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  “I just changed my sheets today.” He gestured to his bed.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. I always do laundry on Fridays.”

  “And you change your sheets?”

  He laughed. “You don’t wash yours?”

  “I do, but most of my guy friends don’t with any regularity.”

  “Oh, that’s kind of gross.”

  I laughed. “Are you as much of a neat freak as me?”

  “I prefer to think of myself as orderly.”

  “Orderly. That works too.”

  I took a seat on the edge of his bed. My guess was that Reyna’s ‘nap’ was going to last awhile.

  Chapter Three

  “The Boot isn’t anything special, but it’s where we always start.” Chad was all smiles as we walked toward the unofficial campus bar of Tulane.

  “Cool, we’re up for anything.” Reyna appeared equally happy, ever so often stealing glances of her hand held by his. If I didn’t know any better I’d say this guy really meant something to her.

  “Great.” It was already Friday night. All I had to do was make it until Sunday morning and we’d be on our way back to campus.

  “What’s the scene like at EMC?” Shaun asked.

  “It’s a big Greek scene.” Which was why joining a sorority was a no-brainer. Social life pretty much revolved around it. “There’s obviously tons to do in Atlanta, but we’re just outside the city.”

  “So you’re in a sorority?”

  “Yeah. Delta Mu.”

  “Nice.”

  “I’m guessing you’re not Greek?”

  “No, it’s not really my scene.”

  “Cool.” I didn’t care whether he was or not, but there went a potential conversation. “So this is an eighteen and up place?” I didn’t particularly feel like broaching the whole fake ID subject.

  “Yeah. You’re good.”

  “Ok, great.” Our conversation was getting stilted so I really hoped we got there soon.

  We turned a corner and suddenly we were surrounded by crowds of college students. Evidently this was where everyone hung out on Friday night. The door to the bar was wide open, but a large guy who couldn’t have been more than twenty-two or so sat at the door. I showed him my license and he grunted something. I assumed that meant I was fine so I trailed the others inside.

  The bar was smoky and crowded as I followed the others. One long bar spanned the back of the space, and loud music blared from speakers somewhere.

  “I’ll get us a pitcher.” Chad dropped Reyna’s hand, and we searched around for a place to sit.

  “Shaun, hey.” A guy called him over. Reyna and I followed him.

  “Hey, man. Mind if we join you?”

  The guy looked Reyna and I over. “No feel free.”

  Sometimes being a girl did come in handy. I took a seat next to Shaun, knowing Reyna would want the two seats on the other side of the table so she could sit with Chad.

  I made some more awkward conversation. That seemed to be the theme of the evening. When Chad arrived with the pitcher of beer I gulped down my cup in record time. I needed something to take the edge off. After about an hour we left the Boot and piled into Chad’s car to drive over to a place called the Bull Dog. This one had a different crowd. It seemed a little bit older, but definitely still college.

  As I stood sipping my Abita beer, it was a local beer I was told I had to try, I largely tuned out the conversation of the group we were with. They’d stopped even pretending to include me, and it wasn’t worth the effort to push myself in. Instead I people watched.

  That’s when I saw him. Tall, broad, and blond, he stood out in the sea of students. Even flanked by two equally tall and attractive guys, he commanded all of my attention.

  He was too far away to see the color of his eyes, but whatever they were they probably fit perfectly with his chiseled features. The guy could have been a model. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t pull my eyes away from him.

  “What are you staring at?” Reyna asked. She’d separated herself from Chad for the moment.

  “Nothing.”

  She followed my line of vision. “Oh. Which one?”

  “Blond.”

  “Of course.” She laughed.

  “Hey, I’ve dated guys with dark hair.”

  “Yes, but when given the choice you want a blond.” She brought her beer to her lips.

  “So? We all have our preferences.” Reyna always went for the brooding types, although Chad didn’t fit that description.

  “Go talk to him.” She nodded toward him.

  “Yeah… right.”

  “Why not? If he isn’t interested you never have to see him again.”

