Between the Lies (Between the Raindrops #2)

by Susan Schussler

  “And you’re still leaving? Why?” His eyes flicked to her naked left hand and then back to her face. He forced his fingers through his hair, taking a deep breath, his jaw hard and fierce.

  Why did she feel like she was in the wrong? He was the one who cheated. He was the one who lied. “You cheated on me and then lied to me.” Her voice was small and mousy. She wished she sounded more confident.

  Jon stared at her for a moment and then his whole body language changed, as if he owned the room and everything in it. Which he did. “You never read them, did you?” He took a step closer. “Why don’t you trust me? I’ve never lied to you.”

  “Really?” His declaration pissed her off enough for her to find her words. She’d heard it from Mia’s mouth. He was lying to her right now.

  He took two more steps toward her, and the corners of his lips turned up. He was laughing at her. He knew all he had to do was touch her and she would never be able to leave. What a bastard. He knew. She slid the heavy suitcase from the bed and stood it up on the floor, ready to bolt out of the room if she needed. She had to leave before he got too close. She glanced at the door wondering if she could make it out before he reached her.

  “The baby isn’t mine, beautiful.” He took another step forward, and she breathed in his clean, masculine scent.

  “Why did Mia say that you needed to claim it? Why would she expect that if it’s not yours? She said it happened the night you were with her. You were there; I saw the pictures.”

  “I was there that night, but I didn’t sleep with Mia. My buddy Chris did. It’s his baby. Please don’t leave.” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his body.

  “It’s Chris’s,” she whispered, confirming his words in her mind. He kissed the top of her head. “But Mia said—”

  “She was just messing with you. She would like me to claim it. The fans aren’t going to accept her having a baby with someone they’ve never seen her with. It would be easier for her if I said it was mine, but I’m not going to. That wouldn’t be fair to you or our kids.”

  “Our kids?”

  “You can’t leave. We’re meant to be together, Sarah.” He cupped his hands around her face and stared into her eyes. “I will never lie to you, beautiful.”

  His eyes were so sincere. What was she thinking? The fact that he lied was the hardest part for her to swallow. She never really believed it was true. That’s why she had such a hard time leaving. Her heart knew. His lips brushed hers, so gentle and sweet that her eyes started to tear up. And when his tongue pushed into her mouth, all she could do was surrender. His hand slid to the back of her head, pulling her in closer. He scooped her up in his arms, holding the kiss. He nudged the suitcase out of his way and set her on the bed. He pulled back and stared at her with a look she couldn’t decipher.

  “My friend Cami is here.” Her eyes darted toward the door. As much as she wanted him, she didn’t like the idea of someone walking in on them.

  “This won’t take long.” He jumped over her, landing on the other side of her on the bed. Then he climbed on top of her and pinned her hands above her head with one of his hands.

  “Seriously, the door is wide open.”

  “I’ll be really fast. I promise.”

  “Is that…a good thing?”

  He leaned down, meshing his lips to hers again. Then he sat back, straddling her, and brought her left hand to his eye as if he needed to examine it closer. “I have issues with this.” He flipped open the box that had been under his pillow. Sarah hadn’t even seen him retrieve it. He slipped his index finger through the ring, plucking it from its case and dropping the box next to her. Then he slid the ring onto her finger. “It’s yours. It will always be yours. Please don’t take it off again. He kissed her hand and then the ring, like he had the first time he slid it onto her finger. He kissed her lips once more before rolling off and lying next to her. “I told you I would be fast.” He smiled and then glanced at the door. “I want to meet your friend Cami. What’s her last name?”

  “McCall or Mathis or…I’m not really sure. It starts with an M. She told me once, but you know how bad I am with names. I can’t ask her at this point. I’m surprised you don’t know. She’s great, though. You’ll love her.”

  “I’m pretty sure she hates me. She called me an asshole in a text she sent you.”

  “She’s just a little anti-Hollywood, but she’ll like you once she gets to know you.”

  He grabbed her hand as she stood up and pulled her back onto the bed with a grim expression. “Sarah, we still need to talk.”

