PMU Boxset 2

by MacMillan, Jerica

  So maybe it wasn’t as generic of a gift as it seemed on face value. She gave him a warm smile. “Thanks. I still have a bunch of gift card credit from what he bought, but I’m sure I can find a way to burn through it now that I know I’ve got more.” She did have a reading addiction, and it was nice to be able to splurge more on ebooks. But she was extra careful when she didn’t have a lot of credit, spacing out her purchases and using the library to get most of her books. Now she could afford to buy books more often.

  Everyone looked expectantly at Lance, who was mid-swallow on his beer. “What?”

  Abby laughed and waved a hand at their friends. “He already gave me his present last night.”

  “Go, Lance.”

  Abby shot Chris a quelling look. “Not that kind of present. He got me these earrings. See?” She pulled her hair back and tilted her head so the dangly gold pieces could catch the light.

  Megan touched one earring with her fingertips. “Ooh. Those are beautiful.” To Lance, “I approve.”

  “Thank you, Megan. I’m so glad,” he deadpanned. “I was deeply worried about your approval.”

  Megan shot him a pretend glare, prompting a wide smile from him.

  Not long after that, Hannah said she was getting tired and needed to get home. Matt went with her. Abby suspected that they wanted to be alone more than anything, and going to Hannah’s place seemed like a better excuse than just going into Matt’s room.

  Letting out a groan, Megan stood up. “I better get started on the dishes or I’ll regret it later.”

  Looking forward to a gossip session now that she’d met Hannah, Abby stood too. “I’ll come help.”

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Lance settled into the couch with a beer in his hand, his feet propped on the coffee table, one ankle crossed over the other. He loved living with Abby and wouldn’t trade it for anything, but sometimes he missed the space of his old house.

  Chris sat in the armchair, his usual spot, and let out a contented sigh that Lance never would’ve expected to hear from him while watching his girlfriend walk to the kitchen. Hell, he’d never have expected to be here feeling like this a year ago himself. Chris took a pull from his own beer and met Lance’s eyes.

  “Thanks for having us over, man. I know Abby appreciated it.”

  Chris swallowed. “Of course. Anytime. I think Megan had fun making dinner and cake and everything, no matter how much she likes to give Abby shit about not going out partying.”

  “I’m sure Megan wouldn’t have minded if Abby wanted to go party, though.”

  A chuckle escaped Chris before he took another drink. “True. But we all know that’s not Abby’s scene, even if she puts up with it more than she’d like for our sake.”

  Lance lifted his bottle in acknowledgment. “So, next weekend huh?”

  “Yup.” Chris popped the p in yup, looking down and pulling at the wrapper on his beer bottle.

  “Nervous?”

  He shook his head once, a half smile on his face. “Nah, man. I got it in the bag.”

  “Fuck yeah, you do.” Lance could tell he was deflecting, though. Hell, who wouldn’t be nervous for what amounted to trying out for the NFL? This was it, his big chance. If he choked or just plain had a bad day, his dreams of going pro would be over. But if Chris wanted to cover his nervousness with bravado, Lance wasn’t going to be an asshole and call him on it. “You got this, man.”

  Chris nodded, dropping his eyes again. Shifting in his seat, Chris finished his beer before darting a glance toward the kitchen and looking at Lance again. “So how are things with Abby and you? Any progress on that front?”

  Look at them discussing their relationships and shit. And Matt thought Chris wasn’t a real grownup. “Yeah, actually. She’s finally agreed to let me pay rent. I think things have maybe settled down enough for me to propose.”

  “That’s great, dude.” Chris grinned, but then his eyebrows crinkled together, and he cocked his head to one side. “That seems like a sudden change, though. Any idea what prompted it?”

  Lance cleared his throat, not comfortable divulging too many details. Abby didn’t really like it when he shared things about her family, even when it was necessary. But Chris knew what had been going on anyway. “Her brother came to see her at school yesterday.”

  “What?” Chris’s voice was sharp, his reaction immediate. “What the hell?” Chris had told Lance how he felt about Abby’s brother. Dude was a shithead. Lance agreed wholeheartedly.

