Little White Lies (9 page)

Nick felt her shiver again. Something was not right here, and he could see that he was more than likely going to have to pry it out of her. Putting her away from him, his hands firmly on her arms, he gave her a little shake until she looked up at him.

“Maggie is there something you want to tell me?” he asked softly, not wanting to get tough with her unless he had to.

Maggie looked deeply into his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Not exactly want to tell you but have to tell you,” she responded backing away slowly until he was no longer holding onto her. “You see, Nick, it was all a misunderstanding, sort of… I didn’t
really
have a date tonight with Tim Morrisey. In fact, I didn’t have
any
date tonight…” she continued, putting her hands behind her and very slowly backing up to her bedroom door. “Nick, I swear to you, I have no idea why I would tell such an outrageous fib but well… sometimes you just make me so mad I don’t even know what I’m saying.”

Nick’s jaw dropped. His hands were fisted on his hips and he glowered at her. “Let me get this straight. You lie to me, and then you have the nerve to blame it on me?” he asked through gritted teeth. “Do you know how close I was to socking that jerk right in the nose? He not only would have been perfectly innocent, but completely clueless as to why. I would have been arrested!” Nick ran a hand through his hair, frustrated beyond belief. As he took a step towards her, her hand closed over the doorknob and she quickly backed into her room and shut the door. The click of the lock was the last straw.

“Maggie, open this damn door now,” he hissed, testing the lock and wondering how much noise it would make if he just kicked it in. If the kids weren’t in the house he’d…

Maggie huddled on the other side and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Now, Nick,” she spoke firmly through the door, much braver knowing he couldn’t get to her. “Let’s be reasonable about this.”

“Well that would work for me,” he shot back, “But you wouldn’t have any sense if someone handed you a bucket of it.”

Maggie flinched and felt her face go red at the insult. “I’m really sorry about fibbing to you Nicky, and I promise I won’t do it again.” God, now she was regressing, she hadn’t called him Nicky since high school. Ugh! “Couldn’t we just forget about this little… misunderstanding and…maybe you should go out for a beer or something,” she suggested
, or two or six,
she thought. “Maybe you need to cool down a little. I hate it when you’re mad at me,” she sniffed, suddenly feeling very bad about the whole thing and even sorrier for herself.

Nick’s shoulders slumped in defeat. Geez, now she sounded like she was crying. “I’m not mad at you honey, just disappointed. I thought we were getting to a place where we could be honest with each other, even if we disagree. You know how I feel about you, Maggie,” he whispered through the door, “and how I feel about the kids. You don’t have to make up an imaginary man to get me to keep my distance.”

“Oh God, Nick, that’s not it at all. I mean yes, I don’t want to get too close but…” Maggie’s hand was on the handle and she almost opened the door. “Oh, I don’t know what I mean,” she whispered back, tears sliding down her face. “Please can’t we talk about this later?”

“All right Maggie, we’ll do it your way,
for now
. Call me when you’re ready to discuss it. I’ll lock the doors on my way out.”

Chapter Seven

A cold rain was starting to fall by the time Maggie pulled the last of the sheets off the line. Spring in upstate New York wasn’t always decided by the calendar, and today was one of those days that couldn’t seem to make up its mind. On minute the sun was shining brightly, and the next the wind whipped up, and clouds arrived so quickly it seemed like twilight. A bed made with fresh sheets dried by the sun and wind was a passion of hers. Unless it was snowing or raining, she always line-dried the bedding. The kids had been gone since early morning and wouldn’t be back until late tomorrow afternoon. Her mother tried to insist that she join them for Sunday dinner, but Maggie wouldn’t budge. Muttering about stubborn Irish women who wouldn’t listen to their own mothers, Maeve herded the children out to the car.

Folding the laundry, Maggie looked around at the house with a feeling of accomplishment. She had scrubbed, dusted, and polished her home to within an inch of its life. As soon as she put fresh linens on her bed, she was going to reward herself with a glass of wine and a long, hot soak in a bubble bath.

