Beautiful Tragedy (A Standalone Romance Novel) Read Online Free PDF

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that he was gorgeous, he could sing, he could play the guitar and he seemed
really nice, he had to have a Harley too. I watched as he swung it into a small
space reserved for motorcycles and parked. As he had on stage singing, sitting
at the taco stand, walking me home, and watching as I went inside the dorm, he
looked amazing. I could feel my heart actually speed up in my chest. I was
afraid that it was beating so fast and so hard that if you looked directly at
it, my sweater and coat would be moving in and out too. This was ridiculous.
    We stood and waited for him to saunter over in his
black leather jacket and dark shades that I personally didn’t care for. I
preferred the blue eyes. When he got closer and pulled off the shades, I
physically jumped. I suddenly worried that he could hear my thoughts. How
messed up would that be?
    He and Jake did their stupid guy bump thing, like
maybe they didn’t just see each other before they left the house. Then he
looked at Megan and me. I don’t know if it’s my imagination or not, but those
blue eyes seemed to linger on mine a little longer than they had on Meg’s.
    “Hey Megan, Molly.”
    Megan and I both said hi, and we all headed for the
entrance. The game was well into the first quarter by then and the stadium was
packed. Our seats were pretty good ones, but they were in the middle of a row
and I think we slightly pissed off a few of the people we had to step over and
push past. As we got closer to where we’d be sitting, I felt a hand on the
small of my back, helping to guide me. It was Brock’s hand, and my silly brain
thought that I could actually feel his body heat searing through my coat and
sweater onto my back.
    I dropped down into the seat next to Molly, and Brock
took the one on the other side of me. He grinned at me then, and again I had to
wonder what was always so amusing to this guy. Maybe when you were gorgeous and
young and healthy and musically inclined, you just never had any reason to not
be happy.
    I feigned watching the game for a while, because just
having him sitting so close with his arm brushing lightly against mine left me
afraid to open my mouth, not trusting what might rush out. Sometimes my brain
forgot that the opening of my mouth was the key to engage. Finally, leaning
close enough that I could feel his breath on my face Brock said, “You look
cold.”
    Again, stating the obvious, but at least he was
trying. “I’m freezing,” I said, trying to smile through the tightness of my
face. The sun had just started to go down and a cold wind was kicking in. I
felt ashamed that I was still glad I came, however.
    “Do you want some hot chocolate?”
    I thought about that. Chocolate wasn’t really on my
diet, although the nutritionist did tell me that I could indulge every once in
a while as long as I didn’t overdo it. I also like the idea that he cared
enough to offer. “That sounds good, thanks.”
    “I’ll be right back.”
    I watched then as he risked his life, once again
crossing in front of the dedicated fans. Brock smiled at them all, and I
realized then that females weren’t the only ones affected by his blue eyes and
boy-next-door grin, and I also realized as I watched him, that he knew it.

 
    CHAPTER
FOUR
    BROCK
    I made my way down the crowded aisle, trying not to
tramp on anyone’s foot. Towards the end there was a guy who looked like a
recent football alumni, sitting with his girlfriend. The guy had to be at least
two-twenty and his arms looked like the trunks of medium sized trees. His
girlfriend was petite and blonde, and she was smiling at me. Why would a woman
want to put me in harm’s way like that? Instead of looking directly at her as I
passed, I smiled at the big guy and said, “Excuse me.” He stood up then, all
six foot four of him and sucked in his gut so I could pass. He smiled back too.
I guess my strategy worked.
    I made my way to the concession stand thinking about
Molly. I hadn’t planned on liking