Falsies (The Makeup Series Book 1) Read online

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

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  Falsies

  The Makeup Series, Book 1

  By Olive East

  Falsies

  Copyright © 2017 by Olive East.

  All rights reserved.

  First Print Edition: August 2017

  Limitless Publishing, LLC

  Kailua, HI 96734

  www.limitlesspublishing.com

  Formatting: Limitless Publishing

  ISBN-13: 978-1-64034-184-5

  ISBN-10: 1-64034-184-6

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.

  Dedication

  To everyone silently suffering in unrequited love.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

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  Chapter One

  I sat in the too clean bedroom on the too soft bed for one reason and one reason only—distraction. While pretending to watch whatever movie flickered on the screen, I calculated how long I could stay before I wouldn’t be too tired to drive home, but just tired enough to fall asleep as soon as I got there.

  Another ten minutes.

  “You aren’t even listening to me.”

  I glanced over at Sadie, the lover of cleanliness and soft mattresses. I didn’t hear her utter a single sound. It didn’t matter though. I spent enough time not listening to Sadie; I could fix this with minimal effort.

  “I was listening. I can’t believe he did that either, but you’re the one who agreed to marry him.” What I wanted to say was, “You’re the idiot who decided to get engaged to a twenty-three-year-old who clearly isn’t ready for marriage,” but I didn’t.

  She sighed and admired the round rock on that ever-so-special left ring finger while I turned my face back to the screen and hoped she’d do the same. She didn’t.

  “Ollie, you exude miserableness.”

  I kept my eyes on the dustless screen. She was right, and I didn’t have the energy or resolve to prove otherwise.

  “I’m just trying to watch the movie.” Still looking everywhere but at Sadie, I caught a glimpse of myself in the full-length mirror hanging on the closet door. I looked normal—good, even. For that too, there was only one reason—him.

  “I’ll give you fifty bucks if you can tell me what’s happening in this scene.”

  My eyes flickered back to the screen to take in people running all around the streets of a large city at night. Some looked scared, some didn’t. I had no idea what was going on and I didn’t care. All this talking was going to wake me up too much when all I wanted to do was sleep.

  “I’m tired and I’m going home. Keep your fifty bucks.” I swung my legs off the bed and began searching in the low light for my purse.

  “I talk, you don’t listen. I put on the movie that you brought over, and you don’t watch it. I don’t know what to do with you when you get like this.”

  I found my well-loved bag and shoved my heavily socked feet into my boots as quickly as I could. Having this conversation was absolutely last on my things to do list. I reached for the door, but Sadie got there first.

  “I didn’t say it so you’d go. I said it so you’d wake up. This needs to be fixed. You need to be fixed.”

  Years of experience taught me how to deal with this too. Every so often Sadie would get fed up with my behavior and try to “fix” me—which made me feel great, by the way. Luckily for me she wasn’t interested enough in me as a person to really, truly help.

  “It’s just a bad day. Let’s go to lunch tomorrow. You’ll see, I’ll be fine by then.” Brightness played at the edges of my voice and I hoped it was enough.

  She gave me a tight smile and nodded. “Okay, lunch. I get to pick where, though. And if I even sense a foul mood I’m sticking you with the check.”

  “Fine.” I reached for the door again. “I can agree to that.”

  When I stepped outside onto the quaint porch and pulled the heavy wooden door shut, no light escaped from the house. There were no street lights to help me either. As a lifelong night owl the lack of light shouldn’t have bothered me, but lately I was finding the night daunting instead of calming.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I watched the edge of the woods that surrounded the neighborhood. Not because I feared what might be lurking, but because I welcomed it. Constantly, I felt as if I was on the cusp of greatness—like any minute I’d find the secret passageway or a vampire would tell me I smelled delicious. The problem with being on the cusp, though, is you can go either way.

  When I didn’t immediately see my Accord, I paused, thinking it’d been stolen, then remembered I’d had to park around the block. I’d ignored the street-sweeping signs before and had to pay for that mistake.

  The only sound around came from my boot heels clicking against the shiny black pavement. There was a crystalline quality to the night. The sky was on the verge of releasing snow—I could smell it. The frost of the evening hit me then. It made me wish I was wearing a real coat instead of the overpriced, yet utterly trendy blazer failing to keep me warm.

  I blew out a breath, pretending to be smoking, half wishing I really was, and watched it float away. In the middle of my second pretend puff I heard someone else’s feet on the road. It was the unmistakably human sound of fast-paced walking and it immediately made the back of my neck tingle.

