Lies I Told(19)

“Everyone’s chill compared to Rachel,” Harper murmured.

Olivia cut Harper a sharp glance before turning her eyes back to me. “Rachel’s just . . . high-strung, you know? She likes to party, likes to go to bonfires in Malibu with people none of us know, sneak into clubs in Hollywood. Crazy stuff like that.”

“And that’s not Logan’s scene?” I asked, watching him feign interest in the blonde across the beach.

Olivia laughed. “You could say that.”

I held her gaze without saying anything. Parker had taught me the tactic. It was instinctual for most people to fill silence with words. Silence made people uncomfortable. Made them feel obligated to say something. If you were patient, if you let the silence sit, most people would blab about anything and everything to make it stop.

“Logan’s just laid-back,” Olivia said. “It didn’t work between him and Rachel. Every weekend, she wanted to find the party, and Logan just wanted to come down to the Cove and play his guitar or hang out at Mike’s with the guys.”

“Mike’s?”

“It’s a burger place in the Town Center. We hang there when there’s nothing else to do,” Olivia explained.

“And when Rachel isn’t dragging us all over LA,” Harper added, her voice thick with sarcasm and something I could have sworn was resentment.

“So . . . I take it Logan’s off-limits?” I had no intention of leaving Logan alone. I just wanted to know what kind of territory I was wading into. “Because of the history with Rachel?”

Olivia thought about it. “I wouldn’t say that. They’re still friends, and the breakup was basically mutual.”

“Besides, Rachel dated Liam after she and Logan broke up,” Harper volunteered. “Kind of hard for her to pull the friend card when she went out with one of Logan’s best friends less than a month after they split.”

“Yeah, but I wouldn’t want to piss her off . . . ,” I hedged, waiting for the advice I knew would come.

Olivia laughed. “Playa Hermosa’s not that big. If you make a point not to date anyone who’s dated any of your friends, you’re going to be single a loooong time.”

I nodded slowly, not wanting to seem too eager. “I guess . . .”

“You could talk to her about it,” Olivia suggested.

“I don’t really know her that well,” I said. “What would I say?”


“Just . . . you know, tell her you’re interested in Logan—if you are, I mean—and ask her if she has a problem with it.” Olivia nodded, like she was agreeing with herself. “Rachel likes it when people ask her permission for things.”

Harper snorted, and Olivia gave her a dirty look.

Hell would freeze over before I would legit ask Rachel’s permission for anything, but I could play the game.

I smiled. “Thanks, you guys. You’re awesome.”

Olivia stood up and performed a mock bow. “I live to serve. Anyone want another beer?”

We declined, and Olivia headed for the cooler. She was just out of earshot when Harper spoke.

“Be careful with Rachel. Seriously.”

I looked over at her. “With Logan?”

“With everything. Rachel’s smarter than she looks.”

“What makes you say that?” My instincts were on full alert. Maybe it was the beer. Maybe it was the conspiratorial girl talk. But something had Harper feeling chatty.

She leaned closer. “Let’s just say Rachel has a nose for anything . . . off.”

My heart beat a little bit faster, the way it always did when I was onto something. An idea or some piece of information that would help with the con. “Off?”

Harper nodded. “If you go after Logan, even on the sly, she’ll find out. She has a lot of experience that way.”

“What kind of experience?”

Harper drained the last of the beer in one swallow. I couldn’t remember if it was her second or her third.

“Rachel’s dad has a way with Playa Hermosa’s housewives. Rachel’s gotten good at sniffing him out over the years, and it’s made her good at sniffing out everything else, too.” Harper’s voice turned distant. “Even stuff that’s none of her business.”

I kept my face impassive. No way had I planned to get anything like this. Not so soon, anyway. It was an unexpected bonus. But also an unexpected concern.

I knew what it meant to be surrounded by liars. To be one. It meant that your instincts were honed to see deceit in others. That you believed everyone was riddled with dishonesty. That you were trained to look for all the little tics people performed—most of them involuntary—when they weren’t telling the truth.

Basically, it meant that you had a nose for liars.

Which made Rachel a potentially serious problem.





Fifteen


A few minutes after Harper’s revelation, she rose from her chair and headed toward the cooler. I hoped she wasn’t getting another beer. Judging from her unsteady gait across the sand, it was the last thing she needed.

I scanned the party scene, trying to gauge the timing. Rachel was still deep in conversation with Parker. Logan was smiling politely at the little blonde. Everyone else was occupied with their own agenda: drinking, scamming, smoking, or looking for a hookup. It was as good a time as any. I’d made progress with Harper and Olivia.