The Shore Read Free Page A

threat in his voice.
    â€œI . . . I don’t understand what you mean . . . ,” Fred stammered.
    â€œThink about it,” Curt said.
    â€œOh, well, I guess I could give you a discount on the other room,” Fred said.
    Curt smiled. “There you go.”
    â€œLet me show you what I’ve got.” Fred turned and led them into the house. Curt grabbed a couple of bags from the back of the pickup, and he and Avery followed.
    â€œI still think we should bag this whole thing and stay with the band,” Curt muttered to Avery as they entered the house.
    â€œI want us to have more privacy,” Avery replied.
    â€œPrivacy?” Curt scoffed. “In a house full of strangers, that’s a good one.”
    She turned scarlet but didn’t say anything. Curt sighed. The whole situation was lame.
    Inside they followed Fred up the staircase to the second-floor landing. Suddenly a hot-looking blonde came out of the room at the end of the hall, wearing a pink bikini top and pastel green shorts. Curt felt his eyes bulge. She was gorgeous and had a killer bod, top and bottom. If she was one of his roommates, he suddenly had a whole new reason for staying here. The blonde smiled warmly at Fred, then flounced past them on her way to the stairs. When she passed Curt, he caught a whiff of perfume that had to be expensive. Even better, she brushed against him in a way that let him know she had done it on purpose. As she passed, he couldn’t help imagining what she’d look like with less clothing.
    â€œWas that the big bedroom she came out of?” Curt asked after the blonde had passed.
    â€œYes,” Fred said, sounding miserable.
    â€œI want to see it,” Curt said.
    â€œWhy?” Fred asked.
    â€œSo I know I’m really getting a discount on the piece of crap room we wind up with.”
    Fred’s shoulders sagged. “Uh, sure.”
    Curt smiled. He was gonna talk this wimp down until they got a room almost for free. But when they reached the door of the big bedroom, they discovered that it was locked.
    â€œYou’ve got a spare key, right?” Curt said.
    â€œUh, no, I don’t,” Fred said, shrugging and looking embarrassed.
    Curt rolled his eyes. What kind of landlord didn’t keep spare keys? This guy Fred was a joke.
    â€œHere, this room is the next largest,” Fred said, hastening to open another door on the landing. This room wasn’t much larger than Curt’s bedroom at home, with only a double bed and a small dresser. The walls were drab, and the carpet was worn in spots. On the other hand, it was clean and it smelled okay, which was a major improvement over the rooms in the house where the other members of STF were staying.
    â€œHow much is it?” Curt asked.
    â€œEighteen hundred for the summer,” Fred said.
    Curt narrowed his eyes. “So what are you gonna do for us?”
    Fred started to squirm, and a line of sweat formed on his upper lip. “I . . . I could give it to you for, say, fourteen hundred.”
    â€œThat’s not good enough,” Curt said. “You broke your promise, remember?”
    Fred swallowed. “Twelve hundred?”
    Curt shook his head. It almost wasn’t about the money. It was about making this guy pay for not upholding his half of the deal. Now it was a challenge to watch this guy squirm and see how low he would go.
    â€œA thousand?” Fred asked.
    â€œStill not good enough,” Curt growled even though inside he was laughing. At this rate they would get the room for nothing.
    â€œNo,” Avery interrupted. “A thousand is fine. That’s a very fair price, and we appreciate it.”
    Fred sighed with relief, but Curt was annoyed with Avery.
    â€œWell, good, I’m glad we settled that,” Fred said, handing them a key to the room. “Just promise me you won’t tell any of the other renters, okay? This is our secret.”
    Curt and Avery went