Practice to Deceive

by Olivia Evans

  “Morning.”

  “We have a lot to talk about.” Her brows pulled down, a small frown appearing on her face.

  “Hey, what’s wrong?” I sat up until my back was flat against the wall and pulled her with me, tucking her into my side.

  “I just… I don’t… How long can you stay?” Her voice was barely a whisper, but it still managed to break at the end.

  “I have to work Friday, so we’ll have to fly out of here on Thursday for me to make it back in time.” I pulled my fingers through her hair slowly, waiting to see if she’d caught what I’d said.

  “We?”

  She caught it.

  “Yeah, we.”

  “But I can’t leave on Thursday. I have to work, and I still need to finish packing.” She trailed off, her gaze sweeping across the room, obviously realizing there was hardly anything left to pack.

  “I think,” she started, her eyes narrowing slightly. “That we should probably get dressed and grab some food. I have a feeling there’re a lot of things you still have to tell me.”

  I nodded and pulled us both up. “Yeah, there are. Let’s get food.”

  Once showered and dressed, we walked to a bagel shop down the road from her place, grabbing a table in the back corner. Food and coffee in hand, I explained everything I’d been up to since before I left for Hawaii. Starting with my first conversation with Dr. Walsh and ending with me waiting for her in the aquarium.

  “My God,” she breathed, her eyes wide. “It’s all makes so much sense now. Dr. Walsh rearranging my schedule, Drew driving me batshit crazy, Rachel having a dress for me that wasn’t even her size. All of it.”

  I smiled and grabbed her hand. “Do you plan on getting on that plane with me on Thursday?”

  She sat quietly for a second, her eyes immediately dropping to her ring. “Have you really taken care of everything?”

  “I have,” I promised.

  “Then there is nothing in this world that would keep me from boarding that plane with you.”

  I stood from the booth and moved to her side, grabbing her hand and pulling her to her feet. “Then we’re going to hang out with all our friends and family one last time before we leave Seattle together.”

  She licked her lips and nodded, her face reddening slightly before she whispered, “I’d like that.”

  As soon as we walked through the door of Drew and Rachel’s apartment, we were met with hugs, backslaps, and congratulations. Mom, Rachel, and Grace oohed and aahed over Skylar’s ring and her recounting of my proposal, while Dad, Martin, Drew, and Preston rolled their eyes and offered indulgent smiles. Eventually, we moved to the kitchen to eat.

  “You did good.” Grace nodded, her gaze fixed in front of her as she leaned against the counter beside me.

  “Thanks.”

  “And, well…welcome to the family.”

  “I’ll take care of her, Grace. I promise.”

  She looked directly in my eyes, her gaze intense as she stood motionless for several seconds before finally speaking. “I believe you.”

  “Thanks.”

  The rest of the evening passed in a blur. Mom cried and hugged us both, whispering in my ear how happy she was. Dad wrapped his arms around Mom and pulled her close before turning his attention to me. “I’m proud of you son. You’ve worked hard for what you have, and you deserve all of the happiness it brings.”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  “And you take care of that girl of yours,” he added, his tone firm. “You’re not too old for me to kick your ass if you step out of line.”

  “And don’t forget about the lake,” Martin cut in, a smirk on his face.

  “Or the guns,” Preston joked, patting Martin on the arm.

  “What’s all this? Intimidate Brennan Day? Drew, are you going to get in on this action?” I called, turning my attention to him and away from the firing squad.

  “Nah, I think these guys have everything covered. I’ll just sit back and watch.”

  “Assholes,” I muttered with a chuckle.

  One by one, our families and friends filed out of the apartment, telling us they’d miss us and to take care of each other, until it was just Drew, Rachel, Skylar and me remaining.

  After reminding them what time we needed to be at the airport, Skylar and I went to her apartment for the last time. For the second night in a row, we spent most of the night making up for the last six weeks apart. When morning came, we worked nonstop on all of the last-minute details until Drew and Rachel showed up to take us to the airport.

  “So, you’ll make sure the rest of the boxes are shipped and my keys are handed in by the end of the month, right?” Skylar asked again as I lifted her bags out of the car.

