Simple Lies

by Amanda Bennett

  “My mom hates her, you know that? Oh and Dad, yeah well that guy, he says…you know.” I knew he was wasted and not making much sense, but I felt as though I needed to know more.

  “No Ryan, I don’t know. You wanna tell me?” I looked over at Ryan in all his pale-faced glory, and almost started laughing hysterically.

  “Yeah well…he likes everybody, but he not likes me. He says if I want job, well then…promotion for engagement.” His words were jumbled, but I heard exactly what he was trying to say.

  I was astounded by what I was hearing, but a part of me knew how my aunt and uncle were. They always wanted the best for their son, and would literally stop at nothing to make sure that’s what they got. Unfortunately for Hadley, she wasn’t what they thought was best for their son. I wasn’t sure what I should do with my new found information, but I knew I wanted to tell Hadley, but a part of me knew that it would crush her, and I wasn’t willing to be the guy who did that to her.

  We pulled into my aunt and uncle’s driveway just a few minutes later, and before I could even get Ryan out of the car, he was puking out the door and into his mother’s rose bushes. Well…we were definitely going to hear shit for that tomorrow. I got out of the car and walked over to Ryan’s side, when I heard the gate open on the side of the house. I shook my head knowing that we were most likely about to get our asses chewed, but to my surprise, it was Hadley who came walking out.

  “Oh my god…how much did you two drink? And what are you doing driving home drunk?”

  I shook my head as a small laugh escaped my throat. “First off, I don’t drink and drive. I had my last drink awhile ago. This guy over here though, well he decided to drink the entire bar…and then some.” I glanced over at Ryan to make sure he was still standing, and when I saw that he was, I went back to talking to Hadley. “What are you still doing up? Y’all left hours ago.”

  “Good to know that someone noticed.” She muttered it under her breath, but I caught it. “I can’t sleep. It’s been a long day to say the least.”

  “I’m sorry.” I found myself inching closer to Hadley as Ryan continued to puke, and I didn’t feel an ounce bad about it. He deserved everything he was going through at the moment. “So…I finally know your name. How are ya feeling about that?” I laughed.

  “I’m okay with it…I guess.” She laughed along with me, and it was the best sound I’d ever heard. Everything about her made me want to be near her.

  I was just about to tell Hadley more than she wanted to know about me, I’m sure, but that’s when Ryan noticed that she was there. “Oooooh Babe, what are my doing outside?” His words were coming out even worse than before.

  “I should probably get him inside. I’ll see you in the morning.” I wrapped one of Ryan’s arms around my shoulders, but looked over at his other side confused when Hadley grabbed the other. “What are you doing? I can do this.”

  “I know, but I want to help.”

  We walked Ryan inside in silence, and I was thankful that he passed out before we even reached the other side of the house. Luckily, his parent’s room was on the opposite end. A bonus for being rich, I suppose. Once we plopped Ryan onto his childhood bed, we made quick work of getting his shoes and socks off. I threw a blanket over him, and then held my finger up to my mouth, telling Hadley to be quiet as we snuck out of his room. I quietly closed the door behind us, and then wrapped my hand around Hadley’s. I pulled her down the hall, and out the back doors, stopping as we reached the second porch before the guest house.

  Hadley kept walking until I gently tugged on her arm, stopping her in her tracks. There were so many things I wanted to ask her, but I was coming up empty. When I looked up at her, her eyes were glossed over, and shimmering under the pale moonlight. I stood there mesmerized by her…all of her. And as much as I wanted to be that guy for her, right here, in this moment, I knew she already had one. But that didn’t stop me from comforting an emotional woman who most definitely needed it.

  I slowly pulled her towards me, reaching out to swipe away a stray tear that had began rolling down her cheek. Electricity shot through me as my finger made contact with her soft delicate skin, causing her to lean into my touch as her eyes fluttered shut. I took in a deep strangled breath then wrapped her in my arms. She fit perfectly against my body, and I couldn’t help but smile. Although it was wrong for me to be holding her so intimately where anybody could see, to me…it felt just right. Her body shook as she began to sob uncontrollably into my shirt. I wanted to say something, anything to comfort her, but really what could I say?

