Lying Hearts

by Kelli Callahan

  The cat.

  Her stove wouldn’t turn on.

  There was a noise in her vent.

  Stupid shit like that, but since we cared about our community and loved Ms. Williams like she was our own grandmother, we came every time she called.

  Thomas carried the ladder back to the firetruck, and I stood with my hands on my hips, facing Ms. Williams. She had curly grey hair, a hunched back, and currently wore a pink floral nightgown. She was barely more than skin and bones, and veins protruded out of her twig-like hands.

  “You know, my granddaughter is around your age. She’s single. Pretty too. A handsome man like yourself shouldn’t be single, you know.”

  It was the same song and dance every time I came to her house. I shook my head and leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek. “Now, why would I need your granddaughter when I have you? Come on, now,” I winked at her, and she waved her hand at me, blushing as her lips formed an O shape.

  “Oh, stop that. You’re trouble, aren’t you?”

  “Yes ma’am, I guess I am.” I loved teasing with her, but I also never took her up on her offer to meet her granddaughter because my heart was taken. Thunder rolled overhead, and it had me, Ms. Williams, and Thomas looking toward the sky. Everyone thought thunder meant a rainstorm, but when a snowstorm was gathering, thunder rolled like drums above us too. The temperature dropped, cooler than usual for autumn, and I couldn’t help but wonder if it was going to be one of those freak storms.

  “You better be safe. Sounds like snow is coming. You stay warm okay? Do you have enough food?” I asked her, thinking that maybe me and the boys should bring her some homecooked meals to hold her over.

  “No, no, I’m fine. I might be old, but I can cook just fine.”

  “Well, you have my number if you change your mind. I gotta get going Ms. Williams. Have a good one. And keep Mr. Hemsworth inside. If it gets too cold, it can be dangerous for him,” I shouted and jumped onto the back of the firetruck as Thomas slowly pulled away. I waved goodbye, and then enjoyed the ride back to the fire station. It was getting too cold to ride on the back of the truck.

  There was no way it was going to snow. It was impossible and way too early. Maybe I’m reading the clouds wrong. Maybe it will just storm.

  As we drove through town, the quaint buildings, historical and unique lined each other. Cars were parked on either side of the road as we passed the main strip where Rocky’s bar and Kathy’s diner sat. The two were married and had the brilliant idea to have a bar, where people got drunk, and a diner, where drunk people go to get food, right next to one another. And they made a killing.

  Thomas hit the side of the firetruck to get my attention and pointed. What I saw nearly had me falling off the edge of the truck.

  Luna.

  She was looking at a shop for sale where a local jeweler used to be. He had moved here ten years ago. He wasn’t a local, so no one ever came in to buy jewelry, and his business failed, so he left.

  Oliver, London, and her parents waited for the real estate agent, Marely, to open the door to the place, and they stepped inside, disappearing behind the tinted glass. What did that mean? Did that mean that she was staying in town for good? I needed to know more.

  I slapped my hand on the firetruck, and he slammed on the breaks. My body flew forward, and my forehead slammed against the metal, effectively knocking me off the truck. I landed on the pavement, hard, right on my back. I groaned when pain shot up my neck, throbbing in my head.

  “Shit, Easton, you okay? I’m so fucking sorry.” Thomas kneeled beside me and debated on helping me up or not.

  I raised my finger. “Just give me a minute,” I said while holding my breath.

  The ground was wet and cold. My breath came out in frozen puffs and it drifted up toward the sky, becoming one with the clouds.

  “Are you okay?” Only this time, a different voice had me opening my eyes, and it was Luna.

  Shit. I couldn’t have her seeing me like this. Thomas stood off to the side, pretending not to pay attention to us as he played on his phone.

  “Can you hear me? I saw what happened. You hit your head on the truck and then the ground.” Her hair was down. I loved it when her hair was down. It was so long and thick with spiral curls that I just wanted to watch spring in place all day by tugging on them. I also imagined wrapping my hand around the long, luscious locks and tugging her to me to seal our lips together, the one thing that hadn’t happened, that needed to happen.

