by W Winters
It’s Our Secret
W Winters
Contents
Author’s Copyright
Also by W Winters
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Running
Chapter 5
Preface
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Epilogue
Hard to Love
Sneak Peek at Possessive
Preface
Chapter 1
Sneak Peek at Merciless
Chapter 1
Sneak Peek at Something to Remember
Chapter 1
About W Winters
Also by W Winters
Author’s Copyright
Copyright © 2018 by Willow Winters All Rights Reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations within critical reviews and otherwise as permitted by copyright law.
NOTE: This is a work of fiction.
Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author's imagination.
Any resemblance to real life is purely coincidental. All characters in this story are 18 or older.
Copyright © 2018, Willow Winters Publishing. All rights reserved. willowwinterswrites.com
* * *
Little Liar was previously published as She Asked for It.
Also by W Winters
Merciless World
* * *
A Kiss to Tell
* * *
Possessive
* * *
Merciless
Heartless
Breathless
Endless
* * *
A Kiss To Keep
* * *
A Single Glance
A Single Kiss
A Single Touch
* * *
Hard to Love
* * *
Merciless World Spin Off
* * *
It’s Our Secret
* * *
Standalone Novels:
Broken
Forget Me Not
* * *
Sins and Secrets Duets:
Imperfect (Imperfect Duet book 1)
Unforgiven (Imperfect Duet book 2)
* * *
Damaged (Damaged Duet book 1)
Scarred (Damaged Duet book 2)
Willow Winters
Standalone Novels:
* * *
Tell Me To Stay
Second Chance
Knocking Boots
Promise Me
Burned Promises
Forsaken, cowritten with B. B. Hamel
* * *
Collections
Don’t Let Go
Deepen The Kiss
* * *
Valetti Crime Family Series:
Dirty Dom
His Hostage
Rough Touch
Cuffed Kiss
Bad Boy
* * *
Highest Bidder Series,
cowritten with Lauren Landish:
Bought
Sold
Owned
Given
* * *
Bad Boy Standalones,
cowritten with Lauren Landish:
Inked
Tempted
Mr. CEO
Happy reading and best wishes,
W Winters xx
Prologue
Allison
* * *
One night changed my world forever.
Only a single night. It made me pray harder. But God never answered my prayers.
It’s true. In one day, a life can change. Or more than one.
Sometimes it’s a single moment that alters everything in existence.
* * *
Sometimes it’s the fall of dominoes, lined up in a pretty little row and designed so that each one will cause more and more pain.
* * *
In a single day, it’s all changed, and there’s no way to take it back.
Those are the moments that define you.
As I stand outside of the house I’ve rented two blocks from the university’s dorms, the one night that made me who I am keeps coming back to me.
And that one night five years ago is what brought me here.
Chapter 1
Dean
Five years ago
* * *
“’Suck my dick?’” Principal Talbot asks as she stares at me with a serious expression. “Did you really tell Mrs. Pearson to suck your dick?” She’s pissed, and that makes her question all the more thrilling.
Not that I wanted to cause problems, but come on, is it really that serious? They’re just words.
She slams the window down in her office, hushing the sounds of the students walking just outside the room. The bell rang only a minute ago, but everyone’s already running from class and eager to get the hell away from Stewart High, a private school on the east side of town.
My fingers itch to be out there too, so I can sneak in a smoke before I have to go home. Everyone says it’s so damn bad for you, but it’s the only break I get. If I have to keep on going through the motions, I’d rather do it stoned.
My lips twitch with the threat of a smirk but I make sure I keep a passive expression. I shrug and lean back in my chair as I glance over my shoulder and toward her office door.
“Do you think this is funny?” she asks me, her nostrils flaring as she stands up from her desk. She slams both hands down on her desk and leans over it to glare at me. “Do you think this is some sort of game?” With every word, her voice gets louder.
My spine stiffens and I feel the anger rising. But it’s not for her. Or Mrs. Pearson. It’s just that I’m so used to being screamed at. My body’s ready for what’s next.
