White Lies (Book 1)

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Due to being the only witness to the world's most prolific teenage homicide investigation, I had been required to do a press interview today.

It was quiet inside Nathan's car. Light rain was gently spitting at us from the outside, so Nathan had turned the heat up to full blast. What was left of the early morning fog still had its delicate grip over our surroundings, making it harder to see where we were going. Nate had to keep squinting ahead of him.

His hand held mine the entire time.

I couldn't help but notice that the heat from his hand was warmer than the heat radiating from the car. It was both thrilling and comforting. And totally confusing.

I understood. We were meant to act like a couple – and that would make it easier for us to explain our mutual involvement with one another, to explain being seen together so frequently. All for the cause. Yet Nathan was taking his role as my boyfriend a little more seriously than I imagined he would. At first I thought nothing of it – or forced myself not to. I remembered how unhappy life became once Robbie had begun shunning my acts of affection.

Nathan was making himself extremely difficult to ignore.

Was I developing real feelings for him? Was that why I would light up at his smile, or why I had this new habit of noticing how the sun brought out the golden highlights in his hair?

No. Definitely not. It would be more believable to assume that he's slipped something into what I eat and drink every day.

Yeah. That made far more sense.

While a part of me was wrapped up in all of these tangled thoughts, another, larger part of me was shaking with nerves.

Peter's words still lingered with me. This whole investigation relies on the both of you.

What if I screwed it up? What would happen to Nate and I? Or to Angelica's investigation? Would we ever find Robbie and Jenny again? And would we ever be safe from the wrath of the public, and the prosecution of the law, in the event that we were discovered taking matters into our own hands?

It would only take one little slip, one small white lie that didn't align with the others, for this entire thing to be over. My already dubious credibility – ruined. Just like that.

And we would never find Robbie. We would never know if he were still alive or not.

Nathan, who could always somehow sense my anxiety, squeezed my hand. "Don't worry, angel," he reassured me. "You're a pro at what you do. This'll be cake."

"But what if I slip up?" I asked him, finally giving voice to my concern. That startled me for a second – I never usually showed vulnerability to people.

"Then I'll be there to catch your back," he responded, his voice as light as the breeze. "I've seen you talk your way out of sticky situations. This shouldn't be any different."

I broke out into a smile. "Really? You really have been stalking me, huh?" I teased.

He smiled back, and kissed the back of my hand. "It's hard not to. No mortal man has the mental fortitude to pull himself away from those long legs."

I allowed myself to laugh. Casual flirting was fine, I said to myself. No big deal. People do this sort of thing all the time.

After my laughter died down, something about what he'd said also struck me as curious. "Wait, doesn't it bother you that I lie so much?"