Running Around Royal (Prince Harry #4)

Chapter Ninety-Five

Meredith had visited New York City several times in her life, and it did nothing for her. Maybe London had the awe of the massive city, but the nice thing about London was how spread out it was. There were places she had walked without seeing anyone. Then again, she had spent more time in London than New York City.  Everyone lived on top of each other too much in the great NYC.

Maybe it was because she was so close to Minnesota that she almost tasted it, except for the fact that her tongue tasted heavy with gas. She swore she saw Minnesota from the California-to-New York flight. However, Harry argued that all the Midwest looked the same. He was joking, but Meredith, surprisingly, hadn't taken it as a joke. It was almost there. She was closer than she had been in awhile. 

It was hard to sleep with all that noise. Meredith wasn't able to sleep. She rolled back and forth. She stared at the ceiling.

Even though they were in a skyscraper hotel room, the noise below still echoed up. She had been in so many loud places that it didn't seem like it was supposed to matter. Before that, it was London, which was also noisy.

Meredith rolled over again, knowing it was homesickness that made her think about this. She didn't realize how homesick she was. London was nice, but Minnesota was better.

She rolled over again.

"Mere," Harry groaned, rolling over to face her. He opened his bleary eyes. "What's this about?"

"It's too loud," she complained.

He tried to arch an eyebrow, but with him 75% asleep, his face only contorted slightly. Slowly, Harry got closer and wrapped an arm around her. Harry's hot breath made goosebumps arise on her skin. She swore she heard his calm heart beating.

Harry asked, "How about now?"

Meredith sighed and tried to concentrate on Harry, listening to his breathing and heart beating. It was up and down, a pace that was calm and focused. She closed her eyes, trying to become on with it. "It's still too loud." Meredith escaped his grasp.

"Mere," Harry groaned, letting his arm lie flat on the bed. "Come back. We have a busy day tomorrow."

Meredith glanced at the digital clock on the bedside table; they had a busy day today. "I'm just going to read in the other room."

"Mere--"

"I'll be fine." She grabbed a sweatshirt and a book, and then she headed out into the light of the living room in the massive suite. When she plopped down on the couch, she finally took a look at the book she grabbed and immediately regretted the decision. She had tried to start the book, but five pages in, she hated it.

In the living room, she switched on the TV and let it drown out the noise outside. Early morning cartoons and old episodes played of shows that had been off their for fifteen years. Those brought back childhood memories. Meredith found herself curling up on the couch and actually enjoying the shows. However, tiredness ended up getting to her finally, and her eyes closed.

When Meredith awoke, it was suddenly. In a gasp, she nearly jumped off the couch. Jessica was hovering over her, and Meredith almost let out some not-very-duchess-like words.

"That's creepy," Meredith snapped.

"It's not safe for you to be out like this." Jessica pointed to the windows that let in morning light.

"Next time, don't get a room with so many windows." Meredith stood. Before Jessica was able to get in another word, Meredith said, "I'm going to go take a shower."

In the shower, she scrubbed. Her stomach rumbled but was still ready to throw up its empty contents. In the shower, Meredith had all the time to think about the busy day ahead of her. She had never been a coffee person, but now that she wasn't allowed to drink it, she wasn't about to start. It was a nice thought, though. The hot water wasn't able to wash away her tiredness. The stylists were going to have some fun today trying to hide the purple bags under her eyes.