Jake smirked as he accelerated even further. “Well, I don’t want to ruin that precious schedule of yours. The whole world might come to an end.”
Cordelia looked at her Swatch. “It’s only seven thirty,” she said. “We can make it to Santa Barbara tonight. There’s no need to rush.”
Just then the car started shaking violently. She swore the Charger was having some sort of Jake-induced seizure, much like she would if this heap of metal died on the side of the road.
“Now what?” she asked.
Steam wafted up from underneath the hood.
Jake scratched his head. “Uh, looks like it’s over-heating.”
He hit the turn signal and got into the right lane, then pulled off at an exit that was taking them right into a not-so-great section of Los Angeles.
Cordelia had never felt so helpless in her life. This situation was getting out of control. What made things worse was that Jake didn’t appear to be the least bit bothered by it. He was acting as if this was just a normal day for him. Cordelia couldn’t be more put off by his “whatev” attitude. It was exasperating.
“All we need to do is let her rest overnight and we’ll be fine,” Jake explained. “That traffic really did a number on her.”
Cordelia rolled her eyes. “I’m sure she’s exhausted.”
“Why do you have to be like that?” Jake snapped.
“Why do you have to talk about your car like it’s a person?”
“Forget it,” he said with a huff.
“I don’t understand why we just don’t have a mechanic look at it,” she prodded. “That makes the most sense.”
“Well, I don’t trust mechanics. They always rip you off,” he replied. “I’ve done this before, okay? Tomorrow morning she’ll be good as new.”
Cordelia crossed her arms in front of her chest and set her eyes on the graffiti-covered storefronts that were passing by her window. Then she felt a firm nudge to her ribs.
ARGH!!!
Cordelia spun around and nudged Jake back. “Quit it!” she shrieked.
He reacted by pointing to a neon sign declaring VA AN IES and a shabby motel, ironically dubbed the Renaissance. “We can stay there,” he announced.
As soon as she noticed that the motel was located in between an adult video store and a seedy pool hall, Cordelia’s heart jumped into her throat. “No, we can’t.”
“Why not?”
“It doesn’t look…safe.”
“Right, you and your safety issues,” Jake growled as he pulled into the parking lot. “C’mon, Cordy. It says on the sign that it’s AAA recommended. Would AAA steer us wrong?”
Cordelia shook her head. “Sorry, I’m not staying there.”
Jake muttered something under his breath and began driving around. “What about this one?”
Cordelia winced. “You see those ladies standing on the corner? This motel rents by the hour.”
Jake furrowed his brow in frustration. Cordelia tried to prevent herself from laughing. It was a rare thing to see Jake so tense and agitated. Actually, it kind of made him a little bit…cute.
Suddenly the smoking car screeched to a halt in front of a Holiday Inn Express. The “Service Engine Soon” light was flickering like a firefly.
“We’re staying here and that’s that,” Jake said as he turned the Charger off.
“I don’t see any vacancy sign,” Cordelia said.
He gave her a hard stare. “Is this the face of someone who cares?”
“I’ll see if there are any rooms available,” Cordelia said, and jumped out. Inside the registration office, she noted with approval the tidy reception area with its modern, tasteful furniture and the business-suit-clad man behind the desk. This was definitely a million times better than the Renaissance. She could finally rest easy.
“May I help you?” he asked.
“Do you have two rooms for tonight?”
“There are a lot of people here for a wedding, so we only have one room left. It has a queen-size bed. Will that do?”
So much for resting easy. Cordelia’s palms began to sweat the moment the man said “one room left,” and now that he had said “queen-size bed,” her legs had turned into pudding.
“I’ll be right back,” she told him.
On the walk back to Jake’s car, she carefully played the situation out in her mind. She and Jake could share the room and sleep in the same bed—it could all be very innocent. He’d have his half of the mattress; she’d stay on hers. Nothing would happen and her virginity would stay intact for Paul (whom she had to call the second she had a moment to herself). But knowing Jake—and Cordelia felt like she knew him better than anyone—he probably snored like a Saint Bernard and hogged the covers and did other insanely annoying things that would keep her awake all night long and make her miserable.
