Beautiful Abyss (California Dreamers #3) Read Online Free Page A

auditions. I have a really good feeling that my big break may be just around the corner.”
    “That’s great. How long have you been at it?”
    “Too long,” I tell her.
    That makes her laugh. “You can’t be older than twenty-five. Did you start when you were a kid?”
    “I’m twenty-six. I started auditioning about five years ago.”
    “That’s not too long.”
    “How old are you?” I ask her.
    Her face reddens. “So you want me to tell you the truth?”
    “Of course.”
    “Nineteen.”
    For some reason I didn’t think she was that young. Not that she looks older. She just seems a lot more mature than the average nineteen-year-old.
    “Does the age difference bother you?” I ask her.
    Even though she shakes her head I can tell that something is making her uncomfortable about being with me.
    I hope it isn’t just me .
    “You seem younger,” she tells me. I’m not sure that’s a compliment.
    “So what do you like to do when you’re not at the nursery?” I ask.
    She lets out a small sigh. “I don’t have a lot of free time.”
    She looks lost in her thoughts for several moments.
    “Do you work every day?” I ask.
    She shakes her head. “I usually get two days off every week.”
    “What do you do when you’re not working?”
    The egg rolls are served before she has a chance to respond. The plate barely has a chance to hit the table before she grabs one.
    Abby is a tiny girl. She’s maybe five foot three inches tall and all of a hundred and ten pounds. But she’s acting like she’s starving.
    I love to eat just as much as the next guy, but I’ve never seen a girl devour food so fast in my life.
    The first egg roll disappears into her mouth. It doesn’t even seem like she took the time to chew it.
    There are two egg rolls left on the plate and she’s eyeing them like a hungry lion eyeing a big, juicy steak.
    “Have one,” she tells me without taking her eyes off of them.
    I feel like if I grab one she might bite some of my fingers off. “Go ahead,” I tell her.
    “Are you sure?”
    “I’m sure.”
    The words barely escape my lips before she has another egg roll devoured. I’ve heard other girls say that they don’t like to eat in front of guys. Abby definitely doesn’t have that problem.
    “You have to eat the last one,” she tells me. The words coming out of her mouth don’t match the look in her eyes. She definitely wants to gulp down that last egg roll.
    “You have it,” I tell her.
    She doesn’t even hesitate to grab it and shove it into her mouth.
    I’m really glad I don’t like egg rolls all that much.
    “You must really love egg rolls,” I comment.
    She grins. “I do.”
    “Did you eat breakfast this morning?” I ask.
    She shakes her head. “I was too busy. I didn’t get a chance.”
    That could explain why she’s so hungry. But why didn’t she get a chance to eat?
    Before I have a chance to ask her the waiter serves our main dishes.
    She stares at the chicken with the same hungry eyes she had for the egg rolls.
    “Take what you want and then I’ll take mine,” I offer.
    She takes most of the chicken and puts in on her plate. Then she takes a little more than half of the beef and stacks that on top of the chicken. She also takes most of the rice.
    Her plate looks like there’s enough food on it for three people to share. I don’t say anything because I’m not that hungry. I don’t want to make her feel bad. She’s obviously very hungry.
    I just wanted to get to know her better anyway. And in a way it feels good that she feels comfortable being herself around me.
    “I’m sorry,” she says staring at the mountain of food on her plate. “I think I might have gotten carried away and taken too much. I haven’t been out on a date in forever. I haven’t gotten Chinese food either. I’m usually not a pig like this.”
    “It’s okay,” I tell her. “I want you to enjoy yourself.” I point to the little bit of beef and rice that’s left. “This is