  “We’ll take care of it. Don’t worry, Skylar,” Drew huffed with a smile. “You worry too much.”

  “Yeah, yeah.”

  “I’m going to miss you guys so fucking much,” Rachel cried, throwing her arms around Skylar and hugging her tight. They stayed that way for several minutes, exchanging muffled words too softly for Drew or me to hear as we said our goodbyes.

  Rachel finally stepped away from Skylar and moved in front of me, wrapping her arms around my neck and kissing my cheek. “Be happy.”

  “We will.” I smiled, looking over at Skylar, who was hugging Drew.

  I walked over to them, grabbing her bag off the ground and hoisting it over my shoulder. “Are you ready?” I asked, realizing we’d be cutting it close if we didn’t get through security now.

  She smiled widely and reached out her hand, twisting her pinkie around mine. “Yeah.”

  “Then let’s go home,” I whispered, tugging her hand and pulling her forward. Away from Seattle and our lives here—toward Hawaii and our future there, together.

  What followed were honestly the best times of my life. Skylar and I explored every inch of Oahu. We hiked Diamond Head, ran along the beach, and enjoyed discovering our new home. But most of all, we enjoyed knowing we would fall asleep and wake up wrapped in each other’s arms for the rest of our lives.

  Everything had fallen into place just the way we’d hoped, even if there were a few bumps along the way. Like when she was passed over for the first few jobs she applied for. I encouraged her the best I could, and in the end, it worked out exactly as it was supposed to.

  I was sitting on the couch when she came through the front door and launched herself at me.

  “UH called. I got the job. I got it! Oh my God, Brennan. It’s going to be amazing!” She wrapped her arms around my neck, my entire body falling forward as I tried to steady myself from her surprise attack.

  “Whoa. What happened? What job?” She’d applied for so many at this point, I wasn’t exactly sure which one she was referring to. Not that it mattered because whatever it was made her really fucking happy.

  “University of Hawaii. The Waikiki Aquarium is part of the university. Anyway, the director at the aquarium was talking to me at lunch today when I got a call from the Oceanography Research Department. I applied to work on their new coral reef conservation project after I’d heard some of the staff say their grant was approved, and I got it!” Her words came out so fast, I was barely able to keep up.

  “That’s great, baby. I’m so fucking proud of you.” Her smile was nothing short of blinding as I tucked her against my side and slid back on the couch. “Tell me everything.”

  She did too, for the rest of the night, and pretty much every day since. Not that I minded. We were both settling into our lives here, and while we missed our families like crazy, being here together made anything bearable.

  Our favorite thing, however, was the beach. We spent more time there than anywhere. Almost every night after dinner, we’d walk along the soft sand, the silvery moon glowing in the night sky. And just like most nights, tonight was no different.

  I grabbed her hand as we stood from our table at a beachside restaurant. “You want to go for a walk?”

  She nodded, and we kicked off our
shoes before stepping onto the cool, soft sand. “Do you remember the first night we walked on the beach?” she asked.

  Oh, I remembered.

  “Brennan, this is amazing.” She pulled away from me and took off in a sprint toward the water.

  “Hey,” I laughed, dropping our towels and running after her. I caught up with her just as her feet hit the wet sand and scooped her into my arms, bridal style, before walking us deeper into the water as she clung to my neck, laughing. When the water reached my chest, I dropped my arm from under her knees and turned her to face me, her legs immediately wrapping around my waist.

  “Didn’t you mention something in one of your letters about wanting to feel my warm, wet body sliding against yours in the ocean?” she asked, kissing my shoulder.

  “Yeah,” I whispered, pushing my hands inside her bikini bottoms and palming her ass.

  “Well, I’m warm.” She moved her hand between us, tugging at the elastic of my swim trunks. “And I’m wet,” she whispered, licking my neck as she pushed her hand inside my shorts and wrapped her fingers around me. “Let’s see what we can do about sliding our bodies together.”

