Deception (Dirty Secrets #2)
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Authors: Mercy Amare
Mercy Amare
Deception
Dirty Secrets, Episode 2
Copyright
© 2014 by Mercy Amare
Cover designed by P.S. Cover Design
Edited by Laura Heritage
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, distributed, store in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any forms or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, without express permission of the author, except by a review who may quote brief passages for review purposes.
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
This book is dedicated to
YOU
. (Yes, you).
Seriously, thank you for being awesome.
I love you.
Wednesday, August 27
Twin code.
My hands are shaking as I make my way home from the library.
Daisy’s disappearance isn’t just her spending the night at some random guy’s house. She’s
really
missing. Somebody took her. Or killed her. My stomach contracts at the thought, and I pull my car over to the side of the road. I heave and I lose everything in my stomach. I clutch it with shaky hands and try to calm myself down.
What should I do? If I tell the police, something bad could happen to Daisy and Cassidy… But what if I don’t tell the police and something bad still happens? It’s an impossible situation.
I get back in my car and head toward my house.
My head is pounding, and I feel confused. How can I choose? Both choices suck.
When I pull up to my house, my phone vibrates with a text. I turn my car off and pull my phone out of my pocket.
Cassidy Armstrong:
Remember, you promised.
I stare at the text until my screen goes black.
Stupid, stupid promise. I shouldn’t have promised anything. How can I
not
tell the police this? This is so wrong.
Me:
You have until Saturday afternoon. Then we do it my way and tell the police.
Cassidy Armstrong:
Thank you, Mads.
Part of me is mad at her for putting me in this position, but the other part of me understands
why
she did it. She can’t handle this on her own. It’s not fair for her to have to. I still don’t like it.
I get out of the car. When I do, I see Jace walking toward me.
“Where have you been?” he asks.
“I, ugh…” There is a sharp pain in my stomach, and my vision clouds.
Wait, what did he ask?
“Are you feeling okay?”
I nod, then shake my head. I bend over and start dry heaving on the grass. I feel Jace’s hands in my hair, and he holds it back for me. When I’m done, I look up at him, feeling mortified.
“I’m sorry,” I tell him.
He puts his arm around my waist and I lean over on him. He helps me walk toward the house. When we get to the stairs, he picks me up and carries me to my room. I’ve imagined this happening quite a few times, but the scenario was always different.
Jace lays me down on my bed and sits down beside me.
“How are you feeling?” he asks, feeling my forehead.
“I’m fine,” I answer, scooting backward on my bed. I sit up and lean against the headboard.
“You don’t seem fine,” he says.
“I am. I probably just ate something bad.”
He seems to accept my answer, and he walks around my room. “It looks a lot different than last time I was in here.”
“You haven’t been in my room since we were ten.”
“It’s very orange,” he says, then smiles. “I guess I should have known it would be.”
“It’s my favorite color.”
“I know.” He comes over to the bed and sits beside me. “I’ve known you for thirteen years. I pretty much know everything about you. There are no secrets.”
That’s not true. There is stuff that Jace doesn’t know about me. Things I’ve done… secrets I know… stuff I would
never
want him to find out. Ever. Starting with the secret that Cassidy just told me and the fact that I’m the kind of person who would keep that big of a secret.
“I like that I know everything about you,” he says, winking at me. “Someday, when we get married, I will already know everything there is to know.”
My heart races at his words, but I force my face
not
to react. “Madeline Hope William. I like it. But you know, when we’re married you will be forced to have sex with me.”
“There will be no force involved.” He turns to me and grins big. “Unless you’re kinky and like being tied up. I had a feeling that you were a deviant.”
I smack Jace’s arm playfully. “Well, I don’t know if I am or not.”
“I’m happy to offer up my services,” he says, then frowns. “So, you were going to tell me who you wrote the song about.”
“I already told you, I’m not going to tell you. You have to guess.”
“Luke Brentwood?”
I shake my head and wrinkle my nose. “Gross, no. I am so not interested in Daisy’s sloppy seconds.”
“That narrows down at least eighty percent of the guys at our school,” Jace says. “I’m not even kidding, every guy on the football team besides Trey, Solomon, and me has hooked up with her. And I
know
you don’t have a crush on Solomon.”
Jace is right. Solomon is a linebacker. He weighs about 350 pounds and only showers once a month. He definitely does
not
hold my affections.
“Well, it’s definitely
not
Solomon or my brother.”
“I seriously have no idea.”
“Did you ask Trey?”
Jace raises an eyebrow at me. “Are you kidding? Trey won’t tell me. It’s like some kind of twin code thing. It’s more serious than even bro code.”
“Bro code?” I laugh. “Well, you are just going to have to figure it out on your own.”
“Somebody that goes to our school and hasn’t slept with Daisy.” He taps his chin with his finger. “I will figure it out.”
I doubt it. Because I don’t think I could be more obvious.
“It’s hard, because the only guys you hang out with are Landry, Mason, Robbie and Luke. And all four of them have slept with Daisy, so I can mark them off the list,” he says. “You know, maybe this guy would know you liked him if you talked to him.”
I grin at his persistence. “I do talk to him. Everyday.”
“Is he in our English class?”
