The Truth in Lies (The Truth in Lies Saga) (4 page)

“Like what you see?” Drew asked.  Confidence, border-lining arrogance exuded from him.

“I beg your pardon?” 

Drew sat down on a barstool stationed at the center island.  He crossed his arms over his chest, his eyebrow quirked, and a coy smirk flitted across his lips. 

“I was just curious if you like what you see?  I mean you were staring at the beach, and you can’t keep your eyes off of me now.”

“Arrogant much?” I shot back.

Drew threw his head back in laughter.  “You know, you’re cute when you blush.”  I touched my cheeks, hating the fact that he could see my utter humiliation.  “I’m only teasing you,” he proceeded.  “So, you’re a runner?”

“I pretend to be.”

“It shows.  You have great legs.”  He nodded toward me, his eyes traveling over my body once more. 

My eyes dropped to the floor, catching a glimpse of my legs.  It was socially unacceptable to attend a dinner at Olivia’s house and not be dressed appropriately.  In preparation for the event, I wore a pink sweater dress and tan ballet slippers.

I felt conscious of myself, having Drew evaluate my appearance in such a way.  Had he told me I was ugly, I would’ve believed him.  Nate never paid me a compliment, and if he did, it was because I begged for it.  Yet, he always found it easy to find the wrongs in me.  Funny how much easier it is to believe the bad over the good.  

“So, um, what’s for dinner?” I asked. 

“Steamed salmon, I think.”  A blatant snarl wrinkled his nose.

“I take it you don’t like seafood?”

“Not really.  Tastes too fishy to me,” he noted.

“It is fish.  It’s supposed to taste fishy.”

“I guess you’re right.”  He shrugged and patted the seat beside him.  “I’m beginning to feel guilty sitting here when you’re standing.  I promise I won’t bite…yet.”  His eyes danced playfully, watching my reaction.

Thankful he couldn’t see how my stomach clinched at the thought of his teeth on me, I sat down next to him.  “Better?” I asked.

“Much.” 

My poor heart couldn’t take much more.  I felt like I had been running for hours thanks to the rapid pace of my heartbeat. 

“Who’s Jared?” Drew asked.

His intense stare had me squirming in my seat.  “Jared,” I began, “is a work colleague and a dear friend.” 

“Ah. I see, and what about your boyfriend?”

“Nate?”  I tilted my head, glancing in Drew’s direction.  Suddenly, I felt like I was on the witness stand.  Should I have pledged to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

He nodded once, lifting his eyebrows as he continued to study my demeanor.

“C’mon,” I whined.  “You can’t tell me that Liv hasn’t told you every detail about my life.”

Drew’s lips quirked into a lopsided grin.  “Okay, you’ve got me there, but I tend to want the facts, not hearsay.”

“I, ah, well, ah…”

“Pay up, little brother,” a loud booming voice interrupted me.

Drew and I looked up toward the source of the voice.   Standing in front of us was a shorter, scrawnier version of Drew.  His sandy brown hair was cut similar to Drew’s
, but instead of being soft and free, he slathered it in styling product that flattened it against his scalp and forehead.  Gavin’s eyes were a darker shade of blue than Drew’s, outlined with a hint of green. 

Following close behind him was Dr. Morgan Carter.  Her long, red hair flowed down her back in soft curls.  She looked beautiful in her green silk blouse and black slacks.  I couldn’t recall a time when I had seen her in anything but medical scrubs. 

“Oh, hell no,” Drew bellowed, pushing Gavin’s open hand away.

“A bet is a bet.  Now pay up.”

Olivia followed Morgan into the kitchen.  Rolling her eyes as she passed the men, Olivia groaned in annoyance.  “So juvenile,” she muttered.

“What’s going on?” I hissed to Olivia, nodding toward the two men who were nose to nose, arguing like only siblings can.

“Some stupid bet, as usual,” Morgan answered.

“Hi, Dr. Carter.”  I hoped I didn’t sound as forlorn as I felt by her presence.

“Call me Morgan,” she replied, a sincere smile lighting her lips.  “And that buffoon over there is my fiancé, Gavin.”