  “I’m okay,” I said, finally. She looked so beautiful I could hardly focus, and I didn’t know if it was because I banged my head or because she was just that time warping.

  It was probably her.

  I was surprised she cared enough to come outside and check on me. That had to mean something, right? Luna was the kind of person to care if anyone was hurt though, so I couldn’t take it so personally.

  Only I was.

  I pretended that the only reason why she came outside to check on me was because it was me. The guy that married her under that oak tree, her best friend, not her enemy. I wasn’t her damn enemy, not anymore.

  “Good, now all you have to do is get the dent out of the truck where your thick skull hit it. I believe it got more damage than you did.” Luna’s eyes narrowed, and then all too soon, her face disappeared. I had a feeling her statement had more meaning behind it. I rolled to my side, ignoring the pain in my back and my forehead and staggered to my feet.

  “Luna, wait—”

  “I’m glad you’re okay, Easton. I… I didn’t know it was you that fell off the truck, but I’m glad you’re okay.”

  My heart sank. Her words cut me deep, which they were allowed to do since I cut her deep too. “Are you looking for a place to buy? What are you doing?” I called out after her as she walked back inside the store. Oliver and London stood outside and gave me a look that could only be described as pity. I just wanted to know more about her. What were her plans? What was she interested in? I needed to know. It was a visceral need.

  Oliver sauntered up to me, and London went back inside the shop. Oliver hadn’t spoken to me since high school. He was a fierce protector of Luna, and he would always be on her side. “She’d be pissed if she caught me talking to you, and to be honest, I don’t know why I am since I don’t like you all that much.”

  Thomas snorted behind me, and I cocked my head over my shoulder to give him a scathing look before he scampered off to the front of the truck like a dog with its tail between its legs.

  I kept my mouth shut because I’d learned I was better off saying nothing. Oliver might be the only gay guy in town, and he was happy in his own skin. He wasn’t like other men here, and others had a problem with it. He had a hard time in high school because it was obvious that he was gay, and everyone liked to give him shit for it.

  Not me. I didn’t care.

  “Listen, you don’t know Luna anymore. She’s not that kid you played chase with. She’s a woman now.”

  Yeah, she was. A fucking beautiful woman.

  “And I know she still feels for you, that will never change, but she’s ready to move on. She’s staying in town. She’s opening a boutique here. And she’s going to date; I’m going to assume that doesn’t include you.”

  “The hell it doesn’t!” I growled at the thought of her being with another man. I was stupid. I knew there had to be men before her coming back to town, but no more. I was going to be her last. “You listen to me, Oliver. I’m not going to go down easy. That woman in there is destined for me, she knows it too.”

  His eyes softened around the edges, and he lifted a bright yellow mitten and placed it on my shoulder. His eyes were bluer than mine, brighter, and they were kind as he stared at me, debating on what to say. “She does know it, but she wants nothing to do with it, Easton. She’s determined to forget the past, and that means forgetting you. Luna is stubborn, strong-willed, and once her mind is made up about something, there isn’t much you can do to change that.
” He glanced over his shoulder to make sure no one was behind him. “I still don’t like you, but if you really want her, don’t give up on her like you did back then.” He started to step away from me, and with a big exhale, he gave me an asymmetrical sad smile and turned around, giving me the view of his sweatpants that said ‘cutie’ on the back in rhinestones.

  “Fuck,” I hissed and kicked the back bumper of the truck with my boot, howling in more pain when I ended up hurting myself instead of the truck. I limped around to the passenger side, grumbling under my breath about stupid trucks and stupid pavement and stupid pasts along with stupid mistakes. I slammed my hand against the side of the door and bit my lip to keep from screaming when my wrist twinged.

  I just didn’t learn, did I?

  With my good foot, I boosted myself up on the step and climbed in the passenger seat. My head hurt, I was positive I broke my tailbone from how much it throbbed, and my wrist screamed at me.

  “You look like roadkill, Easton.”

