Page 149 of Tell No Lies

No one was in danger. There was no breaking news devastating the nation. My favorite band wasn’t even touring close by. Nothing deserving of an unwelcomed wakeup call.

I threw my phone across the bed and thought of the endless replies he deserved, before I fell back to sleep.

After what felt like seconds later, my real alarm sounded. Mike was going to get an earful when I saw him. I had only been up for a few minutes, but it had thrown off my sleep cycle enough to make me feel drowsy.

Mckayla texted me to let me know she was waiting just as I was getting dressed. I groaned and grabbed some makeup on my way out. Another bun day for me. I hurried out the door and willed the elevator to hurry down.

My illusion that she wouldn’t notice dissipated the moment I got in. “Rough night?” She didn’t bother trying to conceal her grin.

I only had enough time to shoot her a dirty look before opening my bag and digging around for my makeup.

“Wow. That bad?” She laughed lightly as she drove. The school was only a few minutes away, so I had to hurry before we pulled in, and I had it out with Mike.

“I’m just off this morning.” I was brushing on powder with one hand and applying mascara with the other. Not the most effective method, but it did the job well enough to conceal my tired eyes.

We pulled into the lot, and our normal spot was still open. It was funny to me that Mike was intimidating enough to save a prime parking spot without anyone challenging him. He was standing at the back of his truck with some of his friends. I couldn’t help but glare in response to his friendly wave.

His brilliant smile dimmed the longer I took to get out of the car. By the time I turned to get my bag from the seat, he was next to me, leaning in for a kiss.

I held my hand up and pushed against his chest. “Oh no, buddy. We need to talk.”

Emotions crossed his face faster than I could decipher. “Did something happen? What’s wrong?”

I lifted my phone in response.

“I don’t get it. Did you get another message?” Suddenly he was angry. “What did it say this time?”

“It said, ‘Morning, babe. Date night w/ B and Liv tonight.’”

Confusion turned to relief. “You scared me! I thought something bad happened.”

“Something awful, almost unforgivable did happen.”

“My text.” His thick brows rose instantly.

“Your four a.m. text. Your four a.m. text that was not an emergency that woke me up and caused this!” I pointed at my face, waving my finger around. “I look like death because you couldn’t wait a few hours.”

His laughter caught the attention of the group around us. “Babe, you look great. I’m sorry I woke you up.” He reached for my hands and held them to his chest. “I asked Brandon about it last night, and I saw his reply when I woke up for my workout. I didn’t think it would wake you up. I just assumed you would see it when you woke up.”

My attempt to continue glaring at him was failing fast.

“Stop scowling. It will cause wrinkles, then you’ll blame me for that too.” His laugher was shaking his body as he pulled me into a tight hug and kissed my forehead. When he did things like this, it made it really, really hard to stand my ground. Every time I got upset with something he did, I ended up being the one who felt guilty.

Mike always had the best intentions. He did things he thought would make me happy or keep me safe. When he asked me to skip dance, he’d actually just wanted to be able to keep an eye on me. Waking me up in the middle of the night had just been his excitement about being able to go on a date. Somehow, I’d ended up being the one in the wrong each time.

“Let’s get to class, stinker.” I rolled my eyes but couldn’t stop the smile. Big scary Mike was my personal teddy bear.

☼ ☼ ☼

Not only had Mike convinced Brandon to let me out on the town, but he’d gotten him to go on a double with us. This meant he was home before me. There was no danger and no injuries, and my brother was actually home at a normal hour. Amazing.

“Hi, wee one.”

I stuck my tongue out at him on my way to the fridge. “What are you doing here, stranger?”

“I almost said no when Mike asked me about this, but the thought of disappointing him was too much.”

“You two have a sick relationship.”