The Debt 2 Read Free Page A

the first stop on the tour and we’re ironing out the kinks.   Everyone’s extremely tense and maybe you sensed that just now.   But don’t make it all about you, Raven, because it’s not.”
    “I’m not making it all about me.   I just feel like an idiot.   That one guy totally ignored me, he acted like I wasn’t even in the room.”
    “That’s just Kurt.   He’s under a lot of pressure.”
    “Okay, it’s just Kurt,” she said, rolling her eyes.  
    Jake came closer to her, looking right at her in the way that seemed capable of freezing her in place.   Suddenly, it was like he’d flipped a switch, and he was right there with her in a way that she’d never felt before with anyone else.
    As if she was the only one else in the world that mattered.
    “Listen, I wouldn’t have asked you to stay with me if I didn’t want you around,” Jake said softly.   “Don’t worry so much about what anyone else thinks about it, because it’s none of their business.   What goes on between you and me is our business.”
    She nodded.   “Okay.”   She nodded again, really trying to take in what he was telling her.
    Jake’s brown eyes were softer, but still watchful.   “Did you read the guidelines?”
    “The stuff about me lying and telling people I’m in charge of your social media?” she replied.
    “Yeah, that stuff.”
    “I read it,” she said, leaving it at that.
    “Good,” Jake told her.   “I just want to make sure you understand how this whole thing’s going to work, Raven.   If you listen to me, it’ll be the easiest, smoothest, fun month of your life.”
    She looked at him, not wavering as she met his intense gaze.   “Yeah, it’s all very simple,” she agreed, but the sarcasm in her voice was apparent.
    Jake’s jaw twitched a little and his brown eyes grew more intense.
    They stared at one another for a long enough time that Raven started to wonder if something more was going to happen.   Jake was close enough to make a move, and she sensed his desire to do so.   His eyes were hungry, and the way he was looking at her made her want it too.
    Jake kept saying he wanted to have a business relationship with her.   He wanted to keep her around so he could make use of her when he needed it.   That’s all this was, and Raven needed to remind herself of that more often.  
    She broke away from him, turning her head and looking elsewhere.   “I guess that settles it, then,” she said.
    “We’ll be heading over to the arena in a few hours to start setting up,” Jake told her.   “Until then, you’re free to do whatever you want.”
    “I’m free?   That’s a new one coming from you.”   She didn’t wait for his response, but instead walked back to her own room.   As she went, Raven was disheartened.   Wondering why she felt that way, it occurred to her that despite everything, she still wanted Jake Novak, and she didn’t like it one bit.
     
    ***
     
    Knowing that Jake had a show that night at the Garden in Boston, Raven spent the next few hours getting ready.  
    After all, there wasn’t much else for her to do while waiting around.
    She took a long bath, shaved, and used all the lotions and perfumes that had been left for her in the bathroom.
    She pampered herself, feeling guilty and empowered, nervous and ecstatic all at once.    
    When she was done in the bathroom, she came out and found a whole new wardrobe awaiting her in the bedroom.   He’d obviously crept into her bedroom when he knew Raven was busy for a while in the bathroom.
    There was practically an entire department store set up for her and her alone.
    A thrill went through Raven as she began to understand that Jake Novak was doing all of this for her.   He wanted her to be comfortable, to be dressed in beautiful clothes, to have gorgeous shoes if that’s what she liked.
    Or does he just not want to be embarrassed by me out in public?
    Okay, so that was a possibility, but Raven didn’t allow it to