Nick hadn’t called all day and she didn’t expect to hear from him. With the kids gone for the night, there really was no reason for him to call or come by. She knew he was probably furious with her, and she really couldn’t blame him. Embarrassment crept over her when she thought about last night and how foolishly she had behaved. Several times today she picked up the phone intending to call him and apologize, but she couldn’t make herself go through with it. The whole imaginary date thing had seemed like a good idea at the time, but in hindsight she couldn’t believe her stupidity. And then to lock herself in her room like a child afraid of being punished was ridiculous. She was a grown woman for Pete’s sake. What could he possibly have done to her with the kids in the house? Well, there was that wooden spoon thing, she thought squirming as a chill ran down her spine. That was pretty embarrassing, even though the kids hadn’t heard a thing. Much as it pained her to admit it, she had felt relieved after telling Nick about Jack, well, as soon as her bottom had cooled off. But Nick going to Mason? She was still pissed about that and the scolding she’d received. Now
that
had been embarrassing! Having one man threaten her with a spanking was bad enough, but two? That was just plain mortifying, she thought, trying to suppress a shiver.

Upstairs, Maggie made her bed and started running her bath. The rain was falling steadily and she lit a small fire in the fireplace to take the chill off the room. By the time she went downstairs, got her wine and put in a Nora Jones CD, her bath was ready. Sinking into the scented water, Maggie was determined to put all her worries out of her mind.

* * *

Nick paced his office, his coffee now cold on his desk. It was Saturday, and he didn’t quite know what to do with himself. He was amazed how quickly he’d become attached to Maggie and the kids. The weekend loomed long and lonely before him. Mason and Rebecca were out shopping for baby furniture for the nursery, so there was no help from that direction. Maggie hadn’t called him, and he wasn’t sure what to do about that either. Last night had been a revelation of sorts, and he was still working it out in his mind.

First, she had lied about having a date. Why? Did she want him to think she was dating another man so he would back off? Was she trying to make him jealous? She’d gone to a lot of trouble to look as sexy as possible, and if she’d been trying to get a rise out of him, she’d got it, in more ways than one. Was she testing him? Trying to see if he’d keep his word? If so, she wouldn’t be in doubt for long. He thought he’d made himself perfectly clear.
It would be a good
idea if you never lied to me again
. What part of that was so hard to understand? She had to know she was playing with fire. She called them “fibs”, as if that would change the context, but he wasn’t the kind of man who would tolerate dishonesty from
his
woman. Yeah, he’d agreed to babysit, mainly to see what he was up against. Now he knew. There wasn’t anyone else. The biggest obstacle in his path was Maggie herself. She was as stubborn and prickly as they came, but she had feelings for him, and no amount of denial was going to change that.

And what about locking herself in her room? What the hell was that all about? Yes, she had a spanking coming; he knew it, and she knew it. It was all pretty basic really. If you lie to me, if you do anything that jeopardizes your well-being, I will roast your ass. End of story. She had to know what a chance she took, making up that whopper about Tim Morrisey. It’s not like he hadn’t warned her. Then, she locks herself in her room, as if that would stop him. Pretty childish behavior, but then again so was half the crap she’d pulled recently. Truth be told, there was more than one lie to deal with, but he figured it would all work out in the end. But it all came back to why? Did she want a spanking? Want to be taken in hand? If she was looking for a man she could control, it wasn’t him. Nick was old-fashioned and he knew it. He fully intended to be the head of his household, but he wasn’t a jerk, and there wasn’t an abusive bone in his body. Maggie was fire and light, and he loved that about her. He didn’t want a wimpy woman with no backbone, and he figured they’d have their share of nose to nose battles, but as long as she fought fair and didn’t pull any shenanigans, her bottom was safe with him. Well, mostly he grinned, looking at his watch. It was three in the afternoon. If she didn’t call him by seven, he’d be headed her way, like it or not.

