Read Rock My Heart (Luminescent Juliet #4) for Free Online Page B

the patio in her backyard. Her
mother took her little sister to a movie, so we have the house to ourselves.
Riley made chicken enchiladas, while Allie—Justin’s girlfriend—and I cut
vegetables, like a million tomatoes, onions, and peppers, for fresh salsa.
Peyton—Sam’s new girlfriend who I just met this evening—brought dessert: spicy
chocolate cupcakes. Sam and Justin brought stuff for margaritas—I stick to
water. And Romeo brought the entertainment in the form of a fiddle, an acoustic
guitar, and a thin drum or precisely a bodhrán.
    Though being in close proximity to Gabe puts me on
edge, especially after he claimed I hit on him and my revelation in therapy, the night has gone smooth. The
discussion about Luminescent Juliet signing with a label dominated most of the
dinner conversation. Plus I made sure to sit on the opposite end of the table
from Gabe. Then I spent as much time possible clearing the table.
    Now the band sits across from us on the stairs
connected to the deck for the above ground pool. Surprisingly, Gabe has been
pleasant and easy going. But after quietly arguing—I’m guessing about who would
play—with Riley off to the side of the patio, his expression is rigid and
intense as he holds the thin drum. Actually, if memory serves me correct, Gabe
is always intense when he plays the drums.
    Riley comes over and plops in the chair next to me.
“Ah, Romeo playing the fiddle,” she says with a wistful smile that has me
smirking. Riley is whipped but then so is Romeo.
    They start “In the Pines” by Nirvana. Actually, it
is Led Belly’s version of an American folk tune that has been done by numerous
artists. I’ve heard the band play it in an acoustic version—and each time they
play it, the sad song brings on memories that I strive to forget about
—yet   this is slower, sadder, somehow
more melodic with the fiddle added to Sam’s guitar playing and the slow booming
beat of the antique drum.
    As Justin lowly sings, “Don’t lie to me, where did
you sleep last night. I stayed in the pines where the sun never shines, and
shivered the whole night through,” a shiver inches along my spine. This new
version is stunning. It’s a mix of rock and folk that’s deep and dark and soul
touching. My favorite kind of music.
    Or at least it once was.
    And though I try to ignore its melancholy appeal, I
can’t help being transfixed as the music tries to fill the hole inside of me
left from the absence of it. As Justin’s voice rises, the dark space within me
lightens a touch. Romeo is in deep concentration with the fiddle stuck under
his chin. Sam strums and watches Peyton. Sitting on the top stair, Gabe looks
at the ground, the drum between his spread knees. Suddenly, he does glance up
and I’m caught in his intense gaze until I have to look away.
    The song ends and Riley elbows my arm. “Didn’t Gabe
do great?” she whispers.
    “Yeah, great,” I slowly say, bewildered at her
asking me about him.
    “He’s gotten really good this past year,” she adds
in another whisper as they begin another soft melodic tune.
    This time I keep my eyes from Gabe. Across the
table, Peyton and Allie sway to the rhythm. I don’t know the song—it must be
newer—but Sam’s light strumming combined with the melancholy tone and the
refrain, “My heart’s on fire,” has me wishing the song would end, though they
play it beautifully.
    Finally, the song does end, and as soon as Romeo
sets his fiddle in the case, I grab the remaining dishes on the table and head
into the house. We had left all the dirty dishes on the counter per Riley’s
instructions. Now I’m a dishwashing loading machine.
    Through the window above the sink, the energy around
the table as everyone talks and smiles and laughs is nearly visible. The music
leaves me melancholy and wistful at the same time. I wonder if I’ll always be
stuck on the other side of the glass, left alone. Shaking the water from a
dish, I shake the thought off.
    I