Emancipating Andie

“Hmm?” She lifted her head to look over at him.

He stared at her for a second before he said, “When did you want to leave tomorrow?”

“Oh. Well, right now we’re about six hours from Tampa, give or take. So, like nine? Is that okay?”

“Whatever the itinerary says,” he said with a salute before he opened his door and disappeared inside.

She smiled softly, opening her door and dropping her bags near the bed. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been this tired. It took every bit of energy she had just to brush her teeth and undress. She put on one of Colin’s T-shirts and crawled into bed, leaning over the side and taking her laptop and phone out of her bag. She fished through her bag again, pulling out the DVD she brought with her. It was one of her favorites, something she knew would make her feel at home while trying to sleep in a strange bed.

She put the DVD into her laptop and laid back against the pillows, grabbing her phone and dialing Colin.

“Hey babe!” he answered, shouting over the voices and music in the background.

“Hi,” she said, smiling to herself.

“Sorry, it’s loud in here! Hold on, let me go outside!”

“No, it’s okay, stay with your friends,” she said, knowing he was at Justin’s bachelor party. “I just wanted to call and tell you we’re stopping for the night. We’re in South Carolina.”

“Alright. What time do you think you’ll be here tomorrow?” he said, still raising his voice over the background noise.

“Probably around four if all goes according to plan.”

“I can’t wait.”

She closed her eyes. “I know. I miss you.”

“Miss you too, babe. How’s it going with Chase?”

“It’s been fine. It’s nice to have someone to talk to.”

“See, I knew you’d have a good time. He’s fu

She smiled. “Yeah, he is.”

Just then a bout of laughter exploded in the background, and Andie brought her mouth closer to the phone. “Okay, I won’t keep you from the debauchery,” she said. “I’ll see you tomorrow. Have fun.”

“Good night, babe.”

“Good night,” she said before ending the call. She stared at the phone for a second, twirling it between her fingers before she finally placed it on the nightstand, and then she clicked off the light before she rolled onto her side to face her laptop.

She was just on the verge of sleep when her phone beeped, signaling that she had a text message.

She rolled over and grabbed the phone, checking the screen. The sender was a number she wasn’t familiar with.

“Who the hell is this?” she mumbled to herself, pressing the button to open the message.

I can see you.

She sat up in bed, brushing her hair out of her eyes and glancing around the room before she lunged to turn the light back on. The shades were drawn, the closet was open, and she had been in the bathroom. There was no one in there.

She gave the room one last scan before she looked down, her fingers moving over the keypad.

Who is this?

She hit send, realizing that if someone was messing with her, she had just made a stupid move by playing into it. She should have just ignored it. Her phone beeped again and she glanced down, opening it quickly.

You’ll know soon enough. I’m almost to room 225.

Her heart rate increased slightly as she slid off the bed, walking over to the door that adjoined her room with room 227. She knocked on it softly. “Chase?”

“Yeah?” came his muffled reply.

“It better be you texting me, or we are packing up and getting the hell out of Dodge.”

She heard him burst out laughing and her shoulders relaxed a little.

“Was it you?” she asked.

There was some shuffling before the sounds of him unlocking his door, and she followed suit, sliding the deadbolt aside. They opened the doors at the same time, and she didn’t need to hear his answer. The look on his face said it all.

“You’re an ass,” she said, and he laughed again. “How did you even get my number?”

“Colin gave it to me when we made these plans,” he said, his eyes dropping to take in what she was wearing.

She could feel the immediate blush burning on her cheeks as she remembered she was only wearing a T-shirt, and she brought her hands down to her sides, gripping the hem with her fingers and tugging it down.

He brought his eyes back up to hers. “I didn’t wake you, did I?”

“No, I was watching a movie.”

“What movie? Gone With the Wind?” he asked with a smirk.

She tugged the shirt down a little further. What the hell, she thought, not like this moment could get any more embarrassing. “No. Dumb and Dumber.”

He threw his head back and laughed. “Now that’s more like it. What cha

“It’s not on television. I brought it with me,” she said, gesturing with her head to the laptop that was on her bed.

His face fell slightly. “Oh. Damn.”

The words were out of her mouth before she could even think about what she was saying.

“You can come watch for a little while,” she said. “I mean, if you want,” she added softly, looking away from him and tugging her shirt down a little further, surprised that the seams on the shoulders weren’t ripping.

His expression straightened until it was unreadable, and Andie watched his throat bob as he swallowed. “Um…yeah, okay,” he said, “maybe for a few minutes.”

She turned, her fingertips still gripping the hem of Colin’s shirt as she scurried over to the bed, hopping in and quickly pulling the covers up around her waist. She slid the laptop down to the foot of the bed and scooted all the way over to the right, giving him ample space.

He walked over to the bed, one hand rubbing the back of his neck, and Andie kept her eyes on the computer screen as Chase climbed on, staying above the covers. He propped a pillow up against the headboard and leaned back against it, crossing his arms over his chest.

There was enough room between them to fit another person, which eased some of the tension Andie felt in her body since the moment the invitation had slipped from her mouth without permission. She settled back into the pillows just as Harry said to Lloyd, “What’s in the briefcase?”

“Man,” Lloyd said, “I would have to be a lowlife to go rooting around in somebody else’s private property.”

“What, is it locked?” Harry asked.

“Yeah, really well.”

A giggle escaped Andie’s lips just as a throaty chuckle fell from Chase’s, and they both looked over at each other, smiling.

She turned onto her side, snuggling into the comforter and attempting to keep her eyes on the screen, but her blinking became more and more lethargic until finally, she couldn’t keep her eyes open anymore.

The last thing she remembered was hearing Chase’s quiet laughter before she finally succumbed to sleep.

CHAPTER SIX

Chase lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling. He had come back to his own room at around two in the morning, and at that point he was so exhausted he was pretty sure he fell asleep before his head hit the pillow. But now that he was awake, now that he was coherent, all he could think about was the night before.