  In an instant, I decided I was close enough to the car
not to bother with turning around and seeing who it was. I pressed the unlock button on the key fob, only for nothing to happen. I vigorously shook it and tried again. No dice. Then I smacked the damn thing against my palm and tried again, only for nothing to happen—again.

  “You know that thing in your hand that looks like a key? It’ll unlock your door for you, no battery required.”

  At the sound of the definitely male voice, I jumped out of my skin like I was watching a horror movie I claimed to love, but actually gave me nightmares and dropped my keys.

  “Yeah, I know that,” I snapped as I bent down to retrieve them. While I was contemplating my ability to poke a key through an eye socket, I noticed the newest, dorkiest pair of shoes I’d ever seen. He looked like he stepped out of an old movie, standing next to four yellow fuzzy paws.

  Can a guy with a dog be that bad?

  “I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said, shifting weight from one nerdy shoe to the other, “but you dropped this.”

  He was holding a piece of paper, my piece of paper, in his grubby hand. I quickly snatched it like a child, then had to look up, and then up even higher, to meet his gaze. The crazy clear blue of his eyes, even in the low light, caught me off guard.

  “Thanks,” I mumbled as I hastily shoved the paper in the pocket of my too tight jeans.

  “Welcome,” he mumbled back in the same tone. Was he mocking me?

  Without any further attempt at conversation, I unlocked my door—using the now-working fob, not the key, thank you very much—and opened it. Mister Clean Shoes was still standing there, partially in my way. I could’ve opened my door and got in, but that would’ve meant bumping the yellow Lab. Smashing into him, okay, the dog, no.

  “What?” I asked, more than slightly perturbed.

  “Nothing. I mean, what’re you doing?”

  I purposefully dragged my eyes from his to my car. Was he being serious? “Going home.”

  “Were you at Sadie’s?”

  “That didn’t sound like a real question. Stalk much?”

  As soon as the words came out I regretted them. The awkward yet horribly sad expression on his face hurt me in a surprising way. He turned, tugged once on the dog’s leash, and started walking away from me.

  Whatever, I told myself and opened the car door. But I just couldn’t get in.

  I mulled it over for a couple seconds. “Hey,” I yelled but he didn’t turn. “I’m sorry!” As he kept walking he gave me a thumbs-up over his head. I stood there with my door open, wishing he’d turn around. I got in the car just as it started to snow.

  “I’m an asshole.”

  Chapter Two

  Standing outside Sal’s Bar and Grill, I mentally and physically practiced smiling. When I felt I had it just about right I opened the door. Sadie was sitting where we always sat, right between the window and bar, and eyeing me skeptically while twirling a strand of long strawberry-blonde hair between her fingers. When she ever so slightly nodded, I approached the table more confidently.

  “Hi, hi.” She placed the cloth napkin on her tiny lap with a flourish.

  “Hey!” I sounded so cheery it hurt. “How’s things?” I reeled it in.

  “Since last night? Uh, fine.”

  When I opened the mostly Italian menu it was only to pretend to contemplate my choices. I’d banked on her leading the conversation, like always, but this time I’d do my best to contribute. The feeling of her eyes on me was one I’d grown to expect but also loathed. She was doing it on purpose because she was always so interested in watching me. I could ask her about Aaron, but I refused to do that.

  “I think I’ll get a club and fries,” I offered lamely.

  She smirked, which I thought was odd, until she said, “That’s what Aaron always gets here.” Like I would, one, care and, two, not already know that. Then she whipped out her rhinestone covered phone, and I could mentally construct the gagworthy and emoji-filled text she was undoubtedly sending to Aaron.

  We sat in silence while she beamed goofily at her cell until the waitress showed up. Sadie ordered some ridiculously heavy pasta with sausage and cream sauce. It made me smile to myself, a real smile, because the twig sitting across from me was probably going to eat the whole damn thing.

  “So…um, do you have some weird lurking neighbor?” I asked after our orders were placed.

  “What? You never make any sense.”

  “Last night this guy almost accosted me outside your house.”

  Her eyes widened considerably, meaning I actually had her attention. “What? I need more details than that.”

  “Okay, maybe accosted is too strong a word. I just got a different vibe from him; but he mentioned you by name.”

  “Well, what was his name?” she asked. “All the neighbors know my name.”

  “Didn’t say.”

  “What’d he look like?”

