“He did it. Trust me; that woman was afraid for her life. She moved away to get away from him. A few months later he had moved on to you. I warned your dad. I just didn’t think you should be with him given his track record.”
Her father hadn’t told her that. There was just no way. She couldn’t believe Kyle had ever done anything like that. Kyle was sweet and gentle and so protective. He would never hurt anybody.
“Anyway, your dad said he was going to talk to him, but then…well, he died in that accident so I don’t know if he ever had a chance to.”
She was still trying to make sense of the fact that Kyle had been arrested, let alone that her father knew about it and hadn’t told her. Is that why he insisted she get the alarm? No, she couldn’t think that way. Kyle had been there for her through one of the most difficult times in her life. He was her friend. She knew him. Or at least she thought she knew him.
“I never thought he was good enough for you, Thena. You need a more stable man. You should try dating a brother; we don’t do that crazy stuff.”
She tried to ignore the complete lack of truth in his statement. She tried to ignore the fact that his hand had found its way to her shoulder and was consistently rubbing it in a way she didn’t think appropriate.
“Well,” she shifted out of his reach, trying not to draw attention to her eagerness to get away from his touch. “I don’t think I really should think about any of that right now. There’s just so much to deal with.”
“Of course. But if you need somebody to talk to, a shoulder to cry on, I’m here for you.”
She smiled politely. “I will remember that.” She sighed, trying to figure out the best way to extract herself from the situation. Fortunately she didn’t have to dwell on it for too long because Eddie ended their conversation and left her site. Before he left he assured her she had passed, once again, with flying colors and that there would be no need to shut her down for any length of time, or write her up on violation of anything either. She would have felt some sense of relief except for the fact that the conversation she had just had with Eddie spooked her more than the thought of getting a violation warning. Kyle had been arrested? He had stalked a previous girlfriend? She didn’t believe it. She just didn’t believe it. He had never said anything about it. She mentally slapped herself. “Right, because that’s the first thing a guy is going to tell you, Thena.” She shook her head. It’s not as if Kyle would walk up to her and say, hey, I got arrested for stalking Sandy. She knew their relationship had ended, but Kyle had never said anything about it ending badly. No way, there was just no way Kyle had done any of the things Eddie mentioned.
She knew Kyle for years. They were friends first. Then they dated for about five months before he hooked up with Sandy and then a few months after he broke up with her they dated again. They broke up about a month after her dad died, but they remained the best of friends. She just couldn’t believe he had been mixed up in something so sinister. But if she were being totally honest with herself, while he was dating Sandy they hadn’t been in touch as much as they were now. Their first breakup had been amicable. They were better off as friends than they were lovers. They both knew that. But the break still caused a smidge of distance in their relationship. She assumed it was because Sandy didn’t like that he was still close to his ex. Once he and Sandy were splitsville he found his way back into her life, offering to help her with Twist of Fate, and she allowed him to. On that build they reconnected. They had clearly forgotten that they were better off as friends because they ended up back in a romantic relationship with each other. She knew before her father died that she and Kyle were going to break up again. They just didn’t have that passion for each other, not the romantic passion that was needed for a more than platonic relationship. Actually, if her father hadn’t died that night she was sure they were going to agree to break up then. The only thing that kept them hanging on for another month was that Kyle thought she was too fragile at the time to end things, and she just didn’t have the strength to go through it alone.
A month after her father died she broke it off with Kyle. It wasn’t fair to either of them to hang on to each other, her for his support, and him because he was afraid of her emotional fragility. She had thought he would walk out of her life again, but he hadn’t. Their friendship was stronger than before. Still, she guessed there were some things neither one of them would ever know about each other. There were some secrets that not even friends shared with each other.
Chapter Thirteen
Listening to Phoebe try to cover up the lost body issue once again was making Thomas’ head hurt. If she was just going to lie to him why did she bother to ask him to come in? He figured she wanted to find out how close he was to the truth. She probably wanted to see if he would let any information slip, but he hadn’t and he wouldn’t. He needed to get back to the construction site to pick Thena up in two hours. He could sit through the lies for a little while longer and then he was going to have to find another reason to excuse himself.
“So you see,” Phoebe leaned forward. Her basic blue blouse fell away from her body. Since she had conveniently forgotten to button a few buttons he had unobstructed view of her plain white bra that barely covered her sizable breasts. He gathered that’s exactly what she wanted. She was trying to distract him. He nearly laughed. He was a man of great focus—most times. If Thena had been in front of him flashing her skin, then maybe he would lose his head, jump across the desk and take her right where she sat. Thinking about Thena brought a smile to his face. He could tell from the curve of Phoebe’s lips that she assumed that smile had something to do with her. He mentally shrugged it off. The more she thought he was buying her lies, the better off things would be—for now anyway. Never tip your hand before you’re ready; that’s the one poker lesson his big brother had taught him that he hadn’t ever forgotten. As Gavin had said, that rule didn’t just apply to poker; it applied everywhere.
