Rising Star Read Online Free PDF Page A

met
one before.”
    Matt threw back his head and laughed his
nice laugh, the musical sound ringing across the restaurant.
    “ I guess we’re a little
‘small town’ around here.”
    “ No, I think it’s
wonderful,” he answered. “It’s the exact opposite of the Hollywood
madness I’m used to. I feel like I can be myself more out
here.”
    Matt put her at ease over dinner and they
chatted amiably. The other diners had eventually gone about their
own business and Selena was grateful that all the eyes weren’t on
them anymore. She laughed as Matt took a bite of the hot green
chile and quickly downed his soda as his face reddened.
    “ You get used to it,” she
told him.
    “ I don’t think so,” he
croaked out. “That’s the hottest thing I’ve ever eaten in my
life.”
    “ Here, try some honey.”
She put a little honey on a sopapilla and handed it to him. “It
kills the burn instantly.”
    They laughed and chatted through the rest of
the meal and Matt lingered after dinner, sipping another soda and
waiting for the burn to subside from his mouth. He had always
enjoyed trying new foods, but these ‘chiles’ were going to take
some getting used to. He was in no rush for the evening to end. He
had an amazing view of the New Mexico sunset through the big window
behind Selena. He watched as the orange rays picked up the reddish
highlights in her dark hair. He looked into her huge, mysterious
eyes, but she didn’t hold his stare, lowering her eyes each time
and blocking him from trying to read her thoughts.
    “ Is your hair natural or
tinted?” he finally asked as he watched the setting sun play on
it.
    “ It’s naturally dark and
the desert sunshine adds the red tints,” she answered.
    She held his stare this time with her big,
violet eyes. Her lashes were long and curled beautifully, he could
tell they were real too. He took her hand again across the table,
looking at the slim fingers with clean, unpainted nails.
    “ You’re probably the most real girl I’ve been out with in a long time,” he said
softly, still holding her hand.
    Selena shifted nervously in her seat and her
heart pounded as she looked into his twinkling blue eyes. “What do
you mean?”
    “ I mean, Hollywood girls
are plastic,” he said. “Fake eyelashes, fake nails, fake hair and fake boobs.”
    Selena giggled as she blushed and lowered
her gaze, staring at his hand still holding hers on the table. She
was unused to such intensity and honesty from the boys she knew and
why did it feel like an electric current passing through their
hands? He made her feel like they were the only two people in the
restaurant as he stared at her; he ignored everyone but Selena,
including the waitress.
    “ You look my age, but you
seem older,” she said, trying her best to quell the nervous tension
in her stomach. Cool and collected, just like Trish, she told
herself.
    “ I’m twenty. But several
years of Hollywood and traveling all over the world will definitely
age a person. How old are you?”
    “ I’ll be eighteen in a few
weeks.”
    “ And how about your name?
Selena Summers is a beautiful name. It sounds like a stage
name.”
    “ No,” Selena giggled. “It’s
mine. My mother is Hispanic and my father is white. My name is a
little of both.”
    “ Well, it’s a beautiful
name.”
    “ Thank you. I’m not sure
everyone agrees, though,” she sighed.
    “ Why?”
    “ A lot of people still call
me a half-breed.”
    “ You’re joking?”
    “ No. My mother’s parents
almost disowned her when she ran away with my father. But they
finally gave in after I was born.”
    “ That’s incredible,” Matt
said.
    “ Yeah. I guess it was
pretty bad for them as teenagers. But they say their love for each
other held them together.”
    Matt was still holding her hand on the
table, and the way he stared into her eyes, she thought maybe he
could see into her very soul. His stare was so intense, it made her
feel nervous and jittery. She jumped