Simple Lies

by Amanda Bennett

“What’s up, Brax?”

  “Hi, is this Declan Hunter?” I was completely thrown by the female voice on the other end.

  I sat forward in the backseat of the cab, anxiously awaiting for this person to give me an explanation. “This is he.”

  “Hi, Mr. Hunter. Do you know a Braxton York?”

  “Yes, I do. I’m sorry, but why are you calling me from his phone?” I was starting to get impatient.

  “I’m sorry to be the one to inform you, but Mr. York has been admitted to Wrightsville Memorial. I wasn’t able to find a number for his next of kin, but I came across your name and figured I should call. Is there someone else I should be calling?”

  I shook my head in disappointment, “No, I will be there in just a few.” I tapped the cab driver on the shoulder, “Wrightsville Memorial, and step on it.” I whispered.

  “Okay. When you get to the hospital, come to the third floor nurses station and ask for Amelia.”

  “Thank you. I’ll be there shortly.”

  I hung up the phone, and rage began coursing through my veins almost immediately. I never should’ve let Braxton go home alone when we got here. His mom was going to kill me, because for some reason, his mother always blamed everyone else for Braxton’s drama. It was completely absurd and ridiculous, but I wasn’t about to be the one who told her any different. She was one scary woman when she was mad.

  The cab driver pulled up to the hospital about twenty minutes later, and I was beyond thankful that he got me there so quickly. I threw a twenty at him as I exited the cab, as I ran into the hospital, duffel bag in tow. There were about a million nurses desks, and not a single one had a nurse at one. I stood there waiting for someone, anyone to show up so I could find Braxton and find out what the hell was going on. I stood there tapping the counter when a cute petite blonde came bounding up to the desk.

  “Can I help you?” I had a feeling that by the way she was asking me that she would be more than willing to go above and beyond what I asked for.

  “I’m looking for Braxton York’s room.” She leaned forward on the desk, pushing her very large breasts up in her V-neck scrub top.

  “Hmmm, let me check for you.” She pressed a couple of keys on the computer, then looked back up at me. “Looks like he is just down the hall in room B27. Would you like me to show you there?” Any other day I probably would’ve said yes, but I was too preoccupied with my friend’s condition.

  “No, thanks. I’ll find it myself.” I watched her face fall in disappointment as I took off down the hall.

  I reached Braxton’s room just as the doctor was walking out. I wanted to stop him and ask him about a few questions, but instead, I went into to check on Braxton. I was taken aback at the sight before me. I don’t know what I was expecting when I got the call, but this was nowhere near it. No, this was far worse than anything I could ever dream up. Both of Braxton’s arms were strung up in some sort of contraption, along with a full body cast and a face that was almost unrecognizable. I almost lost my shit right there.

  “It’s not as bad as it looks, I swear.” He mumbled through his swollen and cut lips.

  “I don’t believe you.” I muttered as I walked closer to him. “Brax, what the hell happened?” I sat down in the chair next to his bed, and let my head fall into my hands.

  “I don’t think I can get out of this one this time, Dec.”

  My head snapped up when I realized who did this to him. “Jack?” Braxton didn’t have to say anything for me to know the answer. “How did he find you?”

  “I honestly don’t know.”

  “How do I contact him?”

  “Dec no, I don’t want you getting mixed up in all of this, and possibly losing your career. You’ve waited for so long to get where you’re at, and I’m not going to be the one who gets that taken away from you.”

  “Brax, you’re my best friend. I’m not going to just sit back while this shit keeps happening to you. I know you think you can take care of this on your own, but look at you. Look what trying to be a tough guy has gotten you. Now tell me how to get a hold of him.”

  Braxton pointed at the table across from his bed, and I could only assume that it had his phone on it. I walked over to the table ready to punch a fucking wall just to get out all of my frustration, but I knew it wouldn’t help the situation. As much as I wanted to run far away from this place, leaving behind all the drama and bullshit people…I couldn’t. Because no matter how long I tried to run from it, or deny it, I was in too deep with all of these people. That’s when thoughts of Hadley started to run through my mind at lightening speed. I shook my head as I tried to dislodge the overwhelming thoughts of her, but it was useless.