“Okay, Morgan.”  Oddly enough, calling her by her first name took some of the resentment away.  She seemed like a real person, instead of the doctor who stole away my dreams.

“What was the bet, anyway?” Olivia asked.

“One of the secretaries in the office got married a few months back.  Apparently, these two knuckle-heads made a bet on how long the marriage would last,” Morgan grumbled.  “It makes me feel so confident knowing that my fiancé is such a cynic.”

“She said they had a fight, Gav.  That doesn’t mean they’re filing for divorce,” Drew argued. 

“How long did you two give them?” I asked in the middle of all the ruckus.

All four people stopped and looked at me.  Olivia and Morgan stared at me like I had just sprouted six heads, Drew’s face lit up with amusement, and Gavin tilted his head, an intrigued smirk crossing his taut cheeks.  “Drew, here, gave them six months.  I gave them three,” Gavin answered.  Morgan groaned louder, her eyelashes fluttered as she rolled her eyes.

“And what were the stakes of this little wager?” My eyebrows raised in curiosity.

Gavin scooted in between Drew and me, draping his arm around my neck.  “It’s always the same stakes,” Gavin informed me.

“Which are?” I again probed.

Drew hopped off his barstool and stood in front of me, blocking my view of Olivia and Morgan.  “It’s simple, my dear.  If he wins, I have to go to New York to see whatever Broadway show our sister is in for that month.  If I win, he has to go.”

“You have a sister?”

Gavin nodded toward Drew.  “We do.  She’s Drew’s twin sister.”

“Interesting.  So, she’s an actress?”

“No.  A dancer with the New York City Ballet Company.”

“Do you dance too?” I asked Drew.

Drew raised his hands, shaking his head vigorously.  “Hell, no.  That’s all Andie.”

“So, Andy and Andie.”  I poked out my lips, bobbing my head in a smug nod.  “Nice.”

Drew’s face scrunched up like he had just eaten something sour.  “Not Andy and Andie.  Drew and Andie.”

“Got it, Andy,” I teased.

“Drew,” he corrected.

“You called me Mickie.  It’s only fair that I get to call you Andy.”

“I like this one.  She’s feisty.”  Gavin squeezed my shoulder.  “Now, what’s for dinner?  I’m starved.”

“Right this way,” Olivia instructed, leading us to the dining room.

The large cherry wood table was spread with the most delectable of treats.  Crystal goblets filled to the brim with white wine, accompanied each china place setting.  Unlit candles stood in perfect precision guarding the steaming food, which was covered by silver domes across the surface.

Olivia sat me at the head of the table, flanked by her and Morgan.

“Dinner looks wonderful,” Morgan complimented Olivia.

“I would hope so,” Olivia stated.  “I paid enough for it.”

I tossed my head back and laughed, receiving a vicious glare from Olivia.  She couldn’t cook to save her life.  She tried once when we were in college and nearly burned our apartment down.  After that, I refused to let her near a stove again.

“Maybe I should’ve gotten you cooking lessons for Christmas,” I teased, passing a tray of asparagus to Morgan.

“You know, I can’t cook either.  I’d die without my housekeeper,” Drew said, taking a sip from his water glass. 

“He’s not kidding about that.”  Gavin pointed his knife toward Drew.  “Without Ruby, he’d starve or live off of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.”

“Hey, now, there’s this wonderful thing that’s been invented called fast food,” Drew deflected.

“Yes,” I said, swallowing a mouthful of fish.  “But man cannot live by junk food alone.”

“True, but he sure as hell can try,” Drew replied with a wink.

The conversation shifted, and split.  Morgan and Olivia were lost in conversation about the impending wedding that was scheduled for June, and Drew and Gavin had embarked on shop talk.  As they talked, I was comforted by the chatter around me.  Everyone had been right
; I needed companionship, and Nate leaving me alone all the time was suffocating me. 

The highlight of the meal was watching the banter between Gavin and Drew.  Several times, I was brought into the middle of it, taking on the role of mediator.  It felt good to have fun.  It had been so long since I laughed that I nearly believed I had forgotten how. 

