Declare (Declan Reede: The Untold Story #4)

by Michelle Irwin

  “What about Alyssa? What do you think of her?” It might be dangerous territory because of their tenuous relationship, but I wasn’t going to give up the opportunity for complete honesty when it arose.

  “Alyssa . . .” He grinned cheekily. “She’s a good sort. She’s good for you. And she’s got a killer arse.”

  I immediately regretted asking him about Alyssa and decided to stick to safer topics. “Has Danny been in to see you?”

  “Yep, he was here with Eden for a while.”

  “Has he said anything about the accident?”

  Morgan shook his head. “No, but man, I’m glad for good family. Danny’s paying for everything in the hospital. He’s even getting me a transfer to Sydney. I can’t fly with the hole here apparently.” He was pointing to his chest, no doubt referring to his punctured lung.

  I was a little taken aback by his statement about family, until I realised he had to mean it figuratively. I knew how he felt; I often thought of the Sinclair Racing crew as an extended family, especially lately. It was the reason I wanted back in so bad. Besides, if there was any actual family in the team, I was certain I would know about it. Eden would have told me; she knew all the goss.

  I didn’t get a chance to press him further because a nurse came in to shoo me out—apparently visiting hours were over for the night.

  GOING TO the track the next day and pretending nothing had happened was almost impossible. The track was clear, the damaged cars completely repaired—the rest of the pit crews had spent a long night fixing them all—and the officials were preparing to start the new day of racing. But the scars were still evident in my team at least; one of our drivers was absent, everyone was exhausted, and we were all counting down the hours until the race meet ended.

  The news slowly filtered through the ranks that Hunter—who’d gone on to win the race after the restart—had been investigated for being at the centre of a red flag event. Unfortunately, it was regarded as an accident and he’d gotten off scot-free.

  Eden arrived late to the track with heavy purple bags under her eyes. She’d obviously had a very hard night. I felt bad that we hadn’t hung around the hospital longer to support her because, by comparison, our night had been easier.

  When we’d arrived back at the hotel, Alyssa had quickly called our house. It had been too late to speak to Phoebe, so she’d had a brief conversation with Mum instead. We assured her that we were okay, that it was just a long night, and that we’d see her the following evening. After that, Alyssa and I’d curled into one another in bed and held each other silently the whole night long. I don’t think either of us had any sleep, but at least we had each other.

  I hadn’t been at the track for long before the meeting I knew was inevitable was called. Liam came to find me and told me that Danny wanted to see me in his office. I refused to leave Alyssa alone, so I hunted down my boys to ensure they would be stuck like glue to her side.

  “I CAN’T believe either of you would do something so reckless!” Danny was pacing from side to side along his desk and wasn’t looking at either Eden or me as we sat in his makeshift office.

  To my surprise, we’d both been called in to face the music together. I assumed it was an act of mercy. He would have been within his rights to tear strips off us individually, which would have been infinitely harder for us to handle. Neither of us needed an explanation of what we’d done wrong, because we both knew that our run onto the track was not only stupid and reckless, but dangerous as well. Either or both of us could have been hit by a car, not to mention we had no doubt distracted the race officials at a time they should have been concentrating on other things.

  “I’m sorry,” I started, but Eden raised her hand to stop me.

  “It’s my fault, Danny. Declan was just chasing after me. I just—I lost my head. I would’ve been in more danger if he hadn’t been there.”

  She was throwing herself on the fire for me, but I couldn’t let her. I had taken off with exactly the same mindset she had. I’d wanted to help. I’d wanted to get to Morgan and ensure he was okay. Even if Eden hadn’t made the dash, I probably would have done exactly the same thing. It was only when it became evident her needs were so much greater than my own that my intentions changed.

  “Danny—” I tried to explain, but Eden again cut me off.

  “Declan got me off the track. He stopped me from running blindly to Morgan. He was also the one who stopped me from falling onto the track when it got to be too much. Please, I know what he did was wrong, but he shouldn’t be punished for my stupidity.”

