old Birkenstocks and a t-shirt, pulled Jake aside. “We bought tickets for Europe this morning. It’s still not too late to go.” Judging by his attire, Tim was already in boarding-pass mode.
“Not going to make it. Cash is a little tight at the moment.”
“I can loan you the money. I’ll hit my parents up for it. I’ll tell them my car needs some work. They live in Colorado. They’ll never know. It’s going to be the trip of a lifetime. Six guys, hitting the highlights of Europe. French, Spanish, and Italian women.”
“Those are the highlights of Europe?”
“Is there anything else?”
“I’d love to go. If something changes, you’ll be the first to know.”
“It’d be good for you. Take your mind off things.”
“I’d love to, but I can’t.”
“Suit yourself. But if you aren’t going to go, at least let me buy you a beer,” Tim said, motioning toward the bartender.
The evening turned into a blur. The guys crashed the bachelorette party and led them on a pub-crawl up Connecticut Avenue past DuPont Circle. They stood back and watched the ladies get nine of the ten items on the bachelorette scavenger list. Then they added another ten X-rated tasks on the back of her t-shirt in permanent marker.
In the middle of the action, with an early nineties disco remake pumping in the background, Jake magically took off his boxers without removing his shorts, a feat no one at the packed bar had ever seen before. The drinking lasted until just after midnight, when a member of the bachelorette’s party didn’t return from a trip to the restroom. A waitress approached the group and asked if they knew a redhead in a black skirt. Tim and Aaron helped drag the semi-conscious, kamikaze-loving girl from the tile floor and put her in a cab.
In the midst of the commotion, Jake and Kate made their exit. No one noticed their departure until they were in a taxi of their own, making out in the back seat. ***
Lee Chang made his daily call to the bank, and with the afternoon wire transfer settlement, the money poured in. He transferred the money to a bank in Shanghai under a different name and closed the account in Hong Kong. He moved the money to two other accounts, which he also closed behind him with zero balances. By the time his cousin withdrew the funds from a bank in Beijing, the person at the end of the money trail was a gray mist.
Like taking candy from a baby.
Lee Chang took out two more pictures and smiled. Certainly a man who is willing to pay one hundred thousand dollars would be willing to pay five hundred thousand, he thought. Maybe even a cool million.
Chapter 4
Jake woke up before Kate, his bare ass facing the ceiling uncovered. He looked over at the girl he had met the night before and was thankful she looked as good as he had thought with alcohol surging through his veins. He fought the natural male desire to quietly slink out of the apartment, but had no idea where he had left his clothes. The sun was up, but it was still too early for someone with a hangover to try getting vertical. For the last year, he had been trained to wake up at dawn to care for his mother, and he was still re-learning how to sleep in. He put his head under the pillow and fell back into a fitful sleep.
When he opened his eyes again, Kate was sitting on the bed wearing only a t-shirt, her back against the headboard.
“Good morning, Jake,” she said sheepishly, flipping through the latest issue of
“Good morning,” he answered, pulling himself slowly into a seated position next to her.
Both of them wanted to say something mature. Kate took a first stab at it.
“Jake, you know I’ve never slept with someone on the first date before.”
“Technically it wasn’t a date,” Jake replied.
So much for maturity.
“You know what I mean. I’m not the type of girl who goes around having one-night stands,” Kate said.
“Well believe it or not, neither do I,” Jake replied honestly. He leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. It seemed like the right thing to do.
Kate went to the fridge and returned with two glasses of orange juice.
“Do you need some aspirin?” she asked.
“No, I’ll suffer through the pain. It’ll remind me why I don’t drink.”
They sat on the bed and talked, Jake still naked beneath the bed sheet wrapped around his waist.
“So you’re a medical student?”
“Third year at GW.”
“Med school sounds like a lot of studying.”
“The first few years were hard. It gets easier. Or maybe you just get used to it.”
“I’m starting back to school in the fall. I took a couple of semesters off.”
“For fun?”
Jake stumbled. “No, definitely not for fun. My mom recently passed after a long battle with cancer. I spent most of the last year and half taking care of her. I guess you can say I learned a little about nursing and oncology.”
Kate listened to Jake without interrupting and when he was finished, she spoke. “I’m sorry for your loss. And though you may not want to hear it, I’m sure the experience will make you a stronger person.”
Jake shrugged his shoulders and smiled. “Thanks.” Feeling a somber mood seeping into the room, he stood for the first time, still clutching the sheet against his groin. He tried not to blush and wasn’t sure if he succeeded.
“It’s a little late to be bashful. I pretty much saw it all last night,” Kate said. “Besides, I’m going to be a doctor; I’ve seen a few naked bodies.”
“As true as that may be, I’m the only one standing here without clothes.”
Kate stood and took off her t-shirt, joining Jake in his natural state.
“Now what do you have to say?” the cute brunette asked with a combination of conviction and sarcasm.
Jake turned a deeper shade of red. Kate enjoyed the moment and his embarrassment.
“Have you seen my shorts?” he asked.
“They are in the living room, on the floor in front of the sofa.”
Jake waddled through the bedroom door and Kate smiled at the half-moon that peeked out from under the sheet. He found his shorts on the floor, his shirt on the counter in the kitchen, and his belt near the balcony door. The evening must have been more interesting than he remembered. He dressed and sat down on the Italian leather sofa to put on his shoes. Nice apartment, he thought. Granite counter tops, crown molding, and large windows that ran from the floor to the ceiling.
Kate came out from the bedroom back in her t-shirt, running shorts completing the outfit.
“So can I have your number?” Jake asked. “I did forfeit my boxers after all.”
Kate laughed. Nice teeth, great smile, he thought.
They exchanged numbers and Kate finished the conversation with, “You’d better call.”
“I will,” Jake answered, doing a final check of his personal inventory—phone, keys, wallet. Preparing for his walk of shame, he took a quick peek into his wallet and cringed at the emptiness. “Where are we?”
“What?”
“What’s your address?”
“1750 P Street. The Commodore.”
It was a fifteen-block walk home, but he wasn’t about to ask for money for a cab. He gave Kate another kiss, this time on the mouth, bad breath and all.
Kate shut the door and smiled. She liked him. He was charming. He was strong and serious, yet shy and sweet. He had potential.
Her parents were going to hate him. ***
