Tomorrow's Lies (Promises #1) (15 page)

“Hey, don’t apologize.” He squares his shoulders. “I’m tough, I can take it.”

I look at him, this guy who has no idea how amazing he is. His wide shoulders carry so much of his own pain, but he’s willing to carry mine, too. And beneath that hard chest lies a good heart. Maybe someday I’ll find the courage to lean my head on him. I’ve found comfort in confiding in Flynn, but I suspect far more comfort would be found in his arms.

A wave of warmth washes over me as I think about what it might have been like had someone like Flynn been my first. What would that act feel like when done for the right reasons? I know sex can be beautiful. What was perpetrated upon me wasn’t the model of what I should build upon; it was nothing but pure violence. And the monster won’t win. I will never allow what happened to me to define my life. I’m willing to be touched again, in
every
way, and by a man like Flynn. Shit, maybe it
should
be Flynn.

Shaking my head, I struggle to clear my mind before I start blushing and Flynn figures out what I’m thinking about. He’s going to think I’m crazy for mixing two such divergent thoughts. But the horrors of life are not always wrapped up in neat little packages. The bad things get intermixed with the good things sometimes, because it’s the good
and
the bad that makes us who we are.

Suddenly, I have to stand to put a little distance between me and Flynn.

He peers up at me, curious, his hand shading his eyes against the waning sunlight filtering through the lowest branches of the trees. “I thought we were staying a while longer?” he says.

“We are,” I reply. “But no more sad stuff. We need to find something to do to forget about this crap.”

“Sure,” he says. “What did you have in mind?”

Shooting him an
are you up for it
grin, I say, “Let’s play a game.”

Flynn

I
learn quickly that Jaynie is way better at Hide and Go Seek than she let on earlier in the day. She must have been going easy on us to give the twins a chance. Here in the deep forest, however, with only me searching for her, it’s a far different story.

“Jaynie,” I call out as I trudge through crunchy, dried-up leaves left over from last fall. “You know I’m going to find you. May as well give up now, save us both some time.”

No response.

Jaynie knows she has me stumped.
Clever girl
.

“Where could she be?” I mutter to myself just as I spy a bunch of boulders, one of which would provide a perfect hiding spot for a petite girl like her.

Switching to ninja-mode, I head to the largest of the rocks with sure and stealthy steps. When I reach the massive boulder, I jump up on it and say, “Gotcha!”

When I look down, no one is there. Shit, I always find my Hide and Go Seek adversaries, no matter how well-hidden they think they are.

I am at a loss and blow out a long breath. Turning slowly, I re-scan the area. It’s getting dark, and Jaynie is so small she could be hiding behind any number of thick-trunked trees. She may have even climbed up in one.

Tilting my head back, I stare up at the foliage filling in for summer. Lots of buds and green leaves, but there’s no one hiding in their midst.

I hear something then, a barely audible rustle. Not originating from up in the trees, but from behind a tall clump of dense lilac bushes, which happen to be in full bloom.

Aha!

Quietly, I make my way to the fragrant bushes, the sweet aroma filling my nose. I love spring, and I wish Jaynie and I could spend every day up here in the woods. The forest is resplendent with life, a perfect place—and a perfect time of the year—to focus on healing, renewal, and sorely deserved second chances.

Someone suppresses a sneeze from behind the bushes, confirming my suspicion that Jaynie is hidden in the brush. There is a break in the bushes, but it is much too narrow for me to climb through. It’s Jaynie-sized, though, for sure.

When I crouch and peer through the leaves, a lilac sprig brushes against my face. When I push it away, I spy Jaynie.

She is turned away, watching a different area of the bushes for my approach. Long, auburn hair shimmers in the setting sun, her features soft in profile. God, she is gorgeous and doesn’t even realize it. I could watch her for the next hour, but the sun will be down soon.

Softly, I call out, “Boo.”

Jaynie jumps and awkwardly spins to face me. “Damn it, Flynn.” Her hand goes to her heart. “You’re supposed to find me, not give me a freaking heart attack. I thought you’d given up.”

“Never,” I say.

She crosses her arms. “I think you may have gone over the time limit for finding your opponent.”

“What?” I pretend to be offended. “We never discussed time limits.”

Jaynie Cumberland clearly does not like to lose, but it’s good to see a competitive streak in her.

I can’t help but smile, and she gives me a sour look in return. “You’re just pissed I won,” I say.

“Okay, maybe a little,” she admits.

I step back to give her room to step through the branches without having to brush by me. “Get on out here, sore loser.”

“Shut up,” she mumbles, though in a good-natured manner, as she climbs through the opening.

Once she’s out she brushes debris from her shirt and shorts. “How’d you find me, anyway?” she asks.

“I heard you moving around in there. Plus, I heard you almost sneeze.”

“Hmm, you must have, like, superior hearing.”

I shrug. “I don’t know about that.”

I’m feeling the tiniest bit self-conscious, but in a good way. Jaynie has the ability to make me feel like I’m some kind of superman. Maybe to her, I am.

Before we leave, Jaynie breathes in all the purple blooms. “I love lilacs,” she says.

“They do smell good,” I agree. And then I’m struck with an idea. Maybe it’s stupid, but I take a chance and say, “Let me pick you a bouquet to take back.”

Truth is, I want to be
that
guy—the boy who gives the pretty girl flowers. I can’t go to a store and buy a bouquet for Jaynie, but maybe this is better.

Jaynie must think so, too. She dips her head and whispers, “I’d like that, Flynn.”