  “No one is getting punished,” Danny assured us. He’d migrated to his seat and sat slumped with his fingers bridged on his nose. “The tribunal agreed to accept the extenuating circumstances and have given you both suspended sentences. But they don’t want to see either of you do anything so stupid again.”

  We both nodded.

  “Eden, I’m relieving you of your duties. Liam is going to monitor the next race on his own. Go back to the hospital and be with Morgan. They’ve said he’s able to be released later this afternoon, but he can’t travel by air. A car will be around to pick you both up and start the journey home later this afternoon.”

  “Thank you,” she said before standing and crossing to his side of the desk. She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly for a second. He patted her arm gently in a loving, almost familial gesture.

  She unwrapped her arms from his neck, and he nodded toward the door to indicate that she should go.

  After she’d exited the room, he sat staring at me for a second or two. I wondered if he actually did have some punishment for me that he hadn’t wanted to dish out with Eden in the room. She wasn’t the fuck-up after all. That was all on me.

  “You make it very hard for me to put you in a V8 sometimes,” he murmured finally.

  I’d blown my chance. I cursed my own stupidity for leaving Alyssa alone when I went on the track for the Mini race, for not telling her about misplacing my helmet, for allowing my temper to take over and giving that fuckhead Hunter a taste of what he deserved, for running onto the track after Morgan’s accident. So many screw-ups in just one weekend. All I could hope was that I could get him to understand why I’d reacted to Hunter the way I had. The fucker had assaulted Alyssa, and he deserved to pay for it.

  I wanted to beg him to reconsider taking my chance away from me. I opened my mouth to try to come up with a magical statement that would fix everything, but I couldn’t think of one.

  “Would you care to explain what happened yesterday before the race?”

  I decided to go with the truth. “Hunter tricked Alyssa into thinking that I was waiting for her by the trucks. When she got there, he pinned her against the truck—” The rest of my statement was stuck in my throat. During the night, I’d managed to find out that he hadn’t been able to do much more than stroke Alyssa’s cheek and kiss her before Morgan had interrupted them, but it didn’t matter. He’d intended more—and that was as bad as the actual act in my eyes. My anger was rising just mentioning the incident. Alyssa and I had discussed going to the police, but she knew how unlikely it would be that anything would come of it.

  “And Morgan found them like that?”

  I nodded. “I didn’t see what had happened . . .” I trailed off. If I had seen Hunter with Alyssa, I would have fucking killed him. He was just lucky Danny had turned up when he did.

  “Do you think Hunter had a grudge against Morgan as a result of that incident?”

  I gaped at Danny. Was he really asking what I thought of Hunter? Did he think Hunter had a more nefarious role in the accident? I swallowed down my hope before it could grow. “Yes. Without doubt, but not as big as his grudge against me.”

  Danny nodded. “Thank you for your honesty. I’m sure you understand that I take all actions and accusations very seriously.”

  I nodded.

  “And I want you to know I will be keeping a very close eye on the situation while wat
ching for hard evidence of wrongdoing.”

  Mine, or Hunter’s? His words didn’t make it clear, so I read between the lines.

  “I will be speaking to Hunter about this as well, and making my thoughts clear on the matter.”

  Make the fucker pay! Even though the words were on the tip of my tongue, what came out was, “Thank you, sir. I appreciate it.”

  “Do you feel up to your race today?”

  I wondered whether I could, but I knew my response would no doubt count toward Danny’s mental tally of how hard it was to put me back into a V8. If I couldn’t even race a Mini after witnessing the accident, how could I possibly be trusted with anything more?

  I nodded. “Yeah, I think so.”

  “Okay. I’ll take you off pit duties though. We only have one car after all. Just compete in your race and then you’re free to go.”

  I nodded. “Thank you.”

  “Then I guess I’ll see you in Brisbane for your big day.”

  I froze. In the madness, I’d completely forgotten that this weekend was the last time I would see the Sinclair Racing team before my wedding. I blinked and couldn’t help smiling a little.