After dinner, Olivia led us to the living room.  Drew plopped down on the couch, and Olivia curled up into a ball beside him.  Morgan and Gavin snuggled up together on the loveseat, and I sat down in the oversized chair across from the two couples, envying them.  Even if Nate had been with us, I knew we wouldn’t have been cuddled up like these couples were.

“Oh, Morgan, I almost forgot,” Olivia announced.  “I brought home a few swatches for you and Gavin to go over for the wedding.  If you like what you see, I can get the order placed tomorrow.”

Olivia was a party planner for a firm in Venice.  She obtained employment with the company right out of college, and managed to earn the trust of the owner.  Now she was working diligently to gain partnership in the firm.  The Cater/Wise wedding was to be the pinnacle of her career.  With the commission from their wedding, she would have enough money to buy into the company as associate partner.

Morgan’s face lit up, sparkling with the luster of a bride-to-be.  “Oh, that’s wonderful.  Can we see them?”

“Yeah.  They’re back in my office.  Follow me.”

Olivia bounced out of her spot, followed by Morgan.  Morgan looked down expectantly at Gavin.  “Well, come on.”

Gavin grumbled refusing to budge from his seat.  “But I just sat down, woman.  Can’t I let my food settle first?”

Morgan’s exuberant smile faded.  “Please, baby,” she whined a little.  Morgan leaned into Gavin, her eyelashes fluttering.  “I promise to do that thing you like so much tonight if you do,” she attempted to whisper but failed.

In the blink of an eye, Gavin jumped up, and was tailing the women.  Drew snorted in laughter, calling out behind his brother, “Someone’s been pussy-whipped.”

With my feet curled up underneath me, I rested my head on the side of the chair to patiently wait for their return. 

“Olivia tells me you’re a speech pathologist,” Drew said.

“Mhmm.”

“What is it that you do, precisely?”

“I diagnose and treat children with communications disorders, such as autism.”

“How fascinating.”

“And rewarding,” I included. 

Silence fell between us.  I closed my eyes, allowing the bout of stillness to envelope me.  A single tear trickled down my cheek, exposing my heart.

“Are you okay, Mickie?” Drew inquired.

“Hmm?”  I glanced across the room to the lanky man leaning forward.  His elbows rested on his knees and his hands were clasped in front of him.

“I said
are you okay?” he restated.

“Yeah, I’m fine.  Just tired.”  I scrubbed my hands over my face, pushing away the stray tear.

“Are you sure?”

Unsure of how to respond, I shook my head hoping that would be enough of an answer.

“Would you like to talk about it?  I’ve been told I’m a really good listener.”

“No thanks.”

“I respect that,” he stated, “but sometimes it’s easier to talk to someone you don’t know.  Maybe they can give you a perspective you hadn’t considered before.”

“You mean like a shrink?”

“Possibly, or maybe you could talk to a new friend who’s somewhat of an outsider to your situation, but happens to have a little inside knowledge of his own.”

“That’s really sweet of you,” I replied, “but I don’t think you want to hear about me feeling down in the dumps due to my relationship falling apart, because I can’t get over the miscarriage of my child.”

For a moment, Drew looked like someone had slapped him in the face.  He swallowed hard and stood up from his seat, making his way over to me.  “Mickie, trust me when I say, I know exactly how you feel.”

The sincerity in his eyes screamed that he was telling me the truth.  He somehow knew how I felt.

“He’s never home anymore.  And even when he is home, I feel as though I’m living with a shadow or a ghost.  I often think I’d be better off if he wasn’t there at all.”  The words tumbled out of my mouth before I even realized it.  Why I was telling this man my problems, I didn’t know, but I felt safe with him.

Drew knelt down in front of me, taking both my hands in his.

“You feel alone constantly.  You don’t eat, you barely sleep, and when you do, you have horrible nightmares.  Am I right?”

Shocked, I nodded.  “Yes.”

“I thought so.”  He squeezed my hands tighter in his.  “Mickie, I want you to listen to me.  Whether you believe me or not, is up to you, but what I’m about to say is nothing but the truth.  What’s happening between you and Nate isn’t going to get better until you make a hard decision.”