Epic Lies (Epic Fail Book 2)

by Trudy Stiles

  Several staff members roll in trays of food. They place everything on the table quickly and efficiently and then leave.

  So many different scents and flavors fill the room. “Wow, it all smells so delicious,” I say and walk toward the table.

  We sit, and he uncovers plate after plate. “I ordered two of everything,” he says, and my mouth waters.

  There’s even a plate filled with French toast, potatoes, bacon, and eggs. “The all-day breakfast,” he says, and I immediately reach for that plate.

  “I can’t resist bacon.” I bite into a crispy piece. “So good.” It’s literally the best piece of bacon I’ve ever eaten, perfectly crispy and salty.

  He grabs the same dish and sprinkles some pepper over the eggs. “I have to admit, this is exactly what I wanted for dinner.”

  We both smile as we dig into our all-day-breakfast platters.

  “I want to know everything about you,” he says with a mouth full of French toast, syrup glistening on his lips.

  “Two truths and a lie,” I say, and he raises his eyebrow.

  “What?”

  “I tell you two truths about me and one lie. You need to figure out which is which, and then it’s your turn.” It’s a hokey game we played during one of our ice-breaker sessions this morning, and I found out things about my co-workers that I never expected.

  “Okay, you go first,” he says and takes another huge bite of his food.

  Shit. Now I’m on the spot.

  “I’m waiting.” He smirks and takes a sip of his wine.

  I wrinkle my nose. “Wine and bacon?”

  “Yup.”

  “Okay. Two truths and a lie,” I repeat. Now I’m nervous.

  He raises his eyebrow.

  I take a deep breath. “I’m terrified of sharks. I have a fake tooth. I’m double-jointed.”

  “This is easy,” he says, smirking.

  “You’re terrified of sharks, TRUTH.” I nod.

  “You’re double-jointed, TRUTH.” I smile and shake my head from side to side.

  “What?” he says in disbelief. “You definitely don’t have a false tooth.”

  “Yes, I most certainly do,” I say and open my mouth, turning my head to the side. I pull back my cheek and show him. “Lower right, first bicuspid. It got knocked out when I was thirteen while playing football with the boys from my neighborhood. I got pushed into someone’s elbow.”

  He laughs and shakes his head. “You mean you’re not double-jointed?” he asks, disappointed.

  “Nope.”

  He finishes his wine and refills my glass, then his.

  “Was it two hand-touch, or tackle football?” he asks.

  “Tackle. Is there any other way?” I gulp down a mouthful of wine and say, “Your turn.” Wine and bacon isn’t bad.

  He scratches his chin and says, “Two truths and a lie. Hmmm.”

  His eyes suddenly flash, and I’m excited for what I’m finally about to learn about him.

  “I snore. I’ve run six half-marathons. I’m addicted to ABC Family movies.”

  I laugh out loud. “This is going to be easy,” I tease.

  “Then go ahead and guess,” he says, folding his arms over his chest.

  “You’ve definitely run six half-marathons. TRUTH.” He nods. I know a runner’s body when I see one.

  “And you totally snore, so TRUTH,” I say proudly.

  He shakes his head and says, “Wrong.”

  “What? Don’t all guys snore?” I ask, and he shakes his head again.

  “I’ve never been told that I do.” Easy way out.

  “You haven’t run six half-marathons?” I ask, confused.

  “Yes, I told you that I have.”

  “Shut up. There is no way that you love ABC Family movies. Nope. Not true.” I shake my head, refusing to believe he has a soft and mushy side to him.

  “Especially the ones that come out during ABC’s Twenty-Five Days of Christmas. I mean, have you seen Holiday in Handcuffs?” he says.

  He’s freaking serious.

  “Umm, yes,” I admit. “It’s one of those movies that I’ll watch again and again and again. Every single time it’s on. In fact, it’s still on my DVR from last Christmas,” I admit. “Mario Lopez and Melissa Joan Hart’s chemistry is…”

  “Hilariously painful,” he finishes my sentence, and I nearly choke.