* * *

The steady drumming of the rain should have soothed her, but instead Maggie felt isolated. After her bath she had thrown on a pair of leggings and an oversized shirt and then refilled her wine glass. Clicking through channels proved fruitless, so she shut the TV off. It was far darker than it should be for this time of night. The silence of the house felt unnatural as she stood at the window, watching the rain. Everything looked blurry and drab as she watched the few cars that were out send water splashing over the curb. A dark vehicle, going very slowly, passed by and she strained her eyes trying to identify the driver. Her hand slid to her throat with a gasp as she thought she recognized Jack Harley. Maggie pulled the drapes shut quickly and backed away from the window. I can’t believe this, she thought, dropping onto a nearby chair and shaking her head. Although she couldn’t remember where he lived, she did know that it was not in the area. All the recent phone call hang-ups and the couple of times she’d just heard heavy breathing on the other end started to make horrible sense. He knew where she lived; he knew her phone number. Oh God, did he know she was alone tonight?

Maggie’s hands trembled as she went around the house, checking the locks. When she found the cellar door unlocked, she wracked her brain trying to remember if she had locked it after she’d come in with the laundry. Turning off the lights, she went back to the window and made a small gap in the drapes to see out. Three times she watched the dark car pass by, going slower each time. She left the window, grabbed the phone, and dialed Mason’s number. There was no answer, and she hung up, not leaving a message.

Maggie paced frantically back and forth, chewing her finger nail. She would have to call Nick, but boy she sure didn’t want to. He was already pissed and she could just imagine how this would go over.
Well, you see, Jack’s been following me, and I’ve had all these hang-ups, and now I’m sure he’s driving by the house, and I’m scared out of my mind… and oh yeah, I didn’t tell anyone because I didn’t think it was a big deal
. Yeah, this was so
not
going to work out well for her.

Creeping slowly back to the window, Maggie peeked out one more time. The car was now parked across the street. The flash of a lighter or match illuminated his face, and she staggered back, collapsing onto the couch. Punching in Nick’s cell number, she silently prayed he wasn’t far away. Her hands were shaking so badly, it was all she could do to hang onto the phone. By the time he answered she was sick with fear, her heart pounding.

His “Hello” was cut off by her “Where are you?”

“What’s up, sweetie? As a matter of fact, I’m about turn onto your street. Is anything wrong?”

Maggie peeked out the window again and saw Jack leaning against his car.

“Just hurry, please. I really need to see you right away,” she whispered, trying to control her trembling.

About thirty seconds later, she heard the squeal of tires as Nick pulled Mason’s four wheel drive into the driveway. She watched from the door as Jack quickly got back into his car. Wrenching the door open, she threw herself into Nick’s arms before he could even get inside. He could feel her whole body vibrating, and when he heard the squeal of tires, he turned to see who was pulling away from the curb. Although he didn’t recognize the vehicle, his gut told him that something was very wrong here. Maggie clung to him tightly as he picked her up in his arms and carried her inside. Striding into the living room, Nick sat on the couch with Maggie on his lap. Gently he swayed side to side as his hand rubbed her back.

“What’s going on, Maggie? Who was that?” Nick asked softly.

Maggie wracked her brain, trying to come up with an answer that wouldn’t get her in any more trouble than she already was. Wiping away tears, she pulled herself out of Nick’s arms and stood. She worried her bottom lip as she tried to look anywhere but at him. Nick shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it over the end of the couch. Crossing his arms he waited.

Maggie walked back and forth in front of Nick. Every few feet she would stop for a moment, her face screwed up as if concentrating hard, and then she would throw up her hands and continue pacing. The curls from her high ponytail bounced up and down as she paced and with no makeup on she looked about sixteen.

“Maggie, I’m waiting,” he informed her, starting to give into his frustration. She’d obviously been upset when he arrived, and maybe it had something to do with the car pulling away from the curb, but she still needed to explain her behavior.

Maggie forced herself to accept that there was no answer she could give Nick without another lie, and she knew how well that would turn out. Nick had already been on his way long before she called, and she wasn’t so stupid she didn’t know what
that
meant. Apparently he had reached the end of his patience, and her reprieve was over. There was no way she would risk making this any worse than it had to be. Finally, sighing in resignation, her chin to her chest, she went over and stood next to Nick. Hands shaking uncontrollably, she took a deep breath and looked him in the eyes.