Secrets

Grayson’s POV

I’m not comfortable keeping secrets from Sammi, especially ones this big. The way she’s looking at me now, her eyes searching mine for answers, makes me feel even worse. I can see the questions brewing in her head, and she’s waiting for me to explain why the others left with Mac. She deserves to know the truth, but it’s not my place to tell her. And if I do, Zade will have my head.

I’ve already been given the cover story, rehearsed it a hundred times. But the idea of lying to her makes me feel sick. It was easier to lie to her before I accepted how I felt. Sammi has no idea about the real world she’s entangled in, and we’ve worked hard to make sure she never finds out. But I wonder—how long can we keep this lie alive?

“Gray, what is it?” she asks, her voice pulling me out of my thoughts. The worry in her eyes pierces through me.

I plaster on a smile, though it feels hollow. “Nothing,” I lie, even though I hate myself for it. “Look, from what I’ve been told, they’re expan