For You (The Shore Book 2)

by S. E. Brown

  “Shit. Okay.” Declan looked over to Madison with a worried expression on his face. “It’ll take me about twenty minutes to get there, but I’ll go check it out.”

  “I’m really sorry Declan. I just started to nurse Ike, and I can’t really leave right now.”

  “Don’t worry about it, Erin. You take care of my nephew. I’ll take care of the gym.”

  “Thanks. Let me know what’s going on, okay?”

  “Okay. Talk to you soon.”

  Declan disconnected the call. “I’m really sorry, but I need to go. Something set off the alarm at the gym and I need to check it out. Cops are on their way.”

  “Absolutely.” Madison started gathering the balls and putting them in their holder.

  “I’ll run you home real quick before I head downtown.”

  “That’ll take you out of the way. Why don’t I just come with you? If I won’t be in the way?”

  “No, you won’t be in the way. I just hope it’s a false alarm.” He picked up the rack of balls. “Let me go settle up with Mark real quick.”

  Madison nodded as Declan went to the counter and spoke with Mark. She saw the owner shake his head and say something, then Declan quickly shook his hand and turned to walk back to Madison.

  “It’s good knowing the owner,” he smiled, taking her hand.

  Madison followed Declan out the door.

  When they arrived at the gym, there were two police cars parked in the street by the front door. The officers were casually standing by their vehicles.

  “I’ll wait here,” Madison said, looking at Declan.

  “Okay. I’ll be right back.” He squeezed her hand and got out of the car.

  Walking up to the officers, Declan really hoped nothing had happened. He wanted this to be a false alarm, even if it would cost him a small penalty since the cops were called. He knew the amount he’d have to pay them would be a lot less than fixing any damage that may have been done.

  “Hi, officers. I’m Declan Healy. I own the gym,” he offered as he approached them.

  The lead officer shook his hand. “Lt. Carlson. We’ve done a perimeter check, but nothing seems to be out of line. The front and back entrances are still locked and no windows have been broken.”

  “Any idea what set off the alarm?”

  “Not at this time, no. Do you have security cameras?”

  “I do. I can check the footage.”

  “I would do that. Since there seems to be no apparent break in, there isn’t much we can do. Do you want to enter the premises to ensure everything is secure before we leave?”

  “That would be great. Let me grab the keys from the car.”

  Declan jogged back to his car and opened the door. “So far so good. We’re going to check the inside, make sure everything is okay. I just need the keys.”

  Madison nodded as she removed the keys from the ignition and handed them to him.

  He jogged back to the front door and unlocked it. Once inside, he flipped on the lights and looked around. Lt. Carlson and another officer followed him inside.

  “It looks like everything is okay. Let me check the main room and my office, just to be sure.”

  “I’ll follow you,” Lt. Carlson answered.

  Declan and Lt. Carlson walked back to where the other officer was waiting by the front door.

  “Everything seems to be in place.” Declan let out a sigh of relief.

  Lt. Carlson nodded. “Good. I hate to see false alarms, but it’s also good to know your security system works, too.”

  Declan chuckled. “Thanks for your understanding.”

  “We’ll get out of your way then, let you go back to enjoying your evening. Just be sure to check those tapes, okay?”

  “Absolutely. Thank you for being here.”

  “Let us know if you find anything missing or curious on the videos.” Lt. Carlson handed Declan his business card, tipped his hat, and then he and the other officer turned and walked out of the gym.

  Declan looked around. He was glad there was no damage and nothing appeared to be missing.

  What the hell set off the alarm?

  By the time Declan reached the front entrance, the last police car was just leaving. He walked to his car and went to the passenger side.

  Madison opened the door and got out. “Must be okay if the police just left.”

  “Yeh, looks like a false alarm. I want to check the video feed, just in case. You mind if I do that real quick?”

  “No, of course not.”

  Declan took Madison’s hand and interlaced their fingers together as they walked back to the gym. Once inside, he turned to secure the lock then led them to his office. He grabbed the visitor chair and turned it so Madison could look at the tapes with him.

  He rewound the footage to an hour before the alarm sounded and watched it in fast forward. The camera faced out to the street so they could see the people walking by on their way to nearby bars and restaurants.

  The next people to appear on the screen were the police officers. They checked the front door and while one stayed in the front, two left the screen. Declan assumed they were checking the rear of the building. In short, there was nothing unusual about what they saw on the tapes.

  “That’s weird. I didn’t see anything that would’ve set off the alarm, did you?” Madison asked.

  Declan sighed. “No. I mean, I’m glad no one broke in or anything, but what the hell set it off?”

  Madison wished she had an answer for him.

  “I want to do one more walk around. Want to come with me?”

  “Will you protect me if someone jumps out at us?” Madison asked with a grin, trying to lighten the mood.

  “I will, unless I’m the one doing the jumping.”

  Madison laughed. “Come on, let’s go look.”

  Hand in hand, they walked through each part of the gym: around the ring in the center, through both the men’s and women’s locker rooms, the storage area in the back and both of the classrooms.

