Jess rolled over in the big bed. Someone was licking her feet, tickling her. That was weird. And a little too kinky for her.

She sat up abruptly.

“Hey!”

Huge brown eyes stared up at her innocently.

Oh, it was just Pepper.

She turned to see Kendall sleeping soundly in the center of the bed. They'd been wrapped up together all night. In between… the other things they’d been doing.

She grimaced a little bit, feeling sore between her legs. Maybe the third time had been overkill. After all it had been her first time. Not to mention that he was really well endowed.

Really, really well endowed.

It was okay though. It was just for one night anyway. She wouldn't mind being sore. It would give her something to remember him by.

"Come on girl. Let me get you a snack."

She padded into the living room and closed the sliding doors.

"You probably need to go for a walk too, don't you?"

She gave Pepper a bowl of water and then went searching for a leash. They strolled around the front of the house down the long winding driveway. Pepper did her business, Jess cleaned it up and they went back inside.

She was opening a can of dog food when her phone beeped. She put the plate of dog food on the floor and watched the grateful mutt dive in. She had to laugh. Kendall had bought all the top brands of food in case Pepper preferred one over the other.

The dog would have eaten anything, even styrofoam. If it was beef flavored. The pooch had been half starved, and not just for a little while either. She’d survived so much.

As a result, Pepper was the opposite of picky.

Her phone beeped again and she sighed, going to check it. She expected it to be work, or one of her friends from the animal hospital razzing her about Kendall again.

Instead it was a picture.

A picture of her and Kendall in the car together. Her phone pinged again. Another of them standing in front of his house with the dog. And one of them on his deck together.

Oh my God.

Cathy was the one texting the pictures. Which meant… they were out there. It wasn’t like Cathy had been watching them with a fancy long distance lens.

Jess almost threw up, even though her stomach was empty. It was a good thing she hadn’t had her breakfast yet. So much for staying out of the limelight. And the texts kept coming.

Shit. Shit shit shit.

Cathy sent the link and Jess clicked on it, reading the article. What she read made her sick to her stomach.

Jess stared at her phone. This should not be a surprise. He was a known modelizer- it was true. He literally only dated tall, impossibly thin women. She was neither. She was short and curvy- definitely not his type.

She was definitely not going to be reigning him in.

No. She wasn't reigning anything. She was leaving.

She tip toed into the bedroom and quietly gathered her clothes. She took one last look at Kendall, her heart twisting at the sight of him. He was sound asleep, looking like an angel.

The man was too beautiful. That was only part of it. He was cool and fun and made her feel special.

But she wasn't special.

She was one of many.

You’re a joke, Jess. You’ll never be loved. You don’t deserve love, remember?

It was just an act on his part. An irresistible act she'd let herself get caught up in. She softly shut the door and dressed quickly. Then she grabbed a piece of paper and a pen, scribbling a hasty note. She owed him that at least.

She patted Pepper's head and snuck out of the house.

Jess was trying to figure out where to get a cab as she walked through the exclusive LA neighborhood. So far she hadn't seen anyone, but it was still early. The sun had just risen, coloring the sky a hazy pink.

Thank God no one saw her.

This was literally the ultimate walk of shame.

It was epically shameful.

As long as no one she knew saw her. Or the paparazzi. She stopped in her tracks. Omg. Were the paparazzi going to start following her now? No. That didn’t make a lick of sense, dummy.

She was feeling like an utter moron when she heard it.

The rev of an engine behind her. She refused to look. She knew it was him. It wasn’t the milk man for goodness sake. Nobody else was out at this hour. It was too late for the partiers and too early for the fitness nuts.

It was Kendall. It had to be him.

He pulled up beside her and rolled down the window. She kept walking. He let the car roll slowly down the hill.

"Jess."

She ignored him.

"Let me give you a ride."

"It's fine. I like to walk."

"In LA?!? Seriously Jess, get in the car."

She just shook her head and kept walking.

"After last night are you seriously afraid to get into a car with me???"

"No. I'm not afraid. I'm fine. I just need to stretch my legs."

He stared at her, steering with one hand as she walked a few more paces in silence.

"Oh my God, you don't want me to know where you live, do you? Jesus Christ, Jessica.”

"I'm fine, Kendall. Just get on with your day. Forget about me."

“Forget about you?”

“Yes.”

"Just like that?"

She stopped and faced him squarely.

"Just like that."

“Do you really think I could?”

She gave him a withering look.

“Uh, yeah. Mr. Modelizer. I think you could.”

“It’s not like that Jess. I care about you.”

“That’s awfully big of you.”

“I mean it, Jessica!”

“Thanks. Now, I need to get back home. I have to feed my cats.”

“You have cats?”

“Yes. See? I’m a crazy cat lady. You don’t want to see me again. Let’s just cut to the chase?”

“The chase? I’ve flown all over the country trying to track you down. How’s that for a chase?”

“Well, you got what you wanted didn’t you? So, let’s leave it at that.”

“Like hell I will!”