  “Hey, how did this weekend go?” Braxton’s voice caught me off guard, and I quickly turned in his direction.

  “You know how it goes with my cousin around. Turns out his fiancé, is my one night, I mean two night stand. How crazy is that shit?”

  “No way! Man, what a small world huh?”

  “Yeah, small world.” I muttered under my breath. “Oh, and Len showed up.” I laughed.

  “Why didn’t you start with that? How is that lying, cheating whore? Sorry.” He smiled.

  “No need to apologize. She seems to be doing just fine. Of course her and my aunt are the best of friends now, and she took every opportunity she could to try and get back into my good graces. Let’s just say it was extremely uncomfortable…all of it.”

  “I’m sorry, man…for everything.”

  I walked over to Braxton’s bedside, and put my hand on his cast covered arm. “I’m gonna make this right Brax. I’m going to do whatever I have to, to make everything right. I’ll be back in the morning, okay?”

  “Yeah. Thanks Declan. I know I have a lot of growing up to do, and I promise you when all of this is said and done, I’m going to figure my shit out.”

  “You better.” I joked. “I’ll see ya in the AM, man. Get some sleep.”

  I walked out of Braxton’s hospital room with a newfound sense of self, and I finally came to the realization that this life wasn’t one I wanted to just float through aimlessly. I was about to go after what I wanted, my cousin and uncle be damned. I sat in the back of the cab with my cell phone clutched tightly in my hand. As much as I didn’t want to make the call, I knew I had to. There really was no other way out of this situation for Braxton, but before I could make it right for him, I had to cover my ass first and foremost.

  The cab came to an abrupt stop in front of the Wrightsville beach police department, and I stood outside the car staring up at my answer. I wasn’t exactly sure how all of this was going to go down, but I knew one thing for certain, I wasn’t going to lose it all for some bully who wasn’t even man enough to do his own dirty work. I was done letting bad people take advantage of good people. I just hope that one day, he would understand my decision and maybe even someday forgive me for it.

  TWENTY-FIVE

  Hadley

  I woke up the next morning even more confused than when I went to sleep. Ryan and I had talked half of the night and even into the early morning hours, but the whole situation still wasn’t sitting right with me. I rolled over half expecting him to still be in the bed next to me, but he had been replaced with a sea of red curls. PJ rolled over to look at me with a giant smile spread across her slightly freckled face.

  “Well good morning sunshine. How’d you sleep?”

  Why did she have to be so damn chipper in the mornings? “I slept okay, I suppose.” I yawned. “Hey, PJ?”

  “Yeah, hun?”

  “Not that I don’t love waking up next to you, but do you happen to know where Ryan went?”

  “He snuck out early this morning. I was asleep on the couch, and he carried me up here to put me in the bed next to you.”

  “Oh.” I was shocked at the lengths he was going to appease his family. I mean, really? Wouldn’t his parents expect us to sleep in the same room after the fight we had last night? But honestly, it didn’t ma
tter. Because at the end of the day, I still found myself longing for Declan. My only saving grace was that I could take solace in the fact that I would most likely get to see him today, and that was enough in itself for me to jump out of bed and get ready.

  “Someone suddenly became extremely chipper. What’s going on?”

  “Nothing.” I lied. “It’s a new day. I’m just excited to get it started, that’s all.”

  “Yeah, okay.” She laughed. “Hey, I’m not sure if you want to know this, but I got a text late last night from Declan.”

  I instantly stopped what I was doing as I glanced over my shoulder at PJ, who was still laying in bed. “What did he say?”

  “Are you sure you want to know?”

  “Yes.” Hesitation coated every word I spoke, because as much as I wanted to know where he was, I wasn’t sure if I could handle him not coming back.

  “He’s leaving town today.”

  I dropped the clothes that were in my hands as I tried to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall down my face. “Wh…where is he going? Its almost Thanksgiving, doesn’t he want to be with his family?”

