Lies in Love (30 page)

“
Love
can cut you to pieces when you lose it or tear you apart when you
find the one. Love is the most unfair emotion, but we need to love
and be loved to live a full life. And when you finally find that one
that I know is out there for you, you’ll have to fight with
every breath to hold onto her forever.”

He’d
forgotten all about that conversation until this moment, but he could
still remember every word like she was saying the words to him now.
It was suddenly very clear that he knew what true love felt like. He
knew with every fiber of his being he loved Talia for better or
worse, and he would do everything in his power to fight for her until
his dying breath. She’d irrevocably changed his life without
even knowing it. She was it for him.

As
tears threatened to spill over, he blurted out, “I love you.”

Talia
looked at him with amazement written across her face, unspeaking.
Landon froze expectantly, praying she would say something. He’d
just put it all on the line and her response was silence. He was
about to take it all back when she crashed into him and began kissing
him under the old oak tree. Her hands fisted in his hair as she
pressed into him and they sank to its base. Landon continued to kiss
her as he laid her in the plush green grass and fell into her deeper,
his tongue teasing hers and stroking across the roof of her mouth. He
felt her hands begin to roam across his back, tugging at the hem of
his shirt, then reaching beneath, placing her frosty hands against
his skin. The chill sent his blood racing, forcing his arousal into
overdrive and he longed to get inside her.

Still
clothed, his hips moved against her abdomen as he continued to kiss
her, swiftly placing the kisses on her cheek and down her neck. She
was panting as he worked his way across her jawline. He couldn’t
wait any longer, using one hand to pull her pants from her legs, then
unfastening his own to free himself. She continued to pant as she
watched him reach in his pocket. “Damn.”

“What’s
wrong?” Talia leaned close to him, her face etched with worry.

“No
condom.” He tried to calm himself down, realizing their
unexpected interlude was coming to an end.

“It’s
okay.”

Landon’s
eyes shot open. That wasn’t what he expected to hear.

“I’m
on birth control, so we’re safe.”

Landon
was full of mixed emotions. He’d never been with a woman
without a condom. “Are you sure?”

She
nodded.

He
was hesitant, recalling his past, but he couldn’t lost this
moment. He leaned back over her, kissing her, and feeling all the
love inside of him poured out with that kiss. When his jeans were out
of the way, he thrust into her, truly feeling her for the first time.
She was so wet and tight around him, drawing at his hardened flesh.
With no barrier between them, he knew he wouldn’t last long, so
he tried to slow things down, moving gradually in and out. She was
moaning, moving beneath him, quickening his stride.

“That
feels so good.” Her breaths were uneven as she arched her back
to him.

He
wrapped his arm around the small of her back and pushed deeper into
her, gradually increasing his speed with the rhythm of her breaths.
He could tell she was almost there as he tried to hold out for her
orgasm. When she cried out his name, he thrust one final time and
felt his release like never before. When their bodies ceased their
trembling, he fell beside her, waiting for their ragged breaths to
subside. Before their breathing had fully returned to normal, the
sound of a car crunching up the gravel driveway could be heard in the
distance.

“Who
is that?”

“Let’s
not wait to find out.” Landon pulled Talia to her feet, both of
them quickly redressing before they went racing from the backyard to
the main entrance, running hand in hand. When they reached the front
gate, Landon found the trigger to open it, pressing it and waiting
impatiently as it slowly swung ajar. Talia stood beside him giggling,
and as anxious as he felt, he couldn’t help but smile at her.
He looked over his shoulder one last time as they slipped out and
hurried to his bike. He pushed the bike to the edge of the road
before they hopped on to ride away. When Talia’s hands were
pressed against his abdomen he placed one of his own over them and
her head fell against his shoulder. That double-edged sword his
mother had warned him about so long ago was now cutting his heart to
pieces, each one belonging to Talia, each one screaming that he was
hers for better or worse. There was no life without her now. He would
be ruined if she ever walked away. He focused on the fact that she
was here with him now, and that would have to be enough.

Talia
dropped her keys on the dresser and slipped her shoes from her feet
before falling onto the bed. Landon had offered to lock up and she
was thankful for the few precious moments of silent reflection. He’d
told her he loved her. It was the last thing she expected to hear,
even after all the revelations about his family. Words that were
meant to be a reassurance to her felt more like a menace. She’d
heard those words too many times from Mason and look how that turned
out. She didn’t want to be hurt again, but deep down, she felt
like those words meant something completely different with Landon.
Ridden with bewildering feelings, Talia threw her arm over her eyes
and focused on just breathing.

She
felt Landon sit on the bed and lean over her, resting his hand on her
stomach. “You okay?”

She pulled her arm from her
eyes to look up at him. “Yeah.” She smiled faintly,
seeing the love that he felt for her, trying to recall a time when
Mason had looked at her that way, but failing.

“Thank you for today.
I wouldn’t have gotten through that without you, but I needed
it. I needed to find my mother again. It’s been too long since
I really thought about her, about what she would think of me.”

“She would be proud of
you, of the man you’ve become.” Talia could sense
uncertainty in him.

“I don’t think
so. I think she’d want nothing to do with me if she were still
alive.”

“Why would you say
that?”

