Dirty Little Liars

by Missy Lynn Ryan

Another person reached in after her. “Crap, that’s cold,” he said, and Juliette looked up.

  Crap was right.

  She was standing next to the mystery man who witnessed her naked bout around the senator’s hotel suite. Could this day get any more awkward?

  His eyes grew wide when he recognized her. “What are you doing here?”

  “Me? I’m attending a political rally for class,” she lied. “Clearly I don’t have to ask what you’re doing here.” She gave a nod to the Tyler Chase sticker on his t-shirt.

  “That’s right, we weren’t properly introduced this morning.” He gave her a knowing smile as if she was supposed to be proud of the senator’s late-night conquest and her early-morning walk of shame. “I’m Winston. Senator Chase’s campaign manager.”

  Juliette frowned. He didn’t look like a Winston. And though he was dressed in dark pants and wore a Tyler Chase t-shirt over his much nicer button-down shirt, he didn’t look like any campaign manager she had ever met.

  “Is he here?” Juliette asked and then instantly felt like a moron.

  Winston smirked at her. “Of course he’s here. This is his event.”

  Crap, crap, crap. What the hell are you doing, Juliette?

  “Look, we need all the votes we can get, but I’m not sure your being here is wise.”

  “Oh, so sleeping around with young coeds is not part of Mr. Chase’s platform?”

  Winston nearly choked on his water. “No, it’s not. I’m afraid you just caught him at an off moment.”

  “Right.”

  Suddenly her mouth was a bit too dry.Juliette twisted the cap off her own bottle of water and took a swig. “You don’t have to worry. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

  Winston didn’t look convinced, but Juliette wasn’t prepared to stand there all day and reassure him.

  “I’d like to believe you, but I can’t afford to take you at your word.”

  What did he want, a signed confidentiality statement?

  Winston reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded-up envelope. Juliette’s jaw scraped the ground. “Please tell me you’re not trying to pay me off.”

  “Why? Can your silence be bought?”

  “No.”

  Winston opened the envelope. “You should sign this.”

  “Excuse me?” Did the guy really carry around confidentiality statements? How many girls could Chase have slept with that he had the legal documents on hand?

  “Relax,” he said. “Just a precaution. It basically says that you won’t speak to the press about the senator or matters of the campaign without our express permission.”

  “Why would I speak to the press?”

  He gave her a wary look.

  “Right,” she said and took the paper from him. “How about I have my lawyer look over this and get back to you?”

  Winston looked as if he wanted to argue more, but she didn’t give him the chance. Juliette turned and ran right smack into her mark.

  Courtney smiled at Winston, immediately spotting the folded envelope in his hand. “Don’t tell me you’ve got another new volunteer lined up,” she said to Winston.

  “What can I say, Tyler loves the college vote.”

  Winston gave Juliette one last look before backing off into the crowd.

  “Ignore him,” Courtney said. “He’s well on his way to joining the cynical and bitter politicians roaming the streets of D.C.”

  Courtney extended her manicured hand. “We’re glad you could make it out today.”

  “Thanks.” Juliette shook the girl’s hand. Her grip was surprisingly firm and confident.

  Something darkened on Courtney’s face. “Oh, my.” Her voice became throaty. “You seem to be missing a Chase for Change sticker…” She reached into her pocket and produced a handful of the large blue and white circles. Before Juliette could stop her, Courtney peeled away the back and placed the sticker on her chest, patting it a few times to be sure it stuck.

  “What a nice shirt,” she said. “I could swear I’ve seen one just like it.”

  Juliette shrugged, distracted as her gaze slipped over to the stage. “I borrowed it from my roommate this morning. I spilled syrup on mine at breakfast.”

  She tried to force her eyes back to Courtney but it was impossible. Tyler Chase was on the stairs of the stage, staring back at her. She couldn’t tell if he was happy or terrified to see her. Then Winston leaned over his shoulder and whispered something into his ear. The reminder of the confidentiality statement was enough to make her nauseous. She tore her eyes away from Ty and focused her attention on Courtney, who was going on about difficult stains.

