Lies Inside

by Lindsey Gray

  “Whatever will have to wait for a little while longer. I’ve got to pack, and you’ve got your appointment with Dr. Styles.”

  “You’re going to meet me there at one, right?” He kissed her favorite spot below her ear.

  “Yes.” Lucy took his head in her hands, away from temptation. She gave him a quick kiss before dragging him to his feet. “Come on. You’ve got to get dressed.”

  “On one condition.” He sat back down and wrapped his arms around her waist as he tried nuzzle her neck. Lucy pulled him back up, and he pretended to pout, sticking out his bottom lip. “One condition?”

  “What’s that?”

  “You and I make a little time for each other tonight.”

  “I think that can certainly be arranged.”

  After a quick breakfast with the girls, Finn left with Murphy, and Lucy reluctantly went back to her father’s house with Rylan and Claire. Packing was never one of Lucy’s favorite things to do.

  She hadn’t realized how much crap she had accumulated over the years. Most of it was a result of her shopping adventures with Claire. Half of Lucy’s closet was full of stuff that had never seen the light of day.

  “I remember this dress. It would work if we have a rehearsal. One more thing you won’t have to worry about. Have you thought about your colors yet?”

  “I really haven’t thought much about any of it in a real sense, Ry. The wedding book we made as kids is very outdated, so I need to start from scratch. I just want it to be simple. Just family, you know.” Lucy folded another sweater and placed it in one of the many boxes strewn around the room.

  “Sweetie, you’re only getting married once. I know you and Finn are going to last. I don’t want you to regret not having the wedding of your dreams,” Claire added with a warm smile.

  Lucy smiled as she saw how excited Claire looked. She really wanted this to be special for Lucy; it was a little shocking at first. Claire had always been like a mother to Lucy, but she had never felt it more than at that moment.

  “As long as I have Finn, it will be the wedding of my dreams. We don’t want everyone fussing over us. Plus the press…I know they’re leaving us alone for the moment, but if they get a hold of this, they’ll have a field day.”

  “I guess I never thought about that.” Claire brushed the hair from her shoulders as the wheels in her little head started turning. “I can do simple. Simple yet elegant. We can do it in the garden. It’ll be beautiful.”

  “I’m sure it will.” Lucy looked over at the clock. It was already twelve fifteen. “I’ve got to meet Finn at one. We should get these boxes loaded up.”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll get it moved while you’re with Finn. Jack and Aiden will be here in a little while. You go. I’ll even let you drive the Bug.”

  Lucy grinned. She hated to admit it, but she loved driving that thing. “Okay, if I have to. Thanks.” She grabbed the keys and kissed Rylan on the cheek. She hugged Claire before skipping down the hall and sprinting to the car.

  Finn was in with Dr. Styles when Lucy arrived. She was a little early, but she was hoping she could go in and find out if they’d made any progress.

  “I’ll let him know you’re here.” The slender redhead at the receptionist desk picked up the phone to dial into the office. “Lucy Butler has arrived…Sure thing.”

  “Have a seat, and the doctor will be out to get you in a few minutes. Would you like some coffee or tea while you wait?”

  “No, thank you. I’m fine.”

  Lucy walked over and sat down on the couch in the waiting area. She picked up a magazine and started thumbing through it. She almost choked when she saw a picture of her and Finn. She closed the magazine to look at the cover. She couldn’t believe that they had been in a national magazine.

  She flipped it back open and read the article. Published a few weeks after they had disappeared, it gave a little background on their lives, their families, and their seemingly storybook romance. It went on to describe the two of them as the couple that parents dream about. Rylan was quoted, saying Lucy and Finn were soul mates. Their families stated they had always known Lucy and Finn would end up together.

  The article continued, covering the horrendous abuse and that Viktor was the main suspect. She looked at the pictures of people searching the road where they’d disappeared. That’s when Lucy remembered Finn’s beautiful car and wondered what happened to it. She was sure Finn hadn’t given it a second thought, but Lucy knew how much he loved his baby. She would have to do something about that.

