Bury Me with Lies (Twin Lies Duet Book 2)

by S. M. Soto

  Clutching the knife to my chest, I shut her door. Sliding down the wood, I rest my phone in my lap, my eyes trained on the cameras on the porch. I stay like this until day breaks. Once the sun starts to creep over the horizon, lighting up the room, I finally let myself doze off until I need to take Ava to school.

  I’m jumpy and groggy the entire day. I try to make sense of what happened last night in the rational light of day, but I can’t. I don’t know why anyone would do that. I consider asking the neighbors if they had anything similar happen to them last night, but when I ring the doorbells, no one’s home. I tell myself it’s nothing. It’s a prank by rich kids. Doorbell ditching. Completely harmless. All they did was ring the doorbell and leave. It’s not exactly dangerous.

  That night I’m running a little behind schedule as I get Ava into bed. The events of last night have messed with me so much, I’ve been running on fumes all day. I burned my hand while cooking dinner because my mind was elsewhere.

  Today has been an absolute wreck, but as I climb into bed next to Ava, I finally relax after a day that’s been filled with anxiety.

  “Does it hurt?” Ava asks as she lifts my hand that I wrapped earlier after I burned it.

  “It stings a bit, but I’ll be okay. Getting sleepy yet?”

  She shakes her head, and just as I’m about to respond, the doorbell rings. My entire body tenses. I feel the color drain from my face. Ava’s brows pull down.

  “Who’s that?”

  Fear vibrates through my veins as I climb out of her bed and unlock my phone, opening the app. My chest squeezes in a vise when there’s no one there again. The hairs at the back of my neck stand at attention. My throat dries, and I school my features, keeping the fear off my face.

  “I don’t know. You stay right here, okay? Yell if you need me. I’m going to go check.”

  With my heart thumping wildly in my chest, I hurry down the hall and run into the kitchen, my sweaty palm closing around the same knife from last night. I dart my gaze around, once again, waiting for another ring, but it never comes.

  I grab a hand towel from the hall closet to shield the knife before I go back into Ava’s room. She’s sitting up in her bed when I walk in, confusion written all over her face.

  “Did you answer it?”

  I force a shaky smile, placing the knife on her dresser before I climb back into bed with her. I pull her against me, wrapping my arms around her protectively.

  “It was the wrong house, baby. Why don’t you try going to sleep, yeah?”

  She shakes her head. “But I’m not tired yet.”

  I let her watch TV for a little while longer. Unlike all our other nights before, my eyes are glued to the screen of my phone, waiting for something else to happen, but it doesn’t.

  That night, I fall asleep next to Ava, and the next morning, after dropping her off at school, I go over the footage from the entire night. I fell asleep around midnight, waiting around for another ring, but it never came. I’m nearing the footage from three in the morning when my heart stops. The dark hooded form comes up to the door but never rings the doorbell. Bile rises up my throat. This same person was standing outside of my house, staring at my front door for a solid five minutes before leaving. What the fuck?

  Almost like the universe is giving me a sign that it is, in fact, time to tell someone, Baz’s name pops up on my screen.

  Baz: Since it’s Friday, would you and Ava be up for another swimming lesson today?

  Mackenzie: Sure. She’ll be excited to hear it when I pick her up from school. I think you’re now her favorite person.

  Baz: I’ll see you here around four.

  Mackenzie: Can you come to us instead?

  The thought of leaving the house unattended frightens me. What if the person is watching? What if while I’m gone with Ava at Baz’s, he comes in?

  The thought alone sends a shiver down my spine.

  I know I have the security system for that purpose, but maybe having Baz come to me will scare them off if they are watching. I could look like an easy target if I’m alone with Ava, twenty-four seven.

  After Baz agrees, I offer to make dinner for us all tonight, even with my messed-up hand. I’ve since learned that even though Ava is a picky eater, she enjoys spaghetti, so I decide to keep it simple for her tonight.

