Sweet Liar (Candy #2)(42)

“You’re one of those people,” Drew said.

I reined in my thoughts. “One of what people?”

“The kind that attracts trouble.”

I frowned at that.

“Good thing I like trouble.” He grinned slyly.

I rolled my eyes. “For future reference, saying ‘you’re one of those people’ is almost always offensive unless you’re pointing to a group of Mensa members or fashion models.”

He threw his head back and laughed. “But it got your mind off whatever you were thinking about.”

Reluctantly, I smiled.

“I’m sorry about what happened with your father, Candy. I really am.”

I swallowed, my emotions close to the surface. Maybe Drew wasn’t as insensitive as I thought. “Thanks.”

“So, who’s this friend of yours? The one who’s sick.”

I pulled in a shaky breath. “Theo. He’s my best friend, actually. I know him from Ryberg.”

Drew twisted to face me, resting his arm on the back of the couch, which put his hand near my hair. “Are you sure you want to open all this up again? Drugs made in China, and doctors who secretly work for the government?”

“But if the drug got approved, none of that’s an issue anymore. You can travel anywhere and get treated for anything you want if you can pay for it.”

Drew shrugged. “To be honest, you’re asking a lot of my mother, and she’s already done so much for your family.”

My brows slammed down. “She seemed okay with it.”

“She’s a good person. I’m sure she’s okay with it, but when my father finds out, he might not be so okay. They already took your father. We don’t want them looking at us next.”

His point was valid, even more valid than he knew, but his delivery was blunt and felt purposefully mean.

“I just don’t want you to get your hopes up,” he said, backtracking when he saw my hard expression.

My hopes? They were hardly up at the moment. I sat forward, moving farther away from his hand resting on the couch behind my head.

“Candy, look.” That same hand moved to my forearm. “I’m worried about my family. You can’t blame me for that.”

I looked down at his hand, wondering if I was being too hard on him.

He lightly squeezed my arm. “Now that you know everything, you can talk to me about it whenever you want. We should hang out more. I used to be your best friend, remember?”

I gave him a half smile I wasn’t feeling. Hanging out with Drew wasn’t my priority, and my best friend position was already filled.

His blue eyes focused on mine as he slid closer to me on the couch. “Being all alone in your house must be hard. I can’t believe both your folks are gone now. I can’t imagine how that feels, but I want you to know, I’d be happy to come over if you need some company.”

My smile disappeared. Each time Drew spoke, it felt like he was sticking a knife into me and coating the hole he left behind with sugar.

Jonah’s words of warning about Drew rang in my head, causing my discomfort level to rise. “Thanks,” I said, even though I had no intention of ever needing his company.

Jonah thought Drew might exaggerate his ability to help my father in exchange for getting into my pants, but I didn’t think Drew was smart or devious enough to think of that. He was giving off signals that he wanted in my pants, but he was trying to play on my emotions to accomplish it, making me feel bad and then offering to comfort me. Really, all he was doing was creeping me out.

“So,” he said, pointing toward a stack of DVDs piled beside the television. “Action, adventure, comedy? I’m thinking you could use a comedy tonight.”

I was thinking I wanted to go home. “I’m tired, Drew. I’m gonna go.”

His lips turned down.

“I’ll just thank your mom for dinner before I leave.” I stood up and smoothed down my skirt.

Drew got up too and took me by surprise when he pulled me into a hug. I stood there stiffly, withstanding it. When the hug went on too long, I pulled away and smiled stiffly at him before I said good-night and used all my self-control not to speed walk out of the room.

***





As I drove home from the Hoyts’, I thought of all the things I’d learned about my father since he’d been taken away. So many secrets revealed, and they only reinforced what I instinctively knew about him. He was hard and ruthless, but also selfless and capable of great love and goodness. He was a man worth saving. I just had no idea how to do it.

My heart was heavy as I pulled into the driveway and pressed the button on the visor to open the garage door. Light from inside spilled out onto the thin layer of snow coating the driveway. After pulling inside and closing the garage door, I moved slowly, feeling weighed down as I got out of the car and unlocked the door to go inside.

The nervous energy I had earlier gave way to emptiness. Now what? I asked myself, and the answering silence was frightening.

Turning the lights on as I walked, I went to the coat closet beside the front door, still feeling the chill from outside as I slid my purse down my arm so I could take off my coat.

It was then I realized something and went completely still, except for my heart, which began running a race. I’d set the alarm before I left, but when I came in just now, the warning beep hadn’t sounded.