  Don’t worry, it’ll get better? Don’t worry, he’s actually a really great guy? He loves you so much and it would tear him apart if he saw you crying right now?

  I couldn’t say any of those things, because they were all bullshit. So I stayed quiet, and held onto her as she let out every emotion she was feeling, through her tear ducts. My hand was sliding down her hair to better comfort her, and from what I could tell, she was starting to ease up on her vise grip that she had on my forearm. I stood there trying to be what she needed, a friend, but her intense close proximity to me, was causing things to happen down south. I could feel my want for her grow to exponential proportions, and I knew that at any given moment, she would push me back in disgust.

  I loosened my hold on her just a touch, and that’s when she took it upon herself to wrap her arms tightly around my waist. “Thank you for this, Declan. You have no idea what this means to me.” She said it so quietly that I almost didn’t hear.

  I pushed back on her shoulders a bit, so I could see her face, and then I kissed her. I kissed her hard, and so intense that she would never forget it. Unfortunately, that wasn’t exactly what she wanted, because seconds later…she was slapping the shit out of me.

  “I should’ve known. You know, Ryan was right about everything he ever told me about you. You’re just a womanizing asshole, who takes advantage of anything vulnerable. Good night, Declan.”

  Before I could react, she was gone, disappearing into the dark night and into the guesthouse. Looks like I was crashing in the guest room where she was supposed to sleep. When I got into the spare room, that just so happened to look out onto the guesthouse, I threw myself on the bed, contemplating so many different things. I let out a loud aggravated sigh as her last words crashed into me like a rogue wave. If she only knew the truth.

  NINETEEN

  Hadley

  As soon as I was safely locked behind the door to the guesthouse, I sunk down to the floor with a wide smile. My adrenaline began to flow through my veins, intensifying every single emotion inside of me. I wanted to laugh and I wanted cry, all in one breath. How is it possible that one man can infuriate me one second, but then be so loving the next? When I finally opened my teary eyes, there was only one person I could see and that I wanted to be there for me…PJ.

  I pushed myself up from the ground, and ran into PJ’s waiting arms. She hugged me so tight that I almost lost my breath. “Ca…n’t…b…re…athe.” I croaked out.

  PJ quickly pushed back from me, “I’m so sorry hun. Are you okay?” I nodded, and she took that as her cue to finish her interrogation. “What happened? What did he say? Wait, what did Ryan say?”

  I held up my hand to silence her. “Oh my gosh, PJ. Can you please just give me a second?” I gave her a pleading look.

  “Sorry.” She whispered.

  “No, it’s fine. It’s just so much to process right now. Is there any ice cream in the freezer, by chance?” I looked past PJ, into the kitchen at the freezer.

  “I don’t know, but we should definitely check.” She laughed.

  After finding a gallon of Rocky Road, perfectly named I might add, we took a seat out on the super soft plush couch. I swear their guesthouse could be a normal sized house for everybody else, and although I thought that their houses and everything else they own were far too extravagant, it was amazingly nice to be so close to the ocean. I could hear the waves crashing against the almo
st white sand, and a thought popped into my head.

  “Hey, so…you wanna sleep on the beach tonight?” I smiled.

  “Hell yeah, I do.”

  “Alright, go change into your pajamas and don’t forget a sweater. I’ll grab the blankets.”

  We both went in opposite directions of the house. The guesthouse was only a four bedroom house, but it was gorgeous. There was one main staircase that went up, but then separated into two different ones that lead to either end of the house. There were two bedrooms and a bathroom on one side, and the same on the other side, and neither met in between. It was like something out of a movie. I hurried and changed into a cute pair of matching shorts and a cami, then I grabbed my thick knee length sweater, and headed downstairs with four blankets. Given the fact that it was almost Thanksgiving, it was bound to be downright freezing tonight.

