Night Shifts Black by Alyson Santos Read Free Book Online

prison.”
    “What? No. A fine
maybe, but not prison. I do understand your fear, though. Prison is no place
for a pretty boy like you.”
    His eyes widen for the
fight. “A pretty boy? Really.” He leans back and crosses his arms. “You don’t
actually know our music do you.”
    “I don’t have to.
Teenage girls love you and want to marry you. That’s all I need to know.”
    His eyes still hold
the rare amusement that makes me willing to do anything to keep it there. I
wish I had the courage to pat his hand, now resting on the table. It could pass
as playful with my teasing, but I’m not good at that sort of thing and don’t
trust myself to pull it off.
    “Teenage girls love
and want to marry anyone they see on TV. You were a teenage girl once.”
    “I was.”
    “And?”
    “And I would have been
happy to settle down with any one of seven different celebrities.”
    “None of which was me?
Undeniably sexy frontman for Night Shifts Black? How’s that possible?”
    I include an
apologetic look with my headshake. “Sorry. I was more into movie stars than
rock stars.”
    “Really? That
surprises me.”
    He’s not joking now,
and it catches me off guard.
    “Why’s that?”
    “I don’t know. You
take me as someone who charges off the beaten path, that’s all. Hollywood
crushes seem too cliché for you.”
    “Now who’s judging a
book by its cover?”
    “What? You’re offended
that I think you’re interesting?”
    I can’t even begin to
respond to that. He’s got me all kinds of flustered. Stupid words. Stupid,
traitorous words. I’m about to say something horrifying like “you think I’m
interesting?”
    Thankfully, I manage
to stop it.
    “No comment, huh?”
    His self-satisfied
smirk makes me want to smack him. And kiss him. I almost blush.
    “I’ll have the perfect
comeback in about three hours when I’m back at my apartment cleaning out my
closet, don’t you worry.”
    His smirk spreads into
another genuine grin, and I can’t help but return it.
    “Fair enough. Make
sure you write it down so you can tell me tomorrow.”
    He tosses a few bills
on the table and grabs his jacket.
    I’m disappointed until
I notice he’s still smiling on his way to the door for the first time since we
met.

Day
Six: Part I.

 
 
    I don’t even make it through the door before
Shauna is shoving me back into the cool April-morning air.
    “You’re here! I
thought you’d never get here,” she says.
    I’m not nearly as
pleased to see her. This can’t be good.
    I try to peek past her
through the door, but I can’t see anything.
    “What’s going on? Is
everything ok?”
    She bites her lip and
glances behind her. “Not really, no.” She leans toward me. “He’s here and he’s
not good today.”
    “Who’s here? Luke?”
    I know the answer, of
course I do; I just need more time to process it.
    She nods. “If Ailee
didn’t know he was Luke Craven of Night Shifts Black, he’d probably be dealing
with the cops right now.”
    “Really? Is he causing
a disturbance? He’s bothering people?”
    “Um…no, not like that.
But he’s been sitting there for, like, a half hour.”
    “He’s freaking people
out because he’s been sitting for a half hour?”
    “He’s…” she stops and
seems frustrated that she can’t explain. The thing is, she doesn’t have to. I
get it, and I wouldn’t know how to explain it either. I realize it’s better if
I just spare her the attempt and agree to take over from here.
    “I’ll go see if I can
talk to him.”
    “Really?” She is
clearly relieved. “Thank you! We’re all worried about him, you know.”
    I nod to be polite,
but their concern doesn’t mean much to me. They weren’t worried until they
learned who he was.
    I go inside slowly, as
if I’d startle him with a normal entrance. I know it’s silly. My guess is he
won’t even notice me. He’s probably not noticing anything right now.
    I know exactly where
to look after I’m inside, and when I see