  I thought about her simple question, really thought about it. I could describe his fancy dress shoes perfectly and could probably pick the yellow Lab out of a lineup, but him? I knew I looked into his lofty blue eyes. I knew I saw his defined face perfectly framed by unruly blond waves. I knew his lips seemed so provocative, even though he only used them to speak, and his body practically glowed with male pheromones.

  I knew those things because I never seemed to stop thinking about our meeting, but I couldn’t describe a single feature to her. Maybe I just didn’t want to.

  “I don’t know.”

  “God, Ollie. What a good story.” She picked her phone back up and I prepared myself to pay for her stupid expensive bottled water.

  “He was tall, really tall, and had a yellow Lab with him.”

  She looked up from the screen, then slowly put the phone back down. “No. He. Did. Not.” I nodded. “Tall guy, blondish curly hair, gray-blue eyes, hot beyond reason for a bore? That’s William Brooks. He lives across the street. He’s gorgeous, a doctor, and adores me.”

  “He’s older than us?” It was hard to keep the interest out of my voice, but I needed to know how much older.

  “Yeah, he’s got a few years on us. He just graduated or something—I think. What did he have to say?”

  “It was nothing, really.” Sadie’s eyes dimmed a smidge.

  “But he mentioned me?”

  “Just that he saw me leaving your house.” Sadie looked to her phone and I could feel the spark of interest dying. Was it always that hard? Did everyone else have to work for friendly conversation?

  “Listen, Aaron’s going out of town for a few days and I’ll be bored and lonely. Why don’t you stay over at least a night or two?”

  “Sure,” I said after taking a beat to think about it. The text I would send her later to get out of it practically wrote itself. Something about a cold or stomach bug always worked because she didn’t want to catch it. Then it hit me. Why did she want to spend an extended period of time with me anyway?

  “Why?”

  She paused for a second longer than necessary for the simple question. “To visit his brother.”

  “You know what I mean, Sadie.” She probably thought she was so clever.

  “Fine. I’m trying to be your friend. I’m trying to protect you, but no. You have to drag it out of me when I’m trying to have some class in this delicate situation.” She sighed as if I’d been badgering her for hours. “It’s the anniversary of your dad and I’m worried what you might do.”

  She gave me that overly concerned yet pitying look I’d grown to hate but everyone loved to give.

  “So?”

  Her eyes narrowed. “So? So? You’re already a wreck. I thought the reminder would only make you worse…if possible.”

  I thought it went without saying that I didn’t need the anniversary to remember, but I smiled a real smile at her anyway. Not because I was trying to prove I was okay—she knew I wasn’t—but because Sadie really cared. “I’m going to be fine.”

  She stuck out her rosy lips and scrunched up her high cheeks, resul
ting in a face that led me to believe she was one hundred percent sure I wasn’t fine…and maybe never would be. “Just please come over. Please.”

  “Okay,” I agreed. “We can have a sleepover.” She was right to worry about me, and I did enjoy spending boy-free time with my best friend, but I’d never admit it. “But no surprises.”

  “Of course not.”

  “Sadie.”

  “I promise,” she said with the believability of a used car salesman.

  At the end of the meal she paid the check for the both of us and it terrified me. When Sadie was overly nice, it meant she was definitely up to something.

  Chapter Three

  In my overstuffed duffel bag I had more MAC and wardrobe changes than an average showgirl, but the thought of taking anything out caused a mild panic attack. My makeup and clothes were like battle armor. They comforted me; they made my life feel like less of a mess. I needed them. I tried to cancel the absurd sleepover multiple times when I found out Sadie’s mom was out of town at a conference too. Lydia was like a friend, therapist, and life coach all rolled into one and always managed to make me feel better about everything. If Lydia had been there, the weekend might have helped me, but not if it was just Sadie and me on our own.

  With each attempt at calling it off, Sadie would assure me the sleepover was more for her than me, claiming she was a “huge baby” when it came to sleeping alone. I knew I’d go no matter what; I just had to put up a fight.

  With my Accord backed into the driveway, I sat and stared at the house across the street. I was hoping it would offer me some information, tell me something about the man who lived inside, but it was just a nice, orderly suburban home without one single outstanding characteristic besides the two wooden chairs on the front porch.

  Sadie opened the front door to her house, so I opened my car door. “Are you coming in, weirdo?” she called over.

  “Yeah.” I nodded. Her eyes glanced in the direction mine had been looking, and her mouth turned up slightly.