Page 94 of Can't Fight the Moonlight

She exchanged a quick look with his grandfather. "I wasn't completely honest with you, Justin, and the reason I wasn't was because I didn't know if it was going to happen. I didn't think it was worth upsetting you. But now." She frowned as her phone buzzed.

"What?" he prodded, as she read the text.

"Oh, dear," she said. "They're already here. I didn't think they were coming until tomorrow."

"Who's here?" he asked, his heart sinking. He could see the answer in their faces. And then he heard footsteps behind him. He did not want to look. And then he heard her voice, followed by his.

"Justin?"

Chapter Nineteen

Justin still didn't turnaround. Instead, he glared at his grandparents, feeling incredibly betrayed. "You said my parents weren't coming."

His grandmother gave him a look of apology, but it didn't begin to dent the rage growing within him. Finally, he turned his head, seeing the two people he had loved and hated for most of his life.

His mother was a tall, slim woman with short, dark hair and blue eyes. His father was also tall, but broader and stockier. His once brown hair had turned to silver, and his blue eyes were closer to gray today. In his mind, they were monsters. They were cold. They were uncaring. They were dismissive. He hadn't seen them in three years and their last meeting had lasted about fifteen minutes before he'd taken off.

Today, he didn't think it would last that long.

The tension between them drew the attention of the group from the inn. The friendly chatter dimmed. He saw Lizzie out of the corner of his eye walking toward them.

He didn't want to ruin her party. So, he wouldn't.

"This isn't happening," he told his parents and grandparents. "I'm leaving."

"You can't go," Marie pleaded. "We need to talk—all of us."

"There's nothing to talk about. You told me they weren't coming."

"I didn't know if they would," she said. "I wasn't sure until today. And I didn't think they were coming until tomorrow. I told them there weren't any rooms at the inn. Lizzie, did you give them a room?"

At his grandmother's question, his gaze swung to Lizzie, and the bottom dropped out of his world as he saw the guilty look in her eyes.

"You knew they were coming?" he asked her, shocked by that realization.

"I wasn't sure," she said. "And I didn't give them a room."

He didn't care about the room. But he did care that she'd kept their arrival a secret. Even after he'd told her about Sean, about his parents, about how they'd let him down, she'd kept silent. "You should have told me," he said, hearing the icy cold tone in his voice.

"Justin—"

"No."

He cut her off by turning his back and walking away. He stormed through the trees, hearing footsteps behind him.

Lizzie caught up to him in the parking lot. "Justin, wait," she begged.

"How could you keep that a secret?" he demanded.

"I honestly didn't know if they were coming. Your grandmother mentioned it a couple of days ago, but she asked me not to tell you. At the time, I didn't know anything about your past."

"But you knew last night, and you still didn't say anything."

"I was going to, remember? I said I had something to tell you."

He shook his head. "Here's the thing, Lizzie. This is why you shouldn't get so involved with your guests. Why did you promise my grandmother anything? Why are you in the middle of my personal family life?"

"I was just trying to keep everyone happy."

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