  “Yes!” I laugh.

  “Your turn again,” he says and wipes his mouth. His plate has been cleaned, and I can tell he’s contemplating digging into what looks to be chicken francaise.

  “Hmmm,” I muse. What can I trick him with?

  “I’m training to run a half marathon. My feet are a size twelve. I was in an anti-gas and diarrhea commercial two years ago.”

  “Really?” he asks. “These are the choices you give me now?” He raises his eyebrow and stands up, walking toward me.

  “You’re definitely training for a half marathon. I saw you running the other day on the beach, so I believe that one. TRUTH,” he says.

  I nod and smirk, “You have to stop stalking me.”

  He’s closer now, and I tense up in my chair a little bit. What is he up to?

  “Before I take another guess, I need to do some research.” Suddenly, my chair is pushed out, and my bare leg is in the air. He slides my flip-flop off, and I squirm in my seat, curling my toes as he runs his finger from my heel to my big toe.

  “That tickles!” I screech, and his face remains serious.

  “There is no way this foot is a size twelve. Not a chance. LIE.” He positions himself between my legs, still holding my foot in the air. “And I see you got that spot you missed,” he says, kissing the stubble free spot on the inside of my ankle.

  “You’re right,” I say as he kisses a trail up the inside of my calf to my knee.

  “I want to hear about the gas commercial,” he says, pausing to look up.

  I don’t want him to stop. His lips are so soft on my skin. He kisses my knee again, and he kneels down in front of me, his hands wrapped around my thighs.

  “What do you want to know?” I ask, and I realize I’m panting. His lips travel to the inside of my knee, and he looks up at me again.

  “Tell me about the commercial? What did you do in it?” His warm breath fills the space between my thighs, and I squirm again.

  “Ah, I umm…” He drapes his arms over my thighs and places his chin on his hands, grinning.

  “I’m waiting,” he says.

  “I was involved in this ad campaign, and the actress didn’t make it to the shoot. She got sick, or something like that. The director pulled me aside and begged me to step in. So, I did,” I say, embarrassed. It was the most awkward thing I’ve ever done. I felt like a robot in front of the camera. They shot the commercial, and it aired only five times before it was pulled–it was that bad. I’m lucky I didn’t get fired from my job.

  “Oh yeah?”

  I nod.

  “What were your lines?”

  I blush and shift from side to side. He holds my legs gently, but firmly in place.

  “I’m not telling you,” I state.

  “Then how will I know this is a truth?” He smirks and raises his eyebrows.

  “Fine,” I say as his fingertips softly tickle the insides of my thighs. I inhale deeply and say, “Gas-Be-Gone: It plugs up the source of your gas leaks.” I shake my head and realize I never should have revealed this to him or anyone for that matter.

  He laughs so hard that he falls backward onto his ass. “Holy shit, that’s hysterical.”

  I close my legs and cross them, folding my arms over my chest.

  “I’m glad you think so. It’s not so funny when my dad has it recorded on his DVR and plays it over and over and over again.”

  “I bet it’s fantastic!” he says and runs his hand up my calf. “I think I like your dad.”

  He stands up, grabs my hands, and pulls me to my feet.

  “I don’t want to think about gas an
ymore,” I say.

  “Me neither,” he says, his grin turning serious.

  His fingers prop my chin up, and he kisses me. “You have syrup here,” he says his lips over mine. “And here.” His tongue darts out and licks the corner of my mouth. “And here.”

  His assault on my lips continues, and I pull him against me, his hands grab my hips and he makes sure I’m firmly held in place.

  “I want you to spend the night,” he says, his mouth against my ear. I tense up a little, realizing this is the beginning of a one-night stand, something that I told myself earlier that I’d be okay with, but now I’m unsure.

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I say, nervously.

  He pulls away and looks into my eyes. “Whatever you want. No pressure.” He doesn’t look angry or disappointed, and I see genuine concern on his face. He’s not in this for the conquest, and I’m relieved.

  “It’s been a while,” I say, embarrassed. “I don’t normally jump into someone’s bed that I just met.”

