First to Lie: An Enemies to Lovers Romance (Unraveled Book 1)

by Marie Johnston

I frowned and skimmed my fingers across his cheek. Was I really going to analyze him, after all his deception? Yeah, I was. He’d said his dad had passed away and I of all people had heard from the real Sam all of his regrets about how he had treated Wes. Then there was Wes’s mom. Geez, she’d sounded unreal. Like a cartoon stereotype of the wicked ex-wife. And she’d raised Wes.

  I turned fully on my side to face him. What if I didn’t play him in return, but tried to show him the other side of life? Real relationships that weren’t driven by greed? My relationship with my mom was real. My friendship with Sam had been legit, and nothing more than platonic. Ephraim and Joe had families to go home to, but Sam hadn’t had anyone. Feeling like he’d lost Wes, he had thrown his love into the comic book shop. To keep those memories alive.

  Wes’s eyelids fluttered before those startling blues met mine. His lips tilted in a sleepy smile as he rolled onto his back to stretch.

  “I usually visit my mom on Sundays.”

  He smirked at me. “You’re kicking me out.”

  I rolled up to prop myself on an elbow. “Or…you could come with?”

  “Sure. It’d be great to hang with Wendy again. Is this what was bothering you last night? Did you think your mom would scare me off?”

  What a fabulous excuse. “Kind of. I like you.” Before I found out you were a disingenuous man who was out for what—a revenge fuck?

  Greatest sex of my life. Got me good, asshole.

  “Of course I don’t mind. It’s refreshing to be around a mom who… acts like a mom.”

  I tried to keep the pity out of my look. “Really?”

  His lopsided smile softened my heart. “Was it a ploy to get me to go away?”

  “No. It was a real invite. I have one other question. Do you play rummy?”

  Wes

  I was on my third hand of rummy.

  It was fun.

  Mara’s mom was just as pleasant as before and had been delighted when I’d walked in. What would it be like to grow up with a mom like that?

  “Wendy, I do believe you’ve won this round again.”

  Wendy chuckled, her brown eyes lighting up. I didn’t think I could say anything wrong around her. I just enjoyed the conversation.

  How would my mom behave around Mara?

  Easy—atrociously. My mom would demean and condescend, and nitpick Mara’s appearance and weight. All before she found out about Mara’s relationship with Sam. Then no holds barred, get your gloves out, fight club only has one rule.

  Mara gathered the cards and shuffled them. “Do you need me to bring anything on Tuesday when I swing by?”

  “Whenever you have time to make a library run, I’d appreciate it. More audiobooks, please. Cards are easier to hold, but books can wear my hands out.”

  “Sure. I’ll grab some tonight and bring ’em.” Mara packed up our stuff and we stood to leave.

  “Thank you.” Wendy smiled at me and waved. “Nice to see you again, Sam.”

  “I never pass up the chance to visit a lady who can whip me at cards.”

  She giggled and it took twenty years off her tired features.

  When I turned, I was struck by Mara’s look of awe.

  I nudged her with an elbow as we walked through the narrow corridors. “You’re looking all shocked that I can charm your mother.”

  “I expected you to be a little uncomfortable with, you know, the environment. Comic-Con’s a little different than hanging out in a nursing home.”

  I shrugged. It was surprisingly homey in the place.

  Mara grabbed my hand. “Do you mind stopping at the library with me? They don’t close for a couple of hours.”

  “If I get lost, will you find me?”

  She chuckled, but I wasn’t joking. I’d never been in a public library.

  Chapter 14

  Mara

  I kissed Wes at the door as I was leaving for work Monday morning. He’d stayed over again and another supreme night of amazing sex had firmed my resolve to show him that I was a decent person.

  “When do I get to see your place?”

  His brows rose in surprise. “Uh…my place isn’t the best for entertaining.”

  I swept my arm around my living room. “And my humble abode is magnificent?”

  “It’s homier than mine.” Probably not a lie. “My place is large and obnoxious. I don’t know why I bought it.”

  “Condo?”

  “House.”

  Oh. A mansion. Did he have staff? Would they see me and wonder why he’d ever bring a girl like me around?

  “I’d better get to work. Lock up when you leave?”

  “Always.” He clasped my wrist as I stepped away. “Wednesday night?”

  “I don’t know. Are you going to keep me up all night again?”

  “Probably.”

  My body celebrated. Geez, I should feel guilty. But the sex. My body craved it more the longer we were together like he was an addiction.

  I went through the day in a daze of sorting, marking down the last of my stock for clearance, and explaining the situation to customers who hadn’t yet heard. After a busier weekend than normal and the added stress of Wes, I was lagging by the end of the day.

  The sign was turned to officially closed when Chris spoke up. “I talked to my friend. She’s been looking into it, double-checking all the permits are filed correctly. Wes Robson hasn’t been her favorite person since he made them jump through hoops to expedite the approval process for the outlet mall, then switched his plans to St. Paul.”

  “It won’t be in time to stop the store from closing. He owns the building.”

  “But like you said, we can be a burr in his backside. Guys like him don’t understand what they do to us when they swing their power and money around.”

