Page 39 of Little Liar
My jaw tenses at that thought, and I gulp half of my beer, needing something stronger to banish the bitter taste of betrayal.
Mason is standing beside me, but I didn’t invite any of my other friends—not that they’d fit in with these assholes anyway. They’d end up taking drugs and wrecking the place. Plus, one of them would flirt with my sister since they think she’s pretty, and then I’d be arrested for multiple murders.
I trust Mason now that he’s stopped trying to annoy me by commenting on how hot my sister is. But given the way he’s staring at Olivia’s group of friends in the pool, I’m starting to think inviting him was a mistake. If I find out he’s looking at my girl, I’ll fry his eyeballs and make him eat them with ketchup.
Not really. Mason can handle himself and puts up a good fight against me. We’ve had a few scraps over stupid shit where neither of us came out the winner, and I’m in no mood for a bloody nose or broken bones.
Who’s the purple-haired girl?he signs, gesturing towards Abigail.
I roll my eyes.Don’t waste your time.
Sometimes he’ll sign with me, and other times, he’ll speak. Mostly, though, it’s so we can slaughter our company with words without any of them knowing what the fuck we’re discussing. He learned sign language as soon as we became friends—he asked his parents to bring a tutor in, so I’d have a friend in school.
But if he fucks Abigail and breaks her heart, I’ll need to hear about it from Olivia for the next few months until she gets over him. Mason isn’t monogamous and likes to have more than onepartner at a time—a recipe for disaster when it comes to him having any interest in one of those cheerleaders.
She’s the one who keeps looking at me.He presses the heel of his boot against the wall, dragging smoke into his lungs as he studies Olivia’s friend.
She’s a headcase, I tell him, finishing the rest of my beer and heading over to the ice barrel filled with bottles to grab another.
When I get back to Mason, he signs,I think your dad is in a shitty mood.
My eyes drift towards him. Dad looks like he wants to disappear or set himself on fire as he watches Mom socializing like the butterfly she is. He’s the total opposite of her in every way. He hates people and has no patience despite being a high-profile defense attorney.
That makes two of us though. I can’t stand being around Mom’s friends. We’re more alike than we both would like to admit—Dad hates people; I hate people. He won’t fake a conversation; neither will I. Our friend groups are small. In fact, I don’t think he even has any friends.
We even glare at each other the same way. If I didn’t have memories from before the Vize family, I’d truly believe I was his biological son.
Mason shifts beside me, sighing. “I know you told me not to go there, but the little purple-haired cheerleader is looking at me like she wants me in every hole. Give me three good reasons why I shouldn’t.”
I silently laugh.She’s clingy.
She can cling to my dick.
Searching for more reasons, I chew my lip.She flirts with everyone.
So do I.
I breathe out an annoyed huff and glare at him until he rolls his eyes.
Just in time, Abigail climbs out of the pool and tells Olivia she’s running into the house to use the bathroom—it’s the first time I’ve seen Mason put out a cigarette and give himself a few breaths before telling me he’ll be right back with a pat on my chest.
I quietly tut and shake my head. He has no idea what he’s getting himself into with that girl. She’ll eat him alive, from the stories I’ve heard from Olivia.
Drawing my attention back to the pool, I ignore the irritation in my gut. Has the music gotten louder? I become hyper aware of my surroundings the longer Mason is gone from my side—I hear giggling from Olivia, a scream as someone splashes, and the sizzle of the grill.
So many faces, so many eyes, so many voices, and all I can fully focus on is my little sister. She keeps screaming and splashing her friends, then climbing out the pool in her tight black bikini and cannonballing back in.
I know people are watching her. How could they not?
She’s looked at me a few times, caught me looking back at her, but it doesn’t put a frown on her face or spoil her fun—if anything, she grows more comfortable and confident, and fuck is she beautiful when she believes in herself.
I’ve noticed her mood depleting recently. Even her kisses are growing more desperate while she lies to herself that she’s only teaching me.
Annoyingly, she’s always at Parker’s house, or at Adam’s. It’s like they’re just passing her to each other, despite none of them knowing the other exists.
Adam is terrified of me. I’ve followed him on my bike, slashed his car tires, held him against the wall by the throat until he begged me to believe that he doesn’t even want to be with Olivia. Both our parents are forcing them.
I haven’t bothered with him much the last few weeks. He’s no threat, as much as I want to beat the shit out of him out of pure jealousy.