  Courtney looked up on stage. “Oh it looks like we’re ready to start. Don’t forget to tell your friends to vote Chase.”

  Juliette watched as Courtney made her way to the stage, pausing to shake hands with a few supporters and volunteers as she passed by. At the foot of the steps Governor Anderson pulled her close and kissed her on the cheek. He made his way past Ty, but not before patting him on the back and wishing him luck.

  The crowd cheered as Anderson made his way to the podium, but it wasn’t the governor Juliette was interested in. Courtney climbed the remaining stairs to stand directly behind Ty. She placed both her hands on his shoulders and then gave him a chaste kiss on the cheek. Her mouth lingered near his neck as she whispered something into his ear. Most of the crowd had probably missed it, but Juliette couldn’t look away. Not with Tyler Chase staring right at her.

  Chapter 4: The Candidate Surprise

  Even after Courtney pulled away from the embrace, Juliette couldn’t take her eyes off the stage. Governor Anderson called out to Tyler. The crowd erupted into cheers. Tyler gave her one last longing look before turning to the rest of the crowd and lighting up the stage with that killer smile.

  The noise of the crowd was the perfect distraction. Without his gaze beating down on her, Juliette was once again able to think straight. And everything inside her was screaming to run now. Fast. Nothing good was going to come if she stayed here pining for Tyler Chase. And more importantly, if she wasn’t careful, she would ruin her chance at getting close to Courtney and thus winning over Covington enough to join his inner circle.

  Juliette backed away, tossing the bottle of water in the first trash bin she saw. It landed with a hard thud. She imagined whopping Tyler over the head with the same force. But the memory of those piercing eyes and sweet lips coming down on hers…

  Crap. She was so completely screwed.

  “Hey,” a voice called out to her.

  Juliette looked up. Winston was standing a few feet away. He raised his arms in a surrendering gesture when he saw the fury in her eyes. “You okay?”

  “Of course I’m okay,” Juliette spat. “I’m not some silly girl who falls to pieces because she had an unfortunate run-in with some lying, cheating dick-wad.”

  Winston took a step backward. “Hey, that dick-wad you’re referring to is a U.S. Senator. Have a little respect.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Come on. You really expect me to believe that you had no idea who he was? Didn’t you think it odd when he brought you back to a hotel room? That probably should have been your first clue.”

  “Clearly I was off my game,” Juliette snapped.

  “Right. Well don’t pin all the blame on Terrence. I doubt he expected to see you again.”

  “Did you just call him Terrence? What is that? His ‘I wanna get dirty’ code name?”

  For the first time since this morning Winston looked flustered.

  Juliette barely choked down a bitter laugh. “You aren’t just his campaign manager, are you?”

  “Tyler Chase is a good friend.” He stressed the name Tyler.

  “Yeah, well your friend is an ass.”

  He nodded, not bothering to argue.

  “Does he do this often? Sleep with random women?”

  Winston shook his head. “He’s a good man.”

  “And what about Cou
rtney? How does she fit in?”

  “Her father is important. The governor single-handedly launched Tyler’s political career. He appointed him to fill the vacant Senate seat after Senator Reis’s death. His endorsement not only gets him political cred, but generates hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions.”

  “So are you telling me that the thing with Courtney is all an act to appease her father?”

  “No.” Winston took a few steps closer. “I think they care about each other. I hope they do.” He hesitated as if doubting his next words but in the end trudged on. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but no one wins if you go public. Courtney will get hurt. Ty will lose the election. And despite what you might think about him, he’s done amazing things for the state of Virginia.”

  Jules didn’t want to agree with Winston, but she did. Nothing good could come out of spilling her secret with the world. She needed to be friends with Courtney, not sworn enemies. The only way to do that was to forget about Ty. To act as though the other night had never happened. And to start over.

  “I’ll keep his secret,” Juliette said and pulled out the confidentiality statement. She reached into her purse, took out a pen, and then scrawled her signature at the bottom without a further glance at the statement above. “You can have this back. If it makes you feel better.”