I scratch my shoulder blade and try not to show anything but a relaxed posture. I won’t let any of them get to me.
“It’s school, Miss Talbot. School is certainly not a game,” I answer her and square my shoulders, folding my hands in my lap although my foot taps on the floor anxiously. Maybe I’m baiting her, but then again, maybe I don’t give a fuck.
It’s only a matter of time until my mother or stepfather comes through the door. I anticipate it swinging open, but at the same time, I’m not sure if they’ll even bother to show.
“Three schools this year, Dean. You’ve already been kicked out of two and now you’re on your way to being kicked out of your third. Are you looking to set a record?” the principal asks me.
I don’t answer her. It’s rhetorical anyway.
I’m sure she has a speech prepared and I’d just hate to interrupt her.
I like being quiet anyway. Pops used to say if you’re quiet long enough, t
he words you finally say have more impact. Sometimes I think he only told me that so I’d shut up.
She takes her seat again and angrily clicks on her mouse as she reads through the offenses. “Aggravated assault and drug possession, resulting in expulsion from Hamilton.”
It was just pot and that fucker Darrell knew he was going to get his ass beat. That’s what happens when you try to steal from someone. Even if it was just fifty bucks for pot. He had it coming but decided to be a little bitch and rat.
Darrell can go fuck himself, Hamilton too.
She pauses to glance at me for my reaction before scrolling down what must be my school record.
I don’t react and just wait for the rest of the list.
“Destruction of public property and public indecency,” she says and then purses her lips.
The last one makes me crack a smile and I have to hide it with my hand, covering my mouth, but it doesn’t fool her.
“I’ll ask you again. Do you think this is funny?” She has a pinched expression on her face and I have to roll my eyes.
“I was just showing my ass,” I tell her even though I know it’s going to piss her off. It doesn’t matter what I say right now anyway. The end result is the same.
“And was it funny when you told Mrs. Pearson to suck your dick?” she asks and then slips off her thin-rimmed glasses, folding them and calmly setting them down on the desk.
I rest my elbow on the chair and prop my chin up to look at her. “I didn’t think she’d hear it,” I admit. And that’s the truth.
Her brow shoots up slightly. “So, it’d be okay if she hadn’t heard it?”
“Not really,” I answer, feeling my defenses raise. “But it’s not okay to call someone a failure and a waste of space,” I say and my words are pushed through clenched teeth as I try to remember what my math teacher said. I know she said failure at least. I know for a fact she did. All because I couldn’t remember a stupid formula.
“This is about your repeated offenses, Dean,” the principal says but there’s a hint of hesitation in her response. She unfolds her glasses and gently puts them back on.
“You’re only a freshman and your options for both public and private schools are dwindling. Do you think acting like this is going to help you deal with your issues?”
My mouth slams shut at the last word. The air between us tenses and I can see her expression change. It’s a look of victory; she’s finally found something that gets to me.
Principal Talbot shakes her head, the look of disappointment clearly forced. “You have no idea how much you’re hurting yourself,” she tells me as if she really cares.
I scoff at her and look back to the closed door.
None of them care. They just want me gone so I’m not their problem to deal with anymore.
“I can’t have this type of behavior here, and quite frankly, this was a favor to your mother.” She looks me in the eyes as she says, “Who, I’m sure, is going to be very disappointed in you.”
Her voice is stern, but that’s not what gets to me. It’s not what makes me rip my eyes away from hers and pick at the fuzz on the red fabric covering the arms of the chair I’m sitting in. It’s the fact that my mother won’t give a damn. Maybe she’ll say she does. Maybe she’ll even stand there next to that prick she married while he cusses me out for wasting his time. But does she really care? Not about me she doesn’t.
“So, what now?” I ask and look Principal Talbot in the eyes.
“We wait for your parents to get here-”
“Parent,” I correct her and hold her gaze as she narrows her eyes at me. “I only have one parent.” My voice almost catches. I almost let my true feelings show. But thankfully they’re hidden, still buried where they belong.
“Your mother and stepfather then,” she corrects herself.
