Hidden Truths (Truths and Lies Duet Book 1)
Page 24
I’m still staring at my phone when Tadd calls.
“Boss,” he grunts out, his breathing heavy. “We’ve got a problem.”
A chill races down my spine.
“What kind of problem?” I growl.
He curses. “A big one.”
“Where. Is. My. Wife?”
A long pause.
“We don’t know. She left the auditorium to go to the bathroom and never came back.”
I pull up the tracker I have on her phone. “It shows she’s on campus. She’s pissed, Tadd. We fought. Find her ass wherever she is hiding and call me. Check the campus coffee shop or the library. I’m on my way.”
Without wasting a second, I haul ass to her school and dial Aris.
“Hey,” he grunts in greeting.
“You heard from Talia?” I demand, pressing my foot down on the accelerator.
“Not since dinner the other night with Selene. Why? She pissed at you again?”
I don’t have time for his taunting shit.
“Can you call her and see if she answers?”
He sobers up. “Is she missing?”
“Went to the bathroom and never came back.”
“Fuck,” he hisses. “She wouldn’t just leave. Phoenix?”
I knew adding him as an approved person was a bad idea. “I don’t know. Call him. Find him.”
We hang up, and I try dialing her number. It rings and rings. Next, I call Adrian and send him to the airport since that’s where she first ran off to.
Fuck.
As soon as I pull into the parking lot, I throw my car into park and take off running toward the building. Tadd greets me with a worried expression. Michael is nowhere to be found.
“Where’s Michael?” I demand.
“Checking the school again.”
“And you’re sitting out here with your thumb up your ass?”
He frowns. “I was waiting for you.”
If I wasn’t worried about my damn wife, I’d cut this lazy dumbass’s throat.
“Go get in your fucking car and find my wife,” I snarl. “Your neck depends on it.”
He gives me a clipped nod and runs off. Michael comes out of the building holding a young woman by her arm. Her eyes are wild when she sees me.
“Tell him,” Michael barks at the girl.
She flinches and stammers, “I, uh, before rehearsal, she was crying. She was upset.”
I already fucking know that. I pissed her off.
“And?” I snap.
“Uh,” she whimpers. “She kept saying she just needs to see her mom.”
My blood runs cold. She wouldn’t just bail on me. Not now. Not with all the people who could hurt her. She knows better than this. Right?
“She seemed really upset,” she says, “and then she grabbed her purse to go to the bathroom. Never came back. I thought she went home for the day.”
I turn my glare on Michael. “You were to watch her every move. What the fuck were you two doing?”
“Jesus, boss,” Michael grunts. “We didn’t follow her into the bathroom. We stayed in the auditorium. The bathroom was just outside the doors.”
I’ll deal with these two pussies later once I’ve found Talia.
I will find Talia. I always do.
I pull the tracker app back up on my phone to check it again. “It still shows she’s on campus.” What the fuck? Did she leave her phone here? “Go check every damn classroom, every bathroom. That phone is somewhere on this damn campus. Find it. Find her.”
My phone rings, and I answer it on the first ring. “What?”
“I asked Selene if she’s spoken to Talia,” Aris grits out. “Fuck. She’s worried about her. She said last night in the middle of the night, she called asking to borrow some money. I didn’t even know Selene left my villa to meet her with the money.” And I didn’t know Talia left ours. Fuck.
“Money for what?”
“Selene said she seemed as though she had her mind made up about something. She lent her the money and didn’t think much of it until I called.”
“So you’re saying she willingly left me?” I growl into the phone.
Aris sucks in a sharp breath. “You and I both know we can’t go on that assumption.”
The line goes quiet before he lets out another heavy sigh.
“Some of the men at the hotel said they heard Estevan Galani finally recovered from what you did to him on your honeymoon and is here in town.” Aris huffs. “What if…”
My blood turns ice cold.
I knew I should have killed that motherfucker.
“If he has her,” I rumble out, “he’s a dead man.”
“Kostas, if he has her, she’s a dead woman.”
Fuck.
Fuck.
Fuck.
I have to find her.