  Nothing was out of place.

  Chapter 8

  Declan’s phone rang and he let go of Madison’s hand to see who was calling. “It’s Erin.”

  Madison nodded.

  “Hey sis.”

  “So, what’s the scoop?”

  “Looks like a false alarm. Both doors were closed and locked, and no windows were broken. We just did a walkthrough and nothing seems out of place.”

  “We?”

  “Yeh. I’ll explain that later.”

  Madison looked at Declan with a question on her face but didn’t say anything.

  “Okay,” Erin answered. “You check the tapes?”

  “Yeh, there was nothing there either.”

  “That’s weird. Well, I’m glad it wasn’t a break-in.”

  “Me, too. How’s my nephew?”

  “He’s doing well. Burped like a champ and now he’s sleeping again.” Declan could hear the smile in her voice.

  “That’s m’boy!” he smiled.

  “Give it some time. I’m sure you’ll be teaching Ike all sorts of inappropriate noises just like you did Jack.”

  “Hey, I resemble that comment.”

  “I know you do!” Erin laughed. “Alright, I’ll let you get back to whatever it was you were doing.”

  “Okay.”

  “There’s a girl there with you, isn’t there?” Erin teased.

  “Good night, Erin. Give Ike a kiss for me.”

  “Night bro.”

  Declan turned to Madison and smiled as he pocketed his phone.

  “You’re resembling comments?” she asked, having heard only half of the conversation.

  Declan laughed. “Erin said Ike’s been burping like a champ even though I haven’t even had a chance to teach him yet. He seems to be doing pretty well all on his own.”

  “Oh, so you’re one of those uncles, are you?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You teach the kids all of the naughty, nasty
stuff and then turn them back over to their parents so they can deal with them.”

  Declan cackled. “That’s the best part of being an uncle! I get to love them, spoil them, teach them all sorts of great stuff … and then I give them back.”

  “Just remember, karma’s a bitch. When you have your own kids, your sister and brother will do the same thing with yours.”

  “I look forward to it,” he answered with a genuine smile. He took her hand back in his and led them to the sitting area where he had first seen Madison at the gym. He sat with one leg on the couch and faced her. “Do you want kids someday?”

  “Straight to the heavy stuff again, huh?”

  Declan smiled. “We don’t have to talk about it. I was just curious.”

  “I think I would like to have kids … if I met the right guy. What about you?”

  “Definitely. At least two. A girl and a boy.”

  “That’s pretty … specific.”

  “I wouldn’t mind three. I loved having both a brother and sister growing up.”

  “Weren’t you the middle child though? I thought they had all the bad luck.”

  Declan laughed. “Maybe in some respects. I mean, my parents had learned a lot with Aidan, but he was only two when I was born. And since Erin was the baby girl in the family, things were a little different for her. Our parents treated us all the same though. Dad cheered us on and reprimanded us when we needed it, and Mom loved us with everything she had but wouldn’t let us get away with anything.”

  “Sounds like you have some pretty great parents.”

  “They are,” Declan smiled, thinking of his mom and dad. “There was no battle of the sexes in our house. Erin was always helping in the yard, and Aidan and I did just as much cooking and cleaning as Mom and Erin. Hell, once we reached middle school, we each had one night a week where we had to cook dinner for the family.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yep. If we had a game or something that took us away for the night we were scheduled to cook, we had to switch it up with someone.”

  “Wow. They were hardcore.”

  Declan chuckled. “It wasn’t that bad. But it taught us to be responsible for what we had going on at an early age.”

  “You probably ate at the dining room table every night, too, didn’t you?”

  Declan nodded with a smile. “We did.”

  “That’s actually kind of awesome.” Madison tried not to let her mind dwell on the fact that her childhood, how her parents treated her, was so completely different from the experience Declan grew up with. What he had, that was the kind of life she had dreamed about for her own kids, not the dysfunctional bullshit she had in her own life. “So which of you is the better cook?”

  “I can hold my own, but Aidan learned how to master the grill and Erin is good. Really good. She probably would have gone to culinary school if she hadn’t started managing the gym for me.”

  “Killed her dream, did ya?” Madison teased.

  “Naw. She and I had a long talk about it when Billy passed away. She decided that even though she really loved to cook, she wasn’t sure she wanted it to be her job. She didn’t want it to become a chore.”

  “That makes total sense to me.”

  “Can I ask you a question?” Declan asked.

  “Of course, but you don’t have to ask to ask a question. I can be pretty blunt sometimes – no need to sugarcoat things.”

  “Okay. I’ll keep that in mind,” he answered with a gentle smile. “Who is Ellie?”

  Madison looked at him and the sadness he saw in her eyes earlier that evening returned.

  “You mentioned her when I was looking at the picture of you at graduation.”

  Madison adjusted her body to get more comfortable. She hadn’t shared a great deal of her history, and while she wouldn’t be telling Declan everything tonight, she figured she could tell him some of it.

  “Was she your grandma?” he asked, trying to get her to answer him.

  “No,” she said with a sad smile, shaking her head. “She was my lifesaver.”

