Make Music With Me Read online

  MAKE MUSIC WITH ME, 1st Edition Copyright 2018 by Kristine Allen, Demented Sons Publishing.

  All Rights Reserved.

  ISBN-13: 978-1720113157

  Published in the United States of America. First published in September, 2018.

  Cover Design: Clarise Tan, CT Cover Creations, www.ctcovercreations.com

  Photographer: Eric McKinney, Cover’d by 6:12 www.612photog.com

  Cover Model: Jon Salvador

  Editing: Olivia Ventura and Barbara Hoover, Hot Tree Editing, www.hottreeediting.com

  Formatting: Champagne Book Design, www.champagnebookdesign.com

  The purchase of this e-book, or book, allows you one legal copy for your own personal reading enjoyment on your personal computer or device. This does not include the right to resell, distribute, print or transfer this book, in whole or in part to anyone, in any format, via methods either currently known or yet to be invented, or upload to a file sharing peer to peer program, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people. Such action is illegal and in violation of the U.S. Copyright Law. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000 (http://www. fbi.gov/ipr/). Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content. For information, contact the author at [email protected]. Thank you for supporting this author and her rights.

  Warning: This book contains offensive language, violence and sexual situations. Mature audiences only, 18+ years of age.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright

  Dedication

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Epilogue

  Also by Kristine Allen

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  To my sister, Janella. I don’t tell you often enough how much I love you and how proud I am of you. You’re an amazing mom, sister, person and friend. No matter how long we go without talking, I know I can always pick up the phone and it will be like we spoke yesterday. Thank you for being that person for me. I love you little sister.

  End of April

  The first time I saw her, she thought I was my brother. “Hey, Lucas,” she had mumbled as she walked past.

  I’d been sitting at the bar drinking a cold beer while I waited for Lucas to get back with the case of beer he needed to restock.

  It had happened before, us getting mixed up; after all, we were twins. We used to fuck with people because we thought it was kind of funny. This time, for some asinine reason, it pissed me the fuck off. Her calling me Lucas really rubbed me the wrong way.

  She’d been preoccupied with a ridiculous collection of various-colored sticky notes. I remember wondering if she had a bit of an obsession with them. You know, like an OCD-type thing.

  She’d barely glanced up from juggling her purse, a big-ass bag, and all those damn little papers. Truthfully, I was about to jump up from the barstool to help her when Lucas spoke from over my shoulder. “Goddamn, she’s fucking beautiful.”

  Spinning the stool halfway to face him, I watched from my peripheral vision as she swept down the back hall. The faint fragrance of her perfume lingered after she’d gone. Even though the encounter was brief, I knew I’d forever think of her when I encountered that particular scent.

  Every nerve ending in my body was on edge. My guts churned as I fought the urge to run after her.

  You ever get that feeling where you’re shaking on a cellular level because of adrenaline or anticipation? You know, like when you’re on the starting line for a track sprint and you want to take off, but you know you can’t. It was as if my fucking body had a mind of its own and was on the verge of rupturing if I didn’t go after her. Like I was solid steel and she was a human-sized electromagnet. The draw was that damn powerful.

  “You seeing her?” The thought had my stomach tensing and I didn’t even know her. Jealousy raged through me. I’d never been jealous of my brother in my fucking life.

  “No, but if I have my way, I will be. Mark my words, I’m going to marry her one day.” The words were the nails in my coffin of frustration. That was a game changer. It was an unspoken rule between us ever since the first time Maggie Stearns came to school with a bra on in the seventh grade and Lucas told me he was in love. Even though I’d thought she was cute and she’d winked at me as she passed me in the hall that morning, she became off-limits once Lucas made his statement.

  Fuck.

  Telling myself it was for the best, I shoved down the bitter taste it left in my mouth. Hell, I was stationed up in Washington and leaving for deployment in a few weeks. I didn’t need female complications. Besides, I had no intention of ever moving to Florida. I tipped my beer up and let the brew wash the foreign taste of envy down with it. Too bad it sat sour in my stomach.

  “Is that right? Who is she?” It had to have been my imagination that my voice was agitated and rough in my throat.

  “That’s Poppy. She’s the owner’s girl Friday and I’ve been trying like hell to get her to go out with me for the last month.” Shaking his head, he cast a longing gaze toward the hallway she’d disappeared down before he started to slide the bottles into the cooler.

  Lucas’s hair fell out of his ridiculous slicked-back style and flopped over his face. “Damn, bro, you need a haircut. The hippies are going to start waving at you.” Smirking, I took another pull of my beer as he flipped me off.

  “Shit, little brother, you have room to talk. I’m sure Uncle Sam would tell you that hair is in need of a trim, too.” He reached across the bar and ran his hand roughly over my overgrown military cut, fucking it up as he laughed. I jerked to the side and bumped his hand away with my shoulder.

