Wicked Lies Boys Tell

His smile widens. “About damn time, son. I’ll have my assistant set up a dinner for our families. You’re both eighteen and headed to college soon. It’s good to have strong friendships that’ll help you in the business world one day.”

I refrain from rolling my eyes. Always about business with Dad. Money, money, money. He thinks relationships have to be some ulterior motive to make more of it. Rather than get into some heated argument like usual, I simply nod.

“Got it,” I mumble. “Have fun making money.” As if we need any more of it.

Him and his business partner Mark travel a lot for their finance company. I’m not sure exactly what all they do, but they’re always recruiting investors. Dad wants me to go to school for finance so I can work for him. I’d rather apprentice at a tattoo shop than ever step foot in a boardroom. There’ll be hell to pay if I ever let that be known. Dad’s all about the image. He already has fits over my wardrobe and tattoos and hair. If I decided to ignore his future wishes for me, and do my own thing, it’d be something that was noticed within the community. Something that would look badly on him. And something that we’ll probably fight like hell over one day.

Until then…

I’m going to hang out with my friends.

“Leah Collins will be there too,” I add with a smirk.

Dad’s head whips up from his phone. “You’re dating her?”

“Not yet,” I say with a laugh. “I have to steal her from Penn first.”

He chuckles. “Good friends always share everything equally in a partnership.” His wink has me shaking my head.

“Are you encouraging a threesome, Dad?” I taunt, just to watch his face pale.

“Go,” he grunts. “I’ll see you later.”

I wave at him and then head out the door. Once outside, I’m surprised to see Penn leaned up against my Camaro. He’s dressed the same as earlier, but his hood is pulled over his hair, and he scowls. A grin breaks out on my face. I miss the days where one of us was always pissed about something and the other did whatever they could to make it worse or to make them laugh. I’ve just decided to rile him up further when he casts a dark look back over at his house.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, no longer interested in messing with him.

His jaw clenches before his brown eyes are back on mine. “Mom knows.”

“Is she going to tell your dad?”

“I’m on borrowed time,” he says with a nod.

We climb inside my car and I fire up the engine. Anxiety trickles through me. Jason is such a hardass to Penn. Always has been. The moment he discovers his perfect son broke his hand over a stupid fight and killed his senior season of football, he’s going to lose it. Not because they can’t afford to send him to college without a scholarship. No, Jason likes to keep his thumb on Penn by making him feel like a piece of shit any time he can. Any mistakes Penn has ever made, Jason is right there to highlight and magnify them. He does the same to Lisa, which is why she’s a closet alcoholic and a pill head.

The drive to Leah’s is quiet. I drive up her long road to find her sitting on the top step of her porch. She’s also wearing a school hoodie, so she’ll be twins with Penn. I let out a snort. He groans when he sees they’re matching.

“How cute,” I tease.

He flips me off with his good hand before climbing out of the car to greet her. They hug and then he climbs into the backseat, offering her the front. She sits down beside me and stares at me warily.

“Like old times, huh?”

I smirk at her. “You missed us.”

“I actually did,” she says with a chuckle. “Remember that time our parents signed us up for ballroom dancing?”

Penn grumbles from the back. “We were eight. Who does that to eight-year-olds?”

“Miss Stone hated us,” I tell them.

“She hated you,” Leah corrects. “You wore your soccer cleats on her ‘pristine dance floor.’”

“I was coming from soccer practice,” I grumble. “Not my fault my dad didn’t grab my fairy shoes for me.”

We all laugh, remembering how Miss Stone discovered I was wearing cleats. She was showing me how to do one of the dumb dances and I stepped on her foot. I’ve never seen an old woman bitch as much as that woman did that day.

“How come you don’t play soccer anymore?” Leah asks.

“Because my dad wanted me to,” I retort. My eyes meet Penn’s in the backseat and his stare is locked on me. I can tell in his pained eyes he’s remembering the night I told my dad I didn’t want to play. Penn was staying the night over. As Leah babbles about something, my mind is right there on that night. I was thirteen when I decided I wanted to give it up and try out for the swim team.