Heart Lies & Alibis (13 page)

He caught them easily, his face breaking into a huge grin. "Really? Letting me drive your baby?" He asked as he opened my door before dashing around to get in the driver's side.

"I can trust you right?" I asked teasingly as I buckled my seat-belt.

Declan grabbed my hand and looked me in the eye. "Always,
a chroí
." He had taken to using the Gaelic word as a term of endearment. It meant "my heart" and whenever he said it, I felt my heart melt. He shifted the car into reverse and accelerated out of the driveway. The drive to the restaurant passed quickly and as we pulled into a parking spot I felt my anxiety creep up another notch but a quick kiss from Declan before we got out of the car helped bring it back down.

Declan laced his fingers through mine as we walked inside. I spotted Grace and Elliott, waving as we made our way to the table. Elliott stood as we approached and kissed my cheek when we reached them while Declan extended a hand to Grace in greeting.

The eternal picture of subtle perfection, Grace took his hand and smiled and I could tell in spite of her trepidation about the relationship, she was impressed with Declan. He gave her one of his best smiles and his Irish accent was a bit stronger when he spoke. "You must be the lovely Grace I have heard so much about. It is a pleasure to finally meet you." I almost giggled out loud. One of the things she and I shared was a weakness for men with accents. I knew she was getting all fluttery inside just listening to him talk.

Her cheeks flushed slightly. He had won her over already. "And it is a pleasure to meet you as well Declan. The local hero in our midst. We heard all about your brave actions a few days ago."

Declan colored slightly at the mention of his recent bout with celebrity. He wished the story would go away for the sake of his cover. "Thanks." He said without adding more. Always one to pick up on people's feelings quickly she didn't continue with that line of conversation. Besides I had told in her in detail about it already when we talked on the phone. We took our seats.

"Reagan tells me you are a child psychologist, Grace. Sounds like very fulfilling work." He was watching her with real interest as she spoke and I appreciated how easily he had settled in with my friends.

Grace smiled as she always did when talking about her work. Her focus was working with children whose parents were active military and deployed or who had been killed or injured in the line of duty. It was demanding and often draining work but she felt rewarded by the ability to help. "It is very rewarding, thanks. And I know in addition to being a hero," she teased enjoying how his face turned red again, "you are also a bartender which must come with its own interesting demands."

He laughed. "It does for sure. Especially from some of the female clientele." Declan added looking at me and winking, a naughty grin spreading across his face. The boy sure thought he was clever today, I thought rolling my eyes at him.

Grace smiled and I knew her wicked brain was in overdrive. She looked like a buttoned up prim lady but deep down she could be awesomely crass. It was one of the things I loved most about her, the juxtaposition of her proper outside with her naughty inside. Without further hesitation she responded, "I'm sure you have to be especially careful of those sexy cougars who seduce you into bed on the first night you meet them in the bar." She raised her eyebrow in wicked satisfaction as I choked on my mimosa, Declan's mouth fell open in surprise while Elliott roared with laughter.

"Grace," I hissed, my face burning with embarrassment, "You are killing me. Did you have to say that?" She always could shock the hell out of me when I least expected it.

She feigned perfect innocence, bringing her hand to her chest, the naughty grin barely turning the corners of her mouth up before saying "Oh, I'm sorry. Was that supposed to be a secret? Forgive me." She leaned across the table and in a forced whisper said "But I already told Elliott so I guess we all knew anyway." She grinned as I rolled my eyes in exasperation again and for the first time Declan sported a blush.

Grace shrugged again before taking another drink of her coffee. She didn't seem to mind at all that she was causing us embarrassment. "So what? Does it really matter how you met? You guys look happy. Isn't that what really matters? Well, that and Reagan being rid of the Douche Bag, of course."

