Dirty Little Lies (Dirty Little #2) Read Free Page A

where mom and dad basically rented out that water park?”  
    I was sixteen, and thought I was entirely too cool for a kid’s birthday celebration. Corinne had begged me to get on a waterslide with her, and giving in to her resulted in one of my favorite pictures of the two of us. I have it just across my bedroom, framed on top of my dresser: me wrapped around Corrine, the two of us soaking wet and screaming as we dart out of the bottom of the slide, and into a giant wading pool.  
    “I remember,” I say, although I can’t quite figure out what’s got her thinking about that day nearly ten years ago now. “What about it?”  
    She shrugs. “I can’t stop wondering if someone else’s kid didn’t get to have a day like that because of what Mom and Dad did.”  
    Oh . Corinne’s kind heart and thoughtful soul still manage to catch me off guard sometimes. I take a moment to think about the right answer to her question; one that will be honest but still put her at ease.  
    “Cor, Mom and Dad stole money from incredibly rich people over a long period of time. They skimmed off the top for decades, so that no one would figure out what they were doing. Mom and Dad did a shitty thing, but I don’t think anyone went without because of it.” If there’s any silver lining in this situation, it’s that our parents didn’t bilk poor people out of their hard-earned money, although at this point I wouldn’t put it past them. I think my mother and father are capable of things that Corinne and I could never dream of. These past couple of months have proven that.  
    Corrine gives me this skeptical look, like she really wants to believe me, but she can’t quite let herself do it.  
    “They did have their own money,” I remind her. “You know Gran and Pop were rich.” Mom and Dad just squandered that money away on bad investment after bad investment and who knows what else. Then they took to stealing to make up for it.  
    She nods. “Okay.”
    I’m relieved that she doesn’t need any more assurances.  
    “I’m going to pay you back for my tuition.”  
    “What? No you’re not.” I paid her most recent tuition bill, because she’s not going to attend college paid for with stolen money.  
    “Marisa-”
    “No. You’re going to study hard, and you’re going to graduate. You’re going to do great things, and make people forget that our parents are shitty, lying thieves.”  
      “Okay.” She reluctantly smiles. “I think I can accept those terms.”
    It’s not like she has any choice in the matter. “Good.”  
    “And how are things for you?”  
    I shrug. “Can’t complain.”  
    Corinne raises her brow, and I know that she doesn’t believe me, but she isn’t going to call me out on it. I like playing the protector where she’s concerned, and she’s very gracious about humoring me with that.  
    “The Murphy Building thing is this weekend, isn’t it?”  
    “Yeah.” I nod. I’ve been working on putting this benefit together for months now. Now that my name is in the press for something my parents did, a few of the ladies who lunch want to kick me off the board and take my name off of anything pertaining to the benefit.  
    I care about the building and its restoration too much let them get away with that.
    “I take it they weren’t successful in removing you?”  
    “No,” I reply with a smirk. “They were not.”  
    There isn’t a chance in hell that I’m going to let them erase me from this, not when it was my idea. Not when I did the hard work to make it happen. I’m going to walk into that benefit with my head held high.  
    Corinne smirks at me, reminding me of the young woman that she was before this whole scandal came to light. Defiant, smart, and carefree. It’s a smirk that makes me glad I stood up to these women. It makes me want to make Corinne proud.  
    “Give ‘em hell. And report back to me after.”  
    That’s exactly what I’m gonna do.  

CHAPTER