“We’re not really sure who took the body. And clearly we don’t have any real evidence to support the theory that Miss Davis’ mother was doing anything illegal. It’s just circumstantial for now. We’re willing to stay away from that angle.”
“Why would you be willing to do that?” He hitched his ankle up on his knee as he leaned back in his chair.
“Well there’s no sense in smearing a dead woman’s name; is there?”
“No, I suppose there isn’t.” He grinned. “Of course I’m sure you’re aware that Miss Davis does want her mother’s body back.”
“She hasn’t had it in all these years; what’s the problem now?” She snapped.
Thomas bit his tongue to try to hold in his impending rage. “She wants to burry her beside her father. You’re probably aware that the plot had been purchased long before Mrs. Davis went missing. It’s closure for the family. I’m sure you can be sympathetic to that.” Actually he wasn’t sure of her sympathetic nature at all, but he could bluff his way onto faux friendly ground.
“Yes, I see. Well, we will do everything we can to see that she’s able to do that. Just please give us some time, Thomas.”
“McGregor,” he corrected her.
“That’s right. Your friends call you McGregor. Glad to know I’m on friendly ground.”
No; his friends didn’t call him McGregor. His friends called him Thomas. Acquaintances and enemies were limited to last name only. Whether she knew it or not, Phoebe McNamara was on his list as an enemy. The woman was lying, and he intended to find out why. He would unbury the truth, no matter how hard they tried to keep it hidden.
“So, you really think whoever was involved in the hospital’s trouble just stopped?”
“Of course. Why wouldn’t they? Clearly they would be worried about the truth coming out.”
“Clearly,” he nodded. Clearly she didn’t know how to use the brains God gave her. If there were actual illegal activity at the hospital all those years ago he was certain it was still there. Bad people didn’t just stop do
ing bad things. Getting away with it was like an aphrodisiac. Whoever it was would just keep going, making things riskier, getting off on the high that came with stealing and killing without ever getting caught. He was certain now, more than he had been in the first place, that Neenah Davis’ death was linked to that hospital, and somebody in this precinct knew it too.
“Well, thank you for updating me on the progress,” or lack there of, he thought. “I do have a stop to make before I call it a day.” He stood and she stood.
“I hope I was able to help you.”
“Oh you helped,” he nodded. “You helped a lot.”
“Good,” she sighed. He could tell she was genuinely relieved which meant she had really bought the crap she was selling. Fortunately, he hadn’t.
“When you locate the body and get it back to Miss Davis I can at least give my client some good news.”
“Of course. I’ll keep you posted on our progress.”
He tilted his head. “Good day, Phoebe.”
She smiled big. “Yes it is; isn’t it?”
He left, knowing in his heart that he would uncover the truth. He had seen so many secrets in his line of work, so many lies, and in the end they all had a way of being revealed. Patience, he reminded himself, was the foundation of all success.
Reese hovered around Thena. She wasn’t working as much as she usually did on the site. He noticed the change, and so did the others, but nobody knew why. Any other day and Thena would be in the proverbial trenches just like everybody else.
“Are you okay, Miss Davis?”
She looked up at him. He was six feet so the only way she could see him was to look up. She was beautiful, just like her mother. She looked soft like her too. He resisted the urge to reach out and touch the silken strands of her curly hair.
“Yes,” she smiled. “I just wasn’t expecting the inspector today.”
“Everything went all right, yes?”
“Yes, of course. We do things according to code and we haven’t failed an inspection to date, so I’d say things went superbly.” She swayed on her feet. He reached out and caught her arm.
“Ouch,” she jumped.
“I’m sorry Miss Davis.”
“Reese, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Thena?”
Everybody else called her Thena. He was afraid to. He was afraid she might hear something in his voice that she didn’t hear when the other men said her name. “Thena,” he uttered the single word cautiously.
“Thena,” she nodded. “As opposed to Miss Davis.”
“I thought since I was new here, maybe I shouldn’t take the liberties.”
She shook her head and smiled. “We’re all kind of like family here, Reese. Some of these men have been here since my father started the company—in one capacity or another. Take our wonderful foreman; Nick started off on the ground when my dad started this company.” She patted his arm. “Just because you’re new doesn’t make you any less important than anybody else.”
“Okay,” he watched her closely. She looked so much like her mother, had the same warmth in her tone, the same kindness in her heart.
She nearly fell down again. “Should I get you some water?”
“No,” she said breathlessly. “I think I’m going to wait outside for my ride. It’s really hot in here,” she patted his arm again, indicating that he could release the hold he had on her elbow, so he did.
Before she could get outside Reese saw Jackson guiding a tall man in; he looked like the guy who dropped her off this morning, but he couldn’t be sure because he didn’t get a good look at the guy.
“Thena,” he rushed to her side.
“I’m okay,” she lied. Reese knew she was lying because he knew she wasn’t okay. She was like her mother in that respect too—trying to put on a brave face for everybody else.
“She’s almost fallen down twice,” he said. “I’m Reese.”
“Thomas,” he didn’t extend his hand, but then again, neither had Reese. Thomas pressed his hand to her forehead. “You have a fever.”
“It’s just warm in here, that’s all.”