  “I know. I’ll tell Cami I don’t need a ride back to my car and then we can ‘talk’ about anything you want.” She stood up again, he followed, and they headed downstairs together in search of Cami.

  “Cami?” called Sarah. They looked around but didn’t see her. Sarah opened the front door wondering if she went outside. “Her car is gone,” she told Jon. Some friend she was. When Jon shows up and Sarah potentially needed Cami the most, she disappeared. “She must have heard you come in. I guess she just couldn’t deal with conflict.” She’d send her a text and explain everything after she talked to Jon.

  Jon held the door open for her, his expression said he meant business. She walked inside and found her way to the couch. His face was so serious when he sat next to her that she couldn’t fathom what he was going to say. His ice-blue eyes burrowed into Sarah’s and made her nervous. She folded her legs up next to her, leaning her body closer to him, hoping their closeness would change his demeanor.

  “Why don’t you trust me? I’ve never lied to you.”

  “I do trust you.”

  Jon shook his head as if he didn’t believe her, while his eyes searched the air above her head. “I told you I wasn’t the baby’s father.” He combed his fingers through his hair across the top of his head and then added, “Then Mia insinuates it’s mine and you automatically assume I lied. You believed her over me. That’s not trust.”

  He was right. Why would she believe anything that woman said? “It’s just Mia. I can’t be around her. I just can’t. She’s a horrible person. I don’t even know how you could have dated her.”

  He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, his hard jaw softening. “I need you to trust me. You can’t believe others over me. There will always be someone there to push doubts into your mind, but I need you to trust that I will never lie to you. It doesn’t matter if it is Mia, your mother, or the damn president of the United States, I will always be the one telling you the truth. Got it?” He kissed the side of her head as he wrapped his arms around her.

  “Yes.” She leaned against his chest, listening to his heartbeat and breathing in the clean scent of him. There was nothing more comforting to her than being in his strong arms, and she almost blew it.

  “Now, we have to get you packed. I’m pretty sure we can get a flight out tonight and still make tomorrow’s premiere. We’ll have to sleep on the plane, but…”

  Sarah stared at him for a long second wondering how she could tell him. She had already hurt him so much. Then she just blurted it out. “I can’t go to all those premiers. I have nothing to wear. I wasn’t planning on going with you before and there is no way I’m going to be red-carpet ready.”

  “Well, you have to come now. You’ve tortured me for the last two days; don’t make me spend the next two weeks without you.”

  She sat up and turned to face him. “I’m supposed to have a dress fitting on Thursday. I finally found the perfect shoes for the wedding and now we have to get the hem right. And besides the girls are coming in on the weekend for their fitting. Leslie had to reschedule, but I can’t ask all of them to change too. I’m sorry about the last two days, but I can’t go. Blame Mia.”

  “Yes, you can.” His eyes lit with the challenge. “And we can find clothes along the way. The first stop is London. We can pick up what you need there.”

  “You said you would barely have time to eat on this trip�
�that you wouldn’t have time for anything but the premieres and sleep. Were you lying?”

  “Noo,” he drawled.

  She could tell he caught the sarcasm in her voice because he smiled.

  “The time will be really tight, but you could miss the first premiere and go shopping.” He looked at her wide-eyed, pleading. “You don’t have to go to any of the premieres, just come with me.”

  This was going to be harder than she thought. She wanted to be with him, but she was so tired of being on show. “Between graduation and Cannes, I haven’t been home in a month. I want to be with you, but I don’t want to go. I wasn’t planning on going and the girls are coming in.” The last two days had mentally exhausted her and she really didn’t think she would fare well on the trip with Jon. “I need a break. I promise I will be here when you get home.”

  “I’m not going then.”

  “You have to go.” She knew he had to go.

  “I know.” He paused. “I don’t want to go.”

  “I know.” She entwined her fingers with his. “Raul and Craig were planning on being here with me when you left. That doesn’t have to change. I’ll drag them everywhere I go. I promise.”