  He hesitated before taking the paper and tucking it back into his pocket. “You’re doing the right thing.”

  “Trust me. I don’t need you to tell me that.”

  Winston headed back toward the rally. Juliette leaned back against the tree and watched him go. She should leave too. There was nothing more she could do here. But she wasn’t ready to leave yet. Juliette glanced down at her shirt, Ty’s shirt, and pulled off the Chase for Change sticker. There was no point dreaming about the impossible. Tyler Chase was not hers to have. Her energies were better focused on finding the truth about her parents’ murder. And that meant doing a perfect job for Dean Covington.

  Chapter 5: Keeping Secrets

  The apartment had an empty feeling to it when Juliette arrived. Her roommate, Margaret, was on a two-month internship in New Mexico studying Native American Art on the Mescalero Apache Reservation. It was odd not having Margaret around. She had a chatty personality that always filled the place with laughter and warmth. Without her it felt like a doctor’s waiting room. Cold and sterile.

  Juliette curled up on the sofa and clicked on the TV. She had already ditched her twice-worn clothes in the hamper—where she seriously considered burning Ty’s gray shirt—and taken a nice, hot shower. Now that she was clean and wearing her baggy yoga pants and a long-sleeved tee, she felt a little less like Jules Everdeen, the strung out art history graduate with a crazy mission to befriend Governor Anderson’s daughter, and more like Juliette Morgan, the orphaned kid from Brooklyn. Then she popped in a copy of Rocky, father’s favorite movie, and her transition was complete.

  After the movie she decided to do her own research on Tyler Chase and Courtney Anderson. She needed to find a way into Courtney’s everyday life—hopefully one that didn’t involve Tyler. She pulled out her laptop and waited for the search engine to load. She had just typed in Governor Anderson’s name when her cell phone rang.

  Jules reached for the phone and scanned the caller ID. She recognized the number immediately. It was her godparents, Mimi and Jean.

  “Hello.”

  “Oh, so you do still know our number,” Mimi cooed into the phone. “I was starting to think you forgot it.”

  “Never,” she said to her godmother. “I’ve just been busy with all the post-graduation stuff.”

  “You mean all the Dean Covington stuff?”

  “What?”

  “Don’t lie to me, Juliette. I know you had your job interview with Dean Covington yesterday.”

  How could she possibly know that?

  “You know how we feel about that man. He’s no good.”

  “Yes, yes. You’ve said as much before.”

  “And yet you don’t seem to be listening.”

  Juliette sighed. “I hear you. I just don’t agree with you. And whatever you said to Covington to keep him from hiring me didn’t work.”

  Mimi went silent on the other end of the line. “What do you mean?”

  “He hired me today. I’ve already got my first assignment.”

  “Jewel.” Her godmother used her favorite nickname in that warning tone.

  “It’s okay. You don’t have to be happy for me.”

  “It’s not that. I just don’t want to see you get hurt. Dean Covington is a dangerous man.”

  “You don’t think I know that? My parents are dead because of him. And who knows how many other innocent people he’s taken down.”

  “And what do you expect to do? The man has almost as many friends as he does enemies. No one on either side of the law has been able to take him down.”

  “I’m not trying to take him down. I just want to know the truth. I deserve to know who betrayed my parents. They died doing his dirty work and I want to know why.”

  “Juliette. Let it go. You are young and alive and have the whole world at your beck and call. Don’t waste precious time chasing Dean Covington’s web of lies.”

  There was a soft rapping at her door.

  “Someone’s at the door. I have to go.” She caught Mimi’s soft ‘I love you’ just before she said goodbye. She knew her godmother was upset. Mimi couldn’t understand why Juliette wouldn’t just let it go and embrace the life she and Jean had provided for her. It wasn’t that she didn’t love them like parents, or didn’t appreciate everything they did. She was lucky she had two amazing people to take her in. She just couldn’t live with the fact that her parents were dead and a guy like Dean Covington was not.