When Cordelia approached the driver’s-side window, she swallowed hard. Jake had managed to roll the window up while she was gone, but now he couldn’t get it to go down again, so he just opened the door. She was taken aback when their eyes met. He seemed so harmless as he sat there, drumsticks in his hands, hair messed up from the slight breeze that was in the air (or was that smog?). There was even a hint of kindness in his crooked smile. What on earth was going through that mind of his? She wasn’t sure she wanted to know. But then again, there was something inside of her that was very, very curious.
“So here’s the deal,” she said firmly. “There’s one room with one bed.”
Jake snickered and beat on the door with his sticks. “That’s what they all say.”
Cordelia sneered at him. She wanted to shove that fleeting curiosity of hers right up his ass. “Dream on, Jake.”
“I’m kidding, Cordy. Lighten up.”
She hated it when he made comments like that. She wasn’t uptight. He was the one with the problem. He was the one who was just about as aggravating as a hemorrhoid.
“So do you want to share it with me or not?” she asked.
He got out of the car and stretched. His T-shirt pulled up so that Cordelia could see his abs. They were really flat—not six-pack status, but definitely rock hard. There was even this small patch of hair that went from his belly button down to the waistline of his low-slung black jeans.
“Nah, that’s okay, you can take the room,” he said with a yawn. “I snore really loud and all that shit, so I’ll sleep in the car.”
Cordelia smiled. She’d been right about Jake more than once today. But she didn’t expect him to be so generous and give up a room in a hotel, especially after sitting in a car for a few hours.
“Maybe we should try another hotel.”
“That’s okay. I’d rather yield to the needs of the Charger.”
She stood there uncertainly. “You’re sure?”
“Yeah, I’ve done it before. It’s not a problem.”
She glanced at the backseat. It was pretty wide, but he wouldn’t be able to stretch out. Then she remembered the odd neighborhood they were in. Would he even be safe in the Charger all by himself?
“Are you going to be okay in there, though? What if somebody bothers you?”
Jake put his drumsticks into his back pocket, then suddenly grabbed both her arms and yanked her quickly so that she was pressed up against his torso. Cordelia yelped as he squeezed her tightly, and her heart was pounding as if she’d just run with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain.
“I can take care of myself,” he said, his mouth dangerously close to her right ear. “And whoever else is looking for trouble.”
Cordelia laughed nervously. “All right, Jake. Ease up on the judo, okay?”
He grimaced. “Surprised you, didn’t I?”
She grinned right back at him. “I guess.”
“What if I helped you with your bags? Would that totally floor you?”
“Let’s find out,” Cordelia said mischievously.
They walked around to the back of the car and Jake popped the trunk. She went for a heavy bag, but he tap
ped her on the shoulder and shook his head before lugging it down to the reservation office himself. This time, she didn’t feel annoyed by his touch. Maybe it was because he was being nice. Maybe it was because they were tired. Maybe it was how the warm California sun was lighting up the clear indigo sky.
Whatever the reason, it seemed as if Jake might be letting his guard down for a change. And if that were the case, maybe they’d actually be able to get along for the next few days. Then a strange thought entered Cordelia’s mind.
Maybe we’ll even turn out to be friends.
A few minutes later, a nice motel worker showed Cordelia how to adjust the temperature and shut the blinds in her room. She tipped him two dollars and closed the door behind him.
The place wasn’t bad at all. It was spotlessly clean. There was a small TV that had HBO (since The Practice had been canceled, Cordelia’s favorite show was Rome) and a mini-refrigerator that had a few complimentary sodas in it. And one gigantic bed with a mountain of fluffy pillows.
