Give Murder A Hand: Lizzie. Book 2 (The Westport Mysteries) (19 page)

Jared sighed. “She can talk to the prosecutor and see if he will
drop it, but ultimately that’s up to him.”

All eyes turned to me. I felt the heat creep up my neck and smother
me. I was the victim here and yes, I wanted her charged, whether she meant it
or not. She could have killed me, or worse she could have killed Danny, but
looking around the table, I felt a pressure build inside me.

I looked at Riley. He was pushing his salad around his plate, his
appetite obviously no better than mine. I wanted him to defend me and tell
everybody to back off. Allison deserved what she was getting. But he didn’t. He
just sat quietly.

“Umm ... I’ll see what I can do,” I said, averting my eyes and
looking at my plate.

“Don’t stress, Lizzie,” said Allison, sliding her chair back. “I’m
sure it will all work out. Now, would you all excuse me please while I visit
the little girls’ room?”

All three Thomas boys stood as Allison moved away from the table.

I felt my shoulders drop as she stepped out of the room. Mal sat
back down and conversation turned to some football game that was on TV last
night. Anna stood and moved to clear the dirty plates from the table. I went to
help.

“No Lizzie, you sit. I’ll get the dessert ready. Shelly would you
mind helping me?” Anna’s posture was rigid, and I got the distinct impression
she was a bit miffed with me. I guessed Allison must have been her favorite of
Riley’s girlfriends.

Shelly gave me a compassionate look as she moved to help Anna, and
I was left alone sitting at a table with three men, all of whom were pretty
much ignoring me. I fiddled with my napkin as Riley’s hand moved under the
table and came to rest on my leg. His reassuring touch filled me with
happiness.

I was about to put my hand on his, when his phone beeped in his
pocket, signaling a message. He moved his hand to retrieve it.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, he swiped at the screen. He
blushed, quickly turning the phone off and shoving it back in his pocket.

I looked at him quizzically.

He gave me a tight smile and turned back to the conversation with
his dad and brother, his body language rigid and unnatural.

I wanted to ask him about the message when Allison walked back into
the room, sat down next to Mal and joined in on their conversation.

I couldn’t have joined in even if I had wanted to. I didn’t know
one end of a football from the other.

* * *

By the time dinner was over I was exhausted, my
shoulders were tense and I had a headache. And I still hadn’t heard back from
Bradley.

I stepped out into the cool fresh air, looked up and saw my first
star for the night. I thought of my mum, and something she used to say to me
when I was a kid popped into my mind.

“Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight. I wish I may, I
wish I might, have this wish, I wish tonight.” I closed my eyes and made my
wish. Now I know I shouldn’t tell you my wish because it won’t come true, so
let’s just say it involved Riley. And Allison was not a part of the picture at
all.

I opened my eyes as Riley brushed past me and moved to the car. I
followed him and got into the passenger seat. He’d been pretty quiet throughout
dinner, and more so when his mum served Allison’s cake for dessert, saying it
would be rude not too as she was the guest. At the time, Mal had winked at me,
saying he would eat mine for lunch tomorrow. Personally, I was secretly pleased
Allison didn’t get to see my cake.

I could usually figure what Riley was thinking, but not this time.
I watched his face as the streetlights flashed by, and thought back to the
conversation earlier about me getting the charges against Allison dropped.

“Riley, do you think I should talk to the prosecutor about dropping
the charges?” I asked quietly. My heart pounded loudly as I waited for his
response.

“I think you should do what you feel is right,” he answered, still
keeping his eyes straight ahead.

“I will do what I think is right, but I’m asking for your opinion.”

Riley stopped at a traffic light and looked at me seriously.

“No, I don’t think you should have the charges dropped. She was
driving dangerously and she could have killed you.” He reached out and took my
hand.

Relief spread through me as a smile played on my lips for the first
time since Allison had walked into the kitchen.

“However,” he said smiling, removing his hand and accelerating as
the light changed to green. “I think from now on you should buy all our cakes
from the bakery.”

I swatted his arm playfully as we laughed. Maybe my wish would come
true after all.

Chapter
Seventeen

The following morning dawned sunny and hot once
again, and I decided I should get on with the painting. Riley had gone to the
hardware store to get something really important. No idea what that was, but it
didn’t really matter did it? I pulled out my phone to send him a message asking
him to bring back something yummy from the bakery, when I saw the message I’d
sent Bradley the day before. He still hadn’t replied to it. I’d actually missed
his cheeky grin the last few days, and really hoped everything in his world was
okay. I decided to call him to see.

I listened to the dial tone ringing, but after what felt like an
eternity it went to his message bank. I left a message for him to call me, then
dialed Ed Helms. He answered almost immediately.

“Lizzie, it’s good to hear from you. I’ve been meaning to call you
actually.”

“Oh really? Is everything okay?”

“Yeah but there’s been a delay on the lab results. There was a big
murder is the city and forensics have put everything on hold until the lab has
processed their work first.”

“So we don’t know if it’s real blood or not yet?”

”No, sorry. But I’ll keep chasing it up. You haven’t had any more
appear?”

