The Lies We Tell Ourselves (A Southern Heroes Novel Book 3)

by Michelle Heard

  He follows me silently to my room, and I give him a don’t-even-try-to-come-in look before opening the door.

  “What the hell?” I snap when he moves closer to the door, and before thinking things through, I place my hand against his chest and try to shove him back.

  Alec calmly wraps his fingers around my wrist and without using force like Clay would’ve done, he pulls my hand away from his chest.

  My eyes flick to where he’s touching me, then quickly snap back to his face when he takes a step closer, putting him in my personal space.

  “It’s not my job to listen to you but to protect you. I was reasonable when it came to your mother’s room, but that’s where I draw the line.”

  My mouth drops open, and instead of telling him to go to hell, I gape like a fish. Feeling flustered, I pull my wrist free and rush into the room.

  I grab what I need for a shower then make sure to slam the bathroom door behind me. I drop my clean clothes on the counter and sit down on the side of the bathtub, wondering what I’m going to do.

  The little balance I had in my life has just been shot to pieces. I felt suffocated before, but with someone watching my every move, it feels like I’m imprisoned. Getting away from Clay has just become a priority on my to-do list.

  CHAPTER 5

  “I have to turn a blind eye to what’s happening.”

  ALEC

  “Dude, now you’ve gone and pissed her off,” Wyatt laughs in my ear, and I’m tempted to remove the earpiece. I’ve only worked with him for two months, but I quickly learned Wyatt’s a joker. The guy doesn’t take anything seriously.

  “I don’t need you yappin’ in my ear,” I whisper.

  “Wait until I grow on you,” he chuckles, and I hear him take a bite of something crunchy then he mumbles around a mouthful, “You’ll miss my voice once the operation is over.”

  “Are you eatin’?”

  “Mm-hmm.”

  “Unbelievable,” I grumble then remove the earpiece and drop it in the breast pocket of the jacket.

  I roll my shoulders, enjoying a moment of silence before I have to listen to Wyatt again. Glancing around the room, I have to admit it’s not what I expected. Teddy bears are in a neat row against the lilac pillows. The mirror of the dressing table is covered in photos and walking closer I see they’re all from when Reece was in school.

  The room looks like a teenager lives in it and not a woman who’s engaged to a drug trafficker. I can’t picture Roberts’ sleeping in this room.

  I glance at the closed bathroom door then decide to take a seat on the chair by the dressing table. I pick up a perfume bottle and sniff at it. It has a soft fresh scent which suits Reece.

  I was surprised when I met her. She’s prettier in real life. Her ginger hair makes the blue of her eyes stand out, and her pale complexion makes her look delicate. I wonder how she got involved with a guy like Roberts.

  “No common sense, I guess,” I mumble as I take the earpiece from my pocket and position it back in my ear.

  “All by myself. I don’t wanna be all by myself…” Wyatt’s singing at the top of his lungs, and it almost makes me smile.

  “Didn’t your mamma ever tell you, you can’t sing to save your life?”

  “You’re back! Where did you go?”

  “If you eat, burp, sing, or even breathe too loudly I’m cuttin’ you off,” I warn him.

  He lets out a heavy sigh, then mumbles, “Now you sound like Aiden.”

  I check my watch and notice Reece has been in the bathroom for over thirty minutes. Is she one of those women who takes an hour to bathe?

  Damn, at this rate it’s going to take me forever to get the evidence we can use to put them all behind bars.

  When Reece finally steps out of the bathroom, I can’t keep myself from staring. She’s dressed in a comfortable pair of leggings and a loose hanging t-shirt. Barefoot with no make-up and her hair up in a ponytail, she almost looks innocent.

  She stares back at me, then her mouth tilts up at the corner as if she’s amused.

  “When I saw you for the first time earlier, I didn’t take you for a sheepdog,” she suddenly says.

  I raise an eyebrow as I rise to my feet. “Sheepdog?”

  “Will the dog follow every order the master gives?”

  Don’t take the bait, Alec.