  “He said he has some “important” business to take care of, his words, not mine. He won’t be back before Thanksgiving. I’m sorry, Hads.”

  I took a minute to process what she had just told me, and then I quickly regained my composure and picked up the clothes that had fallen from my hands. “Well, his loss. I’m gonna go get in the shower.” I was just about out of the bedroom door when PJ called my name. I didn’t turn towards her to answer because if I did, I knew she would see the steady stream of tears that were now falling down my heated cheeks.

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah. I’ll be back.” I closed the door behind me and practically ran to the bathroom across the hall.

  Once I was inside, I locked the door and fell to the floor, crying. I hated myself for everything I had been putting him through, and to top it all off, I had now forced him out of his family’s home. I cried harder as I realized that I would most likely never get the chance to apologize to him. I just wanted to see him one last time, even though the thought of it literally ripped my heart in half. Even though Ryan and I had decided to basically call off our engagement, we were still together and I knew that Declan would never accept that.

  As tears continued to fall from my eyes, I picked myself up and got in the shower. Sitting in the bathroom feeling sorry for myself wasn’t going to change anything. I didn’t take a long shower, and as my tears finally began to dry up, there was a small knock on the door. I nervously grabbed my brush and pulled it through my hair, hoping that a small tug on it would make it more believable that I had accidentally hurt myself.

  “Who is it?” I answered.

  “It’s me.” I was relieved when I heard PJ’s voice come from the other side of the door. I cracked it open just enough for her to see half of my face. “What’s up?”

  “Let me in.” She whispered nervously as she looked up and down the hallway.

  “Why, what is going on?” I pulled open the door wide enough for her to fit her slim body through, and then she quickly closed it shut.

  “You need to get dressed.” I could hear the panic in her voice and honestly, it was scaring the shit out of me.

  I started pulling on my clothes as PJ began pacing the length of the bathroom. “PJ, you’re scaring me. What is going on?”

  She stopped mid-stride and looked me directly in the eyes, “Declan’s here.”

  I wasn’t sure if I had heard her correctly, but the look on her face confirmed what I thought she had said. “What? I thought you said…why?”

  “I don’t know yet. I went downstairs to get some coffee, and there he was, standing in the kitchen as if nothing had happened. Was he not here last night? I don’t know, but you need to hurry up.”

  “Okay, okay.” I quickly pulled my baby blue V-neck sweater over my head, and then ran my fingers through my hair to make it look somewhat presentable. “Do I look okay?” I stood in front of PJ shaking as I asked.

  “Here, put some of this on.”

  She handed me a small tube of mascara, and I quickly turned to look in the mirror as I applied it. When I swiped a good three coats on, I turned back to her and smiled. “How about now?” She looked over my outfit, and gave me a nod. “Okay, let’s go.

  We both exited the bathroom and started making our way down the stairs to the kitchen. When we reached the landing, his voice came echoing down the hallway, lighting up my face like the fourth of July. Why couldn’t Ryan have this effect on me, I silently wondered as we hit the last step that lead into the dining room just off of the kitchen. When Ryan’s mother saw us, she rolled her eyes and gave her nephew a kiss on the cheek, then excused herself without saying a word to me or to PJ. She was pleasant.

  PJ stepped towards Declan as I made my way over to the coffee pot. They exchanged pleasantries as I poured myself a very large cup of coffee, and then I turned to face them. Our eyes instantly met and every inch of me was set aflame. His eyes were sparkling as the morning sun hit his face through the impeccably clean window, and I couldn’t help but smile. Luckily, he smiled in return.

  “Morning, Declan.” I took a sip from the mug in my hand, but never lost eye contact with him.

  “Good morning, Hadley. Sleep well?” His question held so much more meaning than he said.

  “Not too bad, you?”

  “It was a restless nights sleep. So what’s y’all’s plan for today?”

  The look he gave me as he talked about how he slept, had me practically on my knees begging for him to take me right there in my ex-fiancé’s kitchen. “I’m not sure.” I glanced over at PJ, looking for some semblance of an answer.

