Free Somewhere in the Middle by Linda Palmer Page B

Linkin Park concert."
    That made him laugh.
    "Do you like them?"
    "Who?"
    "Linkin Park." I reached over to untie his tie and unbutton the top
button of his crisp white shirt.
    He swept his forefinger around the front of his neck to widen the
opening I'd made. "I'm assuming that's a band...?"
    Hm. "Into country music, are you?"
    "Y-yes?"
    "Classic or country rock?"
    He just looked at me.
    I sighed. The boy had definitely been living under a rock before he
moved to McAlister. I tactfully changed the subject. "I love everything
to do with outer space. When I was typing your dad's theory, I couldn't
help but think how cool it would be if he was right. Imagine a
wormhole--" I gave him a half smile "--or 'cosmic kobling,' as he calls them, that
would take us from here to someplace we never imagined existed."
    "That would be very, very cool."
    "Wouldn't it? There's this show on one of the Discovery channels that
I totally love called 'Through the Wormhole.' Morgan Freeman is the
host." Surely he'd heard of Freeman.
    Roone nodded as if he had.
    "In one episode, he talked about parallel worlds, which are unproven
at this time, but entirely possible, at least according to many
physicists, your dad included, obviously."
    "Apparently you've picked the right major. Do you come here a
lot?"
    "Yes."
    "Ever see anything besides this?" He swept his arm to encompass the
sky.
    "The moon?"
    Roone grinned. Was he...relieved?
    "And occasional lightning in the distance." Suddenly remembering a
night like tonight, I grabbed his shirt sleeve. "One night back in July
or August I saw the most incredible lightshow ever. The clouds in that
part of the sky?" I pointed to the east. "They were so dense and colored
so weirdly that it looked like the Earth was rising up to meet the
lightning. I tried to catch it on my iPhone, but some clouds moved in and
hid everything--"
    "So you didn't get a picture of it?" Roone's voice sounded oddly
strained.
    "No. Too dark." I shivered and then blinked when a single snowflake
landed right in my eye.
    Roone actually startled as if remembering something. "Are your feet
cold?"
    "Past cold into frozen so hard my toes might snap off." I expected
Roone to suggest that we leave. Instead, he slid off the rock, squatted
in front of me, and began rubbing some warmth into my feet with his
decidedly toasty fingers. And I'd just walked barefoot from the car! I
pulled them back. "My feet are too dirty for that."
    "Your feet are fine."
    "We should go." Gulp.
    "Oh! Okay." He stood, frowning slightly.
    "You're not one bit cold, are you?"
    " I'm wearing shoes."
    "Yeah, but..." Standing, I touched his nose, his cheek, and his neck,
the only parts of him exposed to the elements besides his hands, which
I'd already felt. All just as warm.
    He could tell I was surprised. "I, er, run a little hot."
    "Apparently. Too bad I don't." I turned toward the car, but before I
could take a single step, Roone swept me into his arms. "Whoa!"
    "Don't want you to lose any of those adorable toes to frostbite."
    That was okay by me. Being carried by Roone was a decidedly heady
experience--as in I'd never felt so feminine--and I wasn't about to
complain even if my toes were far from adorable. When we got to my car,
he let me open it and then set me inside. I thanked him for the ride with
a voice that shook.
    Random flakes of snow turned into more by the time we got halfway to
my house. They swirled in the headlights, none of them sticking to
anything at the moment. I put on my shoes before I got out of the car to
avoid questions from my parents. We walked to my front door together. I
handed him his jacket.
    I glanced at my watch--just ten-thirty. "Coming in?"
    "Uh... Sure."
    Was he simply being polite? He definitely had the most astounding
manners I'd ever seen in a teenage boy. "You don't have to. But my big
brother is home now, and I wanted you to meet him."
    "I'd like to."
    He put on his jacket as we went inside. I led the way to the den,
where my entire