Liar, Liar by A.R. Hall
Fiona
Five Years Later
Fiona finished dryingthe last dish and passed it to Diana to put in the cabinet with the others.
“You didn’t have to stay to help and clean.” Diana leaned against the counter; she brushed her soft brown hair behind her ear, then rested her hands on her growing belly.
“Nonsense. You should go put your feet up. I’ll never hear the end of it if my brother thinks you weren’t pampered.” Fiona smiled and motioned for her best friend turned sister-in-law to go rest.
“Neither will I.” Diana laughed and left the kitchen.
Fiona grabbed the cleaner from under the sink, then proceeded to spray and wipe down all the counters and cabinet doors. The only sign the baby shower even happened was the assortment of gifts that now waited in her niece’s nursery. Diana was due in four weeks, and Fiona was persistent in her efforts to come over every other day to make sure all was well. She had always been a bit of a perfectionist, and now that she was going to be an aunt, it gave her something else to obsess over.
She swept the floors, scrubbed the tile by hand, and lost track of time. She made her way across the kitchen, dining room, entryway, and living room, cleaning the rooms from top to bottom. It wasn’t until she heard the front door open that she noticed how dark it was getting outside.
“Where’s Diana?” Ben walked in. He stepped out of his dirty work boots when he noticed the freshly polished floor. Her brother shook his head at her.
“She’s resting.” Fiona stood up, arched her back, and stretched from where she had been hunched over, cleaning the floors and baseboards.
“You don’t have to do all of that, you know.” Ben gestured around the room. Her brother meant well, but she needed to keep busy.
“Please, my best friend doesn’t need to be on her hands and knees cleaning, when she’s carrying my precious niece.” Fiona took the dirty rags to the laundry room and threw them in the wash.
“Fi, you can’t keep avoiding life.” She hadn’t heard Ben sneak up on her. He was quieter since he returned, and she still wasn’t used to it. “I do appreciate your help around here though. The doctor told her she needs to take it easy, or he would order bed rest.”
Fiona couldn’t help but laugh. “Like that would stop her.” She pulled the towels from the dryer and started to fold them.
“I can finish that.” Ben leaned against the doorframe.
“I know.” She continued folding. She sighed before looking at him. “Have you heard from him?” She didn’t know why she bothered asking; it was always the same answer.
“Do you really want to know?” Ben raked his hand through his shaggy blonde hair. His hair always had a little wave to it, like hers, but ever since he returned, it had grown wilder. It rebelled.
“I don’t understand. I wouldn’t even believe he was around if I hadn’t seen him with you that one time. He ducked out of here so fast. Am I that repulsive? I thought we were friends.” Fiona shook her head as she grabbed the last towel, folded it, and placed it neatly in a stack with the others.
“It’s not my story to tell,” said Ben. “It’s getting late. Do you need a ride home?”
“It’s only a few streets away, brother. I’ll manage just fine.” She grabbed the towels to put in the linen closet, then said her soft goodbye to Diana who was already snoring.
Fiona bought her house shortly after her brother and Diana bought theirs. She wanted to be close to them, close to her family.
Five years ago, Fiona saw something that shocked her to her core. Her dead brother sneaking out of their father’s office. She was in too much shock to process at the time. She remembered him asking to keep it a secret, that they were back and everything would be okay. She couldn’t recall what was said beyond that. A week later, he showed up with Diana, who looked as rough as Fiona felt. She missed her best friend.
He couldn’t give an explanation as to why he was back other than something magical happened and they would have to trust him. Their parents were suspicious at first, naturally. They were always distant in their parenting, growing up. It didn’t change after he died. It didn’t change after he came back. It didn’t matter to her though; they were back.
She wasn’t going to let that second chance slip away. As soon as she found out where Ben and Diana were moving to, she followed. She wanted to be close to family, and they were hers. Her parents didn’t notice she left anyway. This was the only family she needed.
Fiona hoped Jasper would come to her. Even if the feelings she assumed were there before the accident weren’t real, they had still been close once. They’d grown up together. She shouldn’t have bothered asking her brother if he heard from him. Of course he had. They had been to hell and back, literally. Or been somewhere. Fiona had theories, of course, of how they returned. It wasn’t her business though. She didn’t even know if Diana knew the whole truth or even part of it. Fiona just wished she knew why Jasper was avoiding her.
“Ah!” Fiona twisted her ankle and stumbled to the ground. “Shit.” She shook her head and went to stand, but it hurt to put pressure on her left foot. “Just my luck.” Her house was less than a mile away from her brother’s, but her feet were beyond tired. She should’ve accepted a ride, seeing how late it was getting.
Time stood still as an eerie silence surrounded her. The hair on her arms rose as goose bumps traveled across her body. There wasn’t even a chill in the air. She felt eyes on her, watching her every move.
She took a cautious glance around and waited before slowly scooting on her butt down the sidewalk. Her house was now only two blocks away, she could crawl there and then ice and rest her ankle.
A growl sounded, and before it finished registering in her mind, she felt herself lift into the air by strong arms. She pushed against a hard chest, not caring if she fell to the ground. The grip on her tightened.
Fiona looked at the muscled arms covered in tattoos holding her and trailed her sight across a hard chest wearing a leather vest that had a patch that read ENFORCER. She swallowed as she continued looking up to see a dark beard and stern face. If it wasn’t for the eyes, she wouldn’t have recognized him.
Jasper.
His once dark-green eyes looked more sea-green; they practically glowed and were hard. A face once cleanly shaven was covered with a full dark beard. His hair was longer at the top, a similar style to his younger years, only longer than it had been back then. His lips were still full and kissable, even if she hadn’t ever had the pleasure of them on hers.
She stayed silent as he carried her home. Had she hit her head? Was this a dream? She pinched herself, then instantly regretted it. He kept his eyes ahead of him and didn’t say a word. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from him. This wasn’t real. It wasn’t until he came to a stop on her porch and cleared his throat that she realized she was still staring.