  “The night guard will take over now. Have a good night, Ma’am,” I say indifferently, showing her I don’t care what she thinks.

  This is just a job, one that will hopefully be over soon.

  I’ve left Reece in her room a couple of hours ago but deciding to check on her one last time before I call it a night, I take the stairs to her floor.

  Careful not to make a sound, I push the door open and peek inside. The bedside light is on, and when my eyes sweep over the empty bed, I quickly walk inside. I check her bathroom and seeing she’s not here, I rush out of the room.

  “Shit, why doesn’t the woman sleep like other normal people?”

  I check Mrs. Nicolson’s room, then walk to the security room to check with the night guard.

  Walking inside the room, I see the guard fast asleep and search the monitors until I see her standing outside in the garden.

  I let out a breath of relief and quickly make my way outside and silently walk closer until I come to a stop beside her. I turn my head to her, ready to give her a scolding, but instead swallow the words.

  Reece’s face is turned up to the sky. Following her line of sight, I watch the stars for a couple of minutes before bringing my eyes back to her face. She’s really a beautiful woman. It’s actually a pity she’s involved with drug trafficking.

  “You’re starin’,” she whispers.

  My mouth twitches at the corner, and I almost smile. Turning my gaze away from her, I check our surroundings.

  We stand in silence for a couple of minutes before Reece turns to face me. “You’re actually not bad company when you don’t say a word.”

  This time I can’t keep myself from smiling. I nod then gesture with my arm for her to walk toward the house. We both turn at the same time, and the backs of our hands accidentally touch. For a second, we both freeze from the unexpected contact before Reece yanks her hand away and wraps her arms around her waist. She gives me an uncomfortable glance, then walks toward the door.

  Staring after her, I have to admit I’m a little confused when it comes to Reece Nicolson. The facts I have on her aren’t adding up with the person I’m getting to know.

  Being in a foreign bed keeps me from falling asleep, and at four in the morning, I decide to get up and take a look around the house.

  I get dressed in the damn suit and hook the sunglasses on the top button of the dress shirt. Even though Wyatt is still sleeping, I put in the earpiece, so I don’t have to worry about it later.

  As I open the door to leave my room, I’m surprised to see Reece as she walks by. Startled she stops and stares at me, and I watch as she pales before a frown settles on her face.

  “What are you doing here so early?” she asks.

  Stepping out of the room, I pull the door shut behind me, then answer her, “Mornin’ Miss Nicolson. I’m just about to do my rounds before checkin’ your schedule for the day.”

  Anger flashes in her eyes, and there’s no sign of the woman I stood outside with last night.

  She takes a deep breath before asking, “You stay in the house?”

  “Yes.”

  Reece holds eye contact with me as she raises her chin.

  “It’s unacceptable.” Her voice is tight with tension, and again I wonder what’s really going on in this house. Roberts and Reece don’t come across as a loving couple about to say their vows.

  “You can discuss the issue with Mr. Roberts,” I reply to end the conversation. “It will take thirty minutes to do my rounds then we can meet so I can get acquainted with your daily routine.”

  “This is a joke,” she mumbles and shaking her head, she glares at me one
last time before going to see her mother.

  “You can say that again,” I whisper, then walk from room to room hoping to find anything that will help the case.

  I’m fresh out of luck and didn’t even see anything out of place in Robert’s office. I’m either going to have to get Reece to open up to me and spill all their secrets, or somehow get Roberts to talk. This is going to be so much harder than I thought.

  After breakfast, I follow Reece to Roberts’ office. I silently stand slightly behind her, so I’m able to see Roberts.

  “Why is he stayin’ in the house? Next to my mom’s room? Have you lost your mind?” Reece launches right into an attack.

  Roberts’ eyes snap up from his phone, and his mouth pulls down with anger. Getting up from his seat, he stalks toward Reece.

  He grabs hold of her arm and yanks her closer before moving his hand to the back of her neck. I clench my jaw when I see the force he’s using on her.