  Over the course of the afternoon, I try to figure out the best way to bring up what happened last night and the night prior to Baz, without scaring Ava. I’ll likely have to wait until she falls asleep before I tell him anything. I wasn’t lying earlier when I said he’s all she’s been talking about since their last swim lesson. She adores Baz, and from what I saw at his penthouse, I think he adores her, too.

  When the doorbell rings a little before four, a jolt of fear shoots down my spine. I swipe open the app and breathe a sigh of relief when I see who it is. I press my fingertips into my eyes and rub away the anxiety. My hands are shaking, and my heart, even though it knows there is no threat, is still pounding violently in my chest.

  I open the front door, and I really must look like shit because Baz frowns when he walks in. He takes the door from my hand, shutting and locking it for me. He pauses, staring down at me, searching my expression.

  “You all right? You look pale.”

  “Yeah,” I reassure with a smile, tucking stray strands of hair behind my ears. “I think I’m just tired. I haven’t been sleeping well the past two nights. It’s finally starting to catch up with me.”

  “Sebastian!” Ava yells, running around the corner and straight into his arms. She goes on, telling him about her day at school, the new friends she’s made since starting, and anything else he’ll stand around and listen to. I smile to myself and head back into the kitchen to finish dinner.

  I keep the food and the garlic bread on the warmers, so it stays warm as we head into the backyard. Dressed in my bathing suit, I keep a wrap over my body, not ready to feel that exposed in front of Baz. Sure, he’s seen me naked and hasn’t expressed any disgust over the scars on my body, but that doesn’t mean I’m willing to put myself out there like that.

  After putting Ava to bed, Baz lingers around, waiting for me. Once I step back into the living room, wringing my hands, he frowns.

  “Tell me what’s really going on. You’ve been somewhere else all day.”

  I trap my bottom lip between my teeth, trying to figure out where to start. Sliding my phone from my back pocket, I open the app, pulling up the footage from Wednesday night.

  “The other night, after Ava fell asleep, the doorbell rang. It was a little after ten, which I thought was weird. We don’t ever get visitors. That wasn’t the weirdest part, though. When I looked on the app? There was no one there.” Something flashes in his eyes as he takes the phone from me, watching the video. “They came back again not long after and rang it again. They just ring it and leave.”

  “Why didn’t you call me?” he grits out.

  “I panicked. I didn’t want to believe it was anything more than young kids messing around, but last night…”

  “Last night what?”

  “Well, it happened again. This time while Ava was awake. I slept with her in her room, too afraid to leave her side. Whoever it is isn’t doing anything harmful. They’re just there. He doesn’t ring it again, but look here. He just stands there, staring at the house.”

  “Whoever it is, they obviously want to scare you.”

  “Well, it’s working.”

  His brows are still drawn in, as he stares at the screen, the cogs in his brain churning. “I’m staying here tonight.”

  I swallow thickly, worried that maybe I’m not too far off for feeling the way I do. If this wasn’t a big deal, I have no doubt that Baz would brush it off, but he’s obviously not doing that.

  Baz helps me while I get him settled on the couch. Even though we have a perfectly good guest room he can use, he suggested the couch, so he could be in the center in case anything were to happen.

  I hove
r at the threshold of the living room, not wanting to leave. I’m sure he wants his space, but I can’t seem to get my feet to move in the direction I need them to.

  “You have nothing to worry about. I’m not going to let anything happen to either of you.”

  “I know. I’ve just been thinking. You don’t think it’s…” I trail off, not even wanting to finish that sentence.

  Baz heaves a deep sigh, then settles back on the couch, staring up at the ceiling. “I don’t know. I’m not ruling anyone out at this point. We’ll see what happens tonight, then go from there.”

  I stand there fidgeting, my mind whirring with scary possibilities. Baz must realize how much this is weighing on me because he pats the spot on the couch next to him.

  “Sit down.” His tone brooks no room for discussion. Heaving a deep sigh, I take a seat on the couch, putting a healthy amount of space between us. I’ve sat on this couch countless times with Ava, but sitting here with Baz feels different. The air feels thick, hard to breathe through, and even though this is my space, my domain, I suddenly feel like an imposter in my own home. That is just the effect Baz has. His dominating presence takes over a room.