  “Shut the hell up and drive back to the station.”

  The firetruck rolled forward, inching toward the end of the street where the road led to a burst of trees, and then on the right was the fire station.

  “You have some blood dripping down your forehead.” Thomas poked the swollen wound above my right brow, and I hissed, knocking his hand away.

  “Ow!” I said with impatience. “You don’t just go poking open wounds, asshole.” I grabbed the hem of my shirt and wiped the blood off my forehead.

  “Well, I didn’t know you’d be a little bitch about it,” he teased, and I flipped him off. We ran over a pothole, and it jostled my sore backside.

  When we pulled into the fire station, Thomas and I jumped out of the truck at the same time, and I tried to catch all my weight on my good foot since my other one throbbed.

  All of the guys came pouring out of the station, including my brother Ethan. Jesus, finally. My twenty-four-hours were up.

  About damn time. I felt like I had gone through the wringer, and I hadn’t even put out a fire today.

  “Did Ms.Williams cat do that to you?” Ethan’s jab made all the guys laugh.

  “Ha−ha, so funny. No, I fell off the truck.”

  And of course that only made the guys laugh harder, and Thomas went out of his way to correct me. “No. I slammed on the breaks, and his head hit the truck, then he fell off because Luna Nightingale was looking at a place in town,” he said like a thirteen-year-old boy catching his friend staring at a girl for too long and teasing him about a crush.

  All the guys batted their lashes and oohed and awed, giving me shit for losing my focus so easily. No one ever fell off the truck. It was a rookie mistake, and I was no damn rookie. I walked by Ethan, expecting him to give me shit too, but he had his arms crossed defensively and followed my movements without saying a word to me.

  Yep. I was fine. Don’t worry about me, big brother.

  I could tell whatever pain I felt; he thought I deserved, and I did. So far, Luna had been in town, and I had gotten my ass handed to me twice now.

  Verbally and physically.

  The beatings couldn’t get much worse now, could they?

  Chapter Nine

  Luna

  All I could think about were his eyes.

  They were as blue as the ocean during the summer, crisp and clear, yet held a depth that no one had been able to swim to.

  I had freaked when I saw the firefighter fall off the truck, and when I ran outside to make sure they were okay, I peered into the face that had haunted my dreams for far too many years. He was dazed, but when he saw me, the gloss in his eyes cleared, and his pupils dilated into fine pinpoints as he stared at me.

  He had stolen my breath in that moment.

  Easton had that habit. Stealing the air right from my lungs like a burst of cold wind or ice water drenching my skin. And then the torture of it all, he had the ability to make me breathe again.

  And then I got angry.

  Why did he have this power over me? Why could I not breathe? Then when he opened his mouth, and I heard his voice, I felt at home? Why? I couldn’t take it.

  “Luna? Honey, you okay?” my mom asked, and then she came up and put her hand on my forehead to take my temperature like she did when I was a kid. “You’re all flushed, but you feel fine. Do you feel okay?”

  “Oh, I’m sure she’s fine,” Oliver coughed from behind me, and I narrowed my eyes at him, which resorted in him giving me a snarky look in return.

  “Fine, sorry. It must be this scarf.” It wasn’t, but I had to blame it on something other than Easton getting me all worked up. The man was fucking hot, beautiful, and sexy. Whatever, okay? Every woman had drooling tendencies when they were around a man like that. I’d be hot for any man that looked as good or was the same caliber as Easton.

  He was nothing special.

  And there I went, lying to myself again.

  “We can reschedule the showing if you like,” Marely said. She had been a girl that was always nice and never judged me but kept to herself. It was refreshing that she was my agent. I didn’t want to deal with the snarky bitches from the past. “It’s really no problem if you’re feeling unwell.”

  “No, that’s just silly. I’m fine. We are here now, and so far from what I see, I love it.” All of the walls were beautifully aged red brick with original hardwood floors. The space was large and open but still had the intimacy I craved for in my own boutique.