  I stood at the bottom of the stairs patiently waiting for PJ to hurry her skinny ass up. When she finally came barreling down the stairs, she was wearing the most appropriate outfit I have ever seen her wear to date. She had on pink and black checkered flannel pants and the matching long sleeve button down top. Her red hair was up in a neat little bun, and I could tell that she had removed her makeup, but she still looked absolutely gorgeous. It was so unfair to the rest of us commoners.

  We quietly snuck out the side door of the house, and walked the whole fifty feet it took to get to the sand. As I glanced out on the serene ocean lit by the moonlight, I couldn’t help but wonder how amazing it would have been to grow up here, with the ocean at my constant disposal. It was nights like these that made me miss Ellie that much more. As I fluffed out the blankets on the sand, I caught a glimpse of a black silhouette headed in our direction. Given the fact that this was a private beach, I was a lot less worried than I would’ve been any other time. So as I went back to making a makeshift bed out of the blankets, I suddenly heard PJ’s voice, but she wasn’t speaking to me.

  I turned, just in time to see Declan strutting up the beach next to PJ. I gave him a full on look of disgust, then went back to my work. I could faintly hear their voices, but couldn’t make out anything they were saying. I could feel the jealousy raging through my veins as PJ’s laugh echoed in the cool night air. I mean seriously? If they were going to flirt with one another, couldn’t they have enough respect for me, and take it elsewhere? As the minutes ticked by I got more infuriated, and then I finally snapped.

  “If you two are going to keep flirting with each other, could you please take it somewhere else? I would like to get some sort of sleep tonight.” And put this night behind me. I said the last part under my breath, but I’m pretty sure they got the hint, because seconds later, Declan was heading back up to the main house.

  “What is wrong with you?” PJ playfully nudged my ribs, but it wasn’t amusing me. “You can’t expect him to just sit on the sidelines, while you run off and get married to his cousin.”

  I turned to face PJ, livid. “I don’t need your shit, Pamela-Jo. You think I don’t know that? I’m very well aware that I am engaged to his cousin. I should’ve known this is what you would do. You always have to be the one who gets the guy, or goes after the guy when I turn them away. You’re such a…”

  “Go ahead Hadley, finish that sentence. I dare you.” She growled through gritted teeth, and I knew right then, that I had just crossed a line. A line I apparently couldn’t take back, because PJ was already walking back towards the house.

  “PJ, wait!” I half-shouted, but she just kept walking, and then disappeared inside.

  I kicked the sand with my bare foot, and then plopped myself down on the blankets, wrapping my sweater tightly around me as I stared out across the vast ocean. How could I have treated PJ so badly? She was my only friend who actually cared about me. And why should I care if her and Declan are flirting, or hooking up? It was selfish of me to not want him to be with anybody else. I was with Ryan, and nothing was going to change that.

  Before too long, I was laying down, barely able to keep my eyes open, and then I fell into a very deep sleep. I was hoping I wouldn’t dream tonight, only because I knew how it would go, but I wasn’t that lucky. As soon as my eyes gave in, I instantly appeared in a beautiful lace wedding gown as I stood in front of everyone we knew, and even some we didn’t. As I started walking down the aisle, everyone started to disappear one by one, until I reached the altar, and the only person left…was Declan. He looked more handsome than I could ever imagine him looking, and he had a smile a mile wide spread across his face.

  I mirrored his smile as the preacher started to speak. He talked about true love, and how to treat one another, and then he looked at the two of us to say our vows. I tried to listen as I spoke, but I couldn’t hear a single thing I was saying, and before I knew it, he was moving on to Declan. He reached out for my hands, cradling them in his as he looked directly into my misty eyes. Every word he spoke pulled at my heart strings. He talked about how he always knew we would end up together, and as he continued his vows, I glanced out at what would be the crowd of people attending our wedding, but only one person was sitting…Ryan. He looked extremely pissed, and then he stood and lunged for Declan, causing a loud crashing sound.

