“Language!” my mother chided as she covered Charlotte’s ears.
“Sorry, Mrs. Trudeau,” Conner said sheepishly.
Allie stifled a laugh. She was the worst offender when it came to swearing around my daughter.
“Here you go, Charlotte,” Drake said, bending down and handing her a box wrapped in racecar paper with a yellow bow on top.
“Sanks,” she said with a smile and a blink. She tore off the bow and paper and found a black and yellow remote control car inside.
“You do realize she’s only two,” I pointed out, giggling.
“And a girl,” Sophie added.
Adam gave Sophie and me a dirty look. “It’s awesome, Drake. Don’t listen to them.”
Charlotte wrapped her tiny arms around Drake’s huge frame. “Sanks for car.”
“You’re welcome,” he replied, kissing her cheek. “See, she likes it,” he said to Sophie and me.
Adam got the car out of the packaging. Once he put batteries in the remote, the little car was flying around our living room at warp speed. Charlotte was chasing it around and squealing with delight while Adam, Conner, Zach, and Drake all took turns with the remote.
“Come here, Little Queen,” Adam said, patting his legs. Charlotte crawled onto his lap and he handed her the remote. She was laughing as he helped her with the controls and made the car drive into people. When they had the car drive into my mother’s heels, back up, and drive into her heels again, I almost died of laughter. Luckily, even Mother found it to be cute since Charlotte was shaking uncontrollably with giggles.
***
After the guests left, I took Charlotte upstairs for a bath. She was so tired that she was falling asleep in my arms, but there was no way I could leave frosting in her hair overnight. I filled the tub with water and bubble bath and began to gently wash away the cake.
“Did you have a nice birthday, sweetie?” I asked as I rinsed her.
“Yes, Mommy,” she answered on a yawn.
Adam entered the bathroom. “How’s it going?” he asked me, referring to the frosting mess.
“Almost done.”
“Sophie’s on the phone for you. I’ll finish up and put her to bed.”
“Thanks.” I gave him a kiss on the cheek and took my phone from his hand. Covering the receiver, I asked Adam, “Do you think she suspects?”
He nodded. “She was pretty adamant about talking to you right now, so probably.”
I took a deep breath and brought the phone to my ear. “Miss me already?” I asked Sophie, while walking into my room.
“Don’t get all cheeky with me. I didn’t ask today because everyone was around, but it’s time to spill the beans.”
“What beans?” I was enjoying messing with her.
“Sienna Korbell! Are you pregnant?”
Just hearing it out loud made me smile. “How did you figure it out?”
“Oh my God! Congratulations!” I had to pull the phone from my ear because she was screaming so loud.
A mega-watt smile lit up my face. “Thanks. I was going to tell you at lunch tomorrow. I hope you don’t mind that I’ll be pregnant during your wedding.”
“Don’t be an idiot. We’ll just order you a bigger bridesmaid dress.”
“Sounds like a plan. You still haven’t told me how you figured it out?”
“Adam kept rubbing your stomach while you were on his lap. Plus you refused the glass of wine I offered you.” I could hear Conner in the background. “Okay, Sienna, gotta go. I’m going to tell Conner, if that’s okay?”
“Of course . . . But Sophie, let us tell everyone else.”
“Will do. Bye and congrats. Tell Adam congrats too.”
“Love you.”
“You too. Bye.”
I hung up and went to Charlotte’s room. She was lying next to him as he read her a story.
As soon as the story ended, I said, “Okay, bedtime little girl.” I pulled her covers up and kissed her forehead. “I love you. Sweet dreams.”
“Wuv you, Mommy.”
Adam kissed her on the cheek. “Be a good girl and go to sleep, and I’ll make you pancakes for breakfast.” Charlotte clapped. “Night, Little Queen. Love you.”
“Night, Daddy. Wuv you.”
I flipped on her nightlight. Turning off the light, we left the room. As soon as her door was shut, Adam pulled me to him. “Did Sophie guess?”
“Yep.”
“We better start telling everyone tomorrow before she spreads the news like wildfire.”
“I told her to let us tell everyone else.”
Adam cocked his brow and gave me an “Are you serious?” look.
“Yeah. We should tell everyone tomorrow,” I agreed.
I went onto my tiptoes and kissed him softly. Adam and I had found out we were pregnant about a month ago. This time, Adam had been with me when I took the test. I loved how happy he was the moment two lines appeared.
“I’m tired and beat, and Sophie’s dragging us girls to the bridal shop in the morning. Bed?”