  He kisses my nose, then my chin. “Neither do I,” he says, and I believe him.

  “It’s your turn,” I say against his lips.

  “What?”

  “Two truths and a lie,” I remind him that we’re still playing our game.

  He smiles and pulls me against him.

  “I love clown feet. Flip-flops turn me on. Honesty turns me on even more.”

  I laugh against his lips and push my fingers through his hair.

  “This is easy,” I say as I kiss him.

  “Then go for it,” he says.

  “There’s no way you love clown feet, so LIE,” I say, and he pushes me against the wall in the dining room.

  “Nope. I totally would have sent you packing if your feet were really a size twelve,” he says grinning, his arousal pressing between my legs.

  “Some women can’t help that they have enormous feet,” I say as I press against him, letting him know I can feel him.

  His lips leave mine and travel past my jawline to my neck. “God, Giselle, are you sure?”

  “Sure about what?” I pant.

  “About not staying the night?”

  “No–I mean. I’m not sure.” His lips find mine again, and his tongue plunges inside my mouth. He lifts my legs up around his hips and presses my back into the wall. The pressure he’s applying against me causes me to moan loudly into his mouth.

  “Are you sure now?” he asks, and I moan again. His hips swirl into mine as his hard length puts the perfect amount of pressure on my–

  “Ohhhh,” I gasp as a tingling sensation travels from my center to my belly button. “God.”

  “Yes,” I say. “I’ll stay. Please. I’ll stay.” All other coherent thoughts leave my head. He carries me out of the dining room and through the main part of his suite until we’re in front of his bed.

  “Really?” he asks, pulling away from my mouth for a moment.

  “Yes.”

  He places me on the bed and removes his t-shirt and swim trunks before I can breathe. My cover-up is pulled over my head and tossed over his shoulder. He’s hovering above me, his eyes fixated on mine. I untie my bathing suit top and let it fall away from my breasts, the ceiling fan above immediately causing me to shiver, my nipples hardening. His fingers loop into the sides of my bikini bottoms, and he pulls them down as he takes in the vision of my naked body. I immediately try to cover my body, blushing.

  He pushes my hands aside and kisses by belly, working his way up to my breasts. “You’re so beautiful,” he mumbles as his lips trace my nipple. I gasp again as he teases it with his tongue. His fingers find their way between my legs, and he slowly massages me, causing a sensation to travel from his fingers to my chest and back again. A ripple of pleasure quakes through my body, and I inhale deeply and loudly. “Dax.”

  “What do you want?” he asks as one, then two fingers slide into me.

  I can’t respond.

  “Giselle?” he says as he covers my nipple with his mouth, teasing it once again with his tongue.

  “Please,” I pant.

  He reaches for the drawer in the nightstand and pulls out a condom. “Are you sure?” he asks. I hear the package tear open, and I press my hips into him. I want this so much.

  “Yes.”

  He rolls the condom over his length, and his lips meet mine again. “I want you,” he says against my lips. I move my hands to his hips and pull him toward me so he’s at my entrance. I open my eyes and look into his as he slowly pushes into me. I gasp as his initial thrust spreads me open and he fills me.

  “Are you okay?” he asks, slowing down his motion.

  “Yes, it’s been a while,” I admit, embarrassed.

  His eyes are now filled with lust, as he realizes that he’s in recently uncharted territory. He speeds up his movement and swirls his hips against mine. Our lips collide and tongues entwine. He plunges in and out of me with purpose, each time he pulls out, he slides against my bundle of nerves and back in again. I’m shaking under him, devouring his mouth, pulling him against me tighter but releasing him each time he pulls out and sweeps over my most sensitive areas. My legs quiver, and I gasp for air. I’m burning between my legs, a good burn. A great burn. My release is building, and he sweeps and plunges one last time as I completely fall apart underneath him. Quakes of pleasure rippling through my body, and I can’t breathe. “Oh. My. God,” I pant, almost incoherently. He buries himself as deep as he can go as his body stiffens with his own release, his forehead resting against mine.

