Reyes’s Raina

by Dale Mayer

At that, her mother’s sobbing slowed. “You can’t make those arrangements.” The words came out in horror. “The police are still trying to figure out what happened.”

  “Yes, they are,” Raina said. “But, as soon as they release the body, we need a plan in place.”

  “She wanted to be cremated,” her mother whispered. “But I want her buried, so I can visit her grave.”

  “We can do both,” Raina said. “We can get her cremated and still have a headstone and bury the ashes or do something where you have a memorial for her.”

  “No.” Her mother’s voice came out harder and louder. “I want her buried.”

  “Do you know if she has a will?” Reyes asked.

  She stared at him, her gaze harder. “Why?” she snapped. “Do you think you’re getting anything?”

  “Mom, stop.” Raina stepped in. “You don’t have to be mean. He doesn’t expect to get anything, but we have to take care of her estate, and that means we need to find her will.”

  Her mother seemed to collapse farther onto the bad. “Whatever,” she said. “Go do your thing. It’s not like you give a damn about me anyway.”

  “I’m here, aren’t I?” Raina tried hard to find a way to reach her mother. “I lost my sister too. It’s not easy to deal with the loss and to help you to deal with yours.”

  “I never asked you to,” her mother said, fatigue in her voice. “Just leave me alone. Make whatever arrangements you want to make.”

  As they turned to walk out of the room, her mother said, “Check her office at work. That’s where she kept everything.”

  Back outside Reyes said, “Why have we not thought to check her office?”

  “Because it’s been a very long day,” Raina said. “We also never figured out where she’s been sleeping since Jenny moved out of the brownstone, though I’m pretty sure she moved back in with my mother for a few days.” Raina glanced back at her mother’s hospital room and decided she didn’t want to ask her any more questions. “If that’s the case, we should find her stuff at my mom’s house. Another stop we have yet to make.”

  “Is her office still in the same place? Do you have keys?”

  Raina nodded. “No, it’s not the same place. She’s got a different arrangement now. I don’t know much about it. And no to keys.”

  “So, your mom’s place first?”

  She groaned. “I’m almost too tired to do anything,” she said, “but, yes, we need to.”

  “I hate to say it, but the sooner, the better,” Reyes said. “However, if you’re that exhausted, you should go to bed. So let me take you home. I can go to your mom’s house and to your sister’s office.”

  “No,” Raina said. “I don’t want you going alone. It’ll look suspicious as hell. And we don’t want to do anything to bring the spotlight back on to you.”

  *

  It was nice of her to always consider his position in this case. But she’d been going steady since early this morning, and it was now well past eleven. He wanted to take her back to her place, at least for a few hours.

  As he sat in the Jeep, he stared at her, seeing her yawn. “I think I need to take you home instead of any more stops. At least for a few hours.”

  “Only if you go to bed too,” she snapped with spirit. “And then we can both go to my mom’s house in the morning. If we’re up early enough, we can hit both places before it’s time for the greenhouses to open.”

  At the thought of his own parents, he winced. “Good point.”

  She glanced at the time and gasped. “Can you return to Ice’s father’s place? Or do you want to stay at my place?”

  “Do you have room?”

  “I have a couch,” she said with a half laugh. “I’m sure where you’re currently staying is way more comfortable.”

  “Maybe,” he said, “but it’s not close, so potentially your place would be a better deal. At least then we can get up in the morning and take care of the rest of the things we have to check out.”

  “True,” she said. “So, in that case, let’s go to my place.”

  He followed her instructions until they got to her apartment building, and, as she directed him to the parking lot in the back, he realized the building itself was totally pitch dark.

  “How long have you lived here?” he asked, frowning. “Why are there no lights? There should be outside security lights at the minimum.”

  “It’s been like this for a few weeks. I’ve been here for a few years,” she answered. “I moved in because it was cheap. Since then the management changed, and this one is much worse.” She shrugged. “It’s fine on a temporary basis. Personally I’d rather have land and live in a real home. But this works for now.”

  He smiled and nodded. “I hear you.”

  As they unlocked the door and walked into the apartment, he looked around with appreciation at how cozy and small it was. He eyed the couch and shrugged. “That’ll work for now.”

  “Good,” she grumbled, “because I’m too damn tired to fight over it. That’s your bed if you want it. Otherwise you can go back to where you were staying before.”

  He chuckled. “Do you have a blanket and pillow?”

  She stumbled into the bedroom and retrieved both items he’d asked for, plopped them on the couch and said, “I’m crashing.” She threw her arms around him and gave him a hug. “Thank you for staying with me today.”

  “Hey, it was a shitty day. Nobody should be alone on a day like today.”

  She leaned back and smiled. “That’s nice of you to say. Once again you’re proving what a nice guy you are.”

  “Not sure I like being called a nice guy.”

  “You should,” she said, “because you’re one of them. And the world needs as many of those guys as we can get.”

  Then she turned and walked back into the bedroom and closed the door.

  He looked at the couch, tossed the pillow at one end, stretched out, pulled the blanket up to his shoulders and closed his eyes. He’d stayed overnight in a lot of crazy places, but, for right now, this was as good as it would get.

