Sound of the Tide by Emily Bold Read Free Book Online

shape!”
    “Close the window, it’s fucking freezing in here,” I said, now in a foul mood, and escaped to the kitchen. It sucked if your friends held a mirror up to your face, and it sucked even more when you realized that they were absolutely right.
    Kevin followed me, taking off his worn brown leather jacket, and sat down. “Are you okay?”
    I could see the worry in his green-speckled eyes, but I didn’t want him to see how lousy I was feeling, and so I fixed my eyes on the black guitar pick hanging from a silver chain around his neck.
    “Well, it’s harder than I thought. Maybe it’s the hormones and the inertia, but I just can’t really seem to get into gear.”
    He ran his fingers thoughtfully through his short dark hair and attempted a little smile, which emphasized the tiny dimple in his chin. “I know, I feel the same way. This hole he’s left in our lives, it’s just too big.”
    I nodded, spooning ground coffee into the machine, and poured in the water. For the first time since Daniel’s death, I was really talking about my feelings. Kevin’s calm, quiet manner gave me the reassurance I needed to finally open up. We’d known each other for too long for me to hide anything from him.
    Jenna was busying herself in the living room. I could hear her complain about the general mess, and shook my head. As if I cared.
    I sat down next to Kevin and reached for his hand. It was lovely and warm and comforting. There was a lot of misery and grief in his handsome features, and I wanted nothing more than to hug him. I was sure he wasn’t feeling a whole lot better than I was. He missed Daniel, too.
    For a brief moment, a thought entered my head: If I hadn’t split up with Kevin back in the day, my life wouldn’t be on the line right now and I would still be happy.
    Quickly, I brushed such nonsense aside. Kevin and I would never have worked. When I was only seventeen, my heart was already beating for Daniel—and Kevin’s for his music.
    It was always him and his guitar—on many nights, I felt like a third wheel with the two of them. I didn’t want to spend all my time in a basement music studio, and I also didn’t want to see all the groupies after each performance of the band he had back then. That was why things hadn’t worked out between us. Kevin and I, we’d only been good together for a few weeks, and in the end, our relationship had led me into Daniel’s arms.
    That love triangle could have turned into a real mess because Daniel and Kevin were best friends. I didn’t want them fighting over me, but I shouldn’t have worried. After all, Kevin and I had been split up for a while before he introduced me to Daniel. And even though Kevin and I didn’t work out as a couple, we liked each other too much to give up our friendship.
    “How is it going at the station?” I asked to change the subject and pull myself out of my memories of our turbulent youth.
    “It’s not the same anymore. Everybody is still shocked that—”
    “Piper, are you aware that you have plates full of leftover food sitting on the floor next to your sofa?”
    Jenna held the plates in question as far away from her as possible, like bombs ready to explode, and wrinkled her pretty powdered nose with exaggerated disdain. She really was too funny. I let go of Kevin’s hand and immediately missed his warm touch.
    “I put it out for the cat,” I replied, deadpanning.
    “The cat? You don’t have a cat!” she said, sounding annoyed.
    I slapped my forehead, pretending that a lightbulb had just turned on. “Well, that explains a few things!”
    We laughed, and the sound of it startled me. I barely recognized the feeling, but a pleasant warmth started spreading inside me. Jenna poured us all coffee before she joined us at the table.
    Well then! Obviously something was up, and I was anxious to find out what my two friends had in mind for me.
    Jenna looked at me wide-eyed, but it was Kevin who started to explain. With a mischievous