"Amen, mama." Elliott added lifting his mimosa in agreement. He had never been a fan of Thad. Elliott was an English professor who didn't play golf every weekend, who preferred reading Shakespeare to investment magazines and was most often found spending his free time with Grace and the girls instead of with his male friends. Needless to say, he and Thad had little in common.

I smiled at my friends and then looked at Declan. He was watching me with a new expression on his face. One that both terrified and excited me because it looked as if he was falling in love with me and I knew I was falling hard for him. I turned away and took another gulp of my mimosa.

Brunch passed with more laughter, some stories about Grace and I in college, and good natured teasing of everyone. I breathed a sigh of relief as we went outside to say good-bye. My closest friends in the world seemed to really like Declan and I was so glad. Once outside the restaurant while the men were comparing the merits of Irish whiskey and American bourbon, Grace pulled me to the side.

"Damn girl, you did good. I mean the night I saw him in the bar, he looked pretty nice but that boy is fine. And he seems smart, appears to have a wicked sense of humor, and a rather nice ass I might add." She finished glancing over my shoulder to confirm. "I recall you also mentioning a time or ten how good he is in bed. You seem to have found the complete package with this guy Reagan and I am happy for you."

I grinned in spite of trying my best to remain casual and noncommittal. Being in love felt great but I still felt the need to be cautious. Everything in my life was moving so fast, I wanted to make sure I did things right this time.

Grace rolled her eyes. "Yep. Just like I thought. You have it bad girlfriend. But there must be something wrong with Mr. Perfect. Does he have a secret wife? A criminal past, maybe? I know, he has a freaky foot fetish, right? C'mon Reagan, spill. I have to know." She watched me with anticipation.

For a moment I panicked, unsure of how to answer. The truth was Declan did have something to hide – something big and dangerous – and I didn't want to lie to Grace but I had to keep Declan's past a secret no matter what. "Nope. Sorry. He is as wonderful as you described. I haven't found a fault yet. Oh, except he does have this awful habit of insisting on pleasuring me every chance he gets. It is so demanding some days." I grinned while rolling my eyes in mock exasperation.

She shook her head in exasperation but was also grinning at me."Oh my god. Shut up. Seriously, Reagan you deserve the best things out of life and it seems like Declan might just be the one to give them to you." She hugged me again and for the first time in a long time, I really hoped she was right about the future of my happiness. But nothing ever goes as planned, certainly not in my life as I was about to find out.

My phone rang a moment later interrupting our embrace and I pulled away and answered without glancing at the caller id.

"Reagan McCallister."

"Hello. Is this Reagan McCallister, wife of Thaddeus McCallister?" The voice was cool and professional.

Unfortunately I thought. "Yes. Who is this, please?"

"Ma'am, my name is Detective Davis. I am a homicide detective with the Houston Police Department."

I suddenly felt very cold and felt the color drain from my face. I met Grace's eyes and her brow furrowed in concern.

"Yes. How can I help you?" My heart was thudding so hard in my chest I had to strain to hear what the man said.

"Mrs. McCallister, when was the last time you saw your husband?"

I answered in a clipped tone. "Thursday afternoon." I pictured my violent interaction with Thad and anger pushed my fear to the side for a moment.

When he didn't immediately respond with another question, I realized he must be thinking it odd I had not seen my husband in a couple days.

"Thad and I are in the process of getting a divorce, Detective. We are not living in the same house at this time." I added to offer some clarity.

"Oh, I see. And you didn't see him again after Thursday?" His tone was guarded and put me on the defensive.

"No. Why are you asking these questions? Has something happened to Thad?" Of course something had happened. Homicide detectives didn't call you on a Sunday afternoon unless something had happened. Declan, Grace and Elliott circled around me, each of their faces marked with concern and questions.

The detective cleared his throat before he continued. "Yes ma'am something has happened. I'm sorry to inform you Mrs. McCallister but Mr. McCallister was found dead last night."

I felt my knees buckle and it was only Declan's quick reaction that kept me from crashing to the sidewalk. He guided me to a bench and I dropped down on to it.