  “I know, dude.” Lance shook his head, marveling at the way Abby’s brother kept popping out of the woodwork in the worst ways. “Apparently their mom is getting sicker or something and needs some major tests that cost a bunch of money. He came to see if she could help pay for it. She wants to give him the rest of her student loan disbursement, which is what she was using to pay rent and stuff. So if she gives that up, that means she needs me to pay rent.” He pointed his beer bottle at Chris. “Which we both know I’m happy to do.” Draining the last of his beer, he set the empty on the coffee table and settled back again.

  Chris’s brows were still drawn together, and he fiddled with the threadbare seam on the arm of his chair. “Her brother came and asked for money? That doesn’t seem sketchy to you? If her mom needs money for medical stuff, why wouldn’t she ask Abby herself?”

  Lance opened and closed his mouth. He hadn’t thought about it that much, distracted by Abby’s distress and his own happiness at what he saw as her trusting him more.

  Fuck.

  “I take it you didn’t even think about that?” Chris asked gently. Or gently for him.

  Shaking his head, Lance reached for his beer bottle again, then remembered it was empty.

  Chris noticed. “Want another?”

  “Nah.” He ran a hand over his face. He did want another, but since he had to drive, he shouldn’t. “Fuck, man.”

  Something like pity crossed Chris’s face. “Well, whatever. If she wants to give her brother money, that’s her business right? Even if it’s not for her mom. And she is letting you take care of her more, so that’s still good for you.”

  Lance kept his mouth closed in a firm line. “So do you think she’s lying? Or did he lie to her about why he needed the money?”

  “I don’t know, man. I wasn’t there when she told you. What do you think?”

  He went back over what Abby had told him. It did seem shady that her brother came to her at school, where he knew Lance wouldn’t be around, and asked for money. And God knew that Abby’s brother was shady as fuck. Would he lie to his sister about their mom’s problems? Probably.

  But would she accept what Aaron said at face value without talking to her mom?

  With the way she’d reacted when Aaron had shown up again at Christmas, Lance doubted she’d take his word for anything. And she’d said she hadn’t talked to her mom. “Fucking hell.”

  Chris raised his eyebrows, and Lance pushed his hand through his hair. “Why would she lie to me about that?”

  Rubbing a hand over his jaw, Chris looked thoughtful for a moment. “I don’t know, man. I would guess that her brother is the one who needs the money, and she’s embarrassed to tell you. Either because she’s embarrassed about whatever her brother needs the money for, or that she’s willing to give it to him. Or both.”

  Shit. For his reputation as a dumb jock, Chris was perceptive. Lance nodded, his mind racing, frustration and anger bubbling under the surface.

  “What are you going to do?”

  Lance shook his head. “I don’t know yet, man. Wait and see, I guess. I caught her by surprise yesterday by being home when she got there. Maybe she panicked. Maybe she’ll tell me what’s going on later. Or maybe her brother lied to her, and she thinks that her mom really does need the money.”

  “Yeah, maybe.” Chris didn’t sound like he really believed that, though.

  Suddenly antsy, Lance stood, checking his phone for the time. “It’s getting late. I think I’ll get Abby an
d head home.”

  “Sure. Of course. We still working out this week?”

  “Of course, man. I wouldn’t leave you hanging during the week before your big show.”

  Chris chuckled and stood too. “Baseball’s called the show, dude. Not football.” Laughing too, Lance followed him to the kitchen, happy to let Chris lead the way. With his thoughts still churning, he wanted to make sure he had his face under control. He clung to the hope that Aaron had lied to her so he could keep his simmering anger at bay. One way or another he was determined to figure out what was really going on.

  Megan cast a glance at Abby and turned the water on in the sink. “You have to know I’m not letting you clean up after your own birthday party.”

  “That’s fine.” Abby leaned against the counter. “I’ll stand here and watch you. I don’t feel like talking about training with the boys.”

  She reached for a glass to hand to Megan, who took it with a glare. “Stop helping.”

