Shattered Secrets (Book of Red #1) (25 page)

“Just give me a towel.” Abby stuck out her tongue and snatched the towel from me.

We met eyes, and for an instant, I knew she wanted to tell me something. She wanted to offload her stress and open her mouth and blurt out everything clogging up her thoughts. But then, she wiped the blue fabric over her face and let the curtain fall back into place, the little magnets clicking as they attached to the side of the tub.

“So, I was thinking we could stay in this afternoon and watch movies. Is that okay with you?” she asked.

“Sure.” Her sudden lack of trust in me hurt, but I had to let it go. “Sounds great.”

I only hoped I could.

Abigail

Lying to Derick felt… horrible. Worse than anything I’d ever experienced. Looking at him made my stomach ache, my head hurt, and my heart crack in two. If I believed I wasn’t insane—which I couldn’t rule out—then that meant the book that Derick’s parents entrusted to us to teach us everything about our new world didn’t trust Derick.

And now, he couldn’t trust me.

Where did that leave
us
?

“You haven’t touched food all day.” Derick shoved a cheese quesadilla under my nose. Turns out he cooked quite well, if sprinkling cheese on tortillas and heating them up in a pan could be considered cooking, but I refused to eat.

All I wanted to do was curl up in a corner and cry.

He tossed dinner on my plate and wiped his hands. “Come on.”

I started to look up at him but couldn’t meet his eyes, so I opted for staring at the middle of his white, button-up shirt.

“We’re going to be late for Will’s party.” Derick took my hand and pulled me from my seat.

Yesterday, I wanted nothing more than to avoid our friends so we didn’t involve them in our problems. Today, the thought of being around people I knew and loved sounded amazing. Socializing meant there would be little time for me to dwell on the fact I lied to Derick.

Mom always said to be honest. One lie leads to ten, then twenty, then thirty more. Ha. She knew from experience. Did she hurt as much as I did? Did every false truth feel like a knife to her soul? Did she have regret?

I pressed my ear to Derick’s chest and listened to his heartbeat, so even, so calm.

Not mine. “You think people will recognize us?”

He took a deep breath, wrapping me up in a hug, making me feel safe and loved—and worse for being a liar. “If Will didn’t, I doubt anyone else will. We have to try. Knowing how well this Safe Zone works is important for our sanity.”

Sanity. There was that word again.

Books don’t talk to people. Books only answer questions if you read their contents. They don’t
show
you where to find those answers, and they definitely don’t ask you to lie to your friends.

Was I sane?

“You with me?” Derick whispered.

No
.

Would the book know if I told him about the secret again? Would the world suddenly come to an end?

Probably not.

But if I wanted to believe in myself—in my state of mind—I had to accept that the book answered my questions, that I was really in Derick’s arms and living in the same house as him, that he was my boyfriend. More than anything, I wanted those last three things to be true.

So for now, I had to believe I couldn’t tell Derick anything.

“Abby, if you want to stay home, we can. Are you sure you don’t want to tell me what’s wrong?”

“I’m fine, just distracted. I’m sorry.” Those two words meant so much more than an apology for zoning out. I met his eyes, the bright blue reflecting the kitchen light, and forced myself not to cry. “Let’s go.”

Staring at the starry sky, he led me out to the Mustang and then climbed in without saying a word. My attitude fooled no one, not me, not Derick. I probably couldn’t have even fooled a stranger. But for whatever reason, Derick didn’t press me again for information.

I liked that about him. I liked how he knew not to press me when I lost myself in thoughts, how he knew begging for answers would only hurt us both.

I had to figure this out on my own first, then I’d tell him. Everything.

We opened the windows and cruised down Gulf of Mexico Drive, the soothing sound of Band of Horses drifting from the radio. A couple turns later and we were face to face with a keypad.

Derick punched in the code Will gave us yesterday, then turned up the volume. “And anything to make you smile|It is my better side of you to admire.”

