Liar Liar

by L A Cotton

  “You coulda weft me with Mellie.”

  “Nah, I wanted my E fix. Besides”—he leaned over the table—“Mellie smells like …”

  “Vegitables.”

  “That’s right, buddy.”

  We laughed. It felt good to be here with Evan and Eli, doing something so simple. And although I was still pissed at the way he’d ignored me earlier at school, I couldn’t shut off the spark of hope that maybe him being here meant something. That even though he had a strange way of showing it—he did care.

  “Can Becca come with us?”

  Evan’s mouth bobbed open, and he rubbed a hand over the back of his neck as if he didn’t know what to say. So I saved him the trouble. “I have to work, buddy.”

  “Ohhw.” He pouted. He looked so much like Evan; he was going to be a real heartbreaker when he was older.

  “What time do you get off?”

  “Seven thirty.” I checked my watch. “Another forty-five minutes.”

  “What do you think, E? Should we hang around for Becca to get off work?”

  The kid cheered so loud my cheeks flushed, and Cindy chuckled, being real discreet at not watching us like a hawk. Evan shifted uncomfortably, clearing his throat. “If you want to come with us, it’s this stupid tradition we have on game nights. I mean you don’t have to—”

  “I’d love to.”

  We walked in comfortable silence. Well, it wasn't really silent since Eli kept us entertained with his toddler ramblings. His excitement grew as we reached a small park down the street from the diner. Evan dropped the backpack he'd been carrying, and Eli rushed to open it, retrieving a football.

  “Go long, E.” Evan drew back his arm as Eli raced to the end of the small patch of grass. He pitched it forward, and the ball went flying through the air. Eli's eyes widened, tracking the ball, and he extended his hands out.

  “That's it, buddy. You've got—”

  Eli jumped, and for a second, it looked like he'd made the catch. But the ball rebounded off his hands and crashed to the ground beside him. “Aww, that sucks.”

  “There's always next time. Bring it in, team.”

  Eli wasted no time picking up the ball and running toward us. “Becca, it's your turn,” he said, thrusting the ball at me.

  “Oh, hmm, I don't think I can—”

  “I'll help you.” Evan's smooth voice wrapped around me like silk, and I nodded. “Okay.”

  “Yay. I'll catch again.” Eli started running off, and Evan stepped up to me. “You need to make a strong arm and pull back to give you the power for the throw.”

  He stepped up behind me and demonstrated, bending my arm into the right position all while I gripped the ball tightly. The memories of his body covering mine, his lips dancing over my skin, made it difficult to concentrate. As if he could hear my thoughts he dipped his head to the crook of my neck and whispered, “I'm sorry.”

  My body melted back into him as he wrapped an arm around my waist, his lips touching my warm skin.

  “Becca, I'm waiting,” Eli shouted, waving his hands in the air.

  Evan groaned against my neck, muttering something about kids and their perfect timing under his breath. I smiled, laughing quietly. “Okay, buddy, ready?”

  I stepped out of Evan's hold and launched the ball toward Eli. He zigzagged a couple of times, and for a second it looked like he’d missed the catch, but the ball landed in his hands. “I did it! I did it! Ev, did you see; did you see?”

  “I saw. You were awesome, buddy.”

  Eli bounded toward us. “Becca too, she made the bestest throw.” Evan leaned down and held out his arms, but Eli ran straight to me, wrapping his small arms around me. “You were awesome, Becca.”

  “I think someone has a crush,” Evan's voice drifted over to me, and I peeked up at him, surprised by the emotion I saw in his eyes. “Come on, time for bed.”

  “Aww, but I don't wanna. Will you come, Becca? Pweaaase.”

  I looked at Evan for an answer, and he nodded.

  “Sure thing, but when Evan says it’s bedtime, it's bedtime, okay?”

  Fist pumping the air, he squealed with delight and grabbed my hand, pulling me out of the park.

  “Thanks.” I opened the can of soda and spun the stool to face Evan. “He's a handful.”

  “He's great.”

  “Do you look after him a lot?”

  Evan dropped his eyes to his beer as he shrugged. “I guess. Mom is ...” He hesitated, and I felt his walls slide back into place, shutting me out.

