Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 79938 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79938 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 400(@200wpm)___ 320(@250wpm)___ 266(@300wpm)
Impossible not to compare her shitty bed with the one in Theo and Galen’s apartment, the one that had fit all three of them with ease and felt like sleeping on a cloud. Meg rolled over and cursed into her pillow. Stop it, stop it, stop it. There are a thousand and one reasons why staying away from them is the only choice you have, and you know it. Good sex is the only reason why saying yes would be great.
Good sex did not outweigh all the bad. It just didn’t.
She had to remember that.
Seconds ticked into minutes into hours as Meg watched the city lights play across her ceiling. She had a meeting in the morning to explore financial options with the college, and she needed not to be totally exhausted for it, but that wasn’t going to happen.
Damn Theo.
At six, she gave up and took a shower. As she got ready, she rehearsed what she’d say to the financial advisor. They saw cases like hers all the time, and unfortunately the college wasn’t in the business of charity. Meg’s financial aid had run dry last year, and she wasn’t in a position to petition for grants at this point. She was up shit creek without a paddle, and that’s exactly what the financial guy would tell her when she sat down with him.
But she had to try.
Worst case, I take a hiatus and spend a year saving money and working my ass off and complete my degree next year.
It wasn’t the end of the world if she had to defer. It just felt that way.
She carefully applied her makeup—a low-key lipstick and eyeshadow meant to look like she wasn’t wearing anything at all—and dressed in her one good professional outfit. A dress she’d rescued from her friend Cara’s donation pile and made adjustments to, and the heels she’d worn when she graduated high school. They weren’t fancy, but the black pumps completed the look better than boots or flip-flops would.
An hour later, she knocked on the door and stepped into the office. “Mr. Taneka?”
“Come in, come in.” He didn’t look up from his computer as she approached the faded chairs situated in front of his desk. They’d only met a few times over the course of her college career, but she was always struck by how small Mr. Taneka was. Physically, he could only be termed delicate, but that impression didn’t last once he opened his mouth. His voice was a deep bass and his attitude, frankly, sucked. He was fewer than five years out from retirement, and his complete lack of give-a-damn was never more apparent than when she’d asked him for help.
Now, she was here to ask for it again, hopefully with a better outcome.
Meg had nowhere else to turn.
She watched the clock as he finished doing whatever he was doing on his computer. It could have been solitaire for all Meg knew. At ten minutes, she cleared her throat.
Mr. Taneka sighed. “You’re still here?”
“Well… yes.” She clasped her hands together and fought to keep her voice even and neutral. “We haven’t had our meeting yet, Mr. Taneka. Fall tuition is due this week and I’m hoping you have a solution that will help me keep from having to take time off.”
He sighed again, louder this time, and sat back. “Ms. Sanders, I don’t know why you’re wasting both our time.”
“Excuse me?” He’d been blunt before, but this was above and beyond. She pressed her lips together to keep from screaming in his face. What did he have to worry about? He had a cushy office job and his path through retirement and beyond was all but assured.
She didn’t have the luxury.
She didn’t have any luxury.
Mr. Taneka gave her a look like she’d escaped a mental ward to storm into his office and ruin his day. “What game are you playing, Ms. Sanders? Your tuition is paid in full.”
Meg blinked. “What? That’s impossible.”
“On the contrary, I have the information right here.” He turned the screen to face her. Sure enough, the balance owed was at zero.
Impossible.
She was two grand short yesterday. Meg wasn’t the type of person who just magically misplaced two thousand dollars. How could—
No.
No, he wouldn’t dare.
She cleared her throat. “Would it be possible to see the source of that payment?”
“Ms. Sa—”
“A name, Mr. Taneka. I just need a name. Please.”
Another of those long-suffering sighs. He clicked a few buttons. “A Mr. Theo Fitzcharles made the payment at five this morning.”
That son of a bitch.
2
Galen Mikos stepped off the private plane and inhaled deeply. It didn’t matter that he was at a private airport, surrounded by asphalt and jet engine fumes. It smelled like honeysuckle and home. There were so many things he didn’t miss about being in Thalania on a day-to-day basis—mainly the backbiting and politicking—but he missed this.