The Perfect Lie (Hope Falls Universe)(16)

“No. Thankfully, things never got that far. One of my buddies robbed a store and I was the driver. He used a knife, which made it armed robbery, and since I was the driver, I got the same charges.”

“That’s not fair.”

“I knew better.” He didn’t think it was fair for a long time, but he was older now. He was sure as hell smarter than the dumbass in that ’97 Mercury Sable. “My mom had died the week before I did it. I think that’s the reason the judge was lenient and I got the minimum sentence.” He didn’t like talking about it. He knew that the robbery wasn’t in response to grief. It was from him not knowing any better. It was from him thinking he could beat the system. After her death, he’d gotten a small chunk of life insurance, but to him it was more money than he’d ever had before. And after getting out of prison with no skills and a record, that money was probably the only thing that kept him from being in the high percentage of inmates who ended up right back in prison.

“After a few years of taking odd jobs here and there, I ended up here and I never left.”

“It’s so nice here.” Steph looked over her shoulder to study him. “Do you think you’ll ever leave?”

“I haven’t thought much about it. I’ve been living day-to-day for so long. Hard habit to break.”

She rolled over so she faced him. “It’s strange how we have so little in common, but you’re kind of the same as me.”

He had his doubts about that, but didn’t say anything. He ran his fingers over her shoulder and savored the feel of her. “What about you? Are you going to live in Chicago forever?”

“I don’t know. My parents are… I can’t even tell you how crazy they are right now. They haven’t really liked each other for years and now it’s all-out war and they’re impossible. It’s like two children. Two annoying children.”

“And do you want kids?” Her eyes widened and he cursed himself for asking the question. It was hardly the kind of thing he normally asked a woman right after sleeping with them, let alone the first day they were dating. But once again, Steph tended to make him forget things like how to be normal. “You don’t have to—”

“No. It’s a fair question,” she said hesitantly. “I, um, I do want kids. I want them really bad, actually.”

All of the sudden, a tear escaped the corner of her eye and he brushed it away. “Hey, it’s okay,” he said. “We don’t have to talk about it.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, as though willing the tears to stop. “This is so stupid. I guess I never talk about this. I’m just so…unhappy. How can I think about starting a family when I don’t even know how to take care of myself? And it’s not like I’ve had a good example. Which is why I left Chicago. I needed to get out.”

“Well, you found Hope Falls,” he said.

She looked through her lashes at him and he held his breath. Was that him asking her to stay? They’d only known each other for a few days, but if she at that moment said she was going to move here to be with him, he would’ve thought it was a completely sane, rational decision.

But before she could say anything, there was a knock on the door. “Food,” she mumbled as she reached for her dress and pulled it over her head and ran her fingers through her hair. “You stay there,” she said as he started to reach for his pants. “I’ll be right back.” She ran out of the room and he sat back on the bed.

Chinese food in bed and sex. This might be the best date ever.

Except thoughts of a relaxing evening were dashed when he heard her sharp gasp from the hall. “AJ?”





Chapter Six



“AJ?” Steph stared in shock at her brother in the doorway of her perfect little bed-and-breakfast getaway and tried to figure out whether she was hallucinating. Were hallucinations a side effect of really good sex?

But AJ proved that he was, in fact real, when he pushed past her and into the cabin. “I’ll invite myself in,” he muttered under his breath.

Her mouth fell open but no words came out. She was torn between apologizing for not being a more pleasant hostess and yelling at him for just showing up at her doorstep. But he was annoyed enough to keep talking before she needed to figure out how to respond.

“I’ve been calling you for days, Steph. You can’t just run off without a word when I’m dodging bombs at home.” He strode to the living area and collapsed on the couch, the exhaustion obvious on his face. She really didn’t want to know what he’d been dealing with at home. That was why she left.

“I have been texting,” she said weakly.

AJ’s head fell back and he rubbed at his temple. Right then, Josh appeared from the bedroom, wearing only a pair of jeans because this situation needed to get even worse.

There was a long silence as each man stared the other down. Even though Josh was standing and his formidable chest was in full view, AJ didn’t seem the least bit intimidated. After a few seconds, his gaze bounced to Steph. “You little whore.”

A look of rage crossed Josh’s face and he started for the couch, but Steph ran between the two men and held out a hand to Josh. “Don’t,” she warned. “He means it as a compliment. AJ is always trying to get me laid.”