Lies Inside Read online

  “‘Kay. Lucy and I will see you later then.” Rylan gave Finn a pat on the stomach as she pulled Lucy away and down the hall.

  Once they were around the corner, Rylan began her interrogation.

  “So, what did he say?”

  “He just said he was glad that someone missed him.” Lucy could feel the heat rise to her cheeks as she remembered the feeling of his breath against her cheek.

  “That’s more than I got out of him. Who knows? You might be the one to bring him back to us, Lucy Butler.”

  The rest of the day went agonizingly slow. Lucy finally made her way to English where she found Finn waiting outside for her. She felt his hand on the small of her back as she made her way through the door. Finn let out a deep sigh when he realized he had to pull his hand away.

  “Miss Butler, since you seem to be acquainted with Mr. O’Malley, would you mind sharing your copy of the book for today’s lecture?”

  “Sure.”

  Lucy led Finn over to their desks. She pulled out her beat up copy of Don Quixote. She saw a little smile slide across his lips as she placed the book in front of him.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Dave Walters studying them. Lucy rolled her eyes as Dave approached.

  “Hey, Dave.”

  “Hey, Lucy. Who’s your new friend?” Dave’s green-eyed monster was creeping out, literally. His deep green eyes were full of the jealousy he’d directed to every boy who looked twice at Lucy. He ruffled his shaggy black hair, awaiting her answer.

  “You remember Finn O’Malley. He’s just moved back.”

  “Oh, sure.” A large smiled spread across his face as he realized who Finn was. “Rylan’s brother, right?”

  “Yeah,” Finn managed to utter.

  “Cool. We should all hang out sometime.” He returned his gaze back to Lucy, his eyes drifting across her chest before meeting her own. “Maybe after our session. Still on for Thursday?”

  “Yeah, sure. I’m already nervous about the test next week.”

  Finn held his head up by his hand as he raised an eyebrow.

  “Dave is my calc tutor.”

  Finn nodded in disbelief as Dave gasped and held his hand against his chest.

  “Luce, please. After everything, I thought we were a little bit more than that.” Dave put his hand on Finn’s shoulder. “I was Lucy’s first love.”

  Finn’s smile reached from ear to ear. “I doubt that.”

  A lovely blush rose to Lucy’s cheeks. Lucy knew without a doubt that Finn was her first love.

  “What I mean is we dated for a long time.”

  “Just two years,” Lucy corrected. “And now…we’re friends.”

  “Always good to have good friends.” Finn nodded while slightly chuckling.

  “Dave, back to your seat.” Miss Fields ushered Dave back to his desk.

  Lucy and Finn listened to the teacher go through chapter after chapter. Lucy thought it was such a quirky book, but from what Finn contributed to the discussion, she could tell he enjoyed it.

  They’d finished the essay they had been assigned before most of the others. Lucy took it upon herself to ask a few questions.

  “I was wondering why, after all this time, you decided to come back home?”

  Finn took a deep breath before speaking only two words. “Got homesick.”

  “But you learned a lot at Two Roads?”

  Finn let out a soft laugh. “Yeah, too much.”

  Lucy was a little confused and was about to ask what he meant when the bell rang. Finn started gathering his things when Lucy reached out for his hand.

  “I’m riding home with Rylan. We’re planning on vegging out and catch up for awhile. So I’ll see you after school?”

  He flung his backpack over his shoulder. “That’d be nice.”

  “Nice.”

  Rylan ran up to Lucy in the parking lot and threw her keys at her. “You’re driving my car home. I’m riding with Jack after practice. You take Finn with you.”

  “Ry, you never let me drive your baby.”

  “It’s fine with me.” Finn walked up behind Rylan.

  Rylan couldn’t help but wink before pulling Lucy in to whisper in her ear. “You can thank me later.”

  “Okay, you’ve been warned. The Bug drives nothing like the Four.”

  Rylan pushed Lucy to the driver’s side door as Finn slipped in on the other side.

  “Do you mind?” Finn pulled out his iPod to plug into the car radio.