  “It's okay; you don't have to tell me.”

  “I know.” He craned his head to the side. “I want to. It's just hard, you know.”

  Without thinking, I reached out and closed my hand over his. Evan tensed, and I waited for him to pull away, but he didn't. He spun his own stool and stood, stepping between my legs. “Mom works the 7-Eleven on the edge of town when she's sober enough to drag herself out of bed.” Pain shone in his eyes, and I gulped, choking down my shock. “After Dad left, she ... she didn't take it so well. Eli was just a baby.”

  “I'm sorry.”

  “Yeah, me too.” Evan dropped his chin to my head and clasped his arms around my waist, and heavy silence enveloped us.

  That little insight into his life explained so much. Evan carried the weight of the world on his shoulders—he had a kid brother to look after and a drunk Mom to worry about. I suddenly felt selfish for making it all about me when really he had every right to keep me at arm's length.

  “What will you do?”

  He pulled back and stared down at me. “I have no fucking idea. The school counselor said my grades are good enough for college, but I'd need a scholarship. Besides, I can't leave Eli. He's four. He doesn't understand why some days Mom can't even get out of bed. Or how sometimes she's as high as a kite and leaving him to go party.”

  He brought a hand to his face and scrubbed his jaw. “I'm all he's got. How can I ever leave?”

  “I—” I wanted to say something to make it better, but there was nothing. I wanted to take away some of his pain, but the sting of rejection still lingered. So I waited. Waited for Evan to make his decision. I was here. Right now.

  All he had to do was ask.

  The air around us changed, electrified with anticipation. The seconds ticked by painfully slow. I could sense Evan's torment. It was always the same—he didn't want to let me in, not really, but a part of me hoped that this time he would.

  I needed him too.

  “What are you thinking?” I finally broke the silence, unable to bear it any longer.

  He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple pressing against his throat. “How much I want to forget. Mom. Eli. School. The future. Sometimes, I just want it to escape it all.”

  My hand had moved to the hem of his t-shirt resting low on his stomach, and my fingers trembled as they curled into the material. I looked up at him as I slid my hand underneath and smoothed it over his solid stomach. His eyes shuttered, and he sucked in a sharp breath.

  What was I doing? If he rejected me again, I wasn't sure I'd survive. But he had opened up tonight, given me a piece of himself, and I wanted to comfort him. I wanted to make him forget.

  I wanted to forget with him.

  “Becca.” I was almost certain it was a warning, his attempt to stop things before they went too far, but I only heard the quiet plea lingering in his voice. Gliding my hand further up until it rested over his galloping heart, I whispered, “I want to forget too.”

  Evan's hands tightened around me. “C'mon.” He led me to his bedroom, closing the door behind us. Light streamed in through the blinds from the street lamp outside, casting shadows over us as we stood in darkness. “Do you need to call your mom?”

  “I texted her. She knows I'm safe.” My voice quivered. She thought I was at Lilly's.

  “Are you nervous?” His eyes darkened, and I swallowed hard, shaking my head from side to side.

  I wasn’t nervous being here with Evan, but I
was nervous about what was going to happen. Every cell in my body hummed, trying to remind me of the lurking danger. But Evan wasn’t him. Evan would never hurt me. I didn’t know how I knew it, but I did.

  He stalked toward me, and then he was kissing me, his hands buried in my diner-scented hair. Our tongues danced, teasing and licking, and before I had time to think about it, Evan pushed me down on the bed, covering my body with his. “You drive me insane,” he whispered against my lips.

  It was on the tip of my tongue to ask why he ignored me today, but one of his hands skated down my body, finding the sliver of skin between my candy-pink shirt and pants, and my head rolled back. “Evan,” I moaned as he stroked my stomach.

  “Shh.” He eased off me, moving to lie beside me. “I've got you.” His hands inched my pants down, gliding between my legs. A shiver worked its way through my body as Evan kissed me deeper. His fingers hooked into my panties, and he dipped one inside me. I gasped, curling my hand into the sheet, and he pulled back. “Is this okay?”