  “Thank you again for staying.” It’s a futile attempt to keep the peace, to try to make the rest of this night with just the two of us less awkward.

  Baz rakes a hand through those unruly dark strands, and I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen him dressed this casually. After our swim and dinner, he threw on a black T-shirt and a pair of sweats that somehow still look amazing on him. He looks like he’s on his way out for a run, and it’s a stark change from the suits and normal work attire I always see him in.

  Irritation flits across his face. “Stop thanking me, Mackenzie.”

  I shake my head, a sad smile twisting my lips. “I can’t. I have all of this”—I gesture around the room— “because of you. If tonight were a regular night, I’d be up in that bed with Ava, holding her tight. And you’re the reason that’s possible.”

  His entire being softens. The irritation that was just on his face softens. I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen him look so at ease and gentle.

  “You deserve to be happy.”

  “So do you,” I counter.

  “Seeing you happy makes me happy.”

  We sit there quietly just staring at one another, taking our time, as we get our fill. It’s been far too long since I’ve been able to just sit here and admire him. Even when I was pretending to hate him, I stole moments when he didn’t think I was looking, and I’d ogle him, committing him to memory.

  After the silence ticks on, he asks, “How is it, being a mom? Changing someone’s life?”

  My smile takes over my face as I think about Ava. I talk about her for the next fifteen minutes, and surprisingly, Baz sits and listens with a small grin on his face. His eyes rake across my face, settling on my lips as I talk.

  Heat rises to my cheeks at the intensity of his stare, so I cough, trying to change the subject. “What about you? How was Bali?”

  He smirks, clearly knowing the only way I’d know that he was in Bali is if I was looking him up. And that’s precisely what I’ve been doing.

  “It was good,” he replies vaguely, irking me to no end. I shift on the cushion, trying to pry more of an answer out of him.

  “Did you…?” I trial off, trying to find a better, less conspicuous way of asking.

  He rolls his eyes at my weak attempt. “Just ask whatever it is that’s on your mind.”

  I wring my hands together nervously, hating that he can see right through me. Squaring my shoulders, I look him in the eye and spit out the question I’m dying to know. “Fine, what did you go to Bali for and…did you meet anyone there?”

  It’s silent.

  Dead silent.

  A gasp slips past my lips when Baz reaches out, cupping my face in his hand. Warmth builds at the base of my spine, and those pesky butterflies roar to life in my stomach, their wings fluttering wildly, taking my breath away. His thumb glides along the skin of my cheek in tantalizing motions.

  “I keep telling you, there is no one else, just you. There has never been anyone but you, Dirty Girl.”

  My heart splinters, confusion flitting over my features. “But you said…you said you were with Mia, and those girls in your bed… I don’t understand.”

  “It was a lie. To keep you at arm’s length.”

  “Why push me away?”

  He shrugs, seeming deep in thought. “Seemed like a good idea at the time. Giving you a chance to find yourself on your own.”

  I work a swallow, oddly endeared that he’d go through all the lengths he did just to let me go, even when he didn’t want to. “And what about now?”

  His gaze slams into me, taking my breath away, kickstarting the tempo of my heart. Baz’s thumb gently swipes across my lower lip, sending tingles through my body.

  “I don’t want to do that anymore. I just want you. Broken or not.”

  My heart does something strange at that moment. It feels like it’s bursting at the seams and on the verge of ripping out of my chest cavity. That’s how recklessly it’s beating. Gripping his arm, I lean into his body, inhaling the dark scent that is him, and I kiss him. Our lips press together softly, a torturous meeting of souls, before it becomes rough. Hot and heavy.

  His hand slides into my hair, tugging on the strands, as he works my mouth with the finesse of a man who knows how to bring a woman to her knees. My hands slide around his shoulders, and I dig the pads of my fingers into him, trying to fuse my body with his. With a growl that I feel rumble in his chest, he lifts me into his arms as he rises from the couch. My legs wrap around his center, and my arms circle his neck for support.