  “Thank you,” I said again, unnecessarily. I decided against giving him the same hug Eden had and settled on a handshake before leaving the office.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: IT IS YOU

  I STOOD AT the end of the red carpet, a conspicuous gap to my left where Morgan was supposed to have been. He should have been beside me to celebrate the happiest fucking day of my life, but instead, due to the sick fuckery of Hunter, he was back at home in Sydney still recovering from the accident. Even if he’d been well enough to stand next to me, he was still unable to fly because of the hole in his lung.

  Flynn had agreed to be Morgan’s fill-in, but stood a small distance away out of respect for the man who couldn’t be there. Even though I appreciated Flynn’s help, it wasn’t really the same.

  I looked around the room, marvelling at the details that Ruth and Alyssa had put into the planning. It was simple but elegant. There were no extravagant floral arrangements, just a single lily at the end of each row of chairs. I was in awe of her choice to have our wedding at the Suncrest Hotel, a place that held so many good and bad memories for the two of us.

  Virginities and innocence were lost there, fights and make ups, and promises had been made and kept.

  Drawing in a deep breath, I tried to dispel some of the nervous energy racing through my body. When I blew the air out slowly, I shook my legs and brushed my hand through my hair.

  It had been over twenty-four hours since I had seen Alyssa. Ruth insisted that they needed to have a girls’ day before our wedding, and I’d relented, especially after my own mother turned traitor and insisted on it too.

  Even as they fussed over Alyssa and Phoebe, it was clear to me that I would spend the whole day as one big jumble of raw nerves. I had no one to offer me the level of support Alyssa had been given leading up to the event. I’d wanted to spend some time with Ben, but despite our attempts at renewing the friendship we’d once had, I just didn’t feel right dumping all my pre-wedding crap on him, so I’d avoided him.

  The thought of baring my soul in front of our families and friends terrified me. I’d managed to speak to Dr. Henrikson on the phone that morning to settle my pre-wedding jitters—something he’d offered as he’d wished us luck after the final couples’ counselling session he’d had with Alyssa and me a few days earlier. It was good to get a chance to talk through the last of my nerves, but as soon as I’d hung up the phone, the stress had come back in force.

  I’d even considered spending a few hours in another futile attempt to reconnect with my estranged father, but realised that his continuous pleas to see me were made out of the same selfish desire as the first. He truly had no wish to be a part of my life outside of what he thought I could do for him.

  Since leaving Alyssa at her parents’, I’d barely slept, only catching an hour here and there between nightmares and insomnia. All in all, it was not the way I’d expected to spend the night before the big one. At least the following night would be significantly better.

  Once morning had arrived, I’d dragged myself out of bed, shaved, and then dressed before heading in to the Suncrest Hotel to help out with the final arrangements. In reality, though, there wasn’t much to do, because Alyssa had planned it down to the last place setting.

  The hall was set up with a makeshift altar and aisle for the ceremony. After we’d said our vows, we would head out for photos at the Botanical Gardens and a few other locations around town, while our guests were ushered out into the ballroom lobby for drinks and canapés. The hotel staff would use that break to convert the ballroom into the reception. Our guests would then be invited back in and shown to their allocated seats to await our arrival.

  Part of me was excited about the evening, but mostly I just wanted it all to be over. I wanted to be back at home living as man and wife. Being married didn’t frighten me as much as getting married. I was ready to know that Alyssa was mine, just as I was hers, forever.

  I looked over the crowd, worried that trying to single out any individual face would make me ill. A quiet murmur ran around the room, providing a constant noise that I tried in vain to tune out. Ever since taking my position at the front of the gathering, I’d been counting down the minutes left in my head. The countdown ended, and then before I knew it, I was down to negative ten, which didn’t bode well for me, because it meant Alyssa was late. I closed my eyes and tried to convince myself that she was still coming. She wasn’t standing me up; it was okay for a bride to be fashionably late.