Landon shook his head. “I
meant what I said earlier.”

Talia was shocked by the
sudden change of subject. “I know.”

“I get you’re
not ready to say it, but I wanted you to know.”

Talia placed her hand on his
cheek. “Thank you.”

He leaned over and kissed
her forehead before he stood. “I think I’m going to stay
at my apartment tonight. I don’t want to push.”

“You’re not
pushing.” She sat up and scooted closer to him, anxious to ease
the worry lines forming on his brow.

“Still, we could both
use the rest.”

Realizing she couldn’t
convince him to stay, she stood up next to him. “Are we okay?”

“Yeah.” He
smiled before he kissed her forehead again. “I’ll see you
in the morning. Night, Petal.”

When he slipped out of the
room, Talia sat back on the bed, watching the doorway until she heard
the sound of her apartment door closing. When Landon’s
motorcycle fired up, she fell back on the bed, staring at the
ceiling. She couldn’t figure out what had changed during the
drive back from Landon’s childhood home, but he’d grown
more sullen. She knew that rest wasn’t going to come easy after
the way he left, but she decided she’d get ready for bed anyway
and hope sleep would eventually come.

The night had been uneasy.
Talia had gotten less than four hours of sleep and woke before the
sun. She was going to need a lot of coffee to make it through this
day. She just hoped Landon wasn’t still in his perplexing mood
when he showed up for work. At a quarter after seven, Reina arrived
with a determined look on her face.

“Morning, mami.”

“That it is.”
Talia poured herself another cup of coffee as she moved about the
shop preparing for the day.

“Carnala, can I talk
to you for a minute?”

She should have known Reina
had something on her mind, coming into work this early. “Sure,
what’s up?”

“I’m just
worried about you.”

“Why?”

“You’ve been so
preoccupied with Landon and I’m worried you’re getting in
over your head.”

Talia rolled her eyes,
“Seriously?”

“It wasn’t that
long ago you were head over heels for Mason and now Landon swoops in
and you’re loco for him? I’m just worried you’re
moving too far too fast.”

“Honestly, Reina, this
really isn’t any of your concern. My personal life is my
business.” Talia was through with the conversation. She marched
to the counter to get the computer ready for the day.

“But what do you know
about him? Do you know where he lives or where he sleeps at night? Do
you even know if he’s sleeping alone?”

Talia slammed her fist on
the counter. “No, I don’t know where his apartment is,
but I know where he sleeps at night, because he sleeps with me.”
Which had been true every night until last night. That didn’t
mean for once second that she believed he had left her to be with
another woman.

“Dios mio. Are you
insane?”

“What is the big deal?
Camey finds a guy at the club and takes him home hours after they
meet and you don’t bat an eye, but I sleep with the only man
I’ve had a relationship with in months and I’m a whore?”

“That’s not what
I meant.”

“Look, Reina, I’m
really not sure what your issue is with Landon, but it’s about
time you got over it, because he’s not going anywhere anytime
soon.”

Talia was on her way to the
backroom when Landon walked in. She took one look at him and stopped
in her tracks. As he entered, his face looked a little crestfallen,
but he smiled diffidently when he saw her. She was conflicted with
how to approach him. She didn’t know where things stood after
the way he left last night. She was relieved when he walked over to
her and kissed her cheek.

“Good morning, Petal.”
His voice came soft and deep.

“Morning.” She
looked up at him through her lashes, hearing Reina groan in
disapproval behind her.

“What’s that
about?” He looked over Talia’s shoulder.

“Nothing.” Her
face fell thinking about the way he left.

“Hey.” He pulled
her chin up, forcing her to look at him. “What’s wrong?”

“Is everything okay,”
she fidgeted and added, “With us, I mean?”

Landon’s hand fell
from her chin and he hugged her tightly. “Of course.” He
let her go and looked deep in her eyes as he continued, “I just
had a lot on my mind after visiting the house last night. I needed
some time alone to reflect on my last days with my mom.”

Talia nodded, trying to
force down the thoughts of doubt that were creeping in.
Damn
Mason for making me feel like I will never be good enough.
When
the back door opened and her sister and Camey came buzzing in, Talia
turned her head to business. “We have a morning delivery to the
nursing home. The bouquet is on the table in the cooler.”
Landon kissed her forehead before he walked away. She stood watching
him go, realizing it would take her some time to truly trust in love
again.

Talia had struggled most of
the day with the last twenty-four hours. One minute Landon was
telling her he loved her and the next he was running away. The fear
of those three little words was drowning her. They echoed in her mind
all day amongst the ominous stares from Reina and the brief
encounters with Landon as he came in and out of the shop for
deliveries. She wasn’t even sure if she’d spoken two
words to Camey and Sara since they arrived for work this morning.
They’d been buzzing around the shop filling orders and she was
stumbling around like a zombie just going through the motions. Before
long, the workday would be over and Talia would be left alone with
Landon again, the words she needed to say still escaping her. She
wasn’t ready to say she loved him. Those words were used too
frivolously. Mason had said those three words to her many times and
they were meaningless. Talia knew deep down it wasn’t the same
with Landon, but the words still invoked a sense of fear in her that
she wasn’t ready to face.