doesn’t show, but that’s only so I won’t have to face him. Stupid almost kiss. God, I hope he doesn’t bring it up. If he does I’ll blame it on the alcohol.
I glance at the time on my phone, throw the covers off, and get out of bed. We have a shower schedule, but today it’s dragging behind. Kari Ann should have been out of the bathroom a good fifteen minutes ago. I’d consider skipping, but considering this is my first day on a new job, I want to look and feel my best.
I also can’t be late.
I knock on the door, a vain attempt to hurry Kari Ann. The water shut off minutes ago. She’s inside primping. “Almost done?”
The door swings open and she cringes. “Sorry.”
I step inside and before I can ask why, my nostrils fill with the most awful smell. “Are you kidding me?” I shout, but she’s already made herself scarce. The toilet lid is down, and while I don’t want to know what’s inside, I also don’t want to risk flushing if it’s clogged. Do we even own a plunger? Resisting the urge to gag, I check the toilet—dear God, what has she been eating? And why wouldn’t she flush? By some miracle it all goes down successfully with a flush. A small win. The smell lingers, though, even when I flip on the exhaust fan.
A quick lukewarm shower puts me back into a semi-positive mood, but I skip washing my hair. I don’t have time to dry it. Thank God for dry shampoo. Tossing my stuff back into my shower caddy, I slip on clean panties, a bra, and tug an oversized T-shirt over my head before I walk back to my room.
Only, I stop short when I find Crystal in my room. It takes a second to process what I see. A few items clatter inside my makeup case as she riffles through my stuff. My. Things.
It’s the final straw. My breaking point. The worst kind of betrayal. “Crystal?”
“Oh, hey.” The slight jump she gives is the only indication she didn’t expect me to walk in on her. Her left hand clutches a brush set, lipstick, and eye shadow palatte. “What’s up, Rae?”
What’s up? I’d like to know the exact same. “That’s my makeup.”
“Right.” She shrugs, but still doesn’t set it down.
A spike of adrenaline hits with her indifference. “Were you just helping yourself?”
“Oh, Kari Ann said you had samples