“I’m taking you home.”
She nodded slowly. Reese could tell she was trying to stay on her feet by herself, trying to look strong in front of the men. She was just like her mother—strength, grace, beauty, and determination. Determination was a double edge sword. Determination could get her to a lot of places; it could even get her killed.
“Take this,” Thomas handed her the antibiotic pill and a glass of water. “I should have never let you go to work today.”
“Let me?” She asked indignantly. “I’m not a child, Thomas. I can go to work as I please.”
He blew out an exasperated sigh. “That’s not what I meant, Thena.”
“Then what did you mean?” She tried to stand and she fell back down in her seat again.
“That’s what I meant.” He shook his head before pulling her up into his arms. “I should have known that you’d need a couple days to recover. It may seem like a superficial wound, but infection is a risk. You lost some blood, you’re on these pills. It was bound to hit you and I knew that. I should have tried to convince you to stay home.”
“Oh,” she smiled. “Why didn’t you just say that in the first place?”
“I thought I had.” His dry, sarcastic tone made her smile. “I’ll take you up to bed so you can get some rest. I’ll fix you something to eat.”
“Thanks,” she nuzzled her face against the curvature of his neck.
“I know you need to be on site tomorrow, but maybe you can make it a half day.”
“I don’t have to be there tomorrow. Eddie showed up early and did his inspection today.”
“Really? Is that usual?”
She shrugged. “Has never happened to me,” she yawned. “And something else was strange.”
“What’s that?”
“He was nice to me—I mean really nice. He said he was sorry about my mother.”
Thomas sat down on the bed, still cradling her in his arms. He brushed his fingers through her hair. “Nice…that’s odd?”
“Usually he’s not really talkative. He’s all business, but not this time. And he told me something about Kyle that I just can’t believe.” She felt the tension coiling in his body. Thomas was astute; she didn’t doubt that he had already discerned that it was something of importance.
She told him about Eddie’s words, about what he had revealed that she found so shocking, so unbelievable, that her mind was still spinning from it. While she was talking about Kyle, she realized she still needed to call and cancel his visit to her home tonight.
“I’ll check into it.”
“No,” she was adamant about it. There was no way she should be prying into Kyle’s affairs. They were friends and if he wanted her to know he would have told her.
“Yes,” he assured her he would do it either way. “You told me you would trust me.”
“To investigate my mother’s case; Kyle isn’t part of that.”
“I didn’t say he was. But I’m still going to check. At least you’ll know if this Eddie guy was really lying to you. You do want to know,” he looked down into her eyes. “Don’t you?”
She couldn’t deny that she wanted to know. She couldn’t deny that she was curious, but if curiosity killed the cat then it just might kill her friendship with Kyle. “I just don’t believe it’s true. I mean, look; Kyle and I broke up and he hasn’t stalked me to high heaven.”
“You’re still friends.”
“Exactly.” She hesitated. “Oh…I see,” she hadn’t thought of that. Perhaps this other girl had completely cut him off, and tried to walk away without connection. Perhaps he hadn’t gone all Fatal Attraction on her because she never tried to cut him out of her life. “No…it just can’t be true.”
“Wouldn’t you like to be sure.”
She sighed. This was wrong. At least it felt wrong, but if Thomas did research the information and
he found out that it wasn’t true then at least she would know and she wouldn’t have put her friendship on the line by asking Kyle about mere gossip. “Yes,” she whispered. “I want to know. But—”
“I’ll be discrete,” he smiled at her before placing a soft kiss on her lips. “Now, bed; sleep; rest; so I can cook.” He stood and then placed her down in the bed.
“Hey,” she grabbed his wrist. “What did you find out today?”
He bent over and kissed her forehead before looking into her eyes. “Bed, sleep—”
“Rest,” she finished his sentence. “But afterward I want to know.”
“And you will.” He tried to pull away, but she held on tight.
“Thomas…”
“Thena, I can’t cook if you’re holding on to me like this.”
“Thank you…for everything. I know this is above and beyond what your duties as a PI are, but I really do appreciate this.” She held on to his wrist. The warmth of his skin felt good against the palm of her hand. He was strong, confident, honest—he was a good man. Maybe that’s why she trusted him so easily. Yes, that had to be it—his honesty. She couldn’t have based her trust on something as shallow, as primordial, as pheromones and hormonal attraction. If she were being honest it was more than that for her. At first, yes, she felt that instant, “wow factor,” with him. She hadn’t expected it. He was so against her type. The idea that she would want this man was just unfathomably surreal. But then, as the days went by, as she talked to him, she saw something more, something deeper than the good looks and the well-toned body. She still didn’t know much about him, other than what she had ascertained from conversations they had, and from watching him work, but she knew this—he was a good man, a man she wanted to get to know better—much better—than she already did. She hoped, whenever this case was finished, if she survived, that maybe they could be more to each other. Maybe they could have more than whatever this was that they had. They were great in bed with each other, but could they carry that over into the world of dating? She didn’t know the answer because they hadn’t actually been on a date yet.
Secrets and Lies Page 15