“Why, Derick, are you singing my favorite song to me?” My chest tightened. I wanted to smile, but my face refused to form one. Every time I tried, needles jabbed at my cheeks, as if I was being punished for pretending.

Grabbing my hand, he brought my fingers to his lips and kissed them. “For you, to you. Same thing.”

“Derick, I—”

“Shh.” He rubbed his thumb over my knuckles and stared at the road, contemplative but not pressuring me. “Whatever’s bothering you, tell me when you’re ready.”

I love you. You understand me, and I’m keeping something from you.

“We’re here,” he said, eyes widening.

I glanced out the windshield, and my chin nearly hit the seat. Will’s massive house stood in front of us: gray brick driveway full of BMWs, Audis and so many expensive cars I didn’t recognize, palm trees swaying in the cool breeze, bright light spilling from the picture windows.

The amount of money his family had probably rivaled the Hilton’s—or more.

Leaning forward, I gawked at the well-manicured lawns, the thick blades of grass covered in beads of water from sprinklers, the flowering bushes I couldn’t even pretend I knew the names of, and then I saw Will. “Wow. I’d ask if we were in the right place, but—”

“Derick and Abby,” he shouted, voice carrying through the open windows. He walked up the street with a girl hooked to his arm. Not any girl, Megan.

My Megan
.

“You guys made it.”

“Is it too late to go home?” I asked, halfway out of the car, comparing my denim shorts and white smocked top to her insanely tight
and
skimpy green dress. She’d always dressed better than me, but seeing the way they lived outside the small-scale lifestyle they kept in Virginia, I didn’t compare. I didn’t fit into this world. And she didn’t
know
me here. What if she treated me differently? “I don’t think I’m dressed right for this party.”

Derick laughed and then met me in the grass, but before I had another thing to make me look over-clothed and frumpy, I hid my shoulder bag under the seat—not that anyone here could possibly want to steal from me.

“Take a deep breath, Abby. You’re more beautiful than that girl will ever be.” Derick slid his arm around my waist and locked the car, exuding the confidence I was used to. “Damn. I just realized
that girl
is Megan.”

“You didn’t before?”

He shook his head, then we took off to greet friends who had no idea who we are.

“Hey, man,” Derick said, “I finally convinced her to get her nose out of some book.”

Great. Thanks. Now I’m not only overdressed, but I’m a nerd.

Half-naked Megan smiled, her lips full and pink and glistening with gloss. “What are you reading?”

“Umm…” Crap. I didn’t want to lie to another friend, not again. “Some book about beings from another plane, who protect humans.”

Derick tensed, and she batted her long eyelashes at Will, then stomped his foot in such a Megan-ish way. My heart ached for her to remember me, to
see
me.

But could she? What did Megan and Will see with the magic of the Safe Zone protecting me and Derick? Did they see us as taller? Fatter? Tan?

“Aren’t you going to introduce us?”

“Geez. Calm down.” Will laughed and ran a hand through his messy hair. “Abby and Derick, meet my friend Megan.”

“Abby and Derick?” Tears filled Megan’s eyes as she fled Will’s side and linked her arm with mine, tugging me away from Derick, sniffling. “I’ll introduce her to everyone.”

“You okay?” I asked.

“Yeah. Fine. Come on.”

I looked back, begging, pleading—silently, of course—for Derick to rescue me. Was pretending we didn’t know them even fair?

The guys shared a smile, and Derick shrugged.

“Don’t worry,” Megan said, “We don’t bite. Did you bring a bathing suit?”

“Was I supposed to?”

“Doesn’t matter. I have plenty over here.” She turned and waved. “See you boys inside.”

She shuffled us right through the entryway, and I gasped. Floor to ceiling windows made up the back wall of the two-story family room, and flames flickered in the gas fireplace. Six or seven other girls and guys sat huddled on the beige leather sofas, playing cards and taking shots.