  “Your mother lies helpless in a goddamn bed. You should be thankin’ me for making sure she’s safe,” he hisses. “Stop fightin’ me, Reece. Everythin’ I do is for your own good.”

  “Nothin’ you do is for me,” Reece sneers with anger, making her tremble.

  “I’m workin’ my ass off for you,” Roberts barks.

  I’m surprised when Reece lets out a burst of laughter. “You call what you do workin’?”

  She takes hold of Roberts’ wrist and tries to pull his hand away from her neck. Instead of letting go of Reece, Roberts uses his left hand to take hold of her jaw, his fingers digging into her skin.

  “Don’t push me, Reece,” he warns, his features tight with anger.

  Roberts’ eyes dart to me, and I quickly glance away. Turning my head to the side, I force myself to look away even though I want to punch Roberts for manhandling a woman. For the sake of the operation, I have to turn a blind eye to what’s happening no matter how much it sucks.

  CHAPTER 6

  “I’ve made the bed

  and now have to sleep in it.”

  REECE

  After the fight with Clay, I manage to escape to the gym I have set up in the basement.

  Running on the treadmill doesn’t help to ease my anger, so I strap on boxing gloves and begin hitting a bag. I’ve been working out for twenty minutes when Alec shows up. Scowling at him, I continue to throw punches, alternating between envisioning Clay and Alec’s faces.

  Alec goes to stand behind the bag and holds it in place, and it’s actually perfect because now I don’t have to picture his face with it being right in front of me.

  I keep throwing punches until my arms are shaking but still feel frustrated when I have to stop to catch my breath.

  “Can I ask a question?” Alec asks as I drink some water.

  “What?” I snap then focus on getting my breathing back to normal.

  “Why are you engaged to Mr. Roberts?”

  I didn’t expect him to ask something like that and wonder how I should answer the question.

  Deciding I have nothing to hide, I answer honestly. “It’s like a business deal.”

  Alec pins me with his eyes, then asks, “What kind of business deal requires marriage?”

  Wondering where Alec is going with these questions, I stare back at him. Maybe Clay has caught on that I’m planning to leave his ass, and he asked Alec to find out?

  Keeping it in mind, I say the same thing I’ve been telling everyone else. “Clay’s my best friend. He was there for me when my parents’ plane crashed. With my mother’s condition, it’s hard, and Clay helps a lot. I can’t do this by myself.”

  All lies.

  A frown forms on Alec’s forehead, and I get the feeling he doesn’t believe a word I just said.

  “What does Mr. Roberts get out of the deal?”

  Knowing I can’t hide behind the lie of Clay loving me after Alec saw our fight, I answer, “Clay provides emotional support, and I provide financial support.”

  “Mr. Roberts must be doing well being able to afford a house like this,” Alec comments.

  In the beginning, it angered me that I couldn’t throw Clay out of the house. He used my money to set up his drug business and said if he goes down he’ll take me with him. If it were just me, I’d take the chance and go to Wyatt with everything I have on Clay, but I can’t risk my mom getting caught in the crossfire.

  At times I wish Wyatt or Aiden would bust Clay. I know they’ve been looking into him because Wyatt tried to get me to talk. But at the same time, knowing the cops are onto Clay makes me nervous as hell. It’s the reason why I need to get Mom to a safe place. I might just have to place her in a nursing home, but my heart breaks just thinking about it.

  “Miss Nicolson?” Alec pulls me out of my deep thoughts, and I remember he asked a question.

  “This is my family home. It belongs to my mother.”

  For the first time Alec looks a little confused, then he asks, “Why do you allow Mr. Roberts to treat you like that?”

  I know what he means by that, and it instantly angers me.

  “Why do you care? You’re just like him.” I turn to walk away but stop and let out a burst of laughter. “Actually, you’re worse than him. Clay’s a narcissist, but you’ll do anythin’ he tells you for a paycheck.” I glance over my shoulder at Alec and smile. “Keep in mind your paycheck is being paid with my money.”