She contemplated the bed and bit her lower lip. Then she went to the window, lifted a slat of the blind, and peered out. Jake was parked out in front of her room. It was too dark to see inside the car, but she assumed he’d already settled down in the backseat. She could picture him, curled up in the fetal position on the ripped upholstery, among the black plastic trash bags that he had referred to as “my matching luggage set.” While she had this enormous bed that could fit the two of them and the rest of LA.
Cordelia dropped the blind once she heard her Treo chirping. She dashed across the room and fetched it off the coffee table. The caller ID read: BBE (Best Boyfriend Ever).
“I am so happy that you called,” she said as soon as she picked up.
“Really?”
Cordelia practically melted at the sound of his voice.
“You have no idea.”
Paul chuckled. “That bad, huh?”
“Well, because Jake was late picking me up today, I had to chuck my itinerary out the window. I had to cancel my hotel reservations, so now there’s not even a basic plan in place.” She sighed.
“Wow, that’s unprecedented,” he replied.
“And that car of his. It should be condemned! We’re at this Holiday Inn Express in Los Angeles so that it can cool off or something.”
“Are you guys sharing a room?” Paul sounded concerned, which Cordelia thought was so sweet.
“No, there was only one room and I got it. Jake is staying in his car,” she assured him.
“Well, that’s very gentlemanly. He can’t be all that bad,” he said.
Cordelia knew that Paul was absolutely right. Jake wasn’t all bad. Perhaps he was even somewhat okay, once you got past his many, many irritating qualities.
“He’s just…a handful, that’s all.”
Paul laughed heartily. “So are you, Cordy.”
Hold on. What? She took a little offense to this. Sure, she had her quirks, but she wasn’t anything remotely close to Jake. “Uh, I’m just organized and structured. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“Of course there isn’t. It’s just that, you know, you’re kind of…how shall I put this?” There was a long, awkward pause as Paul searched for the right phrase. “I got it. High maintenance.”
Cordelia felt like she had just been hit in the teeth with a sledgehammer. She wasn’t used to Paul flinging labels around like that. He hadn’t called her a slut or a retard or anything, but whatever. For some reason, what he’d said seemed just as bad. “High maintenance? High maintenance?”
“What’d I say?” Paul said uneasily.
The quiver in his voice made Cordelia worry that she was overreacting, and who was she kidding? She probably was. She tried to do that breathing thing again and regain her composure.
“Well, nothing, it’s just that I thought you liked how I…stuck to my principles,” she said calmly.
“I do, Cordy. I didn’t mean to…wait, hold on a sec?”
“Yeah, okay.”
Cordelia sulked as she waited for Paul to come back. High maintenance. That had a negative connotation, right? It meant rigid and strict and uptight. It’s how Jake would describe her. And maybe even Molly would too. Paul was supposed to think she was some charming eccentric, and that she was brilliant like that guy in A Beautiful Mind, only not schizophrenic.
“I’m back.”
“Hi,” she whimpered.
“Listen, forget about what I said. I think you’re wonderful,” he said softly.
This perked her up a little bit. “Go on.”
She could feel Paul smiling on the other end. “And incredibly gorgeous,” he added.
“Anything else?”
“Um…yeah. I really wish you were here. Yosemite is so invigorating. There’s all this wildlife and these enormous trees.” Then suddenly his voice got low and raspy. “God, I wish I was kissing you right now.”
Oh, I like where this is going, she said to herself.
RING! RING! RING!
The telephone in the room completely startled her.
“Hold that thought,” she told Paul. Then she leaped over to the phone and picked it up. “Hello?”
“Do you have any Listerine in there? My breath is rank.”
F’ing Jake.
“Your breath is fine,” Cordelia snapped.
“There’s a nasty taste in my mouth. I just need to rinse it out.”
“I’m busy right now. Can’t this wait?”
“It’ll only take a second,” he said.
“Just call back in a few minutes.”
“What are you doing in there?”
Cordelia kept looking at her Treo. She wanted to kill Jake for interrupting what would have been her first sexy phone call with her amazing, minty-fresh-breathed boyfriend. “I’m talking with Paul.”