  Sighing, Abby dragged a chair over from the table and plopped down in it, close enough to talk, far enough away to be out of reach of the dirty dishes. “I mean, I love Chris, and I know the whatevers thing that he has to try for the NFL are coming up soon, and he’s been working really hard. But listening to him talk about his training schedule and personal records and stuff makes me want to go to sleep.”

  Megan snickered. “I know. I have a hard time talking about it, too. And he talks about it a lot. I’m always glad when he gets to hang with Lance or Matt, because they all get into it. I just try to keep my eyes from glazing over.” She paused while she rinsed out a pan and placed it in the open dishwasher. “I’m really proud of him, though. He’s so focused. I don’t know what’ll happen next weekend, but he’s working his ass off. And he’s on track to graduate in May, which is a huge deal, since he didn’t plan on graduating at all a few months ago.”

  “Yeah,” Abby agreed. “I’m glad he’s found a direction. I hope next weekend goes well.”

  “Me too. I wish I could go with him, but there’s too much going on with the show, and the airfare is too much this close. His dad’s going, though, so at least he’ll have some moral support.”

  “Oh, cool. I didn’t realize that. Speaking of his dad, any plans to meet his parents yet?”

  Megan tilted her head to one side. “We’re supposed to go to Port Orchard for Spring Break. I’m already nervous about it, even though Chris assures me I have no reason to be.”

  Abby chuckled. “I know what you mean, though. I’d talked to Lance’s mom on the phone several times since August, but meeting her in person was a whole other thing. I was so nervous, and flying down was the worst. I thought I might puke from the combination of nerves and exhaustion. Add in turbulence and my first time flying, and I’m surprised I didn’t need the barf bag after all.”

  “Aw, Abs. I’m glad it went okay, though. Lance has a way of calming you down too.”

  “Yeah. That’s probably the reason I was at all okay during that trip. And then it all ended so badly.” She covered her face with her hands. “I ruined Christmas for his family.” Dropping her hands in her lap, she fiddled with the seam of her jeans. “Gabby’s staying with us when she comes for her audition next week, so at least they’re not still mad at me.”

  Megan shot her a pointed look. “Of course they’re not mad at you. You didn’t ruin Christmas. Besides, they have to see that you make their son happy. That should be enough for any parents.”

  “It’s not enough for yours.” Megan wasn’t on speaking terms with her father after a big blowup on Thanksgiving.

  Megan froze, her eyes trained on her hands under the running water in the sink. Realizing how hurtful her thoughtless comment was for her friend, Abby clapped both hands over her mouth. “I’m so sorry, Megan. I don’t know why I said that. That was awful.”

  Megan slowly moved again, finishing with the plate in her hand. She placed it carefully in the dishwasher and dried her hands, never looking at Abby. “The situation with my parents is very different. Their issue wasn’t with Chris. Not him specifically. It’s with me. Always me. You know I’m the black sheep.”

  Abby nodded, standing and going to Megan. When Megan looked at her, tears filmed her eyes. “Oh, Megan. I really am sorry. I wasn’t trying to be horrible. I know it’s not the same. I’m sorry your parents don’t get how awesome you are and try to force you to be someone you’re not. They’re missing out. And it’s their loss. Chris’s parents will love you. Chris says so. You’ve already talked to them a bunch of times and said they seem great. You have no reason to be nervous.”

  Megan nodded, rubbing her nose with a finger and blinking rapidly. Abby hugged her again. “I’m sorry. Please don’t be mad.”

  “I’m not mad. It’s just … hard. And it hurts.”

  Abby pulled back, still looking at Megan who kept her face down, looking at her hands, fiddling with the ring on her thumb. “You mentioned that your mom called that one time. Has she called again?”

  Megan sniffed and nodded. “Yeah. Earlier this week, actually. I told her about my show. She was interested and seemed happy for me until I told her the subject matter. She wasn’t thrilled about the nearly nude models posing for me.” She shrugged. “Whatever. I told her I’d let her know when the show is. I don’t know if she’ll come. Even if the paintings are almost all so zoomed in as to be abstract. The focus isn’t on the bodies, it’s on the colors. Only the titles will give clues as to what they are. But that’s not the point, as far as she’s concerned. It’s still naked people according to my mom. Naked boys and girls together who aren’t married, and that’s wrong.” Another jerky shrug, and she looked up, straightening her shoulders and shaking her head. “It doesn’t matter.” She smiled, a forced, tremulous smile that Abby saw for what it was—a change of subject from the painful one she’d inadvertently opened. “Enough about that. We’re supposed to be having fun. It’s your birthday! Are you doing anything else exciting this weekend? Did you do anything yesterday? I remember Lance saying something about making a whole weekend of it.”

