Fat Cat Liar

L. Hall

The same signature on the final design of the house in Connecticut.

The Morris C&D table gives a small cheer seeing our work. Greer’s head jerks in their direction, and she grips the edge of the table when she sees Kyra smiling at her.

My stomach rolls in disgust.

As if she feels my presence, she twists in her seat and scans the room. Her gaze lands on me in the dark shadows of the side stage. The beautiful green light in her eyes dies as realization dawns on her.

She knows.

Her look of devastation is a crushing force on my soul. Her lips tremble, and a single tear slides down her cheek. She quickly swipes it away, sucking in a deep breath.

Everything in the room fades away while I watch defenselessly as Greer fits the pieces together. Her eyes burn with betrayal and sear into me.

Pain surges through my body, threatening to take me down.

There are no words, no gestures, no more tears, just the silent understanding of my deceit and lies between us.

The gravity of the situation hits me with such power, I fight to breathe. Then my instincts kick in and I take a step forward, determined to get to her. To hell with the backlash and exposure. She is the only thing that matters.

Her head shakes at my movement, and a look of pure agony slices across her face. She mouths the word ‘no’.

Clay’s hand closes around my bicep, pulling me back. “You can’t do this now,” he murmurs.

Our connection is broken when Greer’s attention moves to Jenny as she raises her glass in a toast.

Greer’s expression transforms into a mask of indifference as she participates in the toast and doesn’t look back.

My phone vibrates in my pocket, and I take it out, my heart sinking at the message.

Bessie— You need to leave. Don’t do this to her here.

I look up and see Bessie glowering at me, her eyes brimming with her own tea

rs. She slices her eyes to Greer and back to mine, shaking her head. She saw the entire exchange.

Me— I love her.

Bessie— Then leave and don’t cause a scene. You’ve done enough damage for one night. Maybe even a lifetime.

I grip my phone with such force the cover cracks in my palm. Glancing back at the table, I notice Greer is visibly paler and her gorgeous glow from earlier has all but vanished.

“We’re leaving,” I growl, sidestepping Clay and heading toward the server exit.

“Lawson, I’m not going to lie. I feel like I just witnessed the ending to a tragic silent movie.”

“This is far from the end,” I snap, the image of Greer’s expression flashing in my mind.

Chapter 19

Greer

He’s waiting for me on the other side of the door. I don’t have to see him to sense it in my bones anytime he is near. Even knowing what I do now, my body craves his touch. My heart and mind have been in a tug of war since the second my eyes landed on him in the shadows of that stage.

Lawson Hall is a liar.

Every single memory of the last few months has been built on a lie. A farce.