MIDNIGHT DIVINE (The Helio Trilogy Book 1) Read Free Page A

her phone
across from me, and I dig into my sandwich. My eyes travel to the prominent
makeshift stage as I chew my food. I envision our band doing an acoustic set
for the college hipsters, but The Red is already doing bigger shows. I'm a little nervous about our upcoming gig for
the Greek Masquerade Ball.
    Alice interrupts my
thoughts by clearing her throat. “Hey. Eric and Jack are around the corner. I
told them to come hang out with us.”
    “Great,” I grumble. In
truth, I don’t want to see Jack. I finish my sandwich and start scarfing down
my fruit, in effort to leave before they arrive.
    “What?” Alice asks with a
look of annoyance.
    I sigh and pause, thinking
how I can say what I want without being rude. “I'm not fond of Jack. He’s an
egotistical jackass.” I snicker at my unintentional joke.
    Alice grins, “He’s not that
bad. We all grew up around here. He and Eric have a bromance going on.” She
giggles. “And you’ve got to admit, he’s pretty hot.”
    I roll my eyes. “Maybe, but
he’s shallow. Not my type. I don’t understand all these bimbos throwing
themselves at him, and he welcomes the attention. He's obviously a man-whore.
I'm not about that.” The disgusted look in the wrinkle of my nose and the quirk
of my upper lip does nothing to change her mind.
    She waves off my opinion,
“Yeah. It’s just a front. I promise he’s not that way. You should give him a
chance.” Her brown eyes plead with me.
    “I don’t know,” I mumble,
then try to change the subject. “So, tell me more about this Masquerade gig.”
    Alice double bounces in her
chair and her brown eyes twinkle, “Oh! I’m so excited! The Greeks have it every
year, and this is the first year we’ve been asked to play. We’ll probably play
a ten song set. And they said it’s cool if we hang out before and after our set
even though we’re not Greek.” I see the anticipation in her countenance, and it
makes me more eager for the show. “It’s a perk!” she chirps.
    “What kind of Masquerade is
it? Greek Themed? Renaissance?” I wonder if the band is required to dress up as
well , to better blend in with the guests.
    “It’s a Halloween theme. It
doesn’t matter what your costume is as long as you wear a mask. I already have
my costume picked out. But, don’t ask me what it is. I want it to be a
surprise. Let’s just say, it’s very... me , ” she tells me, wiggling her
eyebrows. I giggle at her demeanor.
    “Alright, but I may need
some help picking out a costume.” My own excitement is palpable. I
haven’t been excited about something in a while, and I welcome its imposing
irregularity. Alice nods while taking a drink from the straw in her frozen
coffee.
    “What’s up?” Eric greets,
nodding at us, then gives Alice a peck on the cheek.
    “Hey, babe!” Alice lilts.
They're a good couple with a lasting kind of relationship. You can tell they
have a history together, if not from the way they interact with each other,
than from their permanent matching tattoos of symbols on their right forearms.
They're good for each other, and I admire that about them.
    “Fancy meeting you here, Sunshine,” Jack pulls up a chair next to me and sits in it backwards with
his arms crossed over the backrest.
    My insides flutter with a
magnetic pull towards him again. Oh my god! What's wrong with me! I cannot
get involved with this guy! And did he just call me ‘Sunshine’ again? Ugh! I
try to play nice for Alice's sake and tell him in the most polite way I can,
“That’s not my name.” And like an idiot , I grin! Great!
Now, he thinks I’m flirting with him!
    “So, what is your
name?” Jack smiles back at me. His heart shaped face with high cheekbones and
strong jawline, bring my attention to his invitingly kissable lips. His eyes remain a mystery from his low sitting ball cap.
    Alice looks at me wide eyed
and gestures to Jack with the nudge of her head, urging me on. Shit! I’m
staring! I stop grinning and try to