  Grateful for the change of subject, Abby sat back down in her chair. “Yeah, I’m not sure what he has planned for tomorrow, but he took me out to dinner last night, and we’ve been lazing around all day today. It’s been great. Especially after yesterday afternoon.”

  “Oh?” Megan gave her a curious look from where she’d resumed rinsing the last of the dishes in the sink. “What do you mean? What happened yesterday?”

  Crap. She hadn’t really intended to bring up her brother. Not tonight, anyway. Apparently drinking wine made her internal filters malfunction. And she’d only had a couple of glasses. Man, she was a lightweight. With a sigh, she went to the sink and stood next to Megan, keeping her voice low while she told her about her brother’s visit to the foreign language department. Megan’s eyes grew wider, the last plate in her hands ignored while Abby told her everything, including how she’d lied to Lance about what her brother needed money for.

  “Abby! Why did you lie to Lance?” At least Megan kept her voice in the range of a whisper yell.

  With another sigh, Abby shrugged. “I just couldn’t bring myself to tell him. It’s too awful and embarrassing.”

  “You told me.”

  “Yeah, but you’ve been there for all of it. You’ve known all my secrets for years. With Lance, it’s still new, and I don’t know how he’d react. But I have to do something. He’s my brother. I’d never forgive myself if he got hurt—or worse—because I didn’t help him.”

  Megan looked thoughtful while she placed the last plate in the dishwasher. Then she shook her head as she pushed the racks in, placed a tablet in the little door, closed and started it, the sound of the dishwasher now covering their conversation instead of the running water. “You have to tell Lance the truth, Abs. He deserves to know what’s going on. I’m sure he’d understand. He has sisters. I doubt—no, I know he wouldn’t let someone hurt them if he could do something abo
ut it.”

  Abby felt sick at the thought of telling Lance the truth, both about confessing her lie and telling him what she’d lied about. Hell, she felt sick just thinking about Aaron and why he needed the money.

  Megan’s sincere brown eyes bored into hers, her hands clutching Abby’s arms. “This isn’t like keeping a surprise party a secret. Or fibbing about your weight. This is serious. He’ll be hurt when he finds out you lied, but he’ll get over it faster if you tell him soon. The longer this goes, the worse it’ll be. Tell him. If not tonight, then tomorrow. Soon. Okay? Promise me.”

  Abby stared back at Megan, her stomach twisting. She wanted to tug at her lower lip, but Megan’s grip on her forearms prevented her. She didn’t want to promise. She didn’t want to tell Lance the truth. Ever. “I don’t think he’ll ever know. Why do I need to tell him?”

  Megan sighed, disappointed. “Abby, it’ll end up coming out eventually. Especially with Aaron popping up all over the place. You need to—” Megan abruptly stopped talking and let go of Abby’s arms.

  “Hey babe, almost done in here? It’s getting late. I’m wiped from today’s workout, and Lance wants to take the birthday girl home, if you know what I mean.” Chris came in and kissed Megan on the cheek, winking at Abby when he said the last part.

  She blushed, and Megan smacked him on the arm. Then Lance was beside her, turning her face to his for a brief kiss. “Ready to go home, sweetheart?”

  “Sure.”

  Chris and Megan followed them into the living room where she and Lance put on their coats and gathered up her presents. When Abby hugged Megan goodbye, Megan hissed, “Tell him!” in her ear.

  Abby pretended not to hear. She didn’t want to tell him. Lance would be hurt if she told him she’d lied. All the more reason for him to never find out. She’d give her brother the money. He would leave. No one would ever have to know what really happened. That was the best plan, and she was sticking to it.