Free Forever (Time for Love Book 1) by Miranda P. Charles Page B

wanted was to run as fast as she could back to her room before she lost control of the tears that threatened to escape. When she got to the lifts, she snuck a look back down the corridor. Why she even tortured herself with this, she didn't know. Of course Zach wasn't standing there. He wasn't watching her. He wanted her gone.
    After last night, she thought they'd taken a step forward. Well, tonight, it was two steps back.
    She smirked. Two steps back? Hell, from the looks of it, they'd fallen off a cliff, never to find solid ground again.
    She got it now. Last night was simply all about sexual attraction for Zach, just like before. Zach had obviously had time to think about what happened, and he'd decided not to lead her on—meaning he had no intentions of ever having a relationship with her again.
    She made it back to her room without shedding a tear, but as soon as she let herself in, she gave in to the heavy sadness that saddled her. She let the tears fall quietly as she moved about and got ready for bed, wiping her face every so often.
    As she crawled into bed, the tears had dried up, along with the hope that, just until a few minutes ago, had refused to die. There was none of it now. Nothing brings closure faster than being rejected the second time around.
    *****
    "W ake up, Bec! We're having breakfast with Magda today, remember?"
    Rebecca groaned. The mention of Magda's name immediately brought back memories of last night. But this was her job, and she was a professional.
    She got out of bed and headed for the bathroom, not even looking at Sarah. She just wasn't in the mood for anything.
    "Hey, what's wrong?" Sarah asked, halting her with a hand on her arm.
    "He doesn't want me," she whispered.
    "What do you mean? He just slept with you the other night and you were all aglow about it."
    Rebecca shrugged. "He doesn't want a repeat. He doesn't want to date. He doesn't want me."
    "Oh, Bec. I'm so sorry." Sarah put her arms around her, hugging her tight.
    The dam broke. While she'd shed tears last night, she hadn't made a single sound. Now she was heaving and sobbing loudly on Sarah's shoulder.
    "Shh. It's okay, honey," Sarah soothed. "It just goes to show you the man is a real jerk. He doesn't deserve you anyway."
    Rebecca cried for a while, then she let go of Sarah. "Thanks. I'll be okay. The good thing is I have closure now. No more thinking what might have been or what could still be. It's really over and I finally got it."
    "That's good. That's something," Sarah said encouragingly.
    "Yes," she responded, wiping her face with a tissue and catching a glimpse of her red, puffy eyes in the mirror. "Oh, God. I look a mess."
    "Hey, why don't I see Magda alone? I'll tell her you woke up with a migraine."
    Rebecca nodded gratefully. "Can I also make up an excuse for tonight? I'm not ready to see Zach again." Ouch. Just saying his name hurt.
    "No problem," Sarah said. "We'll tell them that after your migraine this morning, you just want to rest as it takes a lot out of you."
    "Thank you. At least you can have both Alix and Ron all to yourself tonight," she joked, attempting to lighten up for Sarah.
    Sarah laughed. "Alix really missed you last night. He had this big pout on his face and went back to his room muttering what a big jerk Zach was for making you work so late into the night."
    "At least someone wants me," Rebecca said with a wistful smile.
    "Yes," Sarah said in a strong voice. "And there are plenty of single guys on this ship, including Ron's friends. We've just started this trip. No point locking yourself in this room for weeks because of one man. I'll make sure you have fun."
    "Okay," she responded, humouring her friend. "So what happened with you last night?"
    "I had drinks with Ron and his friends until about one thirty. I didn't want to stay up past that as I knew we have to see Magda this morning. I don't want to look tired and suffering from hangover in front of our client."
    "So... did anyone invite you to go