He pulled me closer. “Really? Are you sure you’re tired? I bet I could wake you up.” A naughty smirk pulled his lips. Wow. I swear he gets even sexier every day.
I kissed his cheek quickly and pulled out of his embrace. “Not tonight, Mr. Korbell. Sorry.”
He looked at me like I’d just taken away his favorite toy. He sulked to our room and walked straight to our bathroom. I heard the shower turn on a moment later. Probably a cold one.
I glanced at the pictures lining our hallway, and cherished the memories that came with each. Multiple pictures of Charlotte, our college graduation photos, and several containing family and friends. I loved the picture of Adam on his black Harley, which I had bought for him on our first anniversary.
I stopped in front of our wedding photos. There was one of Adam and me dancing, and another of us holding a three-month-old Charlotte in our arms. We’d had the wedding ceremony and our reception in our backyard. There was a large white tent, and twinkle lights and paper lanterns had been strung from every tree. My mother had not been allowed to plan anything, and we only invited close friends and family. It was intimate and exactly what Adam and I had wanted.
I walked into our bedroom and stripped down to my undergarments. I glanced over my shoulder, and what I saw in the floor length mirror made me smile. In beautiful black script, Adam’s name was tattooed on my upper back, just below my right shoulder.
I removed my panties and unclasped my bra. I had been teasing him when I said I was tired. It was fun to watch him sulk sometimes. I padded softly across the carpet and opened the bathroom door. After all, I wouldn’t want him to get lonely in the shower.
Thank you for reading Believing Lies.
Without readers, a book is just a words on a page. You bring it to life.
I hope you enjoyed reading Sienna and Adam’s story as much as I enjoyed writing it.
About the Author
I live in Wisconsin with my husband and two sons. When I’m not busy being a mom, you can usually find me reading or watching TV. I’m a sucker for a good book, movie, or TV show.
I wrote Believing Lies, on a whim—it was just something I wanted to see if I could do. I never expected to fall in love with writing or with my characters so much.
You can follow me on Facebook, Goodreads, or visit my website: www.racheleverleigh.com
You can also email me at [email protected]. I’d love to hear from you!
Acknowledgements
When I decided to write Believing Lies over one year ago, I knew that I couldn’t produce a book to this caliber without the love, support, and assistance of my family, friends, and even complete strangers. With that being said, I would like to express my gratitude to the many people who saw me through the process and production of this novel.
I would like to extend a huge thank you to my amazing friends, Lila and Melissa, and to my sister, Mataya. You read every single revision of Believing Lies ove
r and over again, letting me pick your brain and discuss the story each time. The guidance you provided over this past year was invaluable, and I’m so lucky that you three were there beside me on this journey. Also, to Mataya, I cannot express how much I appreciate all of the time and dedication you put into helping me with photos.
I want to thank my husband for supporting and encouraging me along the way. Without your love and sacrifice, none of this would have been possible. To my sons, I know that writing this book monopolized my attention at times, but you were so understanding. I love you boys very much! Thank you to my mom, who gave me her own computer the instant I said that I wanted to write a book. You have been my cheerleader since day one.
I’d like to extend a special thank you to my editor, Taylor Thomas, for her professional advice and assistance. Your editing and polishing skills are amazing. Thank you for putting in long hours to keep up with my crazy timetable. The dedication you exhibited goes beyond words of thanks.
To Gregg, I appreciate all of the time and effort you put into helping me with picture editing. Thanks for dealing with my constantly changing mind and millions of texts. In addition, thank you Alicia of Focus Pocus by Ally for taking my author picture . . . and then touching it up, magically making me look five years younger. Also, thank you for helping me touch up my cover photo. You’re editing skills are top notch.
I am very grateful to my Beta Readers and would like to thank Julie, Kate, Amber, Melissa P., Christina, Cherie, Cassidy, Bailey, Kelly, Amy, Joni, Dawn, and Terri. Your comments and notes gave me the insight and direction I needed. An extra special acknowledgement to my cousin, Sophie. You are the best Beta Reader a girl could ask for. Not only did you catch my grammatical errors, but more importantly, your comments and reactions had me laughing and loving every minute. Also, you let me bother you with questions in the middle of the night—even if it was 2 a.m.!
A huge shout-out and thank you to all of the bloggers and reviewers out there. Your websites, blogs, and reviews are essential in providing inspiration and direction to both readers and authors alike. As a reader, thank you for steering me toward so many wonderful books that I would never have found without you. As a writer, your reviews are what can expose an unknown author/book to the masses. I hope you all know how important you are!
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