Whisper (Novella) Read Online Free PDF Page A

you.”
    â€œYou’ve already got that hot date.”
    â€œI can bring him, if he’s up to it. Or if I see that he’s a geek right off the bat, I can ditch him and meet you.”
    â€œFor the company of more geeks?”
    â€œHellfire geeks have
got
to be interesting. I heard that at one party, there was this orgy. How hilarious would that be? Nerds sexing it up.”
    An orgy? I decided to take Diana with a grain of salt. “I think there’s a person at the door who checks invitations, and your name isn’t on it.”
    â€œYou want to do this on your own.” She stood, nodding. “Okay. I get it. But if you need backup . . .”
    â€œI’ll definitely let you know.”
    Without another argument, Diana walked away, jangling her keys in her hand, but I stopped her.
    â€œHey,” I said. “Thanks.”
    She halted, shrugged, then kept moving, crossing her arms over her chest. Maybe she didn’t like touchy-feely moments like this had
almost
been between two neighbors who were kinda-sorta friends. Maybe we didn’t know each other well enough for those types of moments yet.
    The thought made that same bubble of loneliness surround me as she got in her car and drove off, the leaf blower revving up again in the backyard, drowning out my thoughts as I typed an answer to ThereInTheCorner.
    NewGirl: I’ll be there.
    ***
    The sun had already set over the grain warehouse, which was in the middle of a field and far back from the desolate country lane. With its gray facade and faded red paint on its attached tower, it looked like it might’ve been the center of something in its day, back when a major road had run close to it. Now, hard rock music and long, waving grass was its only company, along with the cars parked in the rear, sheltered from view.
    I cut the engine on my old Mini Cooper Roadster and sat there for a few minutes longer, watching a kid with a cowboy hat, a long blue ponytail, and jeans so holey that only threads held them together mosey toward the building. He knocked at a door and it opened, then he disappeared inside.
    What was I doing again? Oh, yes, diving into the real world. A half year of college hadn’t prepared me for what was inside the Hellfire Club at
all
. And I wasn’t just talking about the music and so-called illicit acts.
    My secret admirer was in there.
    My nerves had piled up during the day, pressing against me until I nearly screamed with anxiety right then. I was dying to know if my secret admirer was really Micah . . . and what it would feel like to be adored by someone who could say such passionate things to me. Even if I couldn’t believe that my SA was that into me—did guys like him really exist?—the fantasy made me happy, even temporarily.
    I blew out a breath and opened my door. After I shut it, I touched the webby leather bracelet I’d made, knowing I had everything I needed in there, including money if I needed it. I shoved my phone in my jeans pocket and adjusted the black, strapless fringe top I was wearing.
    It showed just enough skin to keep me unseduce-able, if that was what truly got a guy like Micah going.
    The air had taken on a little chill, so I walked to the building, avoiding patches of mud, then knocked on the door. A burly kid answered, and he seemed like the type who’d decided to work on his family’s farm instead of going to college, although he was wearing a pair of glasses that marked him as a nerd.
    I had to respect Aidan Falls for having geeky yet built bouncers.
    I showed him the invitation that ThereInTheCorner had sent me on my phone, and the Hellfire farmer let me in. Did he have a knowing smile on his face, though?
    Suddenly I was paranoid. If Micah wasn’t my secret admirer, it could be anyone here . . .
    I wandered into the main room, a flood of red light making me squint, and I stood still, trying to get used to the blaring