A Lie for a Lie (All In 1)

When things got a little crazy with my family after I returned from Alaska, Eden suggested I come out for a visit. Since I’d already braved a plane before, I decided I could do it again. Also, my parents were back to smothering me, especially since I came home brokenhearted. My mother never outright said I told you so, but it was implied. Often.

I went for a weeklong visit, fell in love with the aquarium, and a couple of months later returned, this time with a job and an apartment.

“Hey. I figured I’d find you in here.” Eden lets the door close behind her.

“It’s peaceful.” I turn off the tablet clutched in my hands, almost glad for the break from yet another distressing article I’ve stumbled upon.

“Researching again?”

“Something like that. Am I needed up front?” Occasionally I’ll have to work at the information desk. I don’t mind talking to people one-on-one, especially when they’re asking about the animals.

She leans against the door. “I’d stay put for right now.”

“He’s back again, isn’t he?” I fold my hands in my lap to keep from wringing them.

“Yeah. He’s back again.”

It’s been over a week. Nine days, actually. Nine long days since RJ—otherwise known as Rook Bowman, captain for Chicago’s NHL hockey team and apparently quite the notorious playboy, according to the many, many accounts on the World Wide Web—dropped back into my life.

Since then he’s stopped by the aquarium every single day. He’s also called and texted daily and has taken to sending me rather extravagant gifts. Well, extravagant by my standards, but I’ve also discovered that his salary is a staggering eleven and a half million dollars a year, so the hundreds he’s likely spending on ostentatious flower arrangements and gift baskets is similar to tossing a handful of dollar bills into the air and watching them fall like snow into a pit of lava—or the mouth of a shark.

“He seems really . . . apologetic,” Eden offers.

I give her a hard look. “Not you too.”

She crosses over to sit beside me on the bench. The seals swim by, unaffected by my anxiety or my slightly morose mood. “I understand that this is difficult, especially because he lied to you, but maybe he had a reason?”

“I can only imagine what that reason is.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to hear it from him instead of going on speculation?”

“I don’t need to talk to him, because it’s not speculation, it’s sarcasm—which I know is the lowest form of wit, but I looked him up, Eden. The picture the media paints isn’t very pretty.” I open the article again and pass her the tablet.

Eden points to the date. “This article is old.”

“There are more recent ones.”

She arches a brow. “How recent?”

I focus on the happy seals. “From a couple of years ago. It doesn’t matter. He lied.”

“Probably because he was worried you’d react like this,” Eden says softly. “I understand you’re upset, but don’t you think he deserves—”

“Do not say it, Eden.”

She sighs and puts her arm around my shoulder. “All of these rumors you’re so focused on are old news. I know you’re scared, but you can’t avoid him forever, and you know it. And you’ll never know if he’s really just a lying asshole with a pretty face and rock-star moves in bed if you don’t at least sit down and hear what he has to say.”

“I never thought I was going to see him again,” I whisper, fighting tears. “And I just started seeing someone.”

Eden makes a face. “You mean Walter? That guy in your building?”

“He’s nice.” And he is nice. He works in IT; he’s quiet, likes Italian food, has a cat named Sam—and he’s kind. He also knows about my circumstances and hasn’t bailed, which is saying something, since I’m kind of a huge mess. The last time we went out he kissed me good night. Like him, it was nice. No fireworks or shooting stars, but it wasn’t unpleasant either.

“So is the weather today—it doesn’t mean he’s right for you.”

“And just because RJ keeps showing up here doesn’t mean he’s right for me either.”

“Or maybe it’s a sign. I mean, think about it. I get a job out here, and all of a sudden they need someone who specializes in dolphin reproduction behaviors? How many people are qualified for that specific job?”

“Anyone who specializes in aquatic mammals has the right background.”

“But they hired you—after a phone interview, which never happens, by the way.” She gives me an I told you so kind of look.

“They’d already met me in person, because I’d been here before.”

“Okay, I can give you that one. But what about the fact that his teammate’s wife funds the initiative you’ve been hired for, and then they throw a birthday party and he ends up here. It feels a lot like fate intervening to me, and I usually don’t even believe in things like fate. You have to give him a chance, Lainey.”