  Juliette pulled herself up from the couch and shuffled over to the door, still wrapped in the checkered throw from the couch. There was a chill in the air she hadn’t noticed earlier and she didn’t want to let go of the warmth of the blanket.

  She pulled open the door without thinking and stared into the hallway at Tyler Chase. Ugh, she should have checked the peephole. At least then she would have been prepared for what awaited her.

  “Hey, Jules.”

  Of all the questions she could have asked the one that surfaced to the top would have made Jean and Mimi proud. “How the hell did you get my address?”

  Ty grinned and stretched all six feet of his long, lean figure across the door frame. He tilted his head to the side. “I have super powers.”

  She wanted to roll her eyes and laugh, but had a feeling that would only encourage further misbehavior. And she didn’t want Ty to think it was okay that he just showed up at her apartment. Normal people don’t do that kind of thing. Stalkers maybe. Or crooks. Or politicians who wanted to hide any evidence of a sex scandal.

  Focus, Juliette. A strange man just showed up at your door.

  “I’m serious,” Juliette tried again. “How did you get my address?”

  Tyler gave a shrug. “Winston.”

  Juliette threw her hands into the air. “Who is that guy? And don’t tell me he’s your campaign manager.”

  “Is that what he told you?”

  “Yes. But I don’t believe him. Nor do I believe that his real name is Winston.”

  “Why, because he’s Korean? He was born and raised in Beverly Hills. He’s lucky his name is not Apple.”

  L.A., huh? That explained his impeccable fashion sense. She wondered if this Boy Wonder also dressed his supposed boss. There’s no way Ty picked out the dark jeans and blazer he was now sporting. Absolutely no way.

  “Is he gay?” Juliette asked without thinking.

  “Not everyone in L.A. is gay.”

  Juliette sighed. “That’s not what I meant. I’m not homophobic or anything. I just noticed he has amazing fashion sense.”

  Ty rubbed his hands over the front of his jeans. “Yeah, he taught me everything he knows.”

  “
I hope not everything.” Juliette couldn’t help herself.

  “Ahh, so you did have a good time last night.”

  The image of the two of them together in his hotel suite, him pressed up against her in a hallway very much like the one they were standing in now, was too much to bear. She wasn’t supposed to be standing here, flirting with him. He is a U.S senator. With a girlfriend.

  “I think you should leave now.”

  Ty frowned at the abrupt transition. “I’d rather come in.”

  “Never going to happen.”

  “I just want a chance to explain what happened this morning, with Courtney.”

  The name slammed into her like a defensive lineman. She cringed at the thought of what Courtney might think if she learned the truth about Juliette and Ty.

  “There’s nothing to talk about. You’re dating Courtney. She seems nice. You should spend more time visiting her and less time here with me.”

  “It’s not like that.”

  “I don’t care,” Juliette snapped. “What happened last night was a one-time thing. I was having an off day and needed a distraction to cheer me up. Now I’m better and I can take it from here, thank you very much.”

  She didn’t wait for Ty to say more. She simply stepped backward and closed the door. After it clicked shut she leaned against the cold metal and listened for Ty’s footsteps on the other side. Was he still there, or had he taken the hint and left? How long did she have to wait before she could check?

  No, she told herself. There will be no checking. She had more important things to do and hooking up with a U.S. senator was not one of them.

  Chapter 6: The Keating Five

  Juliette studied her mark at a distance for two whole days before making her next move. Courtney, it seemed, was like fire and ice all rolled up into one. If there was something she wanted, she generally got it. And she wasn’t shy about making her opinions known. What worried Juliette more was Courtney’s WASP-like demeanor. The girl lived her life like a giant chess match, always thinking three steps ahead. She stockpiled political ammo like others collected baseball cards and waited undeterred for the most opportune time to make her move. It was how she dethroned her undergrad class president and how she managed to secure the position as editor of the law review. Courtney wasn’t smarter than those in her law school class, she was just more devious.