  Declan cocked his head and raised an eyebrow.

  “When I was fifteen, I got myself into some trouble. My parents said they’d had enough and kicked me out.”

  “They what?” He couldn’t believe his ears.

  “I stayed with a friend of mine, Jessa, for a couple of days, but that couldn’t last forever. Then one of my teachers stopped me after class because she was worried about me. When I shared what happened with my parents, she invited me to stay with her for a couple days.”

  “A couple days?” Declan’s heart was breaking.

  Madison nodded. “She had her own family to worry about and didn’t really have room for a teenager, but she knew someone who lived here, in Charlotte, that might be able to help. That was Ellie.”

  Declan listened intently.

  “A few days later we met Ellie at a restaurant. All I had with me was a suitcase and my book bag,” she shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal. “We had lunch, my teacher hugged me goodbye, and Ellie and I drove to Charlotte.”

  “And your parents just let you go? They had no idea this was happening?”

  Madison shook her head. She hadn’t talked about Ellie in a long time and it had been even longer since she had talked about her parents. “I haven’t seen or talked to them since the day they kicked me out.”

  Declan exhaled a slow breath. “Have you ever tried to reach out to them?”

  “They threw me out, Declan. I didn’t run away.”

  Madison’s expression soften as she started to explain.

  “Ellie … took me in. Instead of pushing for information, she let me tell my stories in my own way, in my own time. She never asked for anything other than honesty. She taught me how to love.” Madison took a breath. “And for the first time in my life, I felt love.”

  Declan really didn’t know what to say. Their upbringings were so completely different. He didn’t understand parents that could just let their children go. Never speak to them. Never teach them how to be kids or adults. Never want to share in their accomplishments and their defeats.

  He took both of her hands in his and squeezed them gently. “I’m sorry, Madison. I can’t even imagine that.”

  “I’m glad,” she responded with a soft smile. “Living that way, the way I did with my parents, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone. You and your brother and sister were really lucky. And beyond that, your niece and nephews are really lucky, because I know you would never let them feel like I did growing up.” She paused for a moment again. “You would never let them feel that … alone.”

  Declan wanted to reach across and wrap his arms around her, so he did. He scooted himself closer to her and after a few moments, she relaxed and let her body be embraced by his.

  Madison laid her head on his chest and listened to his heart beat. After a bit, she continued to talk quietly. “It took a long time for me to open up to her. There were so many nights when we would sit at the kitchen table and not say anything. She truly had the patience of a saint. She never pushed, never pried. Anything I wanted to tell her was in my own time. Every so often she would ask a question, and I’d answer it, but give only the smallest amount of information I thought I could afford to give.

  “Finally, when the dam broke, it was like I wouldn’t shut up. Kind of like now.” Declan’s arms tightened around her. “We would sit on the porch and drink lemonade when it was warm and wrap ourselves in blankets and drink hot chocolate when the temperatures fell.”

  Declan could hear the smile return to her voice as she talked about her memories.

  “I know it sounds really cliché and sappy, but, she truly was my lifesaver.”

  “You know,” he said, hopeful in his tone, “I think I’d like to meet this Ellie person. Maybe we could all go for dinner sometime.”

  Madison sighed and felt tears sting her eyes. “We can’t,” she said quietly.

  “How come?”

  �
�She died. Six years ago.”

  “Aw, shit, Madison. I’m sorry.” He softly ran his fingers over her hair. “I’m so sorry.”

  Madison sniffled, refusing to let herself cry but lost the battle. It was only their second date, for crying out loud. He didn’t need to see what kind of mess she could turn into when she cried.

  Somehow Declan had managed to break down walls she had been building for so long. It took her almost a year to tell Ryan about Ellie, and now here she was, introducing him to one of the most important people in her life. Somehow, he had found a way into that place in her heart she guarded for dear life.

  Declan tried to let go of their embrace so he could see her eyes, but as soon as his arms started to relax, Madison held onto him even tighter, not ready to let go. Instead, he tightened his hold and simply held her.

  Several minutes later when he felt her start to relax, Declan kissed the top of her head and whispered, “Will you dance with me?”

  “What, here?”

  She could feel Declan nod in response.

  “Come with me.”

  Declan kissed her head once more then moved to stand. He offered his hand and helped her up. Not saying anything, he ran this thumbs under her eyes, brushing away the wetness her tears had left behind, then led them to the gym in the back.

  When he reached an area without any hanging bags, he released her hand and walked to the corner where the sound system was. He pulled his phone from his back pocket, searched for a song and plugged it into the dock. In seconds, repeating notes came out of the speaker, followed by Sam Hunt speaking the first words of “Take Your Time.”

  He walked up to her with a soft smile on his face. “May I have this dance?”

  He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close to his body. Madison gently wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his chest, letting him lead. They didn’t really move. They just swayed in time to the music.

  Declan thought about being there with Madison, her having opened up to him, which he was certain was not something she was used to doing. It made him smile that she was willing to knock down her walls for him. He tightened his hold again at the thought.