Duplicity by Kristina M Sanchez Read Free Book Online Page B

her, stooping her shoulders.
    Her father said he loved her and she always had a home. Sometimes,
Lilith wanted to believe. She wanted to believe it so bad she had to close her
eyes and breathe through her nose until the intensity of the desire faded.
    How could it be true if they thought she was too fucked up to even
speak to their precious child?
    Lying back down, Lilith pulled the blankets over her head. She
tucked her legs up to her chest, ignoring the tears that had overflowed.
    Closing her eyes, she hoped sleep would find her again.
     
    ~0~
     
    Despite her repeated insistence she was in no mood to go out—like
any of them could afford it anyway—Mal and Dana wouldn’t take no for an answer.
Even Erin smiled and encouraged her. Lilith and Mal’s girlfriend didn’t always get along, but they didn’t hate each other.
    The bar they dragged her to was a friendly kind of place. Mal made
it known it was her twenty-first birthday—never mind that he and Dana were
still using fake IDs—and the shots started flowing like water.
    They ordered a variety of appetizers, and Lilith’s bad mood began
to dissipate. So what if her father didn’t understand her? She had these two,
and she didn’t need anyone else. They accepted her for who she was. They didn’t
think she was bad or wrong.
    She had a fleeting thought, wishing Trey was there. It surprised
her so much, she cut off mid-conversation.
    “You okay?” Dana asked.
    “Yeah.” Lilith shook her head. “ I .  . . um. I
just remembered I forgot my .  . .
sweater at work.”
    Her friends nodded, either not noticing her stutter or choosing to
ignore it. It wasn’t atypical for them to shy away from any mention of work.
Maybe they accepted her for who she was, but that didn’t mean they wanted to
know details about her workday.
    Just as she was beginning to let her guard down, Mal had to go and
ruin it.
    A friend of his just happened to be at the bar at the same time.
That wouldn’t have been so curious except that Nathan, as he was introduced,
was there alone. Not a lot of people their age ended up in bars drinking alone.
And then he’d said the magic words.
    “ Mal’s told me a lot about you.”
    Lilith glared surreptitious daggers at her friend while he blinked
back, the picture of innocence.
    In all fairness, there was a lot to like about Nathan, so she
could at least see the wisdom behind the pairing. She kept things casual,
careful to divert the man’s considerable charm. She went to the bathroom, and
when she came back, she put Dana between them.
    When she’d had a few too many shots—being no stranger to alcohol,
she could hold her liquor well—she leaned behind Dana, taking Nathan’s wrist to
pull him toward her so she could whisper in his ear.
    “I don’t know what Mal’s told you,
sport, but you should know. I let people fuck me for money. And I’m damn good
at what I do.”
    The look on Nathan’s face told her everything. Mal had not warned
him. He stumbled, stuttered, made his excuses, and was gone in the next two
minutes.
    Mal fixed her with a disparaging look. “What did you do? What did
you say to him?”
    “What do you think I said to him?” There was a challenge in her
tone; she was ready for a fight.
    It was one of the worst feelings in the world to feel so alone in
a crowded room.
    “Things were going well. Did you have to— ”
    “In all the time you’ve known me, have I ever been on a single
date?”
    “No, and that was the point.” He drummed his fingers against the
table. “I think a nice guy in your life could help.”
    The waitress appeared just in time with another shot. Lilith
grabbed it before she could even put it down on the table. She shot it back,
slamming the empty glass down before she leveled a glare at her friend. “Could
help what?” Her voice was low and dangerous.
    She could tell from the expression on Mal’s face he knew he was in trouble. He gave a little huff. “Significant others
aren’t bad