  “Lucy?”

  Dr. Styles brought her back to reality. “Yes? Oh, hi, Dr. Styles.”

  “Come on back. Finn’s in my office.”

  Lucy got up from the couch and followed him into the room.

  As the doctor closed the door, Finn stood up from the brown leather couch, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her softly before releasing her. She could see his eyes were red and puffy.

  “I’m fine.” Finn whispered before he kissed the top of her head.

  He took her hand and led her over to couch. As she sat next to him, he held her hand. She could see that doctor really wanted to jump right in.

  “Finn and I have had an eventful morning. I think he’s making some great headway, but so much of his progress includes you and your recovery as well.”

  “I know we’ve got a lot of work to do, but I think we’re both ready.” Lucy snuggled a little closer to Finn.

  “Finn and I have gone over a lot of what happened to him while he was at Two Roads. He’s told me about what happened when the Karpovs took you and what happened in Montana.”

  “That about covers it then.” She gave Finn’s hand a squeeze.

  “I’m not saying that I want to desensitize you to everything that happened, but I want both of you to be comfortable talking about your experiences. I’m sure there will be a trial, and I want you both to be able to tell the judge and jury what happened without feeling uncomfortable. Do you think that’s something you can work toward?”

  “Yes. It’s exactly what I want.” Lucy was so amazed that he could sum up everything so simply.

  “Also, Finn tells me that the two of you have decided to get married.”

  Oh great, she thought. Another adult trying to shoot them down. “Is that going to be a problem?”

  “No, of course not. It’s not my place to judge your decisions, just to help you make the right ones. Finn is concerned though.”

  Lucy turned to Finn. “About what?”

  He took her hand and looked into her eyes. “I have no doubts about spending the rest of my life with you. I want to make sure I can be your husband in every possible way.”

  A light turned on. “You’re worried about our sex life?”

  “Well…right now we don’t really have one.”

  “Have you told him about when we’ve tried?”

  Finn nodded. Lucy knew they were making progress, and she had no doubt it would be beautiful when they finally made love for the first time.

  “Before I knew what had happened to him, everything was a little rushed. I think maybe he was trying to prove to himself that he could. That didn’t work out so well. But since then he’s been honest with me about what happened to him, we’ve taken things slower, exploring what is comfortable and what isn’t. I think we’ve made a lot of progress. And if it happens by the time we get married, fine. If it doesn’t, it’s not a big deal. We have forever to get there.”

  “See. I told you she was amazing.” Finn kissed her cheek as she saw the doctor smile and nod. “She has shown me what it feels like to touch and be touched with real love. She really has healed parts of me that I thought were broken forever.”

  Lucy suddenly felt a like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. They’d been completely honest about how they were feeling, about being together, and about being able to make love to each other. She knew the way he touched her was in no way like how Viktor or Camille had touched her. It see
med like he realized that too.

  Now that they had an understanding of this problem, Lucy knew the only one left to face head on was Claire and her grand wedding scheme.

  When Lucy and Finn left Dr. Styles’ office, they both felt a huge sense of accomplishment. They’d spent two more hours exploring their past and their future, and finding a path to get there in one piece. Lucy was overcome with a sense of relief, knowing they finally had a clear plan to get to their happily ever after.

  “I can’t believe she let you drive her baby.” Finn slid into the passenger’s seat as Lucy revved the Bug’s little engine.

  “It was the only option. We don’t really have a car right now.”

  “I never asked if they found my car. I’m sure they would have mentioned it by now if they had.”

  “Maybe. We probably need to think about getting some kind of transportation. I’m not opposed to sharing.”

  “What would you want?” He started tracing circles on Lucy’s thigh as she tried to concentrate on the question, as well as the road.

  “I don’t know. I love the Four, but maybe something a little more practical.”

  “I think I can live with some sort of SUV, but something small enough to have decent gas mileage but big enough for the girls and their car seats would be nice.”