  Feeling that I won this round, I leave Alec in the gym to go shower.

  It’s only once I’m dressed for the day the thought pops into my mind.

  Maybe I can win Alec over to my side? If I offer him enough money, will he help me?

  I get the flashcards up on the wall and then go to sit next to Mom.

  “Today we’ll do food,” I say, and smiling at her, I start with the first word, “F-oo-d.” I slowly say the word three times then wait for Mom to try to say it.

  As soon as she starts I form the letters clearly with my mouth to let her see the movement she needs to copy.

  “F-ou-t,” Mom spells it out, and I clap my hands excitedly because it’s the closest she’s gotten to pronouncing it right.

  “That’s so good! See, you’re getting there. Let’s try again.” Mom watches my mouth with intense concentration as I spell out, “F-oo-d.”

  “F-ooo-dd,” she forces the word out, and I jump up throwing my arms in the air.

  “You did it!” Grabbing her hands, I dance on the spot.

  Emotion washes over Mom’s face and her eyes fill with tears as she gives me a lopsided smile.

  I lean over her and hug her tight before gently framing her face with my hands. “I’m so proud of you, Mom.”

  A tear escapes her eye, and I quickly wipe it away. “Soon you’ll be talkin’ my ear off.”

  A bubble of laughter ripples over her lips.

  I sit back down and bring the next flash card up.

  “Are you ready for the next word?” I ask, grinning like a proud momma.

  Mom nods, and I start to spell out bread for her.

  After the exercise, Mom’s exhausted, and she falls asleep before I even get to put on her favorite instrumental music. Not wanting her to wake up and lie in bed with nothing to watch, I get a video ready for her then press pause. I place the remote by her hand so she can push play when she wakes.

  Before I leave the room, I stare down at Mom with a hopeful heart that she’ll one day be able to talk again. More than anything, I would love to have a conversation with my mom.

  Taking a chance, I walk out of the house with Alec right behind me. Today will either be a win for me, or a win for Clay, depending on whether Alec will report everything I do.

  I’ve made an appointment with an estate agent to show me a couple of houses. Hopefully, Alec will just tag along and not ask any questions, but if he does, I have an answer ready for him.

  I walk to the driver’s side of my car but get stopped by Alec as he takes hold of my arm. I feel the same spark I did the night before when our hands accidenta
lly brushed, and my eyes instantly fly to his face.

  “I’ll drive, ma’am,” he says, his deep voice affecting my baffled senses even more.

  Like an idiot, I nod, but at least I manage to pull my arm free without making an ass of myself. I quickly walk around the car and climb into the passenger side before Alec can think to open the door for me.

  What the hell is it about this man that makes me feel so bothered just being around him?

  I put the address to the estate agent in the GPS, then stare out the window and try to ignore the overwhelming presence of the man next to me.

  When we’ve stopped in front of the offices, I’m still gathering my bag when Alec gets out and rounds the car. He opens the door for me, and as I step out, my eyes are once again drawn to his face.

  Ugh, this is so annoying.

  Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I walk inside the office and smile at the agent.

  “Mr. Jardim, thank you for meetin’ with me on such short notice,” I greet him.

  The man looks like he could be in his late thirties, and has a broad smile.

  “Miss Nicolson, it’s my pleasure. If you’re ready, we can get going?”

  I nod, then ask, “Should I follow in my car?”

  “We can drive together in mine,” he offers.

  Before I can answer, Alec butts into the conversation. “We’ll follow behind.”

  Not wanting to make a scene in front of Mr. Jardim, I bite my tongue until we’re in the safety of my car.

  “Don’t make decisions on my behalf and never interrupt a conversation I’m havin’ with someone else,” I scold him.

  Alec starts the car and first pulls out of the parking area. When he’s following a safe distance behind Mr. Jardim’s BMW, he says, “Your safety comes first.”

  I glare at his profile, only to be struck by how attractive he looks with his sunglasses on. He glances my way and catches me staring, which has me digging in my bag for my own sunglasses so I can hide behind them.