  That I had officially named ‘Moons and Stars’. I wasn’t oblivious. I knew what the two words were, but I wanted something that meant something to me. My dad called me Star, and Easton called me Moon.

  And yeah, I held a lot of resentment toward him, and more anger had held on to my soul when I thought I had ‘let go’ of it. But pushing all of that aside and digging down deep, Easton’s friendship left a mark on my soul just like his horrible actions did.

  I wouldn’t tell anyone where the name came from. It was my secret to tell and over my dead body would I let anyone in on said secret.

  “Wow, this place is beautiful.” There were huge glass cases on the floor, something about them was oddly familiar, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. It had been too long since I actually checked out the town besides my parent’s house when I visited.

  “The glass cases can be removed. The person that owned this place before had to leave in a hurry, so he left them,” Marely said.

  “That’s okay; I could probably use a few of them for my own things.” Oh, I could. That would save me a few thousand dollars. I just needed to clean them up. They were perfect for little knickknacks that people like to impulsively buy and obviously jewelry.

  In front of the store, on either side of the door, were huge windows and there was a step that led to an area that would be perfect to set up a few plush couches and a coffee bar. Then the other side could be used to dress up a few mannequins to showcase the clothes. I loved the hanging lights too. They were rustic looking and would give the place the perfect glow. I was going to hang a large round lamp in the corner and then twinkling lights to resemble a moon and stars. I could picture it all right now.

  “Where would I put the fitting rooms?” I walked toward the back, and I knew they would go here or along the side where the wall corners met. “I’d love to imitate the brick for the fitting rooms for the barrier so each customer can have their own privacy. Doors from the ceiling down too, I can’t stand it when people see my feet when I’m taking off my clothes. It’s weird.” Was that an odd quirk? Maybe.

  “That’s fantastic, Luna. You know, a beautiful piece of art hanging above the register would be nice too. Maybe Camden? It would be homey and welcoming to the customers.” Oliver had a point, and he showcased the wall to the left with both of his arms, as if he were a model showing a new car.

  “That’s a great idea, Oliver.” I suddenly got really excited. I couldn’t wait to start building my dream. “I’ll take it!” I said a bit too loudly, and th
e high frequency rang in the round glass containers of the hanging lights. “Sorry.” I rocked on my feet and smiled.

  “It’s okay. I’m glad you love it so much. Let’s talk numbers.”

  “Oh, we will be paying cash,” my mom said, and I turned around, my ability to speak gone since I couldn’t manage to get my lungs working, and I shook my head. I couldn’t accept this offer. It was too much money.

  “Cash?” Marely practically drooled over the packet she had in her hands. “That’s around eighty thousand dollars.”

  “What the fuck!” Oliver shouted. “Shit, sorry. Sorry.” He made the motion to zip his mouth shut and held up his hands. London pushed him into the corner to mind his own business, and it reminded me of a child having to be in time out.

  I didn’t care. My best friends would find out later, anyway.

  “No, mom, dad, I can’t take that. I have some money saved. I can mortgage off the rest. Really. You need it.” I blinked away the tears when I remembered why they needed it. “I can’t.” I figured I could put down around ten thousand. It wasn’t much of a down payment, but it was something.

  “Oh, I haven’t told you the best part. I can’t believe I forgot this. There’s a one-bedroom apartment upstairs, just through that door. Do you want to see it?” Marely bonked her head, punishing herself that she forgot something so important.

  Hell no. I didn’t care. That made the place even better. I could rent it out and make money that way.

  “Honey, we have plenty of money. Your dad’s insurance covers most of the medical bills, and you know he did well as a lawyer. Money isn’t really an issue. We want to help you do this.”

  “Let me put in ten thousand? Please?”

  Dad shook his head. “Buy your own furniture. Pay for everything else and save the rest for a rainy day. Businesses are hard to start up, but I believe in you.”

  I couldn’t believe this was happening. It was all moving so fast and the one person I wanted to tell, I couldn’t. Anytime something good happened to me over the years, I always wanted to text Easton. But I never did after blocking his number all those years ago.