  She had a point. That was the upside of being hundreds of miles from home.

  “Come on. Live a little. He’s gorgeous. You can’t give up this kind of chance.” She placed her empty beer bottle down on the table.

  “Only you can make talking to a guy sound like a monumental life event.”

  “Not a monumental event, but a fun one. Go ahead.”

  “Fine.” Normally I would have just stood there staring at the guy, but she was right. What’s the worst thing that could happen? I wouldn’t have to worry about running into him again or anything.

  I finished my beer and set it down before forcing myself to walk toward the three inhumanly attractive guys.

  I stopped right next to him. “Hi.”

  He didn’t say anything.

  I tried again. “Hi there.”

  He gave me a funny look. “Hi? Can I help you?”

  “Can I help you?” His friend with the black hair elbowed him. “Ignore his manners, he’s rusty.”

  “Oh.” Humiliation had taken on new meaning.

  “Shut up.” He glared at his friend before turning back to me. “Is there something I can do for you? Do we have a class together or something?”

  I wanted to run, but I forced myself to hold my place. “No. I was just saying hello.”

  “Ok, hello.” He just stared at me, and I was ready to be swallowed into the floor.

  His friend with brown hair shook his head before turning to me. “Sorry about him.”

  I couldn’t take a second more. I spun around and headed back to Reyna.

  “How’d it go?” she asked. She’d already returned to Chad’s side so I didn’t want to talk about it.

  “I’m not feeling great. Any chance you guys want to go home?”

  Chad put his hand around Reyna’s waist. “We can definitely head back.”

  I probably earned points from the guy, my request meant he’d get laid sooner. “Thanks.”

  “Should we wait for Shaun and the others?” Reyna asked. Shaun disappeared within twenty minutes of us arriving at the second bar. He’d run into some of his other friends.

  “Nah, he’ll probably stay out late, and I’m sure he can find another ride.” Chad started heading toward the entrance.

  I stared at the floor as we passed by those guys again, but I allowed myself one glance as we reached the stairs. They were still in the same place completely oblivious to my exit. Wow, talk about a strike out.

  Reyna noticed the direction of my glance and she leaned in to whisper, “Don’t worry about it. We all have those nights.”

  I smiled to make her drop the subject, but I was pretty sure Reyna had never been shot down by a guy like that before. At least I was able to leave.

  We made the quick drive back to their house, and I kept a smile plastered on my face when I said goodnight to both of them.

  I could already hear Reyna’s giggles as I got ready for bed in the bathroom. I was ready to go to sleep and forget the embarrassment. Most people would have just moved on from it, but I was analyzing every detail. Was I really that unappealing? He hadn’t even smiled.

  Oh well, at least I wasn’t sleeping on the couch. I pulled down Shaun’s blanket and checked the sheets. They looked fresh and clean.

  Satisfied I wasn�
�t sleeping in anything gross, I turned off Shaun’s desk lamp and slid into his bed. The mattress was surprisingly comfortable. He must have had one of those ultra-padded mattress covers. I made a mental note to pick one up for myself. Thinking about shopping for bedding accessories was better than thinking about the earlier rejection.

  Going to sleep in a strange bed is always a weird feeling, but add in the fact that I knew the bed belonged to a guy I’d just met, and it was even weirder. I wondered why he was so willing to give it up since, as a neat freak like me, he couldn’t be thrilled at the thought of sleeping on the couch. Maybe he had somewhere else to crash.

  Eventually after my mind had run a few dozen laps around the evening’s events, I finally drifted off to sleep.

  ***

  Someone’s hand was on my breast. Not just on my breast, but cupping it. My eyes flew open. Where was I? As I felt something hard poking my back I remembered. I screamed and jumped out of bed. “What the hell?”

  “Hey, Daisy. Didn’t want to wait up for me?” Shaun’s voice was level like we were talking casually, but he’d said my name which meant he’d known it was me. That ruled out any possibility of him being drunk and forgetting who I was.