I nod. “He is.”
Jace smiles. “I will figure it out. Tomorrow.”
“Good luck with that.”
My bedroom door cracks open, and Trey sticks his head in. He smiles when he sees Jace sitting on my bed with me.
“I was wondering where the two of you were,” Trey says, then looks at Jace. “You flirting with my sister, man?”
“You know it,” Jace says. “And she’s rejecting me, like she always does.”
Trey snorts. “Dude, I highly doubt she would reject you.”
I narrow my eyes and glare at Trey.
“She’s in love with somebody else,” Jace says.
Trey leans against the wall inside my door and the corner of his mouth turns up into a smirk. “Oh, is she?”
“Yeah, but she won’t tell me who. Do you know who?”
Trey nods. “She’s my sister. Of course I know.”
“Who?” Jace asks. “All I know is he’s in our English class and he hasn’t slept with Daisy.”
“That pretty much narrows it down to like one guy,” Trey says.
I cough. “You know, I am so over having this conversation.”
“Fine. We will stop torturing you,” Trey says. “Since you weren’t here, I made dinner.”
“You cooked?” I ask, not able to believe my ears.
“I made sandwiches. And chips.”
I laugh. “That’s not considered cooking.”
“Whatever. It’s all on the table if you want to come down,” he says.
“I think I will skip dinner tonight,” I tell him. “My stomach isn’t feeling so great.”
“Okay,” Trey says. “I’ll come check on your before bed.”
“Thanks.”
Trey and Jace vacate my room, and I roll onto my side. I’m grateful for the distraction, but now that they’re gone I can only think of one thing — Daisy. I hope she’s okay, because as much as I don’t like that girl, I don’t want her to die.
8pm
Dang lamb curry.
I need the guidance of somebody smarter. Somebody who has the wisdom of a lifetime.
I need to talk to my grandma.
I open my laptop and go to Facebook. She’s online, so I message her.
Me:
How do you know what the right thing to do is?
Margret Grey:
Well, you don’t always. Sometimes in life, you’ve just got to go with your gut and hope for the best. Sometimes it works out great (like marrying your grandpa). Sometimes it doesn’t (like the decision to eat lamb curry last night… I’m still suffering from that one).
Me:
Ew, Grandma. I so didn’t need to know that.
Me:
What if the choice could mean life or death?
Margret Grey:
You’re not pregnant, are you? Because I can’t answer for you — life or death. That’s your decision. But if your mom kicks you out, you can come here. I’ll help you raise the baby.
Me:
I’m definitely NOT pregnant. You have to have sex for that to happen, and I still have my V-Card.
Margret Grey:
Is that neighbor boy still clueless?
Me:
Jace. And yeah, he is. But that’s not what this is about. I need some serious advice here.
Margret Grey:
I say go for it. You’re a good girl. Every good girl needs to do something bad at least once in her life.
Me:
Even if it means somebody else could suffer because of it?
Margret Grey:
Sounds to me like you’ve already made your decision. You just want me to confirm your decision. Go with your gut.
Me:
Thanks.
Margret Grey:
Anytime. Now, I got to get off here… Dang lamb curry…
“Ew,” I say, then shut my laptop.
Okay, it’s settled.
I will give Cassidy until Saturday afternoon. Then I am going to go to the cops.
I just hope it’s the right decision.
Thursday, August 28
English
Kiss him.
“Hey, Mads,” Jace says, taking a seat beside me.
“You’re in class early.” He usually comes in right on time or a little late.
“Well, you told me you talk to this guy every day, and he’s in this class. I don’t want to miss any interaction between you and this mystery guy.”
I roll my eyes. “Why do you have to figure it out anyway? It’s really not that big of a deal.”
“It is to me,” he says. “You’re one of my best friends. I have to look out for you… make sure this guy is a good one.”
“Do you really think that Trey would let this go any further if he wasn’t a good guy?”
Jace shrugs. “I want to judge for myself.”
I sigh.
“Hey, Madi.” I hear a guy behind me. Josh takes a seat in the desk on the other side of me. “How’s it going?”
“Umm… good,” I answer, wondering
why
Josh is talking to me. He hardly ever does.
He leans forward in his seat and angles towards me. “How are you handling the whole… Daisy thing?”
My chest hurts at the mention of her name. “I’m… okay,” I answer, my throat thick. “I’m really worried about her, but I’m sure it’s all just a big misunderstanding. I keep expecting her to just show back up, you know?”
“I know what you mean,” he says, standing up. “If you need anything, just let me know.”
“Thanks.”
He pats my shoulder, then walks to his desk at the front of the room. I turn back around to Jace and he’s frowning at me.
“Josh Stirling? Really?” he asks, wrinkling his nose.
Josh is a nice kid, really. He’s really smart, I don’t think he’s ever made anything below an A in his life, and he’s always been friendly to me. But I’m not attracted to him as anything more than a
friend
.
“It’s not Josh. Not that there would be anything wrong with him if it were,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest.
“Good,” Jace says. “He’s not your type.”
“Oh really? And you know what my type is?” I ask because I’ve never had a boyfriend before. Or a crush. Besides on Jace, but he so does
not
know that, and I’m definitely not going to offer up the information.