Rock Bottom by Jamie Canosa Read Free Book Online Page B

bit . . . intense.” Intense was definitely the word for it. “Anyway, as I was saying, I’m glad to have another girl in the room.”
    “What about . . .?” I glanced at the blonde girl Meg had been sitting beside when we arrived and realized she was glaring daggers at me. If looks could kill . . . Jeez, what had I ever done to her?
    “Don’t mind her, either. Julie’s a grade-A bitch. I only tolerate her because she was the only other source of estrogen. But now you’re here, and please don’t be a bitch.”
    I laughed at the plea in her voice. “I’ll try my best.”
    “Goodie.” Meg clapped her hands together like a child who’d just been given an ice cream cone and laid her head on my lap.
    She did her best to strike up a conversation about music, but I was woefully unaware of pretty much anything and everything she listened to. Hours later I had a long list of bands I ‘had’ to check out and the promise of a personalized playlist to come. Despite the fact that we resided on just about opposite ends of the social spectrum, I liked Meg. I could definitely see a friend in her.
    Sometime later, I was nudged awake to find Elijah’s face infinitely closer than wake-up breath should allow. “It’s late. We should get you home.”
    I smiled sleepily at him as he brushed some hair from my face. “What time is it?”
    “After three.”
    “In the morning?” Holy crap!
    Elijah chuckled. “Well that’s better than the afternoon, isn’t it?”
    “Very funny.”
    I sat up to find we were surrounded by several sleeping bodies. Meg was curled up on the floor beside the couch, and Julie and Liam were sharing the other couch, looking rather comfortable together. The other guy—Declan—was sprawled out in an armchair. And Rafe . . . Rafe was standing in the doorway watching me.
    Something about him unnerved me. His sharp gaze seemed to stalk me as we made our way toward the front door. Just when I thought we’d escaped, Rafe’s hand clamped down on the door, prying it open again.
    “It was good seeing you.” He spoke directly to me, his eyes practically daring me to avoid their pull. “Come back any time. I’m always here.”
    I couldn’t bring myself to look away until Elijah stepped in front of me, ushering me down the stairs and out to the car. “So how was it? As awful as you were expecting?”
    “No. It wasn’t awful at all. I actually had fun.”
    “Really?”
    “Yeah. I did.”
    “Good. I’m glad.” He actually seemed relieved. “Sorry about Rafe. He can be an ass sometimes, but he’s the only one with his own place, so . . .”
    “It’s okay. He’s fine. I mean . . . he’s a little disconcerting, but—”
    “Disconcerting?”
    “Yeah. What?”
    “Nothing. I’ve just never heard Rafe described that way.” He laughed as we turned onto my block.
    I hadn’t actually done any drugs, but just being in that room for so long, combined with the fact that it was the middle of the night and I was still half asleep was making my head all sorts of fuzzy. How was I going to get back inside without my parents noticing? Oh, the front door. I left the front door open. That could probably work .
    I giggled at myself and Elijah shot me a crooked grin. Elijah . . . Eli. I giggled again.
    “What’s so funny over there?”
    “Your friends call you Eli.”
    His grin blossomed into a breathtaking smile. “So?”
    “I don’t know. It sounds . . . I like it.”
    “You do, do you?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Well, I like it better when you use my full name. No one else does.”
    “No one? What about your parents? They gave it to you, didn’t they?”
    “I live with my foster dad, actually, and he calls me Eli. Among other things.” He mumbled that last part, but I caught it because this sudden revelation sobered me up real quick.
    “What happened to your parents?” I didn't mean to just blurt it out like that, but sobering up didn't exactly equate to my brain firing on all cylinders.
    “They