  “No. Fine with me.”

  Lucy backed Rylan’s Volkswagen Beetle out of the space slowly as some soft music began to play. The two of them sat and enjoyed the music until they reached the O’Malley home.

  “I’d love to hear you play again. I’ve missed it.”

  “I’d like that.”

  Finn’s home was two blocks away from the Lucy’s. It was a large two story colonial, situated on an acre and a half of land. All the houses in the development were like that. Lucy felt just as much at home at the O’Malley’s as she did in her own home. Every time she found herself in front of it, she thanked God that she was lucky enough to have two families.

  Lucy and Finn got out of the car and walked up to the house.

  “Hey, you two,” Claire greeted them at the door as they put down their bags. “Who wants a snack?” She brushed the hair from Finn’s eyes as she laid her hand on his cheek.

  “I’m going to take Lucy upstairs. She wants to hear me play.”

  Claire’s hand stilled on his cheek, seemingly shocked by his eagerness to play. She cleared her throat as she brought her hands to rest on Finn’s shoulder. “Alright. Just come down for dinner. Rylan and Jack will be here by then.”

  Before Claire even finished that last sentence, Finn had taken Lucy’s hand and was pulling her up the flight of stairs to his bedroom.

  They entered Finn’s room where his acoustic guitar and drum set were nestled in the corner. He brought her over to the window seat while picking up his guitar and sat her down beside him.

  “I have seven different guitars, but this acoustic one is my favorite.” He started to play a tune.

  “I remember this one.” Lucy never forgot the chords that he played when he was younger. The melody always brought a smile to her face when nothing else could.

  “I’ve changed it a little, though.” He continued to strum the strings as the melody began to float together. It was lovelier than she remembered. She felt her eyes close, and her head swayed a little as it came to an end.

  “So much more than I…”

  Finn took Lucy’s hand in his. “Can you do something for me?”

  She put her other hand on top of his. “Anything. You know that.”

  He pulled her up and led her over to the oversized chair on the other side of the room. He sat down and brought her down onto his lap. Her heart began to race as Finn wrapped his arms around her waist.

  “Can we just sit like this for a while?”

  Lucy swallowed hard as she listened to his pleading words.

  “Sure.” She settled into his arms and rested her head against his chest. She noticed his heart was beating fast, too. She closed her eyes as she snuggled closer.

  He laid his chin on top of her head as his fingers threaded through the silky strands flowing down her back. Lucy felt him shudder as he took a deep breath.

  “I feel safe like this,” he whispered while kissing the top of her head.

  “Me too.”

  “They look so peaceful. I can’t bear to wake them.”

  Finn stirred at the faint recognition of his sister’s voice. He couldn’t move. He never wanted to move. Having Lucy in his arms was the best feeling he had in years.

  Lucy nuzzled her cheek against his chest as his arms wound around her tighter.

  “They have to eat. We’ve got to wake them up.” Lucy squeezed her eyes tighter as she heard Claire’s voice get closer.

  “No, wait. Give me Finn’s phone over there.”
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  A flash of light found its way behind her closed eyelids. Lucy eyes fluttered open to see Rylan and Claire looking sweetly at the screen on Finn’s phone.

  Finn noticed Lucy roll her eyes as he reluctantly released her. She left her place on his lap.

  “That’s mine.” Finn made it to his feet and grabbed his phone.

  “We just wanted to show you how cute you were. See? Look.” Rylan scrolled through the pictures to show Finn what she meant. His lips pressed into a soft smile when he saw the photo. He handed Lucy the phone to show her the photo of them sleeping in each other’s arms.

  “I guess we must have fallen asleep. Sorry, Finn.” She handed the phone back to him. “Hope I didn’t drool or anything.”

  “Not much.” He teased as he wiped his hand down his torso where her head had been resting. He offered her his hand as they walked out of his room and downstairs.

  Dinner passed much too quickly for the both of them. As eight o’clock approached, Jack said goodbye to Rylan. Finn wasn’t sure he would sleep peacefully again now that he knew how it felt to sleep in Lucy’s arms. He hoped above all else, she would feel the same.

