Page 152 of Dark Endures

The Biggest House

Mindy

“So, you remember our cover story?” Why am I so nervous? Maddox looks amazing. Fabulously sexy and rich, which is everything that’s important to Mom.

“Yes.” He nods.

“Good. Maybe we should go over it again?” Why am I so nervous? It’s not like I haven’t done this several times already. It’s easy; smile, wear a few dresses, tell Mom she looks amazing and that they’ll last forever, and avoid catching the bouquet.

“Mindy, relax. This is supposed to be a happy event.”

“Mom’s weddings are never happy. They’re something you make it through.” Those are the times I wish I could get drunk. “Do you drink at weddings?”

“According to our cover story, I do.” He winks.

“But really?”

“I’ll have a beer or two, but no, I never get drunk, at a wedding or not.”

Really? “Why?”

“Because my father was a drunk. He’d choose a bottle over me or my grandmother any day of the week. He only worked enough to ensure he had a roof over his head and a bottle to fall asleep with. So, no. I don’t ever get drunk.”

Oh. Oh. “Maybe we—”

“—should tell the truth?”

“She won’t believe us.”

“So what? It’s the truth. She won’t be able to catch us in a lie if we tell the truth.”

The only problem is you don’t love me. When do I say you fell in love with me? Do I tell her the truth that I gradually fell in love with you, but I don’t trust that it will last, let alone actually believe you could ever love me?

“Do you ever go against your mother?”

I cringe. “No. Life is just easier if you do what she wants.”

“But what about what you want?”

“What I want?” Those words don’t feel right.

“Yeah, what do you want? If you could do anything, be anywhere, learn anything, what would you choose?”

An image of the apartment I’ve been staying in with a chessboard set up and a cozy fire pops into my head. Maddox is on the other side of the fire with a smile on his face.

The perfection of that image strikes me. “I don’t know.”

“You’re lying again.”

“How do you know that?” Even my mother doesn’t know when I lie anymore.

“Your smile. It’s just slightly different.”

“And you can tell them apart?” Do I really want the answer to that?

“Yeah. I can.”

My heart leaps. Change the topic before you say something stupid. “What do you want to do?”

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