The world was spinning for a moment. Had I heard him right? "Oh my god. Are you sure?" I hoped it was a mistake with all of my being at that moment. I wanted Thad out of my life but not like this.

The detective's voice was grim when he spoke. "Yes ma'am. We made a positive identification with his fingerprints as well as from a physical identification made by Mr. McCallister's assistant. We will need to speak to you later today ma'am. Obviously there are some questions about your husband and his life we will need answered. We can come to your residence, if that is agreeable, or you would you rather come to the station?"

I was still in shock and not responding. What was he asking me?

"Ma'am, are you still there?"

I snapped back to the moment. "Yes. Sorry. This is just so much to take in at once. Umm, yes, perhaps it would be best to talk at my home. I will be there all afternoon Detective." My hand was shaking and I felt nauseous.

"Very well. My partner and I will be by to speak with you later today. We apologize again for your loss, Mrs. McCallister."

I hung up without another word. Thad was dead. Murdered, maybe? What the hell had happened to him last night?

"Reagan. Honey what happened? Why were you talking to a Detective? You look as white as a ghost." Grace knelt in front of me holding my hands but I still couldn't speak. I just kept shaking my head. As much as I hated Thad recently, I couldn't believe he was dead.

Declan cupped my chin, turning my face to look at his just as the tears started to stream down my cheeks, unstopped.

"Babe, talk to us. Who was that?"

"Thad's dead." I whispered my voice barely audible.

"What did you say?" He asked. "What do you mean 'Thad is dead'?"

I regained some of my composure and repeated myself with more force. "Thad was found dead last night."

Grace brought her hand to her mouth, her other hand grasping Elliott's. Declan's face hardened with concern. "What the hell happened?"

I just kept shaking my head, swiping absently at the tears on my face. "I don't know for sure. That was a homicide detective. They found his body and got a positive ID from Amberly and also from Thad's fingerprints. He didn't tell me anything else. They are coming to the house later to talk to me." I swiped at the tears again but they insisted on continuing to fall.

Declan gripped my hands harder. "Fuck. I'm so sorry Reagan. What can we do?"

I nodded forcing myself to get it together. Tears were not going to help now. I had business to attend to and I needed to be strong. Grace and Elliott hugged me and tried to insist on coming to the house with me to be there when the police arrived but I refused. Declan promised he would take care of me and walked me to the car after a tearful good-bye.

We drove in silence and I appreciated Declan not asking a lot of questions. Images of my life with Thad played like an old movie through my mind. Meeting him. Our first house together. Our wedding day. In spite of all that happened, I still had some happy memories from our life together and as much as I loathed him these past few months, I never wished him ill will. And he certainly didn't deserve to be murdered, no matter what.

Declan pulled in the driveway of my house and shut off the car before he turned towards me. Taking my hand, I felt him watching me but I just stared ahead, unable to move from the seat.

"I am so very sorry for your loss Reagan." His voice was soft and filled with sympathy.

I looked at him finally. "I know Declan. Thanks." My voice was quiet and distant.

"Do you want me to leave before the police arrive? I'd rather be here with you but I don't want it to cause any problems or anything."

I turned my head again so I could look at him. "I'd really like you to stay. I don't want to face them by myself. We'll just tell them you're a friend. Its the truth, isn't it?" I wiped at a few stray tears sliding down my cheeks. "Declan, I just can't be alone right now."

He pulled me into his arms, kissing my hair and rubbing gently down my back. It was the breaking moment for my emotions and I finally let go. My body shook from the sobs that filled the car. The last time I cried like this was when I was sixteen. I felt wave after wave of emotion crash over me. I knew I wasn't just crying for Thad's death. I cried for my almost divorce, my past, and for all the moments I had pushed away my emotions over the years and put on a brave front. Everything came spilling out and for the first time in a long time I didn't try to stop it. Declan just held me and murmured softly in my ear.