Her life may depend on it.
To be continued in the epic conclusion of the Truths and Lies Duet…
Stolen Lies
Head Above Water by Avril Lavigne
Complicated by Avril Lavigne
I’m a Mess by Bebe Rexha
Broken-hearted Girl by Beyoncé
Reason to Stay by Brett Young
Never be the Same by Camila Cabello
Consequences by Camila Cabello
The Scientist by Coldplay
Let it Go by James Bay
In Case by Demi Lovato
i hate u, i love u by Gnash
Desire by Meg Myers
Stay by Rihanna
Back to You by Louis Tomlinson
Bad Things by Machine Gun Kelly and Camila Cabello
Love on the Brain by Rihanna
Rock Bottom by Hailee Steinfeld
The Monster by Eminem
So Good by Zara Larsson
Remind Me to Forget by Kygo & Miguel
Him & I by G-Eazy & Halsey
Bad Blood by Taylor Swift
Mad by Ne-Yo
I’m a Mess by Ed Sheeran
Apple
Spotify
Bret, thank you for spending hours at Starbucks with me while I write all the words. To my children, thank you for simply being you. You are my inspiration in everything I do. Kristi, thank you for taking me under your wing and showing me what a true friend looks like. You are such a special person, on the inside and out. Nikki Ash’s Fight Club reader group. In this crazy world, you guys are my safe place. Thank you! Thank you to all of the ladies who have my back. Stacy Garcia, Ashley Cormier, Brittany Ridge, Andrea Hebda, Tabitha Willbanks, Shannon Voyles, Kaylee Ryan, Lisa McKay, and Kristi Webster. I can’t imagine doing any of this without you guys. Emily A. Lawrence, thank you for editing this book. Stacy Blake, thank you for making the book so pretty! Ena and Amanda with Enticing Journey, thank you for keeping me sane! To all of the bloggers who take time out of their day to share their love of books, thank you for everything you do. And a huge thank you to the amazing readers. There are so many books out there for you to read. Thank you for taking a chance on me. It’s because of you, I get to continue to do what I love—write books.
Thank you to my husband… I love you for always being there no matter what. You’re the best!
A big ol’ thank you to Nikki Ash! I love when we collaborate! We come up with the best, most intricate stories, and I love it! Thanks for using your summers to play with me! Love ya, lady!
A huge thank you to my Krazy for K Webster’s Books reader group. You all are insanely supportive and I can’t thank you enough.
A gigantic thank you to those who always help me out. Elizabeth Clinton, Ella Stewart, Misty Walker, Holly Sparks, Jillian Ruize, Gina Behrends, Rosa Saucedo, Ker Dukey, and Nikki Ash—you ladies are my rock!
Thank you so much to Misty Walker for being the best friend a girl could ask for! Love you!!
Thank you so much, Wendy Rinebold, for proofing this book! You’re a star, lady!!
A huge thanks to my Greek friend Pauline Digaletos who looked over our Greek words and phrases to ma
ke sure we did them right. You’re the best!!
A big thank you to my author friends who have given me your friendship and your support. You have no idea how much that means to me.
Thank you to all of my blogger friends both big and small that go above and beyond to always share my stuff. You all rock! #AllBlogsMatter
Emily A. Lawrence, thank you SO much for editing this book. You rock!!
Thank you, Stacey Blake, for being amazing as always when formatting my books and in general. I love you! I love you! I love you!
Lastly but certainly not least of all, thank you to all of the wonderful readers out there who are willing to hear my story and enjoy my characters like I do. It means the world to me!
Nikki Ash resides in South Florida where she is an English teacher by day and a writer by night. When she’s not writing, you can find her with a book in her hand. From the Boxcar Children, to Wuthering Heights, to the latest single parent romance, she has lived and breathed every type of book. While reading and writing are her passions, her two children are her entire world. You can probably find them at a Disney park before you would find them at home on the weekends!