  Lucy smiled at the thought of him including the girls in almost every facet of their future. “I can’t even imagine how much fun your mom is having with them. They were going on a major shopping spree today.”

  They pulled up to the O’Malley household to see Jack and Aiden taking boxes from the back of the Four. There was a delivery van with two very exhausted looking movers exiting as the boys made their way inside.

  As soon as Lucy turned off the engine, Rylan sauntered up to them. “I’m kidnapping Finn.”

  Lucy scowled at Rylan as she latched on to Finn while working her way to the passenger’s side. Rylan grimaced. “Okay, so not the best choice of words, but I’m taking him for a couple of hours. The boys have taken your stuff upstairs, so you have some unpacking to do. Plus, the girls’ room is still a work in progress. Mom went a little overboard.”

  “But, Ry—”

  “No buts. You,” she said, pointing to Finn, “in the car.” She looked at Lucy and added, “You, in the house. We’ll be back by dinner.” She shoved Finn’s head down as he got back into the passenger’s seat, ripped the keys from Lucy’s hands, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. They tore out of the driveway before Lucy even had a chance to say goodbye.

  “Where are they off to, Luce?” Jack wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

  “I have no idea.” She put her arm around his waist as they walked into the house.

  “She said something about dinner later and you needing to wear the dress she pulled out of your closet this morning.” Jack reported the details like he was checking everything off a mental list.

  “Really? I don’t know if I can find it by then.”

  “She said she laid it out on the bed.”

  Jack just shrugged before leading them into the house and up to the girls’ room.

  Murphy stood in the room, holding a screwdriver in his hand, his brow covered in sweat. His gray t-shirt was wet under his arms and around the collar. An old pair of faded blue jeans with rips in the knees hung low on his waist. Lucy had never seen him like this before. She shifted from one foot to the other as Murphy stared at her, Jack, and Aiden.

  “Now you show up when all the hard work is done.” Murphy wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve. She was amazed he was almost done putting together the girls’ beds and various other shelves and furniture.

  “We were on Rylan’s orders. Sorry, Dr. O. What do you need us to do?” Jack clapped his hands together, ready to get to work.

  “I’ve got the beds together, so you are on sheet duty.” He pointed Aiden toward the pile of pink sheets and frilly comforters. “Jack, can you help me unpack the dresser and get it moved?”

  “Sure.”

  A large white dresser matching the two four-poster twin-sized beds sat against the wall, looking like it was wrapped in a plastic cocoon. Lucy imagined Jack would have fun ripping and stretching that stuff all over the room.

  “What about me? What can I do?”

  Murphy came and put his arm around Lucy’s shoulder. “You, my dear, get a pass, this time. I think you have some unpacking of your own to do.”

  She unconsciously wrapped her arm around his waist as he pulled her in to kiss her forehead.

  “I—I—” She cleared her throat. “I think I need to wait for Finn. I don’t want to disturb whatever feng shui he’s got going on in there.”

  Jack notice her blush and started chuckling, causing Lucy to shoot him a death glare. She was ever so thankful Murphy was oblivious to her uncontrolled hormones.

  “Well…I think the rest of the girls are in the kitchen. We should be finished up in a little while.”

  “I’ll go see what they’re up to then.” Lucy left Murphy’s side only to stick her tongue out at Jack as she left the room.

  Lucy walked into the kitchen and saw Claire and the girls having a snack at the kitchen table. She snuck up and stole the chair next to Chloe.

  “Looks like you two are going to have a pretty cool room.”

  “Yep and I got all new clothes, and I got a new doll house. Daddy Murphy is gonna put it together for me.”

  “Daddy Murphy?” Lucy thought it seemed a little strange coming out of her mouth that way.

  “He’s our new daddy, and she’s our new mommy.” Chloe blew Claire a kiss, which she hurriedly returned. “I don’t want my old mommy and daddy anymore. They hurt me and you and Finn.”

