Free Tell Me Lies by Tessa Dayne

honey….have you seen the roads?” Darcy asked, heading to the window.  “It’s a mess out there.  Stay here and I will send Darren home.”
     
    “She’s right, Paige.  We should stay put.  It’s a long drive and the weather doesn’t look so great,” Jonas agreed, glancing out the window at the rapidly falling snowflakes.
     
    Paige sank to the edge of the bed, placing her head in her hands.  “Just get him out of here, Darcy.  Please.  I don’t want to run into him again.”
     
    “Consider it done,” she said, a fierce scowl crossing her face.  She left the room, softly closing the door behind her.
     
    Jonas sat on the mattress beside Paige and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.  When she leaned her head to his shoulder, he sighed, pressing his lips to her hair.  “I’m sorry the evening has been ruined.  Do you want me to get you anything?” he asked.
     
    “Just hold me.  That’s all I want you to do.  Just hold me,” Paige said, turning into his embrace.
     
    Jonas held her tight against his chest, stroking her hair.  What a night, he thought.  Who would have thought Darren was going to be such a thorn in their sides?
     
    ~*~
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Eight
     
    ~*~
     
    Darcy hunted through the crowd for Darren, anxious to find him and get him out of there before he caused a scene.  It was bad enough that he had been invited, but to have Paige run into him, too.  She was beyond mortified.
     
    “If it isn’t our venerable hostess.  Shouldn’t you be off making sure the caterers are doing their job?”
     
    Darcy turned around and found her quarry standing behind her, a champagne glass in hand, obviously drunk.  “What are you doing here, Darren?”
     
    “I was invited, Darcy darling.  You know that.  And if you didn’t realize it before, I am quite sure our sweet Paige ran to you the first chance she got.  Didn’t she?”
     
    “As a matter of fact, she came to get her fiancé.  I just happened to be standing there.  What the hell did you say to her, anyway?”
     
    “Just the truth.  Afraid she can’t face the truth these days,” he said, downing the rest of his champagne.
     
    “I want you to leave, Darren,” Darcy said, taking the empty glass from his fingers.  “Now.”
     
    Darren glared at her for a split second, and then he shrugged.  “Fine, Ms. Fancy Pants, I’m going, but you tell Paige that this isn’t over.  I will get to the bottom of this, one way or another.”
     
    “Get out,” Darcy hissed, pointing toward the door.
     
    Darren turned and disappeared into the crowd.  With a sigh, Darcy headed in the opposite direction.  She had to tell Jonas of Darren’s threat.  They had to protect Paige and the baby at all cost.
     
    ~*~
     
    Darren glanced around and noticed that Darcy hadn’t seen him to the door.  Grinning, he slipped into the kitchen.  He would just hang around until he could confront Paige again.  That baby was his, he was sure of it.  He knew that she wasn’t the type of person to cheat on him.  Not only that, but the timing was all wrong.  They had spent a lot of time together back in September.  She wouldn’t have had the time to slip away to meet anyone, let alone Jonas Barnett.
     
    Frowning, Darren tried to recall exactly what the reporter had written.  Paige’s baby was due in July.  That would have put her conceiving back in September.  They did spend a lot of time together then, didn’t they?  He was a little foggy on the details, thanks to the champagne he had consumed and the fact that it was now three months later.
     
    No, they hadn’t spent a lot of time together.  He remembered now.  That damned Kline account had taken up most of her time.  They had truly only been together the evening before she went to the lake.
     
    The lake.  That was where they had their secret rendezvous.  It was the only place that he had