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Two Little Lies: a romantic suspense novel (The Little Things Mystery Series Book 2), page 1
TWO LITTLE LIES
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TWO LITTLE LIES
Copyright: Gina LaManna
ISBN: XXXX
Published: July 29, 2016
Kindle Edition
The right of Gina LaManna to be identified as author of this Work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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SYNOPSIS
Sometimes, happily ever after isn’t meant to be…
Scarlett Powers couldn’t be happier! Her bookstore has taken off, her worst enemy is locked in jail, and life with Prince Charming is better than she’d ever imagined.
Then, the death of a star witness in the Montgomery trial ruins everything. Mysterious letters arrive for Scarlett. Noelle Summers whirls into Luck with news of her own. A kidnapper is on the loose. He's not only asking for money - he's threatening the lives of those Scarlett loves most.
Suddenly, Scarlett has more questions than ever, and none of the answers seem to be adding up. If Scarlett can’t uncover the mastermind before it’s too late, she’ll have a lot more to worry about than two little lies...
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To you, my readers! Thank you for your friendship and support.
I appreciate each and every one of you!
Hugs and a huge thank-you to everyone who helped make this book possible:
Stacia—for making a diamond in the rough… a little bit shinier.
Kim—for your thoughts, your friendship, and the many, many laughs.
Barb & Connie—thank you for your help!
And of course Joy—let’s face it, this book probably wouldn’t be here if you didn’t tell me to write it.
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To Mom & Dad—For putting up with a lot more than two little lies as I was growing up. (Just kidding! I never lie.)
To Alex—Two great years in the “books,” many more to come! я тебя люблю!
To Meg & Kristi— For helping make up those two little lies… to mom and dad. (Just kidding!)
To my Oceans Apart ladies—To a year and a half of friendship!
To Sprinkles On Top Studios, my awesome cover designer. Photo Courtesy of Deposit Photos
To SMO’7 & family—Love, from Auntie G.
And last but not least, to all my family and friends, thanks for making me laugh.
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In memory of
~Loretta Ann Williamson~
Contents
TWO LITTLE LIES
SYNOPSIS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
CHAPTER 25
CHAPTER 26
CHAPTER 27
CHAPTER 28
CHAPTER 29
CHAPTER 30
CHAPTER 31
CHAPTER 32
CHAPTER 33
CHAPTER 34
CHAPTER 35
CHAPTER 36
CHAPTER 37
CHAPTER 38
CHAPTER 39
CHAPTER 40
CHAPTER 41
CHAPTER 42
CHAPTER 43
CHAPTER 44
CHAPTER 45
CHAPTER 46
CHAPTER 47
CHAPTER 48
CHAPTER 49
CHAPTER 50
CHAPTER 51
CHAPTER 52
CHAPTER 53
CHAPTER 54
CHAPTER 55
CHAPTER 56
CHAPTER 57
CHAPTER 58
CHAPTER 59
CHAPTER 60
CHAPTER 61
CHAPTER 62
CHAPTER 63
CHAPTER 64
CHAPTER 65
CHAPTER 66
CHAPTER 67
CHAPTER 68
CHAPTER 69
CHAPTER 70
CHAPTER 71
CHAPTER 72
CHAPTER 73
CHAPTER 74
CHAPTER 75
CHAPTER 76
CHAPTER 77
CHAPTER 78
CHAPTER 79
EPILOGUE
THE END
**Notes from the Author**
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CHAPTER 1
Dear Diary,
I’ve been thinkin’ a lot about apples. Good ones, bad ones, all sorts of in-between ones.
They say one bad apple can ruin a barrel, but I hate to think that’s true. People say I come from a line of bad apples, and I never quite know what to make of it. If the whole barrel is bad, is there really any hope for me?
Luckily, there’s one person who believes in hope—and in me.
Mack Montgomery is back in Luck, and when he kisses me, I believe anything is possible. When he tells me I should reach for the stars, I listen. And when he wraps his arms around me and whispers in my ear, I know I’m the happiest girl in the world.
We might have a helluva week ahead of us with this trial, but as long as he’s here, we’ll be okay.
Sometimes love is the worst. I’ve been there, learned that lesson the hard way.
But sometimes, if you’re lucky, it’s the best.
Love,
Scarlett
CHAPTER 2
“Hang on, hang on!” I squealed, wriggling out of Mack’s grasp. “That’s my phone ringing!”
Still laughing, I lunged across the living room of the semi-restored barn I called a home. Normally, it had a couch, table, and all the other normal fixings, but not today. Today, the room was a mess.
“Scarlett, are you there?”
I must have clicked the talk button without noticing; Noelle’s voice rattled from the phone dangling between my fingers. I stood and flashed a faux-frown at Mack, trying my hardest to focus on my best friend’s gleeful voice. “Hey there, stranger! How are you?”
