Page 163 of Tell No Lies

“You couldn’t do that?” I was trying not to be hurt by his words, but I didn’t understand.

“No, I don’t think I could. I have a pile of problems, and you would try to fix me.”

“That’s not—” I tried to interrupt, but he didn’t let me.

“It’s not a bad thing. It’s just the sweet, thoughtful person you are. My problems are mine to fix and grow, through. I need them to make me a better person rather than letting someone else smooth them over enough to look past.”

I couldn’t get what I was sure was a sad expression off my face before he saw.

“Stop looking at me like that, Aubrey. We all have things we need to work through in order to become the people we have the potential to be. I’ve seen you do it over the past few months, and I need to do it too.”

Where did this mature, wise Gage come from?

“There’s someone out there who will love you exactly as you are and value you for who you are. Your Prince Charming is out there for you, Aubrey, and you deserve to wait for him. Don’t waste your time on the Mikes and Gages of the world.” The arm that was draped over my shoulders pulled me tight into his side.

What he said was what I always dreamed of having, but after these past few months, I began to wonder if that’s all it would ever be. Finding a guy who truly cared about me, was romantically interested in me, and was available, was like wishing for a unicorn.

☼ ☼ ☼

After dance, I settled onto the couch for my normal routine of leftovers and reality TV. My life had grown increasingly more depressing as the days passed.

Just when I was about to find out who was getting voted off this week, the doorbell rang. I turned to the door suspiciously. Brandon was working late and had already checked in with me. The security system he and Carter had developed was installed, so I knew he could see me if I got in trouble.

I stood and tiptoed to the door. What I saw through the peephole stunned me. This was the last thing I’d expected.

Slowly, I unlocked the door and opened it. Mckayla, Talia, and Alexis stood on the other side looking apprehensive.

“Umm … hi, guys.” My heart was pounding against my chest. I was so happy to see them, but I was also waiting for the pig’s blood to come pouring down like this was all some sick joke.

“Hey.” Talia was the first to speak and stepped past me through the doorway. The others followed, and I closed the door behind them.

My mind was still trying to process what this all meant when they began talking over each other. I tried to follow what they were saying, but it was too much.

With one hand up, I asked them to stop. “Can just one person please tell me what’s going on?”

They shared a look, and Mckayla nodded. “We came to beg for your forgiveness.”

If the ground had opened at that moment and swallowed us whole, I would have been less shocked than I was by her words. Apparently, it showed on my face.

Talia stepped forward with her hands out in a peaceful gesture. “We’re so, so sorry. Aubrey, I would totally understand if you never want to speak to us again, but please hear us out.”

Still stunned, I managed a small nod.

Talia reached for my hand and guided me toward my own couch. Alexis sat first and grabbed the remote to turn off the show that a few minutes prior had been the only source of entertainment in my life.

“We’re here to say we’re sorry for how we handled things.” Talia said, “We’re sorry that Mike is such a jerk that he dumped you over this. We’re sorry that we’re even bigger jerks for ditching you when you needed us most. We’re so sorry that we didn’t talk to you and let you explain.”

Mckayla interrupted Talia’s speech. “We are sorry, and we want to explain our side so you understand.”

She paused and was apparently waiting for some sort of sign from me, so I gave another meager nod.

Mckayla took over. “Out of the blue, an unknown number sent all of us a few pictures of you and Gage together. The only thing the message said was that you’d been lying to us and hiding things from us. I know that’s lame. I know I’m the worst friend and cousin ever for letting that get me upset, but it just looked so bad.”

Alexis cut in. “Yeah, from our perspective, it looked like you were clearly cheating on Mike. We knew how close you were to Gage and how secretive you were about him, so it all kind of clicked into place.”

Talia continued her thought as if they had rehearsed this. “Mike came to us so upset. He wasn’t even mad. He was just hurt. He was actually crying.”

Mckayla and Alexis were nodding in confirmation.