  The Wes who’d been so considerate and charming with my mother contradicted the man who was shutting me down.

  “I don’t know. I feel like I should just drop it.” I hadn’t told Chris my new man was really Wes.

  Chris punched into the register to count the money. “It’s out of our hands now. It’s not you if that makes you feel better. My friend got an ulcer from the stress he put her through. The whole office hates him. Except for the young women.”

  “Thank you for thinking of the store.” Wes seemed so untouchable, I doubted Chris’s contact would have any luck.

  My phone rang. “Hey, Ephraim.”

  “Mara, can you swing by the office so we can get your signatures on some papers?”

  Spend Friday through Sunday with Wes, launch legal action against him by Monday. Who had I turned into? I knew who he was, I shouldn’t play along, and I wasn’t that person. I wasn’t him. But…he shouldn’t get away with it. He didn’t get to play with my emotions, string me along, all the while knowing he was responsible for shutting down my dream and driving me into a financial corner. My resolve was strengthened. I’d pretend ignorance and date “Sam.”

  My store closed later than regular businesses, so traffic wasn’t bad on the way to Ephraim’s firm.

  He was the only one there, to my relief. We went through and I signed and initialed and got my own stack of copies.

  Ephraim walked me to the door. “What did you decide?”

  He’d waited until the end, I was glad.

  “I’m trying to show him I’m a decent person and that maybe he is, too.”

  His expression turned wary. “People like Wes won’t look at it that way. When he finds out, and he will find out, Mara, he’ll attach to the fact that you knew. That’s all he’ll care about. You knew who he really was and you didn’t say anything.”

  “I have a little faith in him.”

  Ephraim’s paternal expression was full of warning. It was becoming a standard look for him. “Even after you signed papers to look into the contract Sam had Robson Industries draw up?”

  “It’s buying us time.” I stifled a groan. Just like Chris’s friend was trying to do.

  This was messed up.


  “Tread carefully, Mara. He has the money to make life difficult for you.”

  “He has money—he’s not a mobster.”

  “Sometimes there’s a fine line.”

  I didn’t know rich people. Ephraim saw the worst of them. Should I drop everything and tell Wes I know about his game?

  Climbing back into my car and settling inside, I resisted hitting my head against the steering wheel.

  I should be angry at Wes for not meeting with me in the first place. If he had, this would have been avoided. All of it, including our relationship. But he was as stubborn as his father.

  And I should’ve done more research. But his office was across the street from my store so I hadn’t bothered to look up anything about him, or even see what he looked like. Still didn’t justify what he was doing.

  My phone pinged with a text. From Wes.

  Missing you.

  My heart twisted. Sweet or calculating? Miss you, too.

  Bed’s pretty empty w/o u.

  So’s my floor.

  And the counter. Night.

  What a mess. His messages made me feel better that I was going home to an empty house and he was in an empty bed.

  Wes

  It was the middle of the week and I was going through Mara withdrawals. Pathetic. We’d been sending sweet texts back and forth, something completely out of my realm.

  I brought my attention back to Helen, who was giving me midweek updates.

  “I have some unsettling news.” She knew better than to pause. “The city council’s office called and they said we need to resubmit for all required demolition permits.”

  “What the hell for? I thought it was all taken care of.”

  “A glitch.”

  “A glitch?”

  “Yes sir. I smell a sewer at full capacity.”

  “And if we argue about this glitch?” We’d done everything by the book. I always did. No corner-cutting, no favors called in. I might push the boundaries and be demanding, but I followed the rules.

  “I argued up main street and down the highway. Even talked to the head of the department. She was less than willing to cooperate.”

  She would be. Still raw from me moving my outlet mall plans across the river.

  “It’ll delay the project more than initially anticipated,” Helen answered, “and add a little more expense. That should be the worst of it.”

  Why now? Everything had been coasting along. The outdated mall was closing its doors in less than three weeks.

  Chris offered to contact an old friend on the city commission.

  I clenched my jaw. So, that’s how she wanted to play it. First, the lawsuit that my legal team was in a catfight over, and now this.

  She wanted to be a PITA? She thought she was smarter than my dad and now she thought she could undermine me, using the men around her to do her bidding. What else were the men around her doing for her? “Helen, write this name down. Mara Jade Baranski. I want to know everything about her.”

  Helen scribbled her name. “Arcadia’s owner? What should I be searching for?”

  “Anything that points to her character. She’s the one behind this delay. Trust me.”

  “She’s grasping at straws. First taking legal action against Robson Industries, and now this.” Helen shook her head. “Some people can’t make an honest living.”

  Note to self: give Helen a raise.

  After work, I strode out to my car. Instead of picking her up for dinner, I’d left a message that there was a change of plans—due to a glitch in the reservation. My chef had prepped dinner for two, one that wouldn’t set up shop in my arteries, and delivered it to my office so I could take it over to Mara’s.

  We were going to eat in and I was going to relieve my stress in her body. Many times.

  Chapter 15

  Mara

  I finished inventory. Stock was moving at a good rate. The second to last game day was tomorrow and I’d mark the used Xboxes for sale.

