Page 39 of Kiss of Deceit

Miles frowned. “How?”

I pursed my lips, debating on lying for a moment. “When we arrived, they made a mistake with my housing. I’m currently living with him until Fiona can find me a new place.”

“You’re living with him?” Miles sputtered, glancing back at Kole.

“For now.”

Lexi let out a laugh, her eyes dancing with amusement. “Oh, this is good.”

Miles fell back into his chair. “You can live with me and Max. I’m sure we’re better company thanhim.”

“I appreciate it,” I replied, being sincere. “But I know those condos are only two bedrooms. I can’t take someone’s room.”

“You can have mine. I’ll take the couch.”

Well, shit.I knew Miles liked me, but I was realizing it might be more than a small crush. I was going to have to talk to him, not wanting to lead him on. I already had enough on my mind to even consider dating someone here.

“Fiona promised me that she’d find another place soon. Kole isn’t that terrible—most of the time.”

He shrugged, masking his disappointment. “Well, you have somewhere to go if you change your mind.”

I couldn’t stop my gaze from traveling back toward the bar, and my stomach flipped when I caught Kole staring at me. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking, but I knew one thing.

After making a mistake with Lucas, I needed to be very careful about everything I did. That included staying away from the men in this town.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

dani

I can smell your fear.

His cruel brown eyes and greasy long hair filled my head, and I forced my eyes open, pulling myself from the nightmare. Sweat covered my back, and I sucked in quick breaths as I sat up in bed. The monster who’d stabbed me all those years ago was a constant in my life. He was the reason I could never sleep more than a few hours at a time. Why I never felt safe. He and his partner had never been caught.

With a groan, I swung my legs over the edge of the bed as I rubbed my hands down my face. It didn’t matter how well I was doing in my life—I couldn’t go a week without that night creeping into my mind while I slept. Cracking my eyes open, I glanced at the clock to see it was three in the morning.

“Fuck,” I muttered, waiting for my heartbeat to slow. I wasn’t going to fall back asleep now. Flicking on the light next to my bed, I stared at the wall, trying to think of anything other thanthatnight.

I let Lucas fill my head instead. His scream when he fell off the cliff echoed in my mind, and my eyes cut to my closet where I’d stashed his pocketknife. I should have tossed it over the cliff.Keeping it was a risk. But it was a weapon I could possibly need in the future.

Did I feel guilty about killing him? Not at all. Especially after I saw Hallie at the café yesterday morning. The relief in her eyes had made it all worth it. But Iwasreckless. I could have gotten caught so easily if anyone had seen me going into the woods with him.

Next time, I’d?—

Nope. I could not think like that. There would be no next time. Especially here in this small town. Deaths here did not go unnoticed. I couldn’t start looking for the evil here because if I did, I wasn’t sure I’d have the self-control to ignore it.

I rubbed my temples, shaking my head. I wasn’t supposed to be entertaining these thoughts. This internship was my fresh start. I could be normal. I promised myself I would be. No more stalking or killing. I’d learned my lesson on how it could wreck my life, and I refused to let it happen again.

At the same time, what else did I have to live for? My parents weren’t in my life anymore, and I had no siblings. No friends. It was no one’s fault but my own. I didn’t trust, and for me, it was easier to keep it that way. It didn’t bother me when I was busy with school and my…extracurricular activities, but when I wasn’t doing anything, the loneliness I felt was nearly overwhelming.

Like right now.

Maybe that was why I was so fixed on wanting to find another mark. Lucas had woken me back up, and now I was obsessing. Which was not good.

After standing up, I snatched a large hoodie from the top of my dresser and slipped it over my t-shirt and small shorts. I was wide awake now, and since I had to be at work in a few hours, there was no point in tossing and turning in bed.

The house was dark, and I’d already memorized where everything was, so I crept down the stairs, heading to thekitchen. Reaching above the stove, I pressed the button, turning on the dim light. The silence was making my ears ring, so I moved to the counter where Kole had a stereo. There were no radio stations in this town, but he always had a CD inside of it, usually rock music. I turned the volume low to avoid waking Kole up before filling up the coffee pot with water.

I tapped my fingers on the counter, impatiently waiting for the coffee to brew. Being down here instead of my room was doing nothing to stop my thoughts. I quietly sang along to the song that was playing, glad that Kole had good taste in music. I froze when a noise came from the back of the kitchen. My heart dipped as I whirled around, eyeing the laundry room door with suspicion. I’d been on edge ever since I got chased in the woods and seeing those people behind the house with ski masks.