A Road to Let Go (Fallen Tuesday #4) by Karolyn James

to you, too, ” he said to Melanie.
    “ That ’ s not good enough, ” Melanie said. “ You slept with someone else? ”
    Cara came storming through, bumping
into Jake. She paused and looked at Mel. “ No,
we didn ’ t sleep together.
We were in the same bed, but he couldn ’ t
get it up. ” Cara scoffed. “ Good luck with that, sweetheart. ”
    Cara left the hotel room. Jake
wondered if and when that story would end up online and how it would be
perceived. Chances were it would get lost in the mix of rumors and bullshit,
since there were no pictures to prove a thing.
    The door slowly shut and Jake found
himself damn near speechless in front of Melanie.
    “ That ’ s not true, by the way, ” he said.
    “ What ’ s not? That you are a complete
ass? Because …”
    “ No, ” Jake said. “ About the getting it up part. I … can …”
    “ You
are an ass. ”
    Jake nodded. “ Yeah. I am. ”
    Melanie turned and grabbed the door
handle.
    “ Hey.
Wait. ”
    She looked back. Her hair dangled
in front of her right eye.
    “ Thanks
for doing that, ” Jake said. “ I ’ m used to having the rest of the guys to bail me
out on this stuff. ”
    “ I
expect a big tip, ” Melanie
said and smiled. “ And I
like your music, by the way. ”
    “ Yeah?
Thanks. ”
    Melanie opened the door and Jake
moved forward, grabbing the door. “ What ’ s the rush? ”
    “ My
job, ” Melanie said. “ I figured this room would take
me hours. You know, since there was a rockstar partying in it. ”
    “ You
knew who I was before you got here? ”
    “ Yeah. ”
    Jake nodded. This woman was so
interesting. And yet she was a housekeeper in a hotel. It seemed so odd. And
looking at her, Jake could see that something was off about her. Maybe not bad,
but definitely something that kept his attention.
    “ I ’ m not that kind of person, ” Jake said.
    “ What
kind? The kind that wakes up with a stranger in your bed? ”
    “ She
wasn ’ t a stranger, ” Jake said. “ I knew her name. ”
    “ When
did you meet her? ”
    “ Last
night. ”
    Melanie shook her head. “ Listen, just let me know when
you ’ re leaving. I ’ ll go take care of some other
rooms first. You ’ re going
to catch hell if you stay later than checkout time. ”
    “ Oh
yeah? What happens then? Do they send you to come kick me out? ”
    “ Maybe
they will, ” Melanie said.
    “ Then
it ’ s worth staying, ” Jake said. He backed up into
the room, still holding the door.
    He couldn ’ t believe he was actually trying to flirt with this
woman right now. Especially after all that had happened last night and the fact
that Chloe was in his apartment.
    “ Well,
enjoy then, ” Melanie said.
    “ Hey,
can I get you something? ” Jake offered. “ Breakfast?
Coffee? ”
    “ I ’ m working. ”
    “ I
didn ’ t mean this very
second, Melanie, ” Jake said.
    He liked saying her name.
    “ Most
people call me Mel. ”
    Mel.
    That worked even better.
    “ Try
not to trash the room, ” Melanie - Mel - said. “ Okay? ”
    “ What
if I do that? ”
    “ Then
I have to clean it. And report all damage to management. ”
    “ You
want to check the room now? Just in case. ”
    Mel smiled and her face turned red.
Jake loved that feeling. He wasn ’ t
sure why, but there was something about feeling cool and maybe even powerful in
front of Mel.
    “ Have
a good day, ” Mel said. “ Good luck with the band. ”
    “ You
should come check out a show, ” Jake said. “ I can score
some great seats …”
    Mel laughed and continued down the
hall.
    Jake didn ’ t move. He stared at her. He was being obvious, but
he didn ’ t care. Her white
shirt hugged her body. Her curves were intoxicating and Jake caught himself
bobbing his head left to right, following the movement of her hips.
    Mel looked back at Jake, the smile
still on her face.
    Now that was a woman who could have
fun. Stranger or not, Jake had a lot of questions running through his mind. He
decided