Listen To Me: A Rock Star Romance (True North) Read Online Free

SUV? We’re going to need a cargo van.”
    The door swung open and Bess squeal-screamed, jumping up and down with her arms around my neck. “Look at you! Look at you! Look at you!” she said, over and over, her eyes huge behind her glasses. A giant black and white dog—or pony maybe—darted out between us, knocking both of us back a step.
    “You’re all baby in there!” she said, her hands hitting my stomach the same time Derek yelled, “Goliath! Get back here!” Lately, my stomach had its own magnetic force that attracted hands of women who knew me and even ones who didn’t. “Oh my God, she kicked!” Bess said, grabbing Derek’s hand as he came up beside her and placing it on my giant belly.
    “It does that,” I said, trying not to feel too awkward with Derek’s palm pressed against my gut.
    “Hey, let’s move this inside before I strain something,” Adrian said, sweating and holding his suitcase under one arm and wheeling my two with my laptop bag swung over his other arm.
    “ Give me that before you hurt yourself,” Derek said, taking Adrian’s suitcase out from under his arm and relieving him from one of my pull-alongs. The dog, Goliath, galloped back through the door, whapping his tail against Adrian.
    Bess grabbed my arm and pulled me in behind the guys and the dog. “I can’t believe you’re so big already! Last time I saw you, you were barely showing!”
    “Gee, thanks.” I shot her a dirty look. “That was four  months ago, so you know, the thing does grow.”
    “She gets a little testy when you mention the size of the bell-eh y,” Adrian said, rubbing the bell-ehy and kissing my cheek.
    “Enough with touching it,” I said, turning away.
    “You never were a touchy-feely person,” Bess said, grinning. “Come on, I want to show you what I’ve done for the shower.”
    She and I walked to the patio doors and out across the cedar deck planks to a walkway that led to a gazebo. Not just a regular gazebo, more like a small house shaped like a gazebo with three levels, fully furnished, running water and electric, the works. The best part—it was situated on the side of a cliff overlooking the ocean with stairs that led down to the beach.
    “I hung pink and blue lanterns, see?” Bess said, pointing to the Chinese paper lanterns hanging from the exposed beams under the gazebo’s roof. “And the guests will each get a silver bracelet like this,” she held up her wrist and showed me the bracelet with a circular silver charm dangling from it. “The charms are engraved with: Thanks and Love, A & K.” Bess held up the silver charm for me to read.
    “Wow, Bess. That’s…wow.” I couldn’t find words. It was over-the-top. It was too much. I wanted to run and hide.
    “What?” she said, grabbing my shoulders. The sun shined down on her head, a couple inches below mine, and lit up the blue highlights in her black-brown hair. “You hate them?” she asked.
    “No. They’re more than I could imagine. I’m just so, God, so blown away by everything. It’s all happening so fast. I didn’t plan it—I don’t—I…” Words failed me.
    “Inside,” she said, ushering me through the gazebo doors to a round, red swivel chair where I collapsed. 
    The whole main floor was decorated in pink, blue and yellow. There were ducks, bears and bunnies on napkins and stenciled on glass hurricane candles, a buffet was set up with china plates and a crystal punch service covered a round corner table. Then my eyes landed on the cake. It was a baby carriage made with elaborate fondant molding and shaping. A tiny foot popped out of the carriage, like the baby inside had lifted a little leg. “I’ve never seen anything so incredible,” I said. “Please tell me it’s chocolate.”
    “Yes.” Bess sank onto the sectional across from me and propped her feet up on the glass coffee table. “Talk.”
    I didn’t talk, I exploded. “I’m out of my freaking mind afraid! I don’t have enough time to