  “Aww, fuck off. First of all, you’re less than ten minutes older than me. Second of all, I’m on leave for another day, and it has nothing on your girly locks, pretty boy.” Tossing his unruly hair back out of his face, he chuckled.

  “Yeah, well, wait until I have Poppy running her fingers through it. You won’t be laughing at me then.” The thought made me want to puke. Suddenly finished with the beer, I pushed it toward him, stood, and dropped a twenty on the counter.

  “Well, I’ll leave you to that, man. I’m going
to hit the beach for the last time before I have to leave. I’ll see you back at your place when you get off.” Turning to put the unusually unsettling experience behind me, I waved over my shoulder at him. I didn’t look back as I walked out into the sun. I knew if I did, I’d go looking for her—and no good could come from that.

  The thought of Poppy with Lucas made my fucking stomach heave and left me mad as a motherfucker. Even though I’d told him I was going to hang out with him at the bar that night, I needed to get the hell out of there.

  Maybe I would have done things differently if I’d known that was the last time I’d see my brother. If someone had told me I was going to lose a limb before the end of my next deployment, I would have handled it better than if they had told me I would lose my big brother.

  “Got Your Six”—Five Finger Death Punch

  June

  The phone rang so many times I almost hung up.

  “Hello?” When a hesitant female voice answered, I had to double-check the number I had dialed.

  Confirming I hadn’t fucked up, I asked, “Umm, is Lucas there?”

  “May I ask who’s calling?” Every word she spoke had my heartbeat running rampant.

  What the fuck? I didn’t even know this chick, but my adrenaline was racing.

  “This is Levi. His brother. I may not be able to call back right away, so is he around?” Glancing at my watch, I realized it was early morning there and I started to feel bad that maybe I’d woken them.

  “Levi! Oh my gosh! He’s told me so much about you! This is Poppy, Lucas’s girlfriend.” With those five words my stomach plummeted. He’d done it. Lucas had told me she’d be his, and now she was. Goddamn.

  I shoved a fake-ass smile on my face and steeled myself against the ridiculous jealousy that pulsed through me. “It’s a pleasure to talk to you, Poppy. Is Lucas around?”

  “No, well, yes, but he’s in the shower. He told me to answer his phone if it rang, but it felt weird and I almost didn’t and I’m so glad I did now, because you’re deployed, but the number came up as New York so I wasn’t sure if I should answer and… oh, I’m sorry, I’m rambling, huh?” A genuine smile replaced the forced one I’d started with. Besides her looks, I could understand what he saw in her. She was sweet and seemed… real.

  Great. Why couldn’t she have been a bitch? At least then I could’ve disliked her and I wouldn’t have to be pissed that Lucas was with her. Sliding my palm along my face, I exhaled.

  “It’s okay, babe. Don’t sweat it. Can you just tell him I called?”

  “Do you have to go?” she blurted, disappointment heavy in her voice.

  Did I have to? No. Did I want to? Yes. The last thing I wanted to do was talk to the girl who tied me in knots after seeing her only once. The same girl who was off-limits because she belonged to my brother.

  Color me surprised when, instead of telling her that I did have to go, I told her, “Um, no. I have a few minutes.” Ugh! Stupid, stupid mouth.

  “Great! So, a friend said she sends care packages to her brother over there. Would you mind if I sent you one? Are there any guys with you that don’t get much? Because I’d really like to include them, too. It must get lonely over there.”

  She had no idea. Even surrounded by team members I was extremely close with and hundreds of other military service members on the FOB (Forward Operating Base), it was easy to feel alone.

  “It can, yeah. And a care package would be great. There are several of the guys who don’t have any family. They never get so much as a postcard. If you included things for them it would make their day, but I don’t want you to feel obligated and I know they wouldn’t either.”

  “God, that must suck. I’ll see what I can do, and there’s no obligation. I told you, I want to do it. Oh hey! It was so nice finally talking to you, but here’s Lucas. Please be careful over there.”

  There were no promises I could give her in that regard. I couldn’t even promise her I wouldn’t do anything stupid, because some of the shit we did would definitely be considered stupid or crazy by the general population. “I’ll do my best. Nice meeting you, too, Poppy.” Muffled sounds followed.

  “Hey, little brother! How’s the other side of the world treating you? Fuck, I hate that you’re there.” His voice started out as upbeat but ended heavy with worry. I didn’t want him to worry about me.

  “I’m hanging in there. Same shit, different day. You know.” Even though I knew he couldn’t see me, I shrugged and leaned back in the chair I was using in our sat phone tent. Perks of SF, what can I say? For about five seconds, I closed my eyes and imagined myself back home, my family all around me. “So, Poppy, huh? How’s that going?”