“Will said you’re vacationing here from Virginia. How do you know these people?” A pang of jealousy lodged itself in my gut and festered there. Megan had never mentioned any friends in her vacation stories. She mentioned boredom and lack of parents and droned on and on about Will and how he never noticed her no matter what she did to get his attention.

“Our parents started abandoning us together since the time we were born. At first they left us with babysitters, and then as we got older they just left us alone. Nice, right?”

Sad. My heart hurt for this part of my best friend’s life I didn’t know existed. I couldn’t help how horrible I felt, how clueless. Why wouldn’t she just tell me? It’s not like I’d judge her. Didn’t Megan trust me?

One girl jumped off the sofa and rushed over to us, smacking her gum.

Gross.

She propped a hand on her hip and flipped her long brown hair over her shoulder. “Hey, Megan. Who’s your little friend?”

Megan dug her nails into the skin on my upper arm, and stabbing sensations skittered up my shoulder. “Abby, this is Jessica.”

I smiled. “Hi, Jess—”

“Nice shirt.” Jessica blew a huge bubble.

Before she could speak another word, Megan steered me toward the left and up an open spiraling staircase. “I lied to you,” she whispered, “
She
may bite. I hate that girl. I have no idea why Will still allows her to come to his parties.”

“He’s a guy, she’s a girl?”

Megan shook her head. “He’s got better taste than that.”

Like in you
? I wanted to say it, but I kept my mouth shut. If Megan ever realized who I was, she’d kill me. For years, I’d urged her to tell Will how she felt, but she always said no. She wasn’t ready for that kind of rejection. Or, she’d say maybe this summer, or this winter. But then, she’d bail at the last minute.

Megan glided down the hall and then opened a door into the most amazing bedroom I’d ever seen. The walls were round and housed three sliding glass doors leading to a deck that overlooked the inlet between the Gulf of Mexico and Sarasota Bay; moonlight danced off the lapping waves.

This house put our small Virginia neighborhood to shame, even Megan and Will’s more luxurious neighborhood homes didn’t compare.

“This is Will’s room,” she said, taking off toward a closet bigger than my condo.

I tried to picture sleeping alone in a room like this. The décor was white and tan and didn’t really speak to Will’s outgoing personality. I felt as though I was in a hotel room with pretty coordinating things picked out by fancy designers. No sports memorabilia, no posters of any sort, not even a comforter that screamed boy like the one in his real room—not that I’d been in his room for a long time. “Where’s all his stuff?”

“His mom wouldn’t allow him to
harm
these walls. This house is for vacations and entertaining important clients. Plus, he’s hardly ever here.” She dug through a white dresser, pulling out bathing suit after bathing suit, and then settled on a navy two-piece. Oddly not as skimpy as the rest of her clothes. “Here. Is this okay?”

“Better than the alternative.” I winked. “Why do you have all this stuff in his room?”

“When we’re on vacation, I’m with him practically every day. Well, I’m with him at home, too, but it’s different here—he’s different here.” Megan laughed, grabbed a beach bag from a shelf, then exchanged her shoes for some flip flops. “I end up leaving stuff a lot.”

Since she had no idea who I was, I had to play dumb. “You like him, don’t you?”

Her cheeks turned red, and she stared straight through me.

“Sorry. None of my business. It’s just… you guys are so comfortable together. And you kind of remind me of me and Derick.” I’m sure my cheeks matched hers. Here I was having a conversation with my best friend, who had no idea who I was, about things I already knew.

“You’re babbling.” She wrapped her arm around my shoulders and led me to the hall. “But I like you. You remind me of my”—Megan choked back a sob—“Never mind. And I love Will. Maybe one day he’ll realize it.”

That’s because I am that person I remind you of. “Aren’t we changing?”

A huge, Cheshire grin grew on her gorgeous face. “This was just in case… and so I could get to know you better. There’s a pool house if we decide to get in the water, but the plan is to have a bonfire on the private beach.”

“Hey, there they are.” Eyes wide, Will untangled Jessica from his lap and made a bee-line for us as we stepped off the last stair.