Page 11 of Official

SAMANTHA

Iscrunch my nose, wincing as sunlight filters through my blinds. The only reason I keep them open is because I want to see the sunshine first thing in the morning. It’s part of my “rise and shine” lifestyle initiative, where I encourage followers to wake up with a positive attitude and win the day. It’s something I practice myself, and it’s helped me get to where I am.

A big part of fitness is mind over body, anyway.

But right now, I want to grab the sun and use the moon to squash it to death.

“So bright,” I mutter into my pillow.

Slowly, I turn onto my side more carefully than if I was lying in a canoe and afraid of tipping over. My head hurts worse than any other hangover I’ve ever experienced, complete with throbbing against my temples and chills down my body.

Oh, and drool.

I wipe at the corner of my mouth and lick my dry lips. I must’ve slept with my mouth wide open, but that didn’t stop tequila-infused drool from slipping down my chin.

“Fantastic,” I say under my breath in a scratchy voice.

Instead of getting up to do my ten minutes of meditation, I pull the covers up to my nose and close my eyes, fully prepared to give in to sleep.

Especially when yesterday comes crashing back into my mind like a freight train.

The humiliation.

Asshole Jason, which he will be known as from here on out.

He freaked when he saw his face in the video and only called to tell me we’re over. He didn’t ask how I’m doing or bother to sound sympathetic at all. Just flipped out as if I did it on purpose because “I was so desperate for people to know I’m dating Jason Douché,” as he put it.

Like I care about his name or brand. News flash: I have my own successful business.

I’ve been building the Samantha Ray online brand for over four years, and it’s been lucrative since way before Gym Bae or Jason became part of it.

Itwasprofitable, anyway, but my livelihood and reputation took a major hit yesterday.

If I get up, I’ll have to address the video and lack of responsibility on my part to test the leggings beforehand.

My followers trust me to make legitimate and affordable recommendations on the best supplements, vitamins for women, and healthy recipes, but above all, they want to see what gym attire I love.

When I first started out and went from Samantha West to Samantha Ray, I only had fifty followers, made merchandise myself with a secondhand press machine, and posted poorly edited videos. I knew as little about cultivating a strong brand as I did running ads.

All I knew was that fitness changed my life. It gave me the confidence to be my best self and strengthen my mind, body, and soul. I wanted to do the same for others, so I learned from all my failed attempts at marketing and ruined T-shirts.

I kept climbing and built my empire through my profile, merchandise, supplement sponsorships, and more.

Entrepreneurship 101: have multiple avenues of income.

And I did have several avenues, all of which have now been tainted with a single innocent mistake.

Xander did a kickass job of distracting me last night—and giving me a killer headache—but he’s gone.

And I have to face reality.

Groaning, I scoot farther into the blankets, ready to crawl out of my skin at just the thought of the heap of damage control ahead of me.

I don’t even know what step to take first.

“Oh, you’re up,” a man’s voice sounds from the door of my bedroom.

I shriek, shooting upright, and my back hits the headboard.

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