  “Good, bro. It’s been crazy. I wish I could explain. If there were actually words to describe how it feels like I was meant to find her. Like she was the entire reason for me to make the move to Florida. Like I said, crazy. Anyway, you called me. Is everything okay?” Lucas was the only other living soul who knew what really happened every time I’d been injured. He was the one person I could never lie to about something like that. Except there I was, jealous of him and his girlfriend. But that’s something I would never tell him.

  “Everything is fine, man. I promise. It’s all good. Just wanted to call and check on you. It will be a little while before I can call again, so I… I wanted to tell you I love you.” The upcoming mission we were heading out on was dangerous. I wouldn’t tell him that, but I also couldn’t risk not getting the chance to tell my family how I felt about them. I’d just hung up with everyone else before I called Lucas.

  “Fuck. It’s bad, huh? Okay.” He sighed. “Please be safe, man. I love you too, Levi. Like no other. You’re my other half. Two peas. Remember?” Our childhood saying made me smile.

  “Yeah, two peas.”

  July

  The box looked like it had been tossed around in the back of a pickup truck for a few months. Tracing over the writing with my finger, I imagined the movement of her hand as she wrote it. With a grin, I opened the care package she had promised was on its way.

  On top of all the items inside was a letter to me. The slanted handwriting was as beautiful as the woman who wrote it.

  Dear Levi,

  I know this isn’t much, but I wasn’t sure what all to send in this first box, so I googled it and got some ideas from there. Hope there’s things that you and your friends like. I was hoping to send a little bit of home to you all. Next time I talk to you I’ll see if there’s something specific you want. Or email me a list. Be safe.

  Poppy

  There was a goofy smiley face next to her signature. It made it impossible to keep the smile off my face. The knock on the door was ignored as I reread the letter.

  “What’s got you grinning like a Cheshire cat, Mac? Girlfriend send you some shit?” Glancing up at Aiden as he walked in with his rifle slung over one shoulder and his guitar’s soft case over the other, I tried to wipe the stupid grin off my face. As nonchalantly as I could, I stuffed the letter back into the box and set it on my bunk.

  “Nah, just a friend. You ready to head over to the MWR tent? Salvatore there already?” The metal box I kept the mics and smaller shit in was under my bunk, so I crouched to pull it out.

  “Yeah, he had to shower so I said I’d swing by to get you and he could meet us there.”

  Nodding, I stood. “Well, let’s go then, you big motherfucker. This space is small enough without your gigantic ass in it.” His deep chuckle preceded him as he ducked to fit under the doorway after me. I was looking forward to showing them a couple of songs I’d been working on while they were gone.

  That package was the first of many she would send, each one packed with thoughtfulness and love. She’d found a way to get everyone’s favorite things out of them and me during my phone calls. It became a game to the guys. As soon as any of them found out I was calling to thank her, they’d crash my call. I had to be seriously stealthy around those motherfuckers if I had any hopes of talki
ng to her alone.

  Short letters had come once a week to the guys who had no family. Candy, snacks, Amazon cards, and various other goodies would always be in the box for us. She even sent small stuffed animals for the kids we had befriended in the village outside the FOB. How she had the time, I’ll never know.

  Even though I knew it was wrong, each gesture, each call, had me falling for her a little more.

  September

  “Hello?” Over three months since the first time I talked to her, and the sound of her voice over the crackling line was like a balm to my soul.

  “Happy birthday, doll! What’s big brother doing to celebrate your special day? He better be spoiling you.” Hoping my words sounded fucking chipper, inside I seethed. Loving your brother’s girlfriend was the worst kind of hell. Even more so than this shittastic country I was still stuck in.

  “Aww, thanks. Actually, we’re going out for dinner. I’m just waiting for him to get here. Maybe this time next year a certain band I happened to hear about will be in town to play for me. Hmm, that would be nice.”

  Fuck. The thought of going down there and watching her and Lucas together was damn near nauseating. It was the last thing I wanted to do. That was the reason I kept telling Lucas not just no, but hell no about going down there. I’d made every excuse in the book and I was sticking to my guns.

  “Ugh! Not you too? As if it isn’t bad enough that Lucas is always riding my ass.” I chuckled in an effort to make light of the situation. “Everything is still pretty tentative. Dominic, my friend from school, is actually stuck here with me. He’s a damn jarhead, but we’re on the same base together for a little while longer. He and another guy who is here with us, Aiden, and I have put together a few things in our downtime. It’s not much, but it keeps our minds sane. Too bad they leave soon, I’m gonna miss playing with them. Besides, I doubt your boss would be interested in us. We’re not even a real band yet. We just mess around right now.” That was true, we were still on active duty, so we were limited on what we could do as a band, per se, but it was coming.