  “I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” Lucy chewed on her upper lip as she dug her hands deep in her pockets.

  “Yep.” He mimicked her with his hands buried in his own pockets.

  “You can text me later if you want.”

  He handed his phone to her, and she put her cell phone number and e-mail address in his contact list. She handed it back as Jack tugged on her backpack.

  “Bye.” Jack dragged her out the front door.

  “Bye, Lucy. Meet me before first period,” Rylan yelled as she threw her arms around Finn from behind.

  “I will.” Lucy slid into the passenger side of the Four as Jack revved the engine. Finn walked out on the porch as they drove away.

  He sat down on the steps trying to savor the feeling of Lucy in his arms. He realized how true his words had been. He felt safe, finally home, in Lucy’s embrace. He wondered why he stayed away from her for so long. He had missed so much. Ignoring her, his family. Not letting in the one person he knew he could always trust.

  Just then, his cell phone started to vibrate in his pocket.

  He let out a soft laugh. “Lucy, already.”

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, Finn. It’s Aiden.”

  He hadn’t heard the voice of his old roommate in a couple of days. He tried to act nonchalant about it. “Hey, A.”

  “Just calling to see how things were going. You haven’t returned any of my e-mails.”

  “Sorry, been busy. New school and all.”

  “Yeah, I thought that was probably it. You know, things aren’t the same here without you.”

  “Sure, now you have a single and won’t have me interrupting you and Veronica anymore.”

  “Uh…” Finn recognized the uneasy tremor in Aiden’s voice. “That’s not really a problem anymore. After what she did, I broke it off with her.”

  “Oh, man. You didn’t have to do that for me.”

  “Finn, you’re my best friend. I can’t forgive her for what she did. I still can’t believe how her mind went that way.”

  “I’m home, now, and that’s all that matters. I think things might be getting better.”

  “You saw Lucy, didn’t you?”

  “Yeah.” Finn pulled out his wallet, removing the worn picture of Lucy and him taken the day he left for Two Roads. Lucy perched on his back with her arms locked around his shoulders and their faces pressed cheek to cheek, it was the last time he remembered feeling that kind of happiness. Something only Lucy brought out of him.

  “You think you might be able to tell her?”

  Finn felt the pain in his forehead as he thought about the real reason he came home. A reason only Aiden knew about.

  “I don’t know. I just need to find out who I am again, you know?”

  “Well, if she’s anything like you’ve said, I’m sure she’ll help you.”

  Finn smiled as his fingertips traced the edges of their picture. “I think she’s the only one who can.”

  “So…maybe you’ll have a girlfriend before I get another one?”

  “Maybe. We’ll see.”

  “Call me or text, whenever. Okay?”

  “Yeah. Talk to you later.”

  “Bye.”

  Finn shut his phone as he heard two little footsteps from behind him. “I know you’re there, Ry.”

  Rylan came over and sat down next to him, threading her arm through his. “Who gets to talk to you more than I do?”

  “It was just Aiden. He wanted to know how my first day back was.”

  “That was nice of him. Seems like he misses you.”

  “Maybe.”

  He rested their hands in his lap as they looked out on their manicured lawn that still had hints of green peeking through from beneath the frost.

  He wrapped his arm around her shoulder as he kissed her forehead. “It’s good to be home.”

  At that moment, he felt more at ease than he had in years. Coming home was the right decision. He thought he might actually have to thank Veronica someday.

  The next day was Friday. Lucy had trudged through the day, making it to English with Finn nowhere in sight. She begrudgingly took her seat. With a few minutes before class started, she decided to pull out her favorite book of Robert Frost poems. Unfortunately, Dave took Finn’s absence as an invitation.

  “I’m having a party at my house tonight. You should drop by.”

  “I don’t know, Dave. Ry has her competition tonight. I promised her I’d go.”

  He seemed to think pushing the hair from her shoulders and giving her a massage would help persuade her. All he seemed to accomplish was giving her that familiar creepy feeling. She had always found Dave attractive and even sweet at times, but he always just tried too hard. To Lucy, it was a total turn off.