  A crashing sound that instantly woke me, and had me sitting straight up. I glanced around the beach, but nobody was around. The waves crashing had to have been what woke me up. The sun was just coming up over the horizon, and as much as I needed a cup of coffee, I didn’t need to go inside. I pulled my knees up to my chest, wrapping my sweater around them as I watched nature in all its beauty, but then I heard a noise come from behind me.

  I quickly turned, and there he stood. He looked impossibly sexy with his bed head hair sticking up in every direction, and his eyes seemed to dance as he looked over at me. Before I could react or say anything that could ruin the moment, he held out a large black coffee mug for me to take.

  “Three sugars, one cream?” Even his voice was sexy in the morning.

  “How did you know?”

  “Let’s just say a little birdie told me.” He winked as he took a seat on the rock next to where I was sitting.

  “Well…thank you.” I whispered into my cup as I took a sip. I half expected him to say something else, but he just sat next to me in silence as we watched the sun continue to rise on a new day.

  TWENTY

  Declan

  I tossed and turned all night long, as thoughts of Hadley plagued my mind. Everything about her had me hot and bothered, from the way she looked in her amazing white lace dress last night, to the way her lips formed a pout as she let jealousy take over her emotions at the bar. When she said she wanted to help with Ryan’s drunk ass last night, I tried not to read too much into it. For all I knew, she honestly just wanted to make sure he got to bed okay. It was amazing how she affected me, and almost every thing I do. But she wasn’t mine, and that was something I was going to have to learn to live with.

  After realizing that sleep was the last thing I was going to get, I drug my exhausted body out of bed and downstairs to the kitchen. Sure it was only like five o’clock in the morning or some other ungodly hour, but I was wide awake and wouldn’t be going to sleep anytime soon. I walked straight for the coffee maker, glancing out at the amazingly beautiful ocean turning every shade of red and orange as the sun rose above it, and then I noticed her. She was sitting on a pile of blankets with her arms wrapped tightly around her knees, and she looked impossibly perfect as the rays of the sun coming up above the horizon hit her face.

  I glanced down momentarily to check how much coffee had brewed, relieved that it was enough for two cups. I quickly poured myself a large mug of black coffee, and then I poured hers, remembering to add just the right amount of sugar and cream. Ryan had mentioned it sometime back, but for some reason, it stuck in my mind. I grabbed my hoodie that was hanging on the back of one of the chairs in the kitchen and quickly slipped it on. I zipped it all the way up, gathered the two cups of coffee, and made my way out back.


  The minute I opened the door, the crisp morning air blew against my warm skin, sending a chill down my spine. I had forgotten over the years just how cold it got out here in the winter time. She didn’t make a move as I made my way towards her, and I was almost certain that she didn’t hear me coming, until I was right behind her. When she turned and looked at me, I lost my breath and was literally at a loss for words. So I silently handed her, her coffee, and then stood there sipping on mine, as though she wasn’t my reason for coming outside when I did.

  After a quick exchange of words, I took a seat on the rock to the left of her. We both sat there staring at the amazingly beautiful sunrise in silence. Of course my gaze was fixed on her more than anything, but I tried to pretend as well as I could to focus on the ocean and the sun. My mind began to wander to thoughts of her and I sitting out here on a daily basis, enjoying the sunrise as we drank our coffee before we both started our day. It was a ridiculous thought I know, but it was one that made my heart feel full for the first time in what felt like forever.

  I wasn’t going to start a conversation with her, but I couldn’t help myself. When I was with her, I wanted to talk about everything. I took a sip of my coffee while I tried to muster up the courage to talk to her. Man when did I become such a pussy? And as if we were both fighting with our inner thoughts, we both spoke at the same time.

  “So…” We both began to laugh, and the sound of her voice put my nerves at ease. “You go first.” I half-whispered as I took another sip of my coffee to keep myself occupied.

  “So, PJ huh?”

  I turned to look at her in shock, but then I remembered mine and PJ’s devious plan to see if we could make Hadley jealous. “It’s not like that.” I muttered.