  Dragging my lip between my teeth, I nodded, and his lips curved into a playful smirk. Evan covered my mouth again, pressing his finger deeper. The hand between us reached for him, feeling the outline of his hardness. A deep groan worked its way up his throat as I kneaded him through his jeans.

  “Wait,” he rasped, and my heart stopped. Not again. My eyes shuttered, waiting for him to change his mind. “Becca.” His nose brushed across the tip of mine. “Let me take care of you first.”

  Oh, my. I peeked an eye open. Evan watched me, fire burning in his gaze. His finger slid in and out, and when he pressed another inside, I bucked off the bed. He chuckled, kissing me again, working me faster and rolling his thumb over the sensitive bud of nerves.

  “Oh, god,” I panted, waves of pleasure rolling through me, pushing me to the brink.

  “Come for me, Becca.” His words were my undoing, and Evan swallowed my cries as I crashed over the edge.

  Tucking me into him, Evan wrapped his arm around my waist while my heart calmed. He pressed a kiss to my neck, and we lay there in silence. I felt different. Content.

  But it wasn't enough.

  I wanted more. Needed more. I needed to know that this was real. That it wasn’t a game or some sick attempt to break me. I needed to know that Evan felt the same, that he wanted me the way I wanted him because I wanted to cling to the feelings he evoked in me and never let them go. It was scary and intense and confusing, but Evan had stoked a fire that refused to extinguish.

  Turning in his arms, I looped my arm around his neck and kissed him while dropping my other hand to his jeans. He didn't stop me when I popped the button. Or when I reached inside and grasped him in my hand. He didn't say no when I started pumping him in rhythm with our kisses. And it occurred to me that maybe Evan needed this as much as I did—he just didn't give in to his emotions as easily as I did.

  “Fuck, Becca,” he rasped as I stroked him up and down, relishing the power of making him feel. But it didn't last long. Evan's fingers slipped inside me again, and I was lost.

  “What time is it?” I nudged Evan’s arm with my nose, and his arm tightened around me.

  “Past ten.”

  “I should go.” I started to wriggle free, but he caught me, pulling me down onto him.

  “Not yet.” His tongue traced the seam of my mouth, and I parted my lips, granting him access. Like I had a choice in the matter. My body seemed to do whatever the hell it wanted where Evan was concerned. The kiss was slow, different from the ones earlier. It felt more intimate somehow.

  “Mom will be wondering where I am.”

  “You’re eighteen, Becca.” He laughed huskily, and I pressed my hands to his chest, pushing him away.

  “She worries.”

  Amused eyes sparkled back at me, but I didn’t say anything else. That was a slippery slope to things I had no intention of sharing anytime soon. If ever.

  “I’d drive you home, but Eli—”

  “It’s fine. I can call a cab.” I had my tips from the diner.

  Yanking on my pants, I blushed, feeling Evan’s gaze on my bare legs. Our eyes connected and heat pooled low in my stomach again, but I had to get home. Evan climbed off the bed and pulled on his jeans, leaving his t-shirt in a puddle on the floor. My eyes traced the dips and planes of his tanned stomach, and my mouth dried, the memories of how it had felt feeling him lose control flooding my mind.

  “Well, I guess I should go.”

  Why was this so awkward?

  Evan let out a quiet laugh. “I’m not going to make you wait on the street. C’mon, I’ll get you a soda while we wait.” He walked past me, taking my hand in his. I followed, my stomach flip-flopping with a toxic mix of excitement at tonight and nerves at things to come. Would he go back to ignoring me tomorrow? What would I do if he did?

  I hopped up onto the stool while he called a cab. When he hung up, Evan got two cans of soda from the refrigerator. “Here.”

  “So what happens now?” My eyes remained on the can.

  “Becca.” He was close. I could feel him. “Look at me.”

  My head lifted, and Evan was right in front of me, his eyes clouded with something I didn’t want to see. “Tonight was …” He dragged a hand over his face. “I think Eli has his first crush.” Amusement creased his eyes.

  “You said that already,” I replied, my heart thumping against my chest.