“What are you doing over there?” Noelle asked. “I called your name twice! Now, are you ready to hear the cutest thing in the world or what?!”
“I’m ready!”
“Is Mack in the same room as you? Tell him to put a shirt on because I want your utmost focus, girlfriend.”
I gasped, both at her boldness and her ability to read my mind. Then I spluttered a bit, but I eventually trailed off because she had a point. Mack was naked from the waist up, and my eyes were fixated on his chest.
“Go on, tell him to get dressed,” she said. “I know you, Scarlett. You’re not pullin’ the wool over my eyes.”
I sighed, drinking in the man across the room with languid appreciation. His chest was enough to make any girl speechless. “Noelle says to put a shirt on.”
Mack grinned. “Are you gonna make me?”
“Yes,” I sighed. “Temporarily, because I want to hear what she’s got to say.”
Mack’s blue eyes twinkled with amusement. He stretched, the skin over his muscular torso rippling as he ran a hand through the golden hair flopping over his forehead. “Tell her I’m on vacation.”
“We’re on vacation,” I repeated to Noelle. “He’s even got a Pina Colada in his hand.”
Mack took an exaggerated, convincing slurp of his drink while I stifled a laugh.
“I thought you couldn’t leave town because of the trial?” Noelle said, her words crashing me back to reality. “Sorry, ignore that. Let’s not talk about problems.”
“It’s fine! Get this. I told Mack that I was dying for a vacation because—well, you know me. I haven’t ever left Luck. But it sounds fun, and I’ve never wanted to get away from here more than I do now.”
“Oh, honey. If you wanted to come up here—”
“Hold your shorts on, lady,” I said, pausing for a breath of air. “Let me finish. I came home an hour ago and found a vacation right in my own living room! Mack laid out all the towels, spread a few blankets, plumped a few pillows—he built me a beachy hut right here in Luck!”
“Tell me you’ve got Caribbean music playing.”
“Of course we do! I even Googled a picture of an ocean to round out the ambiance and slapped it on the TV.”
Noelle gave a swoony sort of sigh. “I want to be there, too.”
“Well, book your tickets already! Bring Ben—we’ll double date.”
“Guess what.” Noelle spoke the question like a statement. “You’ll never guess.”
Mack reached over then, intent on distracting me from the conversation at hand. He ran the tips of his fingers up the back of my legs, trailing them lightly over my skin, sparks of electricity traveling through the nerve endings.
“What?” I managed to squeak. “You’re moving in with Ben?”
“I told you, my momma would have a cow if I moved in with a man before I was married. It’s nothing that big, so don’t get your hopes up. It’s just cute, and I had to share it with someone!”
I did my best to stay silent as Mack’s hands traveled further and further up my legs.
“Okay, then what’s so cute?” I asked, squirming and swatting Mack’s hands away from the danger zone.
In response to my swat, Mack pulled me onto his lap, dragging me back into our makeshift vacation hut. He situated me so I sat between his legs, my back to his chest, his arms wrapped around my waist. It was like the sitting up version of spooning, and I decided then and there that I liked it. I liked Vertical Spooning very, very much.
“I came home from a fashion show last night, and Ben had cooked an entire dinner for the two of us. I gave him a key to my apartment,” she admitted before I could ask. “We spend nearly every night together, so it made sense. Anyway, he knew I was going to be gone until midnight last night. When I came home at twelve fifteen, I found candles, wine, and all the fixings for a romantic dinner. Get this! He cooked my favorite macaroni and cheese dish—you know the one my mom used to make?”
“With the bacon in it?”
“That’s the one! He had called her a week ago and gotten the recipe beforehand. He called her! I didn’t know a man would ever do something like that.”
I scanned my living room and basked in all of Mack’s efforts to take my mind off the unpleasantness of this week. The monster beach ball, the little umbrellas in our drinks—he’d even made fresh guacamole.
If you’d asked me a year ago—back before Ben and Mack and all things Reunion Day—I wouldn’t have imagined this was possible. Maybe there were a few good apples left in the dating world.
“Apparently I’ve raved about the mac-and-cheese so much that he wanted to learn how to make it. He had the dish all ready to eat without me even knowing. It was perfection.”
I aaaw-ed because I thought it was sweet, and I could tell she wanted a reaction.
Noelle’s voice bubbled with girlish excitement. “I just love being in love! I’m so glad you have Mack now, and I have Ben. I don’t know what I’d do if I couldn’t talk to you about it.”
I grinned up at Mack, his lips meeting mine for the briefest of kisses as Noelle let out a dramatic sigh through the phone line, wrapped up in her own love story.