  “Holy shit,” he says, completely out of breath.

  As our breathing begins to slow, so do our coordinated movements into each other. His hips briefly rest on mine until he pulls out of me completely. He kisses me passionately before he gets up to go to the bathroom. What just happened?

  I honestly don’t remember the last time I had sex and it felt this good. All of this feels so good.

  Maybe too good.

  As he’s in the bathroom, I reach around for my bathing suit and cover-up. I’m patting the bed, looking for them, when he walks out of the bathroom. “What are you doing?” he asks, concerned.

  “Trying to find my clothes,” I say. “I should go…”

  He slides into bed next to me and pushes my clothes onto the floor. “I asked you to spend the night,” he reminds me as he wraps his arms around my waist.

  “You were serious?” I ask, surprised. My heart pounds in my chest.

  “Yes, I was serious,” he says. “All truths. No lies.”

  He pulls me against him and drapes his leg over mine. “I’ve extended my vacation until Friday, will you stay with me?” he says into my neck, kissing the tip of my collarbone.

  “Yes,” I say, without thinking. I have no idea what I’m getting myself into, but his words ring in my head.

  All truths. No lies.

  Dax

  Past

  Age 24

  “MMM, YOU SMELL GOOD,” Natalia purrs against my chest, and I wrap my arms around her tighter. “I smell like you,” I say as I kiss the top of her head. “And sex.”

  “I like that smell on you,” she says and slides out of bed. “What was so urgent that you had to leave this afternoon?” She turns the shower on and walks back to the doorway. She’s naked. And perfect. And mine.

  “Alex needed a ride to the airport,” I answer. From what I just found out from him, it’s going to be a very interesting trip. Potentially dangerous. When he finds her, if he finds her, she’s got a lot of explaining to do. I’m on the fence about whether I want to see things work out for them. They both deserve so much. But do they deserve each other?

  And, for the first time in months, I finally came clean to someone today about my relationship with Natalia, and it felt great. I admitted to Alex that she and I were together, and he didn’t seem bothered by it in the least. Now that it’s out in the open, I can finally tell her how I really feel. I’m in love with her.

  She places her han
d on her hip and tilts her head, her long hair falling over her breasts. “Is he okay?”

  I shake my head, “I don’t know. Something’s going on with Tabitha, and he went after her.” I am worried about him, which is a constant thing these days. Growing up together, I always looked out for Alex. Not that he always needed protection, but he needed to know that I had his back. I’ll always have his back.

  “Where did she go?”

  “Oregon.”

  “Wow,” Natalia looks confused. “I don’t know why he’s remained so loyal to her after all of these years. After all she’s put him through.” Natalia only knows the few things I’ve told her about Alex and Tabby, which admittedly weren’t all good things. They’ve been through a lot, and neither of their lives has been easy. In fact, they’ve both been through things that would drive the average person into a tailspin. I respect them both and love Alex like a brother. I hope he knows what he’s getting into when he finds her.

  “They’re–complicated,” I say and toss the sheet to the side.

  She turns and walks back into the bathroom. “Show me any relationship and I’ll find ways to complicate it,” she laughs. Natalia is one of a kind. Beautiful. Confident. Cunning. Yeah, she could give someone a run for his money.

  “What do you mean by that?” I ask as I follow her into the bathroom. She’s already in the shower, and I can only see her sexy silhouette through the steamed door.

  “I can find the one thing in any relationship that can tear it apart. Piece by piece.”

  “Can you?” I lean against the wall and fold my arms over my chest.

  “Of course, Dax. Everyone has flaws. I’m good at finding them, and exposing them, if I need to.” She’s the opposite of me, and I don’t like her tone.

  “So, you’re telling me that you would purposely try to destroy someone’s relationship if you knew something private or secret?”

  Her laugh echoes in the shower stall. “Of course not. What kind of person do you think I am? I’m just good at knowing where to look to uncover secrets. And lies.”

  I slip my boxer briefs off and open the shower door. “Really?” I say from behind her as I step in, and I wrap my arms around her perfect body.