Free Ride by Cat Johnson

released told what he thought about that answer.
    Maybe they both did recognize her from the club. And after what she’d done with him, perhaps they assumed Chase would be getting busy with her in that room. God, maybe they thought she’d service them all for the right price. Was that why they’d brought her up here?
    She’d done this to herself by agreeing to do what she’d done last night for cash. Leesa shouldn’t care what Garret or anyone else thought of her. The reality was, she couldn’t care right now. She had to keep herself safe. She wondered what she’d have to do in order to keep herself that way.
    “Come on.” Chase pulled her off to one of the rooms farther down the hall. She wasn’t so keen on getting there any longer. Chase was more in tune to her emotions than she imagined. He stopped mid-step.
    “I’m sorry about Garret. He’s just an idiot. I usually ignore most of what he says.” When she only nodded but didn’t say anything, he continued. “Those guys are going to be drinking that keg until tomorrow morning. I for one was hoping to get to bed before sunrise since I have a bit of a drive to make tomorrow.”
    “Yeah, good plan.” Once the fear and adrenaline left her body, there was a good chance she’d fall asleep standing up. God, she would love to get some sleep in the safety of Chase’s room tonight. She’d give anything for that luxury actually.
    Chase stuck a keycard in the door. “You can put your bag here in my room where it’ll be safe. That way you won’t have to tote it around on your shoulder all night.”
    Leesa kind of wanted to tote it around. Her entire life, what pitiful amount was left of it, was in that bag. Granted, it amounted to a toothbrush and deodorant, a few changes of clothes and a tattered wallet that housed all her money in the world since she’d emptied out her account at an ATM machine on her way to the casino.
    There was also an old photo of her family. One of those you got taken at the mall during some holiday or another, when you all dressed alike in matching, usually obnoxiously colored sweaters. Hard to believe her life had gone from that to this—running for her life in Vegas with nothing but the clothes she could carry.
    She glanced up to find Chase watching her again. “Um, thanks for inviting me to the party.”
    Chase let out another derisive snort. “Party. Yeah. I’m sorry I didn’t know it was going to be a kegger when I asked you. The guys can get a little out of hand sometimes.”
    She shrugged. “It’s okay. I remember what it was like in college. That’s what kids get like when you put them together.”
    He laughed and shook his head. “Kids.”
    “What?”
    “You’re not so old yourself.” He swung the door wide and after sticking his hand in to flip on the light switch on the wall, waited for her to enter before he followed her inside.
    “I’m way older than that—what did you call him—Skeeter? Where’d he get a name like that anyway?”
    Chase laughed outright now. “I’ll let him tell you.”
    Amazingly, she felt herself smile. “I look forward to it.”
    The door swung closed behind them with a decisive click, and Leesa felt a new sense of anxiety from being totally alone with Chase again. Almost nervous, like she wanted something to happen, but at the same time was afraid it would.
    “Let me take that for you.” He reached for the strap of her bag.
    “Um.” Leesa hesitated. She really didn’t want her wallet to be too far from her in case she had to run for it. The clothes, the toothbrush, they were all things she could live without or replace, but not the cash. “Just let me grab something out of it first.”
    “Sure thing. I’ll run out and get us two beers.” He laughed. “And make sure that keg got inside somewhere out of sight.”
    “Thanks. A beer sounds really good.” For the second time in a few minutes, Leesa was surprised by her own reaction. She wasn’t a drinker, but after the day