  “She can come, too, after it’s over. Come on, Luce. It’ll be like old times.” His fingers dug into her a little harder.

  “Dave, stop.” Her shoulders were beginning to ache under the pressure.

  “Come on. You know you like it.” His thumbs started digging into her collarbone.

  “Dave, no. Please stop.”

  Dave’s hands released her shoulders rather roughly.

  “She said, no!” Finn’s voice was hard and hateful as he pulled his arm back. A split second later, Finn’s fist met Dave’s jaw in a crushing blow.

  Dave flew back into the next row of desks as several students gasped. Dave stood motionless, holding his jaw. Lucy saw the rage in Finn’s eyes as he waited patiently for Dave to make his move.

  Dave licked the blood trailing from his lip. “Didn’t know you had it in you, O’Malley.”

  Miss Fields entered the classroom, and all but Finn and Dave took their seats.

  “Finn? Dave? Is there a problem?” Miss Fields asked, interrupting their staring contest.

  Finn raised an eyebrow, awaiting Dave’s response.

  “No problem. O’Malley and I just had a little…misunderstanding.”

  Finn inched his way to his seat after Dave sat in his.

  Miss Fields turned down the lights. It was the best part of the semester, comparing “Don Quixote” to the musical version. Miss Fields chose the latest version of “Man of La Mancha.”

  Lucy sighed as the credits began to roll and the beautiful score filled the room. Once the first scene started, Finn’s hand found hers.

  “Are you okay?” he whispered so softly she almost didn’t hear him.

  “Yeah. You?” she mouthed back.

  He nodded and squeezed her hand before shooting Dave another glare. It seemed to Lucy that Finn was trying to mark his territory. She knew she should have been mad that he decked Dave in the middle of class, but all she could feel was happy that maybe they were a few steps closer to where she wanted their relationship to go.

  He held her hand as he walked her to her next class.
She gave him a kiss on the cheek after promising to meet him after school.

  Lucy sat wedged between Jack and Finn in the large auditorium waiting for Rylan and her squad to perform. Lucy couldn’t help but notice Finn’s discomfort.

  “Hey.” She reached over and took Finn’s hand in hers. “You okay?”

  Finn’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed and took a long cleansing breath. “I just don’t like crowds. I almost didn’t come, but I knew Ry would be really upset if I didn’t.”

  “I’m glad you came.” She looked down to the hand she held and noticed the slightly bruised knuckles. “Does it hurt?” Her fingertip traced his middle knuckle.

  “Not much.”

  “We should probably talk about it, don’t you think?” Lucy looked up to see a strange expression on his face—anger with a little bit of what looked like fear.

  “Um…yeah. I thought he was hurting you.”

  “He was. I mean he sucks at massages, and I knew he just wanted his hands on me, but—”

  “No one has the right to put their hands on you if you don’t want them to. I’m sorry if I upset you, but I’m not sorry I hit him.” Finn’s voice quivered a little throughout his short rant.

  “I’m not mad, if that’s what you’re worried about.” She laughed softly as she shook her head at the memory of Dave’s shock when Finn punched him. “I wish I could have done it myself.”

  “Glad to be of service.” Finn let out his own laugh, and Lucy noticed him beginning to relax.

  Jack squirmed in his seat as the announcer introduced Rylan and her squad.

  Rylan led the rest of the girls onto the stage floor and took her place. She winked her signature wink toward Jack just before the music started pumping.

  Finn sat in awe of his sister’s leadership. She had the routine down to a science with each move flawlessly executed in time with the music.

  “I didn’t know.” Finn shook his head in awe.

  “She’s good, right?” Lucy grinned as Finn gave a dumbfounded nod. “This is actually kind of an audition, right Jack?” Lucy smacked her brother to get his attention.

  “Yeah.” He turned his head back to the stage floor. “There’s a bunch of college scouts here. She’ll get a shitload of scholarship offers after this. Look at her!”