A Smile Before Crying (Last Kiss Series)

Readers first met Sabrina and learned her explosive secret in A Kiss Before Lying. Now, in this bittersweet, devastating companion novella, they'll finally discover the origin of so many lies and so many heartbreaks.

Sabrina James is almost six feet tall, biracial, the butt of many school jokes and the bulls-eye of many cruel pranks. Her only ally is her childhood friend - beautiful and brilliant Derek Archer. They're inseparable...until the fateful day when a new girl arrives, swept in on the wind like a fairytale villain. It's then that the downward spiral begins - the lies before the fall-out, the accusations before the fight, the smile before the crying.

"I VERY MUCH enjoyed [A Kiss Before Lying]. The writing is tight and quick, it’s thoughtful, it’s fresh, and it’s well worth reading. I’ll definitely be following Bethany’s writing career. She has a great energy in her prose." - Krista's Picks

*mature content warning: language, adult situations
*previously published as "Irreversible"

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Excerpt from A Smile Before Crying

It’s like a cold, horrible shake is moving down my spine to my ass. It’s like I’m suddenly naked with bad lighting, under a microscope, pinned down and waiting to be dissected. I feel backed into a corner and there’s only really one thing to do.

Come out swinging.

“Me? Jealous?” I laugh. Oh my God, I sound like a coyote. “Of Victoria? Please. She’s a two-dollar skank.”

Derek’s jaw muscle flexes again. He steps close. We’re eye-to-eye and his eyes are furious. “Careful.”

I swallow the knot in my throat. I think of Myron. I think of that third-grader. “Careful, nothing. You’re my friend and I’m allowed to be honest with you. And the truth is, ever since that girl—”

“Her name is Victoria.”

“—walked into your life, you have been nothing but distracted. And this isn’t me picking on her, either. Or being jealous of her. You need to quit with the Precious Victoria crap and see her for what she really is.” I take a tight breath. It’s harder to breathe, but I feel like it’s easier to stand up straight. I feel like a weight is finally being lifted. My mouth moves at a thousand miles a minute as I continue, “Anyone would be telling you this, not just me. She’s a bad influence on you. She does nothing but waste your time.”

“Stop it.”

“If she really cared about you, she’d let you study more and give you space. But every time I call or anything, she’s always there! Clearly, she is hanging off you like Tarzan on a vine and I’m not being a bitch. I’m just being honest.”

“Sabrina, stop.”

“It’s weird you can’t see that. Or maybe you can and just won’t admit it to me for some reason. But trust me, Derek. Drop her now because she has been the biggest mistake you have ever—”

“No,” he suddenly shouts. “My biggest mistake was trusting you.”