Page 49 of The Truth in My Lies (Secrets of Suburbi 1)

Above all else, he had become my friend. And at that moment, I just needed to know that I wasn’t alone. I threw my arms around the back of his neck instead of inviting him in. I wanted him to hug me back so hard that it hurt to breathe. But his hands were full.

Instead he kissed the side of my forehead. I felt the velvety rose petals touch the back of my neck as he hugged me the best he could.

“I missed you,” I mumbled into his shoulder.

His laugh was hot against my neck. “And here I was all day thinking you were never going to speak to me again. I was wondering if you found something in my house you didn’t like after all.”

“No.” I squeezed him even tighter. “I didn’t find anything weird at all. Although, that in itself was a little unnerving.”

He laughed again. “Aren’t you going to invite me in, doll?”

God, I wanted his breath on my skin all the time. And I wanted to hear him call me doll over and over again. “Of course.” I made myself unwind my arms from his neck.

“These are for you.” He handed me the flowers.

They weren’t ordinary roses. They were a soft orange with a little red on the tips. I had never seen anything more beautiful. “Thank you. Come in,” I stepped to the side. Before the neighbors see you.

I started looking for a vase and then froze. Seeing his gorgeous face had made me completely forget about my dilemma. “Ben, I almost forgot.” I turned back around and almost bumped into him. “I ate something that I shouldn’t have. Something rotten. How do you make yourself throw up?”

“Whoa. Let’s back up for a sec. What did you eat?”

“Something gross.”

“Then why did you eat it in the first place?” He smiled.

“Ben, this is important. How do you…you know.” I pretended to put my finger in my mouth.

He grabbed my hand. “Usually your body will force you to respond the way it needs to. If it was bad, you’d throw it back up.”

“I’m not going to sit around until I have food poisoning.”

“If you had food poisoning, you’d be sick already,” he said. “Maybe it wasn’t rotten.”

This wasn’t working. “I…” I didn’t know how to say the words. “It wasn’t food. I took these pills…”

His whole demeanor changed in flash. The smile on his face vanished and his body became rigid. “How many did you take?”

“It wasn’t like that.”

“Addy, how many did you take?” He pulled out his phone.

“Stop.” I grabbed his arm. “I didn’t overdose.”

He suddenly looked older. Wiser than a 23 year old should be. “Would you please just tell me what happened?”

“I didn’t want them. They forced me to take them. I don’t feel right. They’re messing with my head. I have to get them out of my system.”

“Who made you take them?”

“My doctor.” My husband. I wanted to tell him the truth. It felt like there was a weight on my shoulders that was too heavy to bear. “She’s forcing me to take them.”

He ran his palm along the scruff on his jawline. “Your doctor forced you to take pills? Most doctors suggest medicine…”

I walked over to the kitchen table and lifted up the bag from the pharmacy. “It was never a suggestion for me. She makes me take pills I don’t need, for issues I don’t have.”

“What issues?”

“Ben, you’re missing the point. They’re in me and I need them out right now.”

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