I feel like a hamster on a wheel and I can’t get off! My eyes feel gritty, so I rub them and attempt to get some shut-eye.

“She looks like a sleeping princess,” I hear a familiar voice say.

“What princess have you seen wearing jeans and an old sweatshirt? I admit, the hair could pass,” a dry Australian accent replies.

“Should we be in here? We might scare her, standing at the end of her bed staring at her like this,” a proper English accent whispers.

“What part of privacy do guys not understand?” I blurt out, opening one eye, and I’m so satisfied when I see them jump a little.

“Ah, well, we just wanted to let you know it’s almost seven and dinner is ready,” Drew says loudly, as if I’m deaf.

“Sorry, Dora, I tried to stop them, but—” Colin shrugs his shoulders, looking apologetic. Liam just stands there with his arms crossed, rolling his eyes. Without a word, he walks out of the room. I close my eye again, wishing the others currently in the room would take the hint.

“Okay, I’m getting up, so you two can leave now,” I say when I realize they’re not budging.

“Great,” Drew says. “You can come as you are, no need to change.”

“Good, because I’m not planning on it,” I snap, opening my eyes again and watching as Colin pushes Drew out the door.

I punch my pillow. I hate feeling angry. The last time before today I was truly angry was when I found my so-called madly-in-love boyfriend in bed with a bleached blonde.

Now is not the time to relive that. I need to calm down and go eat, but arrive fashionably late. Yes, I’ll be late, as it’s ten minutes past seven.

I open my door to find the dining room table full of people who all, as if on cue, turn to look at me. I wish I had changed. At least my hair is decent, I guess. It’s still a mass of curls, but these curls are as tame as I can make them. I spy an empty chair and slide into it, not meeting anyone’s eyes. Everyone starts chatting again, and I take a peek at Julie, who is sitting opposite me. She grins and takes a bite out of a chicken leg. To my right is Colin, and I meet his eyes to find them smiling back at me. My heart does a little flip as I quickly grab the dish he’s holding, thanking him and plopping a spoonful of heavenly-looking mashed potatoes on my plate.

Throughout the meal, I look around the table and notice that beside the three models, everyone looks average(ish). I thought models only hung out with other model types, but it seems that might not always be the case. I’m enjoying the convos around me. Every time Colin’s dreamy British accent hits my ears, my heart skips a beat.

Drew sits at the head of the table, and when I look his way, he winks at me. My heart only does a half-flip, thank goodness, as I know he’s a party boy from all the stuff I found out about him, and the others, when I Googled them this afternoon.

My eyes finally land on Liam. He nods, sans smile, and no heart skip/flip happens. So why only Colin and Drew? What the hell am I thinking? These guys are my roommates. Also, they are way out of my league. Most importantly, I’m not looking for a relationship right now anyway. My focus is on finishing school and working. That’s ALL.

Nothing else.

So, heart, I’m warning you, stop it now.

Dammit, cheeks, don’t blush.

Geez, for the love of cauliflower.

“So, Dora, what do you think of your room?” Julie’s voice interrupts my inner thoughts and I look up.

“It’s okay,” I say before putting a forkful of mashed potatoes in my mouth. Hopefully she’ll get the hint that I don’t want to talk. She raises her eyebrow at me and goes back to eating. Thank you, gods, I can eat in silence.

I have to admit, I’m enjoying this evening. The girl sitting to the left of me is in college and works too. She tells me her name is Tess and she’s known Drew since they were in elementary school. I keep talking to Tess, partly because Colin is causing my blood pressure to rise. His leg is so close to mine, I can feel the heat radiating from it. What is up with my internal thermostat? I think it’s broken.

“Tess, is it hot in here to you?” She shakes her head, so it’s just me.

How will I survive?

I wish she would look my way more. There’s something about her. I just can’t put my finger on, but she has me intrigued. I need to get to know her, and the other two better keep their distance. I have to think this one through. I don’t want to screw it up. I’m tired of all the phony women I’ve met and continue to meet on a daily basis. They’re so shallow, only wanting me for what I can give them—more exposure. Dora is like a breath of fresh air in a stale world. Will she ever think of me as something other than an annoying roommate? Time....I just have to take it really slow, even though it’s hard.

4

Before fighting it, I wish I would’ve known how easy it was going to be to live with three HOT guy models. I haven’t seen them in more than a week. The day after our dining experience, I found a note on the kitchen island informing me they were working on a gig together, and would be gone for a little while. It’s been so wonderful having the place all to myself, and boy, have I taken advantage of it. I’ve stayed away from their rooms though. Okay, so I may have peeked, and was shocked by how neat they were. Of course, that could be due to the cleaning team overseen by Harriet, the little, round woman, who I met on Monday afternoon since there weren’t any classes. I love her already. She is truly an organized bundle of energy.

She works for Drew’s father and has been part of the family since before Drew’s birth. Drew’s mom left them after Emily was born and Drew’s dad has looked for Ms. Right for years. I gathered that he had been married several times, though Harriet didn’t tell me how many. “Liam isn’t much of a talker,” she said. She also told me he’s the reason for them needing a fourth roommate. She says four is his lucky number, and he’s known to obsessively buy four of the same thing to not tempt fate. She says she’s very fond of him but feels he’s tormented by some secret. She hopes one day he will tell her so she can help him. I waited patiently while she went through the first two, and then she finally expounded on Colin.

Colin has known Drew for years. He was an exchange student who one of Drew’s stepmoms invited into their home when they were ten. They became instant friends and kept in touch, and when Colin became a model in America, Drew suggested they move in together. Poor Colin dated this other model for several years. I got the impression that Harriet despised Judith, his ex. “Witch with a capital B” is how Harriett described her. One day, Judith just dumped him out of the blue and left Liam and Drew to pick up the pieces. Harriet said that was nine months ago, and he seems to be back to his old self, thank goodness.

Damn. So Colin’s heart has been broken too. Just another reason to tell my heart to stop it.

I have no desire taking on someone else with a broken heart. When it came time for Harriet to leave, we had already bonded so well, and it felt wonderful when she hugged me and told me I was what these boys needed in their lives.

Confession time: I haven’t told my family about my move yet. In fact, I swore Julie and Kevin to secrecy when we all went for Sunday dinner with the fam, which is quite the story within itself. No time to tell now. I’m enjoying my last day of being by myself in this mansion in the sky. Poetic, aren’t I?