  How late is fashionable though?

  My count increased by another five minutes before music burst into life through the loudspeakers hidden inconspicuously around the room. I blew out a relieved breath, knowing that it was finally time. A silence fell over the room as everyone turned in their seats to watch the bride’s entrance. My own eyes fell to the door as I waited for my perfect woman to walk through. I couldn’t concentrate on the lyrics or the music—just the door.

  Finally, it opened just a crack and a vision with brown hair walked through it. Her turquoise eyes were accented perfectly by the baby-blue dress she wore. Her hair was set in loose ringlets that rested on her shoulders. The little clips we’d picked out together pulled her curls up off her face beautifully. On seeing me, her mouth broke into a huge grin.

  “Daddy!” she squealed, dropping the basket of rose petals she was carrying and hurtling toward me at top speed. She launched herself into my arms as giggles and muffled laughter broke out randomly throughout the crowd.

  I pulled her in to me and gave her a small embrace.

  “Hey, sweetie,” I whispered quietly.

  “You should see Mummy,” she whispered back. “She’s beautiful.”

  “I don’t doubt it,” I murmured before placing my finger on my lips to indicate she should be quiet.

  Ruby walked through the door just then, glowing in her soft pink bridesmaid’s dress. It flowed gently over her now-sizable baby bump. She shot me a knowing smile—obviously a reaction to the wide-arse, shit-eating grin on my face.

  The doors opened again and suddenly everything stopped.

  The world existed in perfect clarity as the music changed and Alyssa stepped forward. I could see, hear, and feel everything.

  Her white dress was tight at the top, flaring out just below her hips. It was shaped perfect to accentuate her hips and bust. I was glad that all eyes were on her because it gave me a second to drink it all in. Her veil covered her features, but was thin enough that I could still see her clearly. Half of her hair was pulled up away from her face, but the rest fell in loose curls around her shoulders. She took a deep breath in the doorway as the lyrics began.

  I met her eyes and caught her chewing her lip before her mouth broke into a smile almost as wide as mine. The lyrics that timed Alyssa’s slow march down the aisle were perfect. We’d found the
song on a Shrek soundtrack of all things, but the words had never been more fitting.

  “I love you,” I mouthed to her, causing her smile to widen even further.

  “See, Daddy!” Phoebe shouted. “I told you Mummy was beautiful!”

  I agreed with her, laughing a little before setting her down onto the ground, readying my arms to accept the second most important person in my life. Ruby quickly called Phoebe over to her side.

  Each second of the minute or two that it took Alyssa to walk toward me felt like it stretched on forever.

  Finally, she reached my side and Curtis’s rough hand passed her soft one to me. He wrapped his hand around our joined ones. At any other wedding, the moment would have been the perfect opportunity for the father of the bride to whisper words of encouragement, or give his final blessing, but this was our wedding, so of course, Curtis whispered, so quietly only I could hear, “If you hurt either of them . . .”

  I met his eye, refusing to let him ruin my perfect moment. “I won’t.”

  That said, I turned back to Alyssa, the one person who deserved my attention the most in this almost-perfect moment. The guests, Curtis, everyone else could go to pot. As long as I had Phoebe and Alyssa close to me, everything would be perfect.

  The song finished and I couldn’t help but smile through the nerves that had built steadily again as the room quietened, but only because I didn’t want to fuck anything up. I wanted the day to be perfect for Alyssa.

  The celebrant began by welcoming our guests, and as he did, Alyssa blushed brightly. I wondered if it was the first time she’d even realised they were present. She glanced across everyone, tears springing to her eyes as they met back with mine.

  I grabbed her other hand and held them both tightly, unwilling to let go now that I was so close to having my dreams fulfilled. Even then, with every eye in the place on us, it was impossible to completely quell the nerves. Oddly though, I wasn’t nervous about what I was about to do. No, instead it was a desire to not fuck something up accidentally that made my hands shake. I barely paid attention to the celebrant as he said all the required bullshit.