Free Fever by Melissa Pearl

as I liked the idea of a friendship with her, I knew it'd be more than challenging.
    If only I could find shower girl.
    It wasn't from a lack of trying. I'd returned to the shower the same time every morning for over a week, hoping to catch her. After that, I switched it up, squeezing in a shower whenever I could on the off-chance she might have been there, which she never was. There was of course the possibility that she just wasn't singing back, but I didn't like to entertain that thought. Surely she'd been affected as much as I had. I wasn't trying to be arrogant, just hopeful, I guess.
    My spirits had slowly deflated with each passing day. I'd been keeping my eyes peeled whenever I walked the third floor of my dorm, but the only thing to really catch my eyes was Ella.
    I tried to convince myself that there were plenty of other college girls just as pretty as Ella, and who knew what my shower songbird really even looked like. She could be missing a freaking limb or her two front teeth. She could be bald. Worse than that, she could be a total bitch. I was a fool to think that two songs could tell me everything I needed to know, but damn, it’d be cool to find out. Something about her sweet sound kept me veering back to this new course I'd insensibly set for myself.
    My depressing reverie was cut short by Jimmy .
    “Hey , everybody. We're Chaos. Thanks so much for coming out to hear us tonight. We hope you'll have a little fun!” He raised his arm and Nessa kicked in with a thumping beat that grew to a kick-ass version of “So What” by Pink.
    A grin stretched across my face. Troy would be so proud right now. Jimmy had been a bit of a train wreck before Troy bought him a guitar. The wild child had been tamed...sort of. Grabbing my phone, I raised it above the cheering crowd and snapped a picture, texting it to Troy in L.A.
    Slipping it back into my pocket, I turned to the sound of a drink order and got to work.
    I was soon pulling beers and pouring tequila shots, checking IDs and having a blast behind the bar. It was so much easier to shove my troubles aside with this much noise in the room. Placing a beer down, I grabbed the money off the counter and thanked the guy, looking over his shoulder as the door pushed open.
    My easy smile faltered as Miss Off Limits slipped into the room , looking so damn hot my lips actually parted.
    Holy shit.
    Was that even the same girl?
    Her big , hazel eyes scanned the room, her lips pressing together as she gently shut the door behind her. Her straight teeth caught the edge of her glossy lip and I grinned. Oh yeah, there she was.
    I couldn't help it. A slow smile stretched across my face as the sexy little thing took a tentative step toward the bar.

CHAPTER TWELVE

    ELLA

    I did it.
    I made it, all by myself. I was so incredibly proud, which only made me feel ridiculous. So I'd managed to catch a cab and give the driver an address. How lame was that.
    The music was thumping from the pub, an instant beat running through me. I loved the sound immediately, my spirit lifting as I opened the door. It didn't seem to matter what kind of music was playing; melody did things to me, made me feel alive.
    Closing the door gently behind me, I scanned the room, hoping to see Morgan's blonde hair above the crowd, but I couldn't spot her. I bit my lip like I always did and took a cautious step toward the bar. In spite of my heels, I still went up on my tiptoes to see if I could find her, but she wasn't there.
    Crap! What the hell did I do now?
    Nerves got the better of me as I inched my way into the room. I couldn't leave before taking a selfie or Jody would never let me hear the end of it. Maybe if I just perched my butt on a bar stool, took a quick shot and then left. I could get away with that.
    Squeezing past a couple of tall guys with beers in their hands, I mumbled, “Excuse me” and worked my way to the bar. There was one spare stool, right near the end. My head spun with relief as I made my