Page 228 of Secret Shifters Next Door

A smile crept onto my face, and my mind drifted to Miles. Since I first met him, my creativity had been off the charts. He was definitely my muse. “Yeah, I think you’re right.”

“Okay, I need to get a hold of some people for this book. I’ll talk to you later.”

I hung up and slid my phone into my pocket, feeling better than I had in days. I always talked down to myself. Every time I wrote a book, I always assumed everyone would hate it, no matter how much I loved the story. It was a holdover from childhood that I couldn’t get rid of. It never got old hearing someone tell me I did a good job.

I spent the next several minutes browsing through the store before grabbing an antique window frame, a distressed mirror, and a small bookcase that looked the worse for wear, but I figured I could revitalize it into something fantastic. The cart I’d grabbed was completely full when my phone rang again.

My heart lurched when I saw Felicity’s name on the screen. Miles had said that she’d try to contact me again, but I hadn’t really believed it. I’d pretty much assumed she would disappear from my life. Now she was calling me. Miles had told me to act as though nothing had changed when she called. I decided to find out how good I was at acting and hit the green button.

“Hey, Felicity.”

“Thank goodness you answered.”

“Of course, why wouldn’t I?”

“Last time we talked, we…oh, never mind. How was Thanksgiving?”

“It was great. I had a wonderful time with Miles and his friends.” I tried my best not to make that sentence sound like I was rubbing something in, but I wasn’t sure I’d been successful.

“That’s nice.”

“How was yours?” I asked, attempting to sound like I cared.

“Amazing. My mom came to town and surprised me. We had such a good time. Even went out for Black Friday shopping. I can’t remember the last time I had so much fun.”

My blood ran cold as she spoke about something that never happened. I knew for a fact her mother was dead. Not only that, she was dead because Felicity had helped lead her psychotic father to her and her lover. Felicity may not have pulled the trigger on the gun that killed her, but she might as well have been holding it. She lied so effortlessly that––had I not known the truth––I would have totally believed everything she was saying.

I’d been quiet for several seconds as I’d thought about her lies, and suddenly realized we were both silent. My mind raced to get back on track and try to fill the gap with something,anything, to say.

“Do you hate me?” Felicity asked.

Her question caught me off guard. How was I supposed to answer that? Did I hate her? I didn’t really know. Like Miles said, her father had bent and twisted her into the murderous thing she was now. She was trying to kill the man I was falling in love with. Not only him, but his friends and their wives. But I had to try and make her think things were still good between us. All these thoughts bounced through my head in a split second.

“What? Why would I hate you?” I asked.

She sighed heavily. “I haven’t been a great friend. I was a bitch, and I don’t blame you for wanting to keep your distance.”

“You were hurt, I understand that. I’m sorry I canceled our Thanksgiving plans.”

“God, when you say it like that, I sound even more petty than I already thought I was.”

“It’s fine, really. I get it. Don’t beat yourself up over this.” My acting must have been pretty good. It sounded like she was buying it.

I could hear her breathing on the other end of the line. Part of me hoped she’d hang up and make this easier on me. Another part was wishing she’d say something. I kept thinking of what might happen if she really did disappear. How could we try to find out what the plan was if we didn’t know where she was?

After several seconds, Felicity finally spoke. “You’re way too nice to me. I don’t deserve it, but thank you. Can I try and make it up to you? What about grabbing a coffee or lunch? My treat?”

This was turning into a really shitty day. It had started out so good, and now I was making a damned lunch date with a woman I didn’t want to be around. Still, I had to act like I was the same old me. Before I knew who Felicity really was and what she was capable of, I’d have agreed. So…here I was, stuck between a rock and a hard place.

“Sure,” I said through gritted teeth. “That sounds like a great idea.”

“Oh, thank God. I promise, no crazy Felicity this time. How about coffee and sandwiches at that bakery downtown?”

“Great. Text me when,” I said, then immediately screamed in my head:Please get off the phone and leave me alone!

“Cool, I’ll let you know by tomorrow.”

Once we’d ended the call, I felt dirty, like I’d done something terrible or unspeakable. I wasn’t sure if it was the lying or the fact that I’d made a lunch date with the devil. Before I went to pay for my things, I called Miles.

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