  “Oh, maybe a walk or shopping. The day is ours for the taking.” She laughed. “If you’ll excuse me for a minute. I forgot something upstairs.” Before either of us could protest, she was gone.

  I turned back towards Declan, who was now looking at me as though he had a hankering for something sweet, and I was the something sweet he wanted. I could feel the blush race through my cheeks as I looked back at him over the brim of my coffee cup. It was definitely a good thing that we had a very large kitchen counter separating us, because I had a feeling that if there weren’t, we both would be getting into a lot of trouble at this very moment. His eyes raked over my entire body, causing me to laugh nervously as I sat my mug down on the counter in front of us.

  Declan leaned forward with his elbows on the counter as he began to whisper. “Do I make you nervous, Hadley?” I was thrown off by his question, but I still found myself nodding my head yes. “Why?”

  He whispered so softly that it invoked a reaction from even my most intimate areas, areas he knew all too well now. “I don’t know.” I muttered.

  “I think you do.” He smiled as he started to make his way around the counter.

  I quickly threw up my hand to stop him from moving any closer, but he just playfully pushed it aside, and before I knew it, he was standing right in front of me. I tried with everything inside of me to not look up at him, but in the end, it was of no use. He had a form of control over me that even I couldn’t explain, and when I looked at him, my entire body melted.

  TWENTY-SIX

  Declan

  “You need to go back on your side of the counter.” Her voice quivered as my hand slid down the side of her flushed cheeks.

  “But I like this side of the counter.” My lips were right below her ear as I spoke softly so only we could hear.

  “I…you…why are you…”

  I loved that my close proximity to her caused her to be so frazzled. I was innately drawn to her just as she was to me, and I found that endearing. With every word spoken between us, I could feel my cock harden beneath my pants, and it literally took everything in me to not throw her down on the countertop and have my way with her. I knew deep down that she wouldn’t protest, but she wasn’t mine for the taking anymore. Now
she belonged to my cousin, and as much as I hated him for that, I would never cross that line.

  “Why am I what?” I questioned her as I moved closer, her heaving breasts were now pushing against my chest.

  “Here?” She whispered.

  I was about to answer her, telling her that I couldn’t imagine not seeing her before I left, and that no matter how hard I tried, I wanted her for myself, but I couldn’t. Her eyes fluttered shut as our skin touching sent a shock through both of us, and I quickly moved over to the other side of the counter. When her eyes opened, she was shocked to find Ryan in front of her and not me.

  “Morning, cuz. Where did you run off to last night? You missed all the drama.” He laughed.

  He really was a clueless bastard sometimes. “Oh you know, shit to do.”

  “Shit to do, or people to do?” He laughed, but I couldn’t join in. It just felt so wrong with Hadley standing right in front of me.

  “You’re funny.” I smiled. “So how’d everything turn out last night?” I glanced between Hadley and Ryan as they both stood there quietly drinking their coffee. “That good, huh?” I joked.

  “Nah, everything turned out just fine.” Ryan laughed. “Hey, come outside with me for a minute.” Ryan pointed at the back door, but I glanced at Hadley to make sure she would be okay before I started making my way out back.

  Once we were out in the freezing ass cold, I quickly jumped on Ryan about why he had to speak to me privately. “What’s up?”

  He turned towards me with a serious look. “I’m really sorry about last night. I had no idea that Len was going to be here, I swear.”

  I let out a relieved breath now that I knew it had absolutely nothing to do with Hadley. “No worries, cuz. I know it was your mom’s doing. I just think it’s funny that her and Len are now best buddies. She hated her when we were married.”

  “I know, and I wish I knew my mother’s motives, but I honestly don’t know what kind of shit she’s pulling. Speaking of moms, have you gone to see yours?”

  “Not yet. She’s been busy working.” It was only half of a lie. Truth was, as much as I loved my mom to death, I just couldn’t stand being in the house that held a shrine to my little brother who passed when he was younger due to SIDS. It was just too sad to see her clinging to every piece of him, even seventeen years later. That, and I’m pretty sure she would be happier to see Ryan, not me.