Read The Last Song for Free Online

thought about it. “Five bucks.”
    “What?”
    “Gimme five bucks and I’ll forget you were here.”
    “Are you serious?”
    “You don’t have much time,” he said. “Now it’s ten bucks.”
    Over Jonah’s head, she spotted her dad searching the crowd around him. Instinctively she ducked, knowing there was no way she could sneak past him. She glared at her brother, the blackmailer, who’d obviously realized it as well. He was cute and she loved him and she respected his blackmailing abilities, but still, he was her little brother. In a perfect world, he would be on her side. But was he? Of course not.
    “I hate you, you know,” she said.
    “Yeah, I hate you, too. But it’s still gonna cost you ten bucks.”
    “How about five?”
    “You missed your chance. But your secret will be safe with me.”
    Her dad still hadn’t seen them, but he was getting closer.
    “Fine,” she hissed, digging through her pockets. She passed over a crumpled bill and Jonah pocketed the money. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw her father moving in her direction, his head still going from side to side, and she ducked around the booth. Surprising her, Blaze was leaning against the side of the booth, smoking a cigarette.
    She smirked. “Problems with your dad?”
    “How do I get out of here?”
    “That’s up to you.” Blaze shrugged. “But he knows what shirt you’re wearing.”
    An hour later, Ronnie was sitting beside Blaze on one of the benches near the end of the pier, still bored, but not quite as bored as she’d been before. Blaze turned out to be a good listener, with a quirky sense of humor—and best of all, she seemed to love New York as much as Ronnie did, even though she’d never been there. She asked questions about the basics: Times Square and the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty—tourist traps that Ronnie tried to avoid at all costs. But Ronnie humored her before describing the real New York: the clubs in Chelsea, the music scene in Brooklyn, and the street vendors in Chinatown, where it was possible to buy bootlegged recordings or fake Prada purses or pretty much anything else for pennies on the dollar.
    Talking about those places made her absolutely long to be back home instead of here. Anywhere but here.
    “I wouldn’t have wanted to come here either,” Blaze agreed. “Trust me. It’s boring.”
    “How long have you lived here?”
    “Just my whole life. But at least I’m dressed okay.”
    Ronnie had bought the stupid Nemo shirt, knowing she looked ridiculous. The only size the booth had in stock was an extralarge, and the thing practically reached her knees. Its only redeeming feature was that once she donned it, she’d been able to slip unseen past her father. Blaze had been right about that.
    “Someone told me Nemo was cool.”
    “She was lying.”
    “What are we still doing out here? My dad’s probably gone by now.”
    Blaze turned. “Why? Do you want to go back to the carnival? Maybe go to the haunted house?”
    “No. But there’s got to be something else going on.”
    “Not yet. Later there will be. But for now, let’s just wait.”
    “For what?”
    Blaze didn’t answer. Instead, she stood and turned around, facing the blackened water. Her hair moved in the breeze, and she seemed to stare at the moon. “I saw you earlier, you know.”
    “When?”
    “When you were at the volleyball game.” She motioned down the pier. “I was standing over there.”
    “And?”
    “You seemed out of place.”
    “So do you.”
    “Which is why I was standing on the pier.” She hopped up onto the railing and took a seat, facing Ronnie. “I know you don’t want to be here, but what did your dad do to make you so mad?”
    Ronnie wiped her palms on her pants. “It’s a long story.”
    “Does he live with his girlfriend?”
    “I don’t think he has a girlfriend. Why?”
    “Consider yourself lucky.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    “My dad lives with his girlfriend.