Reading is like breathing in, writing is like breathing out.– Pam Allyn
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K Webster is a USA Today Bestselling author. Her titles have claimed many bestseller tags in numerous categories, are translated in multiple languages, and have been adapted into audiobooks. She lives in “Tornado Alley” with her husband, two children, and her baby dog named Blue. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, drinking copious amounts of coffee, and researching aliens.
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All books can be read as standalones
The Fighting Series
Fighting for a Second Chance (Secret baby)
Fighting with Faith (Secret baby)
Fighting for Your Touch
Fighting for Your Love (Single mom)
Fighting ‘round the Christmas Tree: A Fighting Series Novel
Fighting Love Series
Tapping Out (Secret baby)
Clinched (Single dad)
Takedown (Single mom)
Imperfect Love Series
The Pickup (Secret baby)
Going Deep (Enemies to Lovers)
On the Surface (Second chance, single dad)
Stand-alone Novels
Bordello (Mob romance)
Knocked Down (Single dad)
Unbroken Promises (Friends to lovers)
Through His Eyes (Single mom, age gap)
Clutch Player
Co-written novels
Heath (Modern telling)
Hidden Truths
Stolen Lies
Psychological Romance Standalones:
My Torin
Whispers and the Roars
Cold Cole Heart
Blue Hill Blood
Romantic Suspense Standalones:
Dirty Ugly Toy
El Malo
Notice
Sweet Jayne
The Road Back to Us
Surviving Harley
Love and Law
Moth to a Flame
Erased
Extremely Forbidden Romance Standalones:
The Wild
Hale
Like Dragonflies
Taboo Treats:
Bad Bad Bad
Coach Long
Ex-Rated Attraction
Mr. Blakely
Easton
Crybaby
Lawn Boys
Malfeasance
Renner’s Rules
The Glue
Dane
Enzo
Red Hot Winter
Dr. Dan
KKinky Reads Collection:
Share Me
Choke Me
Daddy Me
Watch Me
Hurt Me
Contemporary Romance Standalones:
Wicked Lies Boys Tell
The Day She Cried
Untimely You
Heath
Sundays are for Hangovers
A Merry Christmas with Judy
Zeke’s Eden
Schooled by a Senior
Give Me Yesterday
Sunshine and the Stalker
Bidding for Keeps
B-Sides and Rarities
Paranormal Romance Standalones:
Apartment 2B
Running Free
Mad Sea
War & Peace Series:
This is War, Baby (Book 1)
This is Love, Baby (Book 2)
This Isn’t Over, Baby (Book 3)
This Isn’t You, Baby (Book 4)
This is Me, Baby (Book 5)
This Isn’t Fair, Baby (Book 6)
This is the End, Baby (Book 7—a novella)
Lost Planet Series:
The Forgotten Commander (Book 1)
The Vanished Specialist (Book 2)
The Mad Lieutenant (Book 3)
The Uncertain Scientist (Book 4)
2 Lovers Series:
Text 2 Lovers (Book 1)
Hate 2 Lovers (Book 2)
Thieves 2 Lovers (Book 3)
Pretty Little Dolls Series:
Pretty Stolen Dolls (Book 1)
Pretty Lost Dolls (Book 2)
Pretty New Doll (Book 3)
Pretty Broken Dolls (Book 4)
The V Games Series:
Vlad (Book 1)
Ven (Book 2)
Vas (Book 3)
Four Fathers Books:
Pearson
Four Sons Books:
Camden
Elite Seven Books:
Gluttony
Greed
Not Safe for Amazon Books:
The Wild
Hale
Bad Bad Bad
This is War, Baby
Like Dragonflies
The Breaking the Rules Series:
Broken (Book 1)
Wrong (Book 2)
Scarred (Book 3)
Mistake (Book 4)
Crushed (Book 5—a novella)
The Vegas Aces Series:
Rock Country (Book 1)
Rock Heart (Book 2)
Rock Bottom (Book 3)
The Becoming Her Series:
Becoming Lady Thomas (Book 1)
Becoming Countess Dumont (Book 2)
Becoming Mrs. Benedict (Book 3)
Alpha & Omega Duet:
Alpha & Omega (Book 1)
Omega & Love (Book 2)