I proceed to pick Jaynie the best damn bouquet, one filled with the fullest and most robust blooms. I add in a few leaves for greenery, and find two daisies nearby to add to the mix.

“You’re really putting a lot into this,” Jaynie remarks as she follows me up and down the line of bushes.

“You deserve it,” I tell her.

When I turn and present her with my creation there are tears in her eyes. Not tears of sadness, but tears of joy. “You’re the first boy to ever give me flowers,” she says.

“I feel honored,” I reply, and it’s true.

She raises the bouquet to her nose. “Thank you, Flynn. These really are amazing.”

“I wish I could give you more,” I tell her.

She knows I mean much more. I wish I could take away her pain and give her the peace she seeks.

“Flynn…” She looks up at the sky, blinking back tears. I don’t know if these new ones are tears of sadness or happiness, but I do sense they’re tinged with regret.

“We should go,” she says, quietly. “It’ll be dark soon.”

We don’t say much on the way back to the house, but Jaynie does sniff her lilacs a number of times. At one point, she looks over at me and mouths, “Thank you, Flynn.”

“You’re welcome,” I say.

“I mean for everything, for this whole day.”

I nudge her shoulder, ever so lightly. She doesn’t flinch or shift away. This truly
is
turning out to be an incredible day.

When the house comes into view, Jaynie clears her throat. “Ugh, back to the grind tomorrow.”

“Yeah.” I sigh.

She slows to a stop. “Hold up a sec.”

I turn to her. “What is it?”

She breathes in deeply. Her eyes dart to me, but then skitter away.

“It’s just… What I said before is true.
You
made this day special. And not just because of the flowers you gave me.” She holds up the bouquet. “I don’t know how to say what I’m trying to get across.”

She sounds frustrated, but I understand. “I know what you mean, Jaynie. Playing with the kids, having fun under the sun, our talk in the woods.” Our eyes meet on that one. “Anyway, every part of this day was amazing. And we don’t get too much amazing around here.”

“That’s for sure.”

We start to walk again. “Yeah, it
was
a good day, Flynn. A really good day.”

Yeah, Jaynie Cumberland, it was the best
.

Jaynie

T
he really good day screeches to a grinding halt when Flynn and I return to the house.

Mrs. Lowry and Allison are waiting for us and they are none too happy. Mrs. Lowry meets us at the front door and ushers us into the kitchen. Allison is seated at the table, surrounded by fast food wrappers.

Allison immediately snarks, “We brought food back for dinner, but you and Flynn missed it”

“When I give a day off,” Mrs. Lowry chimes in, “it is not to be taken advantage of.” She walks to a sink full of soapy water and dishes, tsking, “Shame, shame. You two should never have stayed out this late. It’s dark outside.”

Allison glares at me, but smiles when she makes eye contact with Flynn. She’s wearing a tight dress, low-cut and so incredibly short that when she crosses her long legs, her lacy thong is exposed. It’s pink, like her glossed lips and the painted nails she’s tapping on the table.

Flicking a spent burger wrapper onto the floor, she purrs, “So, Flynn, I was just about to head out back.” She stands and adjusts her dress. “Come have a smoke with me.”

Mrs. Lowry says half-heartedly, “I told you I don’t like you smoking, young lady.”

Allison ignores her, so she shrugs and resumes washing dishes.

“I quit smoking,” Flynn says. “You know that.”

“So you did.” Allison spins a little case in her hand, which I assume holds her cigarettes. “I swear, though,” she goes on, “it seems more than that. You are just no fun anymore, Flynn O’Neill.”

“Flynn, we should go upstairs,” I interject.

Allison’s eyes snap to me. “Did I say you were dismissed?”

“Allison,” Mrs. Lowry admonishes from the sink. She does nothing to stop her daughter, however. Just continues with the dishes.

Allison steps over to where we’re standing. “I think your newly adopted shitty attitude, Flynn, may be due to little Jaynie here. She’s clearly a bad influence.”

I open my mouth to defend myself, but when I see Allison’s face, just waiting for me to dare speak up, I think better of it. I fear what kind of punishment she may come up with if I dare defy her. All five of us are ultimately at her mercy, and I don’t wish for the others to be punished because of me.

Allison backs off when I remain silent.

Without turning around, Mrs. Lowry says, “Go get some sleep, you two. There’s lots of work on the agenda for tomorrow.”

I turn to go, but Flynn doesn’t move.

Clearing his throat, he says in the nicest of tones, “Um, Mrs. Lowry, is there any food left for me and Jaynie? If not, even a nutrition bar would be great. We’re both kind of hungry.”

He’s downplaying the truth. We’ve eaten nothing since morning and are freaking starving.

Mrs. Lowry finally turns to face us. “Well, I don’t know.” She dries her hands with a dish towel.

“Don’t give them anything, Mom,” Allison interjects, smirking.

“Hmm.” Mrs. Lowry appears to think it over. “On this one, I tend to agree with my daughter. If you were so concerned with food, you would’ve made more of an effort to get back to the house before dark. I think it’s for the best if you go to bed hungry tonight. That way, you’ll have ample opportunity to ponder the consequences of your actions for the future.”

I can’t believe she’s serious. Not even a nutrition bar.

“Please, please, Mrs. Lowr—” I start to say, but Flynn cuts me off by bumping my hip with his.

When I glance over at him questioningly, he shakes his head, as if to say
don’t beg these people
.

I shut my mouth.

Mrs. Lowry’s cell phone rings, and she goes to another room to talk. Flynn and I then turn to go.