  I stumbled around looking for the light. I didn’t bother with the lamp. Instead I went for the overhead light.

  “Fuck.” Shaun cursed as the light blinded us both.

  “What were you doing?”

  “I was enjoying the beautiful girl in my bed, what did you think I was doing?”

  “You told me I could sleep here.” I wrapped my arms around my chest. Even though my t-shirt provided good coverage, I wasn’t wearing a bra.

  “Yes, I did.” He grinned.

  “And that offer implied you weren’t sleeping here.”

  “No, it didn’t. I’d never agree to sleep on that couch.” His face wrinkled up in disgust.

  “I thought of that. I assumed you had somewhere else to sleep.”

  “Somewhere else?” Understanding crossed his face. “Oh, no. I wasn’t planning on crashing anywhere else.”

  “You somehow got the impression that I wanted to sleep in the same bed as you?”

  “You want exactly what I do.” He arched an eyebrow.

  “No, I don’t. That’s why I jumped out of bed.”

  “You were surprised—that was the point. Now why don’t you come back to bed so we can get things started.” He pulled away the blanket and sheet revealing what I already knew. He was completely naked. And completely aroused.

  “Oh god.” I grabbed my stuff as I headed for the door. My clothes from the day slipped off the top of the duffel, so I bent to pick them up where they landed right next to his bed. As I reached for my shirt I came face to face with a picture of a half-naked woman, and from the looks of the rolled-up posters beside it, there were more like it. Of course. This perv had planned this all along. What a creep. I stood up, and did one quick look around for the rest of my stuff. I wouldn’t be stepping foot into his room again. I’d rather sleep on the floor or outside.

  I turned the doorknob, and it took an extra turn. “You locked the door?” I said mostly to myself as I opened the door.

  “I figured you wouldn’t want anyone walking in on us.” Shaun’s voice came from right behind me.

  I didn’t turn around. What if he was still naked? “I’m sleeping on the couch. Stay far away from me.”

  “You don’t have to be this way. No one’s going to judge you.”

  “Uh, this isn’t about being judged.” Why was I even arguing with this weirdo?

  “If you change your mind, the offer’s still open.”

  “No.” If I hadn’t been exhausted and humiliated, I probably would have done more. It wasn’t until I was curled up inside my sleeping bag that I started to beat myself up about how I wished I was the kind of girl who would have slapped him. I just wasn’t, at least not when I was sleeping in some crappy apartment in a city I’d never been to before. The trip was definitely epic—epically awful.

  I remained staring at the wall until I heard Shaun’s door close.

  “Want me to hurt him for you?”

  “What?” I whirled around quickly, but since I was in the sleeping bag that meant I ended up half on the floor. I say half, because a guy gently helped me back onto the couch.

  “Who are you?” The room was dark enough that I couldn’t really see his face. Could things get any worse? First the most attractive guy I’d ever seen rejected me, then a weirdo groped me, and now this?

  “I’m Duncan. I live here. I’m guessing you’re here with the girl who’s in Chad’s room?”

  “Uh, yeah.” All right, hopefully this roommate wasn’t as pervy. Shaun had called him weird, but I no longer trusted his judgment.

  “You didn’t answer my question.” He just stood there. I tried to get a better look at him, but in the nearly absent light I couldn’t make out all of his features.

  “What question?”

  “Want me to kill him?”

  The question had to be a joke, but he said it completely serious. He’d stepped closer to the window so I got a quick look at his face. He wasn’t bad looking—he had nothing on the Blond though. Not that his attractiveness mattered. “I think he can live to see another day, but if he goes near me again I might change my mind.”

  “Ok, suit yourself.” Duncan turned and walked away. I heard a door open and close, and repositioned myself in an attempt to actually get some sleep.

  To keep my mind off the horrible night, I started going through the list of work I’d have to do when I got back to campus. Somehow my tedious assignments were relaxing to contemplate. Despite the craziness of the night, I eventually fell asleep.

