Why Did She Lie?

Kaden

Swiping the card over the reader, I took the stairs two at a time and cradled the flowers in my arm to protect them. Once I reached the top, I opened the door with a bang and contemplated hiding from Ember around the corner—all in the name of the game.

I was so deep in thought I almost missed the broad pair of shoulders turning so their owner could see who had caused such a racket bursting through the door. Even if he never completed that turn, I would have known it was my dad.

My heart smacked angrily against the inside of my chest, my blood running cold in shock and then hot with rage all in the space of the few seconds it took me to comprehend who I was looking at.

Ember was wrong. My dad wasn’t on a trip. His car wasn’t here because he’d been driven to the airport from here. It was here because he was. Which begged the question: was she wrong, or had she lied to me?

I wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt. I really did, but there were several irrefutable facts I had to