  He watched her for several seconds without saying anything and then took out his phone. “I’ve got to let Leslie know you’re safe and get a flight out. At best I’ll have a couple of hours with you.” He kissed her forehead. “I’m going to let it slip during the first press junket that Mia’s baby isn’t mine. Remi will be mad, but Isaac said he would handle her. By the time I get home the press shouldn’t be bugging us anymore about it.”

  Sarah knew Remi wanted to let the baby speculation play out as long as possible and that she had told Jon to avoid the subject during interviews. She said that before the incident with Mia at the restaurant, though. Sarah wondered what was going to happen to Chris and Toni when it came out that Chris cheated on her. “Does Chris know he’s the father?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I feel so bad for Toni. Does she know?”

  “I have no idea. I haven’t talked to Chris yet. I need to call him before I leave, just to warn him I’m renouncing paternity.” He turned to her, his eyes clear and earnest. “I don’t know why people cheat. I guess life isn’t black and white. Why Chris would risk everything he has with Toni for one night with Mia is beyond me. That’s just not how my brain works.”

  “I’m glad.” She smiled and ran her fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes as if relishing her touch. “Don’t think I’m selfish, but I’m just glad I’m not her.”

  “He’s cheated on her before, but I thought he had it out of his system. He probably figured Mia would never tell anyone and Toni would never find out. He’s always been hot for Mia.”

  He groaned as he stood up, and she could tell he just wanted to freeze time. He pulled her into his arms and slid his hand down her back as his lips met hers. His tongue skimmed the inside of Sarah’s mouth, sending a shiver raking through her body, and she pressed her body against his. She snaked her hands under his T-shirt, and he pulled back.

  “I’ve got to call Chris and then I need to get some sleep, but you’re coming with me to bed.” He smiled the mind-blowing smile of his, and Sarah was sure they wouldn’t be sleeping. “You should probably call Jessica. She’s worried about you.”

  “You called her?”

  He held up his hands as if to say he had no choice. She used the pad of her index finger to smooth the line between his brows. Before she headed upstairs, she kissed his cheek. When she was halfway up, she realized she didn’t know where her phone was and asked, “My phone?”

  “Plugged in by your side of the bed.” A tentative smile inched across his face.

  She liked that he kept it plugged in. It meant that he expected her back. He had more faith in her than she did. As she continued her ascent, she tried not to think about what she would be doing right now if he wasn’t here to stop her from leaving. She couldn’t imagine life without Jon. She was glad she didn’t have to.

  Jonathan

  While Sarah made her call to Jessica, Jon took out his cell and called Chris. He had been putting this off. He needed to know Sarah was safe before he could make the call. Chris was going to be the father of Mia’s baby. Holy hell. How was he going to survive?

  “Hey, Will. What’s up?” Like most of Jonathan’s high school friends, he called him Will.

  “Not too much. I’m heading to Europe today to promote a movie. Just thought I’d call and chat before I left. Liam said your band is playing at the Sasquatch next week. Wish Sarah and I could get up there to see you. Maybe we can make it to the next one.”

  “Yeah, should be a good time. Toni won’t be able to make it either. She’s just about ready to pop.”

  “I can’t believe you’re going to be a dad.”

  “Me neither.” Chris sounded excited.

  “Is everything OK with you and Toni?”

  “Sure, we’re fine.” Chris paused. “I’m going out for some air, babe,” he said, but not to Jon, and Jon heard a door click closed. “Why do you ask?”

  “Sarah and I had lunch with Mia a few days ago,” Jon started, and Chris fell silent, even his breathing had stopped. “I’m getting crucified in the press and I just wanted her to tell Sarah that it wasn’t my baby. The whole ‘Mia is pregnant with my baby’ debacle has really been messing Sarah up. I don’t think she can take much more of it,” Jon said with a knowing tone. It wasn’t that he was passing judgment on Chris; he just wanted him to know how he and Sarah were being affected.

  “Sorry,” Chris said softly.

  “What the hell were you thinking?”