  “Yeah, I remember,” I answered, my voice rough as I thought about the way her skin had tasted when I pushed her top to the side and sucked her nipple into my mouth. She laughed and wrapped her arm around my waist, her head resting against my chest as we came to a stop.

  “I love it here,” she whispered, staring out at the water.

  “Me too.”

  “I didn’t know it was possible to be this happy.”

  I kissed the top of her head and just held her for several minutes, letting the sound of the waves drown out everything else. I nudged her shoulder and grinned down at her. “So, when are you going to let me make an honest woman out of you and stop living in sin?” I was only half serious. We wanted to get married in Seattle, and neither of us had the time to start planning something like that right now.

  “Pfft, sin is in. It’s the new black,” she joked, moving in front of me and locking her hands around me. “Besides, what kind of devil would I be without a little sin?”

  “Oh, Lucy,” I laughed, mimicking her position and squeezing her against me. “There are plenty of sinful things we can do every day to keep your reputation intact.”

  “Is that so?”

  “It is a fact.” I nodded.

  “Well, what are we waiting for?” she laughed, pulling away and walking backward, her expression full of mischief. “C’mon, Stalker. Let’s go home and commit some sins.”

  “No rest for the wicked?” I smirked, my tongue sweeping over my bottom lip.

  She shook her head, a wolfish grin spreading across her face. “Not even a little.”

  “Then you better run, little girl.”

  Her scream echoed around us as she took off running down the beach, the sound of her laughter making my chest ache. I’d found love in the most unconventional way possible. A broken and bitter guy who tripped over his own lies and deceit and fell straight into love. A love that most people would never experience, and that I’d nearly destroyed single-handedly. But Skylar gave me a second chance, a chance to come after her, to prove I deserved her.

  Honestly, I still wasn’t completely sure I deserved her, but as I ran after her down the beach, a smile stretching across my face, I knew one thing for sure. I’d chase her anywhere. Always.

  I’m forever grateful to my family and friends for letting me be me, no matter how weird that gets.

  Jennifer, you are a constant in my life. I can’t thank you enough for your frank honesty, even if I don’t always want to hear it. Just kidding, I always want to hear it.

  Julie, thank you once again for dropping everything to read this for me. I can’t believe after all these years, this book is finally here.

  Kelly, you already got a dedication page, do you really need more praise??? Just kidding, homie. I love you like whoa and appreciate your friendship every single day. Stay crazy, my friend.

  Christine, you always give 110% for me. I couldn’t imagine a life where I didn’t have you in my corner both professional and personally.

  Jada, as you said to me recently, we’ve come full circle. This is where it all began and it’s been one hell of a ride. You continue to amaze me with your talent for making the perfect cover, then changing it a million times because I’m insane before going back to the way you had it to start with. You’re good people, my friend.

  Lisa, thank you for never pulling any punches and always telling me the truth; no matter how much I whine and complain. You always have my best interests at heart and that means the world to me.

  Christina, we’ve been friends for years, but when you decided to become more involved in my books it was like watching Miley Cyrus swing into a room on a wrecking ball. You are a FORCE and I am in awe and completely humbled to have you by my side.

  Mia, thank you for always supporting my writing and indulging every facet of my craziness daily.

  And last but certainly not least, to my girls, my “Chicks”. If people know about this book, it’s likely because of y’all. The tweets, the shares, the out and out balls to the wall pimping that you all do is mind blowing. Thank you for taking time out of your busy lives to spread the word about my books. You guys are the best ever.

  To everyone who takes the time to read my words, thank you. There are millions of books out there, thanks for choosing mine. Without you, none of this would be possible.

  Olivia Evans is a dreamer by day, writer by night. She's obsessed with music and loves discovering new bands. Traveling the world and watching the sun set in every time zone sounds like heaven to her. A true Gemini, she follows her heart blindly and lives life to the fullest with her husband, son, and friends. Her other loves include: Chuck Taylors, Doc Martens, concert tees, gangster movies, sports, wine, craft beer and her shih tzu babies. Connect with Olivia on Facebook, Twitter Goodreads, Instagram, or visit her website at www.oliviaevansauthor.com.

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