  The next time I woke up, no one was copping a feel, but Shaun was sitting in a chair staring at me, and he was only wearing a pair of briefs.

  I groaned. “What part of stay away from me don’t you understand?” I pulled the sleeping bag tighter around me.

  “I’m just sitting in my living room.”

  “Staring at me.”

  “It’s not like I’m jacking off in front of you.” There was something in the way he said it that made me think he’d done that in his room not too long before. So much for the polite gentleman. Between the near nudie pictures, the groping, and now the jerking off comment, I was pretty sure his entire personality the day before had been an act.

  “Lovely image.” I unzipped my sleeping bag.

  He smiled. “Yeah? You like it?”

  “Oh my god. No. I was being sarcastic.” I picked up my duffel “Now if you’ll excuse me I’m taking a shower.” The thought of using a shower in that apartment scared me, but I desperately needed to wash away the remnants of the horrible night. I hoped there was a good lock on the bathroom door.

  “Want some company?” He called after me.

  I spun around. “Are you serious?”

  He smiled sheepishly. “You can’t blame a guy for trying.”

  “Yes, I can.” I headed toward the bathroom. I needed to get changed and out of that apartment as soon as possible. I had a feeling that Reyna wasn’t getting up for a while, but that didn’t mean I had to wait around.

  “Man, you like this hard to get stuff.”

  “It’s not playing hard to get, it’s telling you to get lost.” I didn’t bother turning around. I didn’t want to encourage him at all.

  Thankfully the lock was a strong one, and the water was hot. I gave myself a few minutes to enjoy the spray before drying off and getting dressed. I brushed out my wet hair and tied it back into a low pony tail. That would have to do.

  I braced myself for facing Shaun again when I opened the door to the bathroom, but he was nowhere to be seen. I let out a sigh of relief. I grabbed my purse and camera and stowed the rest of my stuff behind a chair. I glanced at the microwave clock in the kitchen on my way out. Eight thirty. Hopefully I’d find something to do that early on a Saturday morning.

  I had no real ide
a of where I was going, but I assumed my best bet was the streetcar the guys had pointed out the night before. If I got on heading downtown, at least I could explore the city and get something out of the trip.

  The neighborhood had a different feel in the morning. There was a quiet calmness that made me nearly forget my insane experience with Shaun. I walked the few blocks to St. Charles and waited on the median. I wasn’t sure how often the cars ran, but at least I’d left Mr. Crazy behind.

  Chapter Four

  After a few frantic moments of searching, I found the exact change the driver said I needed to ride the streetcar. I slid the cash and change into the machine, and the driver closed the door behind me. Without any warning the car started moving, and the jerking motion nearly had me flying through the air. Luckily I was able to grab hold of a pole, and then I held onto the first few rows of seats before falling into an empty one. The car was mostly empty, and I was glad no one seemed to notice my latest awkward moment.

  As the car moved downtown, I opened the travel app on my phone. Reyna might not believe in GPS, but I did. I also believed in any app that could make my life easier. I searched for cafes, and quickly recognized the name of one. Café Du Monde. Evidently they were known for these donut like things called beignets and chicory coffee. Both sounded pretty good at the moment.

  The outdoor café, covered by a huge green and white stripped awning, was busy, but I had no trouble finding a place to sit. I’d barely sat down when a waiter walked over. I’d already decided on my order thanks to my app. “One order of beignets and a coffee.”

  The server smiled and walked off. I was positive I wasn’t the only one ordering that same thing.

  While I waited, I opened the app and tried to keep planning my morning. It looked like most of the shops and galleries in the French Quarter wouldn’t open for a while, but it could still be fun to walk around.

  My breakfast arrived, and I bit into the hot and sweet beignet. On the first bite I got powdered sugar all over my black t-shirt. Perfect. Oh well, I’d dust it off. The beignet was delicious, and the chickory coffee gave me the pick me up I needed. Hot chocolate was my comfort drink, but after the night I’d had and the lack of sleep, I needed something stronger.