Suddenly Jake burst into a fit of laughter.
“What’s so funny?” she asked angrily.
“Nothing,” he said. “Catch you later.” Now the only thing Cordelia was in the mood to do was bash skulls.
She picked up her Treo and tried to calm down. “Hey, I’m back.”
“Sorry, Cordy, I’ve got to go. Stewart and I are going to go to an Eco Warrior info meeting.”
Cordelia practically crushed the Treo in her hand in disappointment. “Oh, okay. Have a good time.”
“Thanks, we’ll talk tomorrow,” Paul said. “Miss you.”
“Miss you too,” she replied. “Bye.”
The next thing Cordelia did was lock herself in the bathroom with all of her favorite products and soak her bitterness away in the tub. When the water began to cool and her skin began to prune, she got out. Feeling light and delicate, she patted herself dry and smoothed on some Elizabeth Arden Green Tea body lotion. She was pretty much back to normal.
Cordelia slipped into her pink satin cami and boxers from Victoria’s Secret and decided to settle down with a good book—she’d bought Peaches, a novel about three girls who become friends while spending a summer at a Georgia peach orchard. She was really excited to dive into it.
After an hour of reading, her eyes began to feel heavy, so she put the book aside, turned off the light, and closed her eyes.
But moments later, they sprang open. Cordelia rolled over onto her stomach and closed her eyes again. After forty-five minutes, she hadn’t fallen asleep. She tried lying on her side—it didn’t work. Then she sat up and turned the light back on.
Okay, what is this all about? Cordelia thought. She had expected sleep to wash over her immediately, but it hadn’t happened. Was she still too wound up over her conversation with Paul? Was she expecting Jake to bother her about Q-tips any second? No, it was something else that kept her from sleeping. And Cordelia couldn’t bear to admit it, but it was true. She was feeling a little bit…guilty.
She was lying there in a comfortable room and Jake was scrunched up in the backseat of a car because he didn’t want to put her out. Yes, he was extremely annoying to be around an
d he drove her nuts, but she knew the temperature dropped at night and he didn’t even have a blanket out there with him. It just wasn’t right.
She thought about what Paul had said earlier. Maybe it was possible that she was also a bit…much at times. Was that any reason to subject Jake to the elements? And she was still worried that someone would try to mess with him. He was a young guy alone in his car and he was vulnerable. Cordelia couldn’t believe this. She was actually feeling protective of him.
She got out of bed, went to the window, and peeked through the blinds again. She couldn’t see anything. He could already be dead in that car.
And it would be your fault for letting him sleep out there, she told herself.
Cordelia went to the motel room door and opened it. It was cool out, but it would only take a second for her to dash over to the car window and peek in, just to make sure he was okay. Hell, she might even ask him to come inside and crash on the floor.
She glanced around and made sure there was no one outside to see her. Then she slipped out and hurried over to the Charger. Pressing her face against the back window, she could see Jake clearly. He was sound asleep, and as she watched, she could see his chest rising and falling. He was absolutely fine. In fact, he looked rather timid lying there. There was this small smirk on his face, too. Not the usual obnoxious kind, but a happy one, like he was dreaming of something really pleasant. And then she noticed something else. He wasn’t snoring at all. He wasn’t even a heavy breather. Jake had obviously made it all up so she could have the room to herself.
Why would he do that?
All of a sudden, there was a clattering noise that came from behind Cordelia and spooked her. She scampered back to her room, put her hand on the doorknob, and turned it. That is, tried to turn it. The handle didn’t budge. A very familiar sick feeling rose up inside her. She had done something completely stupid. She’d locked herself out.
Holy shit!
She went to the window, but there was no way to open it. Then she tried the handle again.
Looking down toward the registration office, Cordelia willed the person inside to come out and help her. Of course, nothing happened. She was going to have to walk over there. In her pink satin Victoria’s Secret cami and boxers. Which were practically transparent.
Getting Lost with Boys Page 5