  “Well…it was just the one night, and I didn’t think she’d get pregnant, let alone keep the baby if she did. She never came off as a pro-lifer. What the hell?”

  “That’s not the point. Did you forget you’re married?” Jon paused and took a deep breath. He hated the judgment in his tone. He had no right to judge. “Does Toni know?”

  “I don’t know how to tell her. It will crush her, especially because it’s Mia. Toni’s never cared much for her.”

  Chris and Toni had been together for years so Toni had been around when Jon and Mia were dating. Jon hadn’t noticed any animosity between them then. Maybe it had something to do with Chris’s obvious attraction to Mia, though. Jon had seen it before, but most guys reacted that way around her.

  “Well…you better start groveling for her forgiveness. And do it fast. Mia is a loose cannon. She’ll tell the press at the least convenient moment, especially if she feels slighted by you. Right now she’s not talking, but tomorrow, on my trip, I’m going to spill to the press that I’m not the father, so that may change quickly.”

  Chris muttered a string of curses. “What an F-ing nightmare.”

  “Just wait until the press gets a hold of you.”

  “Great,” Chris baulked.

  “Get ready for the ride. Your name is going to be scrolling across the bottom of the screen on the E! channel, and your picture will be plastered on the aisles of the supermarket. Welcome to the paparazzi feeding frenzy, man. Not so good for your marriage, but it won’t be all bad. The band will benefit. You just have to make sure they know you’re the drummer in Invasion. It will give you a ton of free publicity. Mia’s got a huge fan base, so I suggest you get on her good side.”

  “I’ve just been worried about Toni. I need to get that sorted out before I can take on the press or Mia.”

  “Groveling. I think it’s your best bet.”

  “Thanks. I was planning on waiting until the baby comes, because I don’t want to miss the birth of my first son and honestly I don’t know if she is going to forgive me this time. I guess I need to move it up.”

  “All you can do is try.” He felt bad for him. People make mistakes, but some were more forgivable than others. “So Toni’s having a boy.”

  “Yep, the pictures were really clear. He’s well endowed, just like his daddy.”
Chris chuckled halfheartedly.

  “You better hope Toni doesn’t cut yours off,” Jon laughed, plopping next to Sarah on the bed. She was off the phone and just staring at the ceiling when he walked in. He wondered what she was thinking. He held his hand over his phone and mouthed, “He’s going to tell her.”

  “She’ll put my dick in the deep freeze and I’ll never get it back,” Chris moaned. “I mean it. She’s hardcore.”

  “You better hope that’s all she does,” Jon said, and they both laughed. “Not that I don’t enjoy talking about your frozen junk, but did you get fitted for your tux?” All the other guys had. He had talked to each one while Sarah was gone. But he just couldn’t bring himself to call Chris until he knew Sarah was OK.

  “Yep, last week. You really ready to take the plunge?”

  “Beyond ready. I tried to get her to elope weeks ago.”

  “You’re going to spend the rest of your life with her?” Chris asked, as if he didn’t believe it was possible. “Only her?”

  “That’s the plan.”

  “You can’t tell me that when you were filming the last Demigod movie you didn’t hook up with Rachael Marrero. It was all over the press.”

  “I didn’t get with Rachael.” His hand snaked around Sarah’s waist as he flipped onto his side. “I know people in Hollywood who need that kind of open relationship and it works for them, but that wouldn’t work for Sarah and me. The cheap thrill of hook ups doesn’t do anything for me. I’m over it. Sarah is all I want.” He squeezed her, hoping she was listening closely. “She’s genuine and doesn’t treat me like I’m a movie star. I love how normal she makes me feel. She keeps me grounded. You’ll probably crave normalcy too, after the press gets a hold of you.”

  Sarah smiled at him and took in a deep breath. God, he had missed her. “I’ve got to head out in a couple of hours and there’s a few things I need to take care of before I go. I’ll talk to you when I get back and you can let me know how things went.” He said his good-byes and as he set his phone on the bedside table, he began regretting taking time to call Chris. He knew he needed to do it, but it was Sarah’s time he had used.