  “I did, huh?” A smile played on his lips, but it did little to ease the doubt rushing through me, and I nodded stiffly. “I want to see you again …” Evan’s voice trailed off, and a hollow feeling carved through my stomach.

  “But?”

  “But I don’t really like people knowing my business.”

  “You don’t want people to know about us?” I flinched, hating that I’d even suggested there was an ‘us’ because from what he had just said, it sounded like there wasn’t.

  “It’s not that. Shit, this is coming out all wrong.”

  I stood up and forced a smile. “Don’t worry about it, I get it.” You don’t want people to know that something happened between us.

  He pulled me to him and sighed, dropping a kiss on my head. “Okay, good. It’s just easier this way.”

  It was? So why did it hurt so much?

  Car headlights bounced off the wall. “There’s my cab. I guess I’d better go.”

  “Good night, Becca.”

  “Night, Evan.”

  “Becca?”

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “It’s late, baby. I thought you were just stopping by Lilly’s for an hour?”

  “You know how it is, Mom. We got talking.”

  Her head appeared around the door. “She’s okay?”

  “Lilly? She’s fine. She says hi.” I forced a smile.

  “I like her. She seems grounded.”

  “She is. Is everything okay? You’re acting a little strange.”

  “Can’t a mother be concerned about her only daughter?” Her voice was light, but I saw the worry glistening in her eyes. “I thought that maybe you were with a guy?”

  “A guy? Whoa, slow down. How did we end up from how’s Lilly to me being with a guy?”

  Mom's eyes narrowed, and the guilt coiled around my heart, squeezing tighter. “You’re beautiful, and you just started a new school. Guys must notice you, baby. I just don’t think—”

  “Mom,” I said firmly. “I was at Lilly’s.”

  “I know, I’m sorry. I’m acting crazy. Your father is working late again.”

  There it was. The real reason for her strange mood.

  “Nothing changes. You know how he gets when he gets his teeth into a case.”

  Her shoulders dropped. “I know. I just thought … ah, listen to me. Never mind. It’s late, and you have school tomorrow. You should head up.”

  “I need to get out of this uniform and take a shower first.”

  “Night, baby.”

  “Night, Mom.”

  As I climbed th
e stairs to my room, the guilt of lying to Mom weighed heavy in my chest. There’d been a time we talked about everything. School, girl talk, guys. But that all changed when I met him—my illicit secret.

  Until he wasn’t.

  Mom and I never talked about him—it was as if he didn’t exist. I figured it made it easier for her to pretend I hadn’t made a fool of myself. That I hadn’t almost dragged the Torrence name through the mud fraternizing with the neighbor’s pool guy. During the move to Credence, she had suggested that I focus on school, college … my future. She hadn’t said the words, but I’d read between the lines; she thought it would be better—safer—if I didn’t get involved with anyone. If Mom knew about Evan, she would freak. If she knew about Kendall and her campaign to drive me out of Credence High, she would completely lose it. Really, telling the odd white lie here and there was the lesser of two evils.

  Entering my room, I dropped my bag on the bed, replaying the night over and over in my head. I was more confused than ever. Evan had finally let me in only to push me back out. Did he want to be friends with benefits? Was that it? Was I the girl he decided could itch a scratch whenever he needed? It hadn’t felt like that—it had felt … more. So much more. The urgency in his touch, his kiss, I’d felt it, yet he didn’t want to go public either. But then, did I?

  My cell phone bleeped, and I dug around in my bag for it until my fingers grazed the titanium.

  Thank you for tonight. Eli and I had a great time.

  Evan???

  Yeah, I hope you don’t mind. I added my number when you weren’t looking.

  Okay, I guess.

  Night, Becca.

  Night, Evan.

  The locker door swung open, and a folded white square of paper fluttered out. My heart sank. It'd been at least a week since I found a note. I knew it had to be Kendall or one of her minions, but when I smoothed out the paper, my eyes almost bugged out of my head.

  I glanced around, heart in my mouth. It could only be Kendall. Some sick attempt to scare me. Annoyed she couldn't run me out of school with her vicious rumors, she was trying a different approach. But something about this felt different. More calculated.