  “Come here.” Chloe crawled up into Lucy’s lap as she wrapped her arms around her. “We’ll get through all this bad stuff together. We’re all a part of a family now. Me, you, and Olivia are all going to be O’Malleys now.”

  “‘Cause you’re gonna marry Finn, and they’re our new mommy and daddy?”

  Lucy smiled and nodded, kissing the top of her head. “That’s right. That makes us all family, and in this family, we all have each other to love us and take care of us like real families should.”

  “That makes you my big sister?”

  “I guess so, and so is Rylan. Then Finn will be your brother. And I’m sure Aiden would be more than happy to be a big brother, too.”

  “What about Jack?” Lucy could see the corners of her mouth draw up.

  “Jack, too, if you want him.”

  “Good. I like Jack. He gives good horsey rides.”

  Lucy laughed softly. “I guess he does.”

  After awhile, Jack came down and ushered Lucy to her room so she could get ready for dinner. She had no idea what was going on, but when Rylan got something in her head, there was no stopping her.

  She had laid out the dress Lucy had found that morning. It was a dark-blue, sheer, spaghetti-strap, knee-length dress with a black lace overlay. She paired it with a pair of black strappy sandals and diamond stud earrings. Lucy rarely wore necklaces, so Rylan didn’t set one out for her.

  Lucy looked in the mirror to find her waves were slowly returning. Her hair was still a deep black, but it didn’t look half bad against the blue in her dress. Still, she’d have to fix it before the wedding.

  The wedding. She knew Claire planned to keep Finn and her occupied for hours tomorrow, going over every little detail. Hopefully, that would be all it took, but Lucy suspected she was in for a rude awakening.

  Knock, knock.

  “Come in.”

  Rylan entered, looking perfect as always in a blue strapless cocktail dress. Her hair styled fashionably to perfection made Lucy feel a little inadequate.

  “You’re perfect, Lucy. Jack let you know I’d laid out the dress?”

  “Yep. You torture the boy, you know.”

  “He knows it’s worth it.”

  Rylan came over and gave Lucy a hug. When she pulled back, Lucy
saw that familiar sparkle in her eye. It was time for her to spill it.

  “Rylan, ‘fess up.”

  “What?” She turned to play with her hair in the mirror.

  “You know what. You disappear with Finn for hours, then make me get all dressed up. What’s going on?”

  “No idea what you’re talking about.”

  “Where’s Finn?”

  “I think he’s down in the garden. Maybe you should go get him for dinner.” Lucy scowled at her. “What? It’s just dinner.”

  “Fine.”

  Lucy left the room with more than a few questions. They all melted away as she stepped into the garden.

  The sun had just slipped below the horizon, leaving a low orange glow on the horizon. As she made her way through the maze of flowers, a million twinkling lights flickered, weaving a magical glow all around the garden. As she twirled around to see each of the lights sparkle, she caught a glimpse of a familiar wisp of milk chocolate brown hair.

  She practically ran into his arms, her fingers tangled in his newly colored strands.

  “I guess that means they got it right. You like it?”

  “I love it. How long did it take?”

  “The hair only took about an hour. Then we went and pick up some new threads.”

  Lucy stepped back to look at his new clothes. The rolled up sleeves of his midnight-blue dress shirt revealed his muscular forearms, and several of the top buttons of the shirt were left undone to give her a peek at his amazing collarbones. A pair of black tailored pants completed the ensemble.

  “Now I understand why she insisted on the shirt. You look beautiful.” He took her hand and brought it to his lips. “But there’s something missing.” He spun Lucy around to rake his eyes over her once more.

  “Everything is as perfect as always. I can’t put my finger on it.”

  “Finn…Come on, your mom will kill us if we’re late for dinner.” Lucy started to pull him away, but he wouldn’t budge.

  “I think I know what it is.”

  Lucy saw him reach in his pocket before he got down on one knee. She inhaled quickly, her right hand flying her chest while Finn held her left hand securely in his right. She knew she needed to breathe, but it was becoming increasingly difficult when she saw the blue velvet box.