“No. Not as yet. Hopefully it never will.”

“Fingers crossed,” said Ed, his voice oozing compassion. “Is this a
social call?” he asked.

“Umm ... not really, I was hoping to ask for a favor actually.”

“Of course, whatever I can do, I will.”

“Well, you know Bradley, the guy that runs the Westport Tours?”

“Yes, I questioned him recently about the rumors he’d heard
involving the body found in your garden.”

“The thing is, he hasn’t been around for a couple of days now, and
I’m worried about him.”

“Have you tried to call him?”

“Yes, but he’s not answering his calls, his messages or Facebook. I
also checked his Twitter, Instagram, Google Plus, LinkedIn, YouTube and Blog
and he hasn’t uploaded anything since Monday.” I honestly didn’t understand how
Bradley had the time to stay that connected.

“Hmmm ... okay. I’ll look into it. I’m sure he’s fine, just taking
some time out, but if it’ll put your mind at ease, I’ll pay him a visit.”

I smiled at the relief that someone would check on him. “Thanks.
Did you see his video diary about knowing who the killer was?

“No. Sounds like I should have though.”

“So he didn’t call you telling you who it was?”

“No. I haven’t heard from him at all, but I’ll definitely follow it
up.” I heard Ed’s breathing, deep over the phone. “How are you otherwise?”

“Yeah, I’m good thanks.” I thought about Anna’s advice to Allison, and
felt guilt run through me. “Umm, actually there was one thing,” I said. “Allison
turned up at Riley’s parents’ house for dinner last night, and I think she’s
going to report you for being rude to her the other day.”

Ed contemplated what I’d said.

“Do you think I was rude to her?”

“No, but I don’t like her very much.”

He laughed.

“I just wanted to give you a heads up. She may not go ahead with it,
but I thought you should know.”

“It’s okay, Lizzie. My boss is pretty cool.”

I sighed. “So you won’t get into any trouble?”

“None that I can’t handle.” He laughed. “But Lizzie, be careful
around her.”

I heard the warning in Ed’s words and felt the prickle run up my
spine.

“Is there a reason I need to be?” I asked.

Ed’s sigh was loud in my ear. “Just be careful. Please.”

* * *

Riley returned home about an hour later. I’d
finished painting the back wall, cleaned my brushes and was sitting down having
a coffee when he walked in. He looked particularly happy about something.

“You were gone a long time,” I commented.

“I ran a few errands while I was out,” he said, moving to me, and
kissing the top of my head. He sat in the chair opposite.

“The coffee has just brewed if you want a cup,” I said.

“No thanks. Actually, I want you to go and pack.”

“Pack?”

“Yes. Pack. You’ve been under a lot of pressure lately. I think you
deserve this,” said Riley, handing me an envelope. I carefully took it from him
and opened it. Inside was a piece of white A4 paper with a printed reservation
for the Hilton Hotel in the city. It was for two nights, starting tomorrow.

“Oh my God! Really?” I asked, looking up at him. I’d always wanted
to stay at the Hilton, but had never been able to justify spending the money.

“I know we’re not going very far, but I thought a break would be
nice. Time for you and me.” Riley moved took my hand and pulled me into his lap.
I looked up and saw the sparkle in his eyes.

“Just the two of us. No interruptions or family dramas?”

“Nope. Just us. For two days. To do whatever we want.”

I sighed as Riley kissed me softly on the lips. I felt the tension
in my shoulders relax as I gave in to his kiss and put my arms around his neck.

As the floor scorched under my toes, I pulled up for air, my
hormones racing. “Maybe we should get a little bit of practice in. You know,
just to make sure we’re good at this,” I said.

Riley smiled and gathered me up in his arms. Taking the stairs two
at a time, he pushed the bedroom door open with his hip, and dropped me on the
bed.

“I think we should practice a lot,” he said, jumping next to me. “We
don’t want to waste our time at the Hilton not knowing what we’re doing.”

I giggle and rolled on top of him, pushing his shoulders back to
the bed as I did so. My hormones were racing at approximately three times the
speed of light as I placed my hands on his flat stomach and lifted his shirt. Lowering
my head, I nibbled his neck, his breathing ragged in my ear. I heard the moan escape
his lips as he lifted my shirt over my head, very deftly unhooked my bra and
threw it across the room.

Now this is the part where I would normally ask you to please close
your eyes, but as with everything in my life, we got very rudely interrupted by
the phone.

“Ignore it,” said Riley, his fingers working magic as he spoke.

“Okay. Sorry.”

Riley put his arms around me and rolled me over to my back where he
continued on his plan, kissing his way down my neck. The doorbell rang.
Shit.

Riley lifted his head and looked at me. “Ignore it.” As he moved
his head an inch lower, I moaned and thought I’d have no trouble ignoring the
door.

It rang again.

“Lizzie, I know you’re in there!” It was Danny.

“Stay quiet and he’ll think we’re not home,” mumbled Riley, his
mouth full of my flesh.
Oh boy!
He
sure knew what he was doing!

The doorbell rang again. And again.

“Open up,” yelled Danny. “I need to talk to you.”