“I couldn’t agree more,” I said looking into Mack’s eyes, his fingers smoothing my hair. “So when are we going to meet this Mystery Man?”
“He’s not a mystery!” Noelle giggled. By nature, she didn’t giggle, but it seemed to be a habit she’d picked up recently. “You’ve seen pictures!”
I had seen a few snapshots of the brown-haired, handsome man called Ben Whittier. He had a nice, easy smile, a polished wardrobe, the air of someone who’d grown used to city life. Ben wasn’t my style of man, but he looked good with Noelle. Judging by her beaming face and rosy cheeks in every photograph, she agreed.
“We’re looking at dates to come down,” she said. “Sooner, rather than later, I hope. I really want him to meet my parents. What’s the use waiting when he’s already spoken to my mom on the phone?”
“Does she like him?”
“Oh, yes,” Noelle gushed. “She called me the second she got out of bed this morning, to ask how the macaroni turned out. She’s tickled pink. Already asking when she should expect the next step.”
“Well, get your rear end down here so we can have a vacation together. You’ve been dating for months and I haven’t met him. Unacceptable.”
“Soon,” Noelle promised. “Okay, I’ve gotta jet to work, and I’m taking lunch to Ben at his office first. I’ll see you soon, okay? Talk to you even sooner.”
I wished her goodbye, told her to text me more photos, and hung up. During the goodbyes, Mack’s hands had been busy again, climbing their way up from my legs.
“Noelle and Ben are doing well?” he asked, gently kissing one of my shoulders. I exhaled happily as he peeled down one spaghetti strap, ran his hand over my bare skin, and then shifted the second strap. “Hmmm?”
“Yeah,” I mumbled. “Good.”
Mack’s laughter was soft, amused as his lips trailed a path to my other shoulder. His hands tickled the skin on my arms as he slid his hands back toward my stomach, holding me close as his lips decorated a line across my collar bone. “Glad to hear it.”
“They’re not…” I paused, forgetting what I was saying. “They’re happy.”
“Visiting soon?”
“I think so,” I said as his hands danced down over my legs. “It’s about time. They’ve been dating for long enough.”
“And what about me and you?” Mack asked. “Have we been dating for long enough?”
He maneuvered my body until I faced him. I sat in his lap, our lips inches apart, his hands pulling me close, fingers pressing into my lower back. My heart raced. Despite all the kissing we’d done these last few weeks, I still got a flutter of nervousness, or anticipation, or excitement whenever he looked at me.
“Never long enough,” I said. “I want to date you forever.”
“What if I don’t want to date you forever?” He raised a hand, ran a finger across my lower lip. He watched my face for a response. When it didn’t come, he pulled me even higher onto his lap. My dress floated around his jeans in a puddle of bright fabric. “What if I want to marry you someday?”
Mack’s lips met mine, his kiss warm, filled with a need I mirrored. My life had changed when he came into it again. It’d changed so thoroughly that I couldn’t imagine a life without him now. When he breathed, I breathed, and when he held me tight, I didn’t have room in my soul for anything but love. The worries and fears went away, the stress and pain that made this world a brutal reality dissolved.
Mack pulled away for a moment. “Can I take that kiss as a clue you’re interested?”
My smile came from inside my chest, somewhere deep within my heart, underneath the scars and cynicism that came from years of living. “You’d make me the happiest girl alive, Mack Montgomery.”
CHAPTER 3
Dear Diary,
I just really love Mack. What’s not to love? He treats me like a queen, he looks like a god, and he has manners like an eighty-year-old man. I know, maybe the last part doesn’t sound romantic, but I like when he opens the door for me and takes out the garbage. I’ve never had someone do that for me before, and it’s nice. Chivalrous. It’s the little things, Diary—I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. I’m simple.
I don’t care about flowers and chocolate (well, that’s a little bit of a lie since I do like my chocolates), but I’d rather have myself a man who holds me when I’m sad. I’d rather he wipe my tears when I cry, and make me laugh when happiness seems out of reach. That person is Mack; it’s always been Mack, and it’s as simple as that.
Noelle loves Ben, and I love Mack, and if we can just get through this trial, maybe there are sunny days ahead for us. A quiet life, maybe a house together near the bookstore. Mack can find a job in town and maybe, just maybe, Noelle will move back. If not, surely she’ll come visit.
Unfortunately, these happy endings are harder to find than I’d like to admit. I’ve got a bad feeling about this trial. I can’t put my finger on why that is—I am an optimist by nature— but Diary, something isn’t sitting right with me.
Love,
Scarlett
CHAPTER 4
“I caught one!” Tiny stomped triumphantly into my bookstore, aptly named Happily Ever After. “I knew I heard this nugget creepin’ around out there. Check it out, Scarlett. He’s a twerp, huh?”