  We stumble into my bedroom, trying to stay quiet, so we don’t wake Ava. Like two magnets snapping together, our mouths fuse, our tongues tangle, all while we try to strip out of our remaining clothes. When Baz tosses me onto the bed, his large body hovering over mine, all the worries and all the pain slowly ebb away, leaving just the two of us. And when he slides into me for the first time in months, I feel his soul entwine with mine. I feel his heart rip mine from my chest and claim it as his forever.

  Love drips from my heart like it’s been submerged in an ocean filled with other prospective souls. Baz claims me—mind, body, and soul—all night. I never had a doubt in my mind that I wasn’t his.

  Once we’re lying there, out of breath, with sweat-slicked skin, he pulls me into his arms, and that’s where I fall asleep, my body wrapped around his.

  No doorbell ringing.

  No fear.

  No sadness.

  No missing him.

  This is what I’ve been missing. And I’m not ready to let it go.

  I’ve been wearing this goofy smile all day, and it’s all thanks to Baz. It’s been two days that I’ve had the pleasure of sleeping soundly with his arms wrapped around me and no unwanted visitors. Things feel like they’re slowly aligning by having Baz here. Ava seems to enjoy having him around, too. He watched TV with her last night before she fell asleep, and as I stood out in the hallway, listening in, I could hear them talking about swimming and drawing, both things she’s suddenly become obsessed with, and my heart filled to the brim with happiness.

  Since Baz has a meeting at The Den tonight, he sent one of his security guards from the resort to sit out in a car in front of my house, in case anything happens while he’s gone. I know it’s just an extra precaution because he’s worried, but I’m hoping that means it’s over and done with. It’s been radio silence here at night, and no sign of anyone creeping near the house with the cameras.

  I’m about to hop in the shower but jerk to an abrupt halt when there are two startling, aggressive bangs on the front door. I drop my towel and run into the bedroom, reaching for my phone. I open the app, and I let out a whimper when I don’t see anyone there. I run into Ava’s room and find her stirring in bed. Obviously, the sound was loud enough to wake he
r. She rubs at her bleary eyes, confusion written all over her face. Pulling her into my arms, I dial Baz, my heart pounding violently, causing my body to tremble. He answers on the first ring.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Someone’s banging on the—” A shriek tears from my lips as the doorbell rings this time.

  “I’m scared,” Ava says quietly, emotion thickening her voice.

  “I’m on my way. Call the police right now, Mackenzie, understand me?”

  “But what about your security guard?”

  “I’ll worry about him. Just call the police.”

  After he hangs up, I dial 911 and relay what’s happening. Ava clutches onto me, and she jerks, crying out when the pounding starts again on the front door. My eyes slam shut, and my bottom lip trembles, fear capsizing me. I lift Ava into my arms, and I hurry into my bedroom with her. I shut the door behind us and lock it. Grabbing the knife from the other night out of my sock drawer, I set it on the end table near my bed, just as a precaution. I grip her little body against me, flinching when the doorbell rings next.

  Whoever it is, they’re toying with me, alternating between banging on the door and ringing the doorbell. I count down in my head, praying the sound of sirens will come soon. Whoever it is out there is only able to get in one more banging attempt before they’re gone. Ava’s little hands dig into me. She buries her face in my chest, and I squeeze her against me, not sure how else to comfort her. Relief surges through me when I hear the sirens, before I see the lights fill the screen of the cameras.

  Tossing my phone onto the bed, I pull back just enough, so I can look down at Ava. “I need to go down there and talk to the police. I know you’re scared, but I promise, you’re okay.” She still clings to me, obviously too shaken to let go, so I take her out with me, knowing damn well, if I were her, I wouldn’t want a grown-up to leave me either.

  When I open the front door, two officers are already heading up the walkway. Some of the fear ebbs away when I see Baz speaking to a separate squad car. Even Dan is here. With Ava still clutched around me for dear life, I go over what happened and show the camera footage to the police. We talk about possible suspects and who might want to toy with me. I know a few who might, but I don’t tell the police that. That’s a whole other can of worms I’m not sure I’m ready to open.