Now, I really was enjoying what Riley was doing, but all I could
hear was the constant ring of the doorbell and Danny’s voice. Hardly an
aphrodisiac.

I sighed. “I’m sorry. As much as I want to, I can’t ignore him.”

“That’s okay. His voice kind of killed it for me too.” Riley rolled
over onto the bed and ran his fingers through his hair, a habit he had when he
was frustrated. Well, he wasn’t the only one.

“Can you go and let him in while I find my bra? You know, if you’re
presentable and all.” I looked at Riley’s excitement and thought it would
probably give Danny a heart attack.

Riley sighed and stood up, pulling his shirt back into place.
“Don’t worry, after hearing that voice, it’ll hide for hours now.”

I giggled as I watched Riley’s glorious back walk out of the room. I
climbed off the bed, retrieved my bra and t-shirt and spent a couple of minutes
in the bathroom splashing cold water on my face before going down stairs.

I found Danny in the kitchen crying, with Riley standing next to
him. When I’d first met Riley, Danny’s crying had kind of freaked him out a bit,
but now he knows it’s just another day in the Fuller family.

“What’s wrong?” I asked Danny, picking up the tissue box and
handing it to him.

“Andrew, that’s what,” he replied, snatching a tissue as he spoke. “We’re
supposed to be going away tomorrow and he says he wants to cancel it! I’ve been
looking forward to this time away without his mother. It’s the only thing
that’s got me through the last few weeks.”

“Well why does he want to cancel?” I asked. Riley had slunk out the
back door the second I had walked into the kitchen. Lucky bugger.

“He says no one will look after her. There’s nothing bloody wrong
with her, Lizzie!”

“But Andrew must have a reason to think that there is,” I said
soothingly.

“She’s just a manipulating cow,” said Danny blowing his nose.

“Danny! You can’t say that.”

“Why? It’s the truth.”

I was about to ask Danny for more details when my phone rang. I
picked it up and saw the caller was Andrew.

I showed Danny the phone. “Why’s he calling me?”

Danny shrugged as I swiped the screen and answered the call.

“Hi Andrew.”

“Lizzie, is Danny with you at all?” I heard the anxiety in Andrew’s
voice as he spoke.

“Yeah, he’s here.”

“I’ve been trying to call his phone but it must be playing up as
it’s not even ringing. Could I speak to him please?”

I handed the phone to Danny. “Apparently your phone’s playing up,”
I said.

Danny shook his head and mouthed, “I switched it off. I don’t want
to talk to him.”

“Man up, Danny and talk to him. You’ll never sort it out
otherwise.”

Danny glared. I didn’t care. Tomorrow I was going to the city for a
couple of nights away from them all and the drama that went with them.

“Your shirt’s inside out,” snarled Danny as he snatched the phone
from my hand.

I looked down at my shirt and realized he was right. I felt my face
flush. Of course everybody knew what Riley and I got up to in the dark, and
sometimes even in broad daylight, but it was still embarrassing to get caught
in the act. I turned on my heel and moved outside to where Riley was sitting on
the deck. Danny could sort his own bloody problems out.

* * *

The next morning I woke excited about the few
days ahead. I’d lived and worked in the city for about ten years before buying
this house, so I knew it pretty well, but in all honesty it wasn’t the city
that was making me excited. Or the hotel, even though it was pretty
spectacular. It was spending time alone with Riley with no interruptions. Last
night we had both agreed to only answer our phones if we thought it could be an
emergency. In my case that was only after Mum had rung about seven times and left
a voice message. Then I’d call her back. We couldn’t check in until after two
pm, and it was only seven am now, but our bags were packed, Cat had been left
with the run of the house and a bowl full of biscuits.

Molly had agreed to come over every day to make
sure he was okay. She had my phone number so if anything went wrong with Cat, she
could leave me a message and I would call her back. I was determined my family
was not going to interrupt my sanctuary. Riley was right. I was pretty wound up
and anxious. That was partly because I couldn’t go a day in my family without a
drama, partly because I was still trying to figure out why those bones were in
my garden, but mostly because of Riley’s working relationship with Allison.

Yes, I knew that was one of the reasons why he
was taking me away. He wanted to show me I was the only woman he was interested
in, but I still felt threatened by the time he spent with her. Since the
purchase of her house had gone through, he seemed to be spending more time with
her than me lately, and may I remind you that Riley and I got together
after
he had helped me with the
renovations he’d been doing here!

I was sitting in my kitchen waiting for him to return from his dad’s,
when I looked out the window and saw Ed’s police car pull into the driveway.

I walked to the door and opened it before he rang the bell.

As he stepped into my personal space, I got a nose full of his
woody aftershave and had to shake myself to clear my senses. Looking closer at
him, I could see the line of his mouth was drawn tight, and I felt anxiety
swirl.

“Is everything okay?”

“Maybe we should go inside,” he said, stepping up close so he was
almost touching me.

“Ed, what’s wrong. Is everything okay with Riley?” I asked as panic
rushed at me.

“As far as I know, yes.”

“Then what is it?”

He sighed. “I followed up on Bradley.” My stomach flipped.