  “Got any fun Friday plans that’d put mine to shame?” Chris called from the front where he was closing up.

  “I have a date.” If it turned out like Wednesday night’s, should I be thrilled or dismayed?

  I’d been looking forward to real food and not something out of a can when Wes had canceled dinner out. Instead, he’d brought over an excellent meal, and I’d barely had any time to enjoy it before he had been stripping me down.

  All night long, he’d been at me. When he’d been too spent, he’d used his tongue or his fingers. I’d physically pushed him off my bed and demanded a few hours’ sleep before work on Thursday.

  He’d given it to me, only to wake me up before my alarm for another round.

  Not a bad way to wake up, but I was convinced that death by orgasm was real.

  Chris locked up and handed me the envelope of money to deposit. “Hey, did I tell you I heard back from my friend? She wants to thank you. Wes was so pissed at the delays and she found it refreshing that their roles were reversed.”

  I laid the envelope on her desk and scowled at it. “When was this?”

  “Wednesday, I think.”

  Uh-huh. “That’s good then?”

  “Yeah, it won’t stop anything, but it’s worth it, right?”

  Tell her vagina that.

  No, don’t. It might agree.

  “See you tomorrow?”

  I nodded woodenly and sank into my seat. So the sex wasn’t because he found me irresistible. He’d been upset at me and had used me all night long.

  Anger burned through me. My cheeks grew hot and my breathing rate kicked up. How could he? I’d thought that despite the deceit we’d connected, whether he wanted to admit it to himself or not. Had I fooled myself yet again? Looking at the time, I groaned. I had an hour to pull myself together and calm down before meeting him.

  Wes

  I waited in front of the restaurant where Mara had been adamant about meeting me. Was she getting weird on me again?

  I’d been…intense…the other night, but most women would come begging for more.

  As Mara walked up with a stoop in her shoulders, wearing those ridiculous Batman leggings I loved, she didn’t have a begging mood about her.

  “There she is,” I greeted.

  I got a half-smile. Yep, she was stuck in her head.

  “Sorry, I’m not feeling too well tonight,” she said in a soft voice.

  “I heard they have good food here. Eat a solid meal and you’ll feel better.”

  I held the door open for her and she muttered something as she walked by.

  “What was that?”

  “Nothing.”

  We were seated and she folded and unfolded her napkin while staring out the window.

  “Mara?”

  “Everything with my store,” she blurted. “It’s just— How could he treat me like that?”

  Her eyes shimmered, and as a sign of how much I’d emotionally opened up to her, I sought to comfort her instead of putting as much distance between us as possible. I could barely believe what I was doing as I reached a hand across the table, but she stared at it.

  “What if I have to dig into my reserves and I run out of money to pay for my mom’s care?”

  Her words tugged on my conscience, but I pushed it aside rather than owning it. Wendy needed to be in a nursing home. But where had Mara’s reserves come from? Helen would find out. Besides, Mara was smart, she could get a decent job easy. A regular nine-to-fiver with good benefits.

  She dabbed at her eyes. “I’m sorry. I’m not going to be good company tonight.”

  “You can’t scare me away.”

  The words were meant to soothe, but instead, she wiped tears away.

  All through dinner, I made inane small talk while her glassy stare unraveled my heart. For the hundredth time, I questioned what I was doing with Mara, how it was all going to end, for me and for her—for us. I followed her back to her place and we watched a movie. Nothing physical beyond me
holding her.

  It was early when we’d usually be seeing way beyond midnight together, but I tucked us into her bed.

  Grudgingly, I had to admit it was my best night of sleep ever. I would’ve slept in, but her alarm went off.

  Game day. She rolled out of bed without a backward glance and padded to the bathroom to shower.

  She’d be working all day, and I’d…work? I was behind with Canon’s paperwork but nothing critical. A Saturday morning at the club was ideal for being productive. I wasn’t meeting with Franklin about my plans in New York until later in the week.

  I reclined on her bed and watched her dress and get ready for work.

  “Lock up when you leave?” she asked.

  “Aren’t you going to have breakfast?”

  “Chris is bringing donuts today and probably for our last game day next week.”

  “What if I’m still here when you get home?”

  She was walking out of the bedroom and glanced back in surprise. “What if I’m not feeling any better?”

  “Then I’ll take care of you again.” And I meant it. Why? The time was coming when I had to cease being Sam. I’d go back to being the…what? The guy who worked all the time? The successful businessman who women flocked to? Would I take my pick and be okay not knowing a thing about my partner and knowing our interaction was barely more than a verbal contract?

  An unreadable expression flitted over her face, but she settled back on neutral. “I should probably get some groceries.”

  Morbidly interested in how she chose what canned or boxed goodness to buy, I said, “Come back first and I’ll go with you.”

  She nodded and left.

  The silence of her house bothered me, unlike mine. I rarely used the main floor of my house, keeping to the upper level I’d made my lair. The weekends when I had no staff around, I didn’t mind the quiet.

  In Mara’s place, I did.

  What to do all day. I could be a slug and game the hours away. Stopping in the bathroom, my gaze kept going to the drippy faucet. Mara’s shower hadn’t yet drained in the tub.