I huff and focus on the fuzz at the edge of the chair cushion, picking up the little pieces between my thumb and forefinger.
She’d better get comfortable. The last time this happened they never even bothered to show up.
Chapter 2
Allison
“You know you look like a ho,” Sam tells me, cocking her brow like it’s a question.
“Shut up,” I respond dismissively, although I can’t hide my smile. It’s only a blip of happiness that’s quickly dimmed by my rising anxiety.
After putting on another coat of caramel apple lip gloss, I step back and try to pull my jean skirt down. It doesn’t budge much though.
“Is it too much?” I ask her, feeling an overwhelming need to hide and not go out tonight. My heart races as my gaze sweeps from my short skirt to the clock on the far wall of my bedroom. It’s one thing to think about sneaking out to meet a boy. It’s another to actually do it.
Samantha rolls her eyes as she slips on a white blazer over her short red dress. It’s skintight, showing off her curves and barely hiding her breasts, but Sam’s always showing off her boobs.
She hit puberty first and it was damn good to her. Not so much to me.
“It’s perfect,” she says with a wink.
“My mom would kill me,” I mutter as I take one last look in the mirror.
“Well, your mom’s not here, so there’s nothing to worry about,” Sam says like this is no big deal.
“I don’t know,” I say softly. Sam’s my friend. My best friend. I’ve never kept anything from her. She already knows my stomach’s acting up. She devoured half the pizza we ordered with the twenty bucks my mom left us for dinner. Almost all of my half is still untouched in the kitchen. I’m leaving the box on the counter. I know it’ll tick my mother off to see I left it out, but I do it every time Sam stays over and I don’t want her to think we were up to anything.
Like sneaking out.
My heart flutters again with anxiety, racing and warning me yet again, that this is stupid. That I’m stupid.
Sam’s face falls slightly and she leans against my dresser as she asks me, “Is it because you think Mike’s going to want some?”
I huff out a sarcastic laugh and shake my head no as I stare at the ceiling to avoid her prying eyes.
“I thought you wanted to?” she asks me with genuine interest.
“I do,” I answer immediately. “I’ve been thinking about how I want to do it.”
“There’s nothing wrong with being a virgin,” Sam says, and there’s a look on her face I can’t place. Not even a trace of a smile is there. “If you want to wait, then wait.”
“It’s not that, I just really like him and what if he’s not into it?” I swallow thickly and pick at my nail polish. “Or what if that’s not what he expects,” I tell her and shrug as if it doesn’t matter.
“But you want it too, don’t you?” she asks. Samantha straightens her back and I can see her swallow as she looks straight ahead. “I want to know what it’s like,” she admits to me.
“I know. I want to know too,” I tell her as if that’s not obvious. “I just really like him, but if we do it tonight, is Mike going to think that I’m like … easy or something?”
“Oh, please,” Samantha says and rolls her eyes. “You’re thinking about this too much. If you want to do it, then do it. If you don’t, then don’t. It’s literally that easy,” she says and then turns back to the dresser, the tension from just a moment ago apparently all but forgotten.
“We’re finally in high school, Allie,” Sam tells me and I nod my head although I keep my eyes on my reflection. I wish I looked like it. Sam’s more mature and it’s obvious, but it’s the confidence she has that I truly lack.
“Sneaking out is like a rite of passage,” she says. “I get that you like Mike and all, but just have fun tonight.”
“But there’s so much pressure,” I tell her, feeling anxiety running through me again.
Sam shrugs, twisting the cap to her lip gloss back on and striding toward the bed for her shoes. “So what?” she asks me. “It’s just a party and it’s going to be a blast, and everything’s g
oing to be fine.”
“Are you going to drink?” I ask her and then feel like I’m my mother.
She laughs and her eyes go wide as she says, “Duh!” As she ties up the laces to her shoes around her ankles she adds, “Are you even sure his brother got the beer?”
“He said he was getting all sorts of things.” Mike’s brother is a few years older and it’s his party technically. Mike invited me and Sam. I was so excited when he told me, but right now I’m feeling something completely different.