Page 7 of Heart of a Rebel

One look and she grew life in places sunshine should no longer be able to reach inside me. But Eloise did. Her eyes were roots splitting my foundation. An earthquake I couldn’t help but let rip through me.

We carry a few more loads of soundproofing foam into the house before starting to hang them. It’s not nearly enough to cover the walls, but Eloise seems determined to make it work as best as she can. She starts strategically placing them on the walls she thinks are best, moving them around as needed.

I hold the pieces of foam up for her when she can’t reach them, and she’s content to work in mostly silence, which I appreciate.

I’ve never been much of a talker. Which usually pisses off the girls I date because they assume it’s an excuse for me to guard my feelings. But Eloise doesn’t seem to mind.

She hums quietly to herself, and I wonder if she’s working through a song in her head.

Her phone pings and she frowns at it.

“Everything okay?”

She rolls her shoulders back. “Noah’s heading over. Now that we’re done, of course.”

Her midnight eyes flick up to me and there’s amusement mixed with irritation. She tucks her phone into her pocket without responding to his text.

“Not going to tell him we’re done?”

“Nope,” she shakes her head. “If he’s going to miss all the work, then he can at least show up and be inconvenienced.”

I chuckle, getting the impression the guys in the band put Eloise through the wringer but also that she makes them pay for it when they do.

“I’m gonna head out for a bit, but I’ll be back later.” Eloise grabs her purse and wraps it over her shoulder. It’s knitted, with bright flowers all over it. “You don’t mind updating Noah when he finally drags his whipped ass over here?”

“Not at all.” I grin, and her gaze drops to my mouth for the briefest second.

When did we get so close to each other? She’s backed herself against the doorframe and I’m standing directly in front of her. This close she smells like honeysuckle, jasmine, and flowers. Like a whole fucking garden mid-bloom.

I take a step back and straighten up, the action drawing the slightest pinch between her eyebrows. I’d like to think it’s disappointment, but that’s dangerous.

I’m not sure what it is about Eloise that feels like a vine slowly wrapping around my throat. She’s quiet and gentle on the outside, but I feel the sharp sting of her thorns hidden underneath. They cut straight through.

I shake the thought from my head. “See you later then.”

She gives me a half smile before disappearing through the doorway.

The last thing I need right now is a girlfriend. Or a distraction of any kind, for that matter. Taking a deep breath, I put my fucked-up brain in check.

Eloise is in the band, Sebastian’s sister, that’s all.

Keep your distance.

My decimated heart can’t take another attachment. Much less, my sanity.

3

Eloise

Myfingertipsarerawfrom the scrape of the guitar strings, but my skin isn’t where I feel the music shredding me. Every song strips away a layer of my soul, baring my identity. I pour myself into my music, into this moment. I close my eyes and forget anything else—anyoneelse in the room.

It’s only me and this beat I’ve carved from my heart. Lyrics I wrote that my brother’s voice uses as a tool to pierce my subconscious.

The words peeling back my secrets like the petals of a flower blooming. Bursting to their full form with color and light. Shriveling when the darkness overwhelms them, but not enough to destroy the roots.

I strum my guitar and lose myself in the song coming to life.

“Young love burning through heart homes

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