  Chapter 12

  Somewhere in the middle of the night she woke up with hot tears streaming down her face, heart-wrenching sobs racking her body, shaking the bed as grief overwhelmed her. Somewhere in her dreams the reality had set in, and it was pretty raw. It didn’t matter that her sister was so young or that Reana no longer had the chance to live as she really should have. She was gone, and, like everybody else who dealt with loss, Raina could barely even begin this painful journey.

  As the tears coursed down her face, she felt warm arms wrap around her. With a start, she remembered Reyes had slept on her couch. She turned to him for comfort, and he held her as she bawled, the grief ripping from her throat in great big waves of tears and noise.

  He didn’t say a word, just held her close, rubbed her back and let her cry. Once again proving he was one of those heroes of the world, one of the kind and compassionate men there for others in their time of need.

  Somewhere along the line she drifted back to sleep.

  Only to wake time and time again.

  And always he was there.

  Always he held her and let her cry.

  “I need to forget,” she whispered once.

  “Sleep,” he said, holding her close. “You need to sleep. Let this drift away and stay away.”

  “I can’t,” she cried. “It hurts too much.”

  He stroked her tear-stained cheeks, her lips, brushing away the hot tears in her eyes. She bowed her head against his chest. “I feel so very alone.”

  “You’re not alone,” he whispered. “I’m here. I will be here for you.”

  “No.” She shook her head. “No, you won’t.”

  He placed a finger over her lips. “Yes, I will. I walked away from what we could have had a long time ago but not this time.”

  Her gaze widened as she understood what he said. She didn’t want to believe it though. “Why did that happen back then? I so
wanted to be with you.”

  “Because it needed to,” he said quietly, his words heavy in the night. “We were different people back then. And maybe we both needed that time to become who we are now. And now we belong together,” he said firmly.

  She didn’t dare believe him. She wanted to but didn’t want to lose him again—not after so much loss in her life. “I couldn’t stand to lose you again.” She shuddered, feeling the same heavy emotions rack her spine.

  “And you won’t,” he whispered, kissing her cheeks again.

  She turned her head to meet his lips with her own. She slid her arms around his neck. “I want to believe …”

  “Then do,” he murmured, gently kissing her again and again. “Just rest. Sleep. The world will be easier tomorrow. I’ll still be here.”

  But it wasn’t enough. She wanted so much more. An escape for one. She shifted so she leaned over him and reached down to kiss him fully on the lips, letting the passion she’d always kept reined in now have full freedom. If he meant those words, she wanted to find out now. If he was leaving, he needed to leave now by the same measure.

  But his arms closed around her back, and he deepened the kiss with the same banked fires she held inside. Suddenly he rolled her onto her back and was atop her, holding his weight on his elbows but staring down at her.

  She shook her head. “No more talking.” And she pulled him down to her.

  He lowered his head, and this time he held nothing back. His passionate kiss reached deep inside her and demanded a response.

  The firestorm consumed them as they found each other. Mouths met and clung, tongues dueled gently, hands explored new territory, as they connected at the level they’d always craved and had never hoped to achieve.

  She sighed happily, loving the weight of his body on hers, his hot skin sliding over hers. Their clothes had been quietly dispensed in the shadows as one piece followed another. Soft sighs of joy followed as more skin was revealed, until finally they were wrapped around each other, this time with her on top of him. She couldn’t get enough of his heavily muscled body, the ridges of his ribs, his smooth flanks. She marveled at the well-made male in her arms. Even more so, that he was hers.

  With a melting sigh, she stroked her hands across his chest, sliding down to the heavy ridge between his legs. Her fingers wrapped around him, sliding up and down, delighting as a heavy shudder racked his body. When she leaned over and kissed the tight head, he groaned. Then she slid her tongue across the slit at the top, and he flipped her onto her back and came down over her, her thighs pressed wide and him planted right where she wanted him.

  Chuckling softly, she wrapped her thighs high on his hips and surged up against him.

  “Witch,” he whispered, his voice thick, hot.

  And he plunged deep.

  She cried out as he drove deep inside, then again and again. She matched his rhythm, then sped it up as need clawed through her. She was so close …

  He grabbed her hips and ground his pelvis against her, then drove hard and fast until she screamed his name—only to let out one raw aching sound of joy as her climax ripped through her. He gave an answering cry and surged once, then twice more before collapsing beside her.

  Her breath let out in a deep gush, and she curled into him, content to let sleep finally take her under.

  *

  Reyes held Raina close as she succumbed to sleep. His heart still slammed against his ribs as he lay beside her, wondering at the vast shift in his world. A shift that had never felt more right.

  She whimpered in his arms. He cuddled her close, fully prepared to stay awake all night, if that helped her sleep easy.

  It hurt deeply to see her pain and to not be able to help. She didn’t deserve this. She was such a sweetheart. Always had been.

  She rolled over in his arms, sprawling across his chest, her bare leg across his thighs. He smiled, letting his hand gently stroke her smooth skin as she slept atop him.

  His mind rolled with the puzzle pieces that weren’t fitting together. They had to be missing something major here. No one committed murder without a good reason—at least to the murderer.

  Her mother’s suicide attempt at the same time just added to the shock and pain. He hurt for all involved, even himself. He’d known and loved Reana for a long time, but inside he just felt empty. He was sorry for her young life cut short, but his concern now was for her sister, the sleeping beauty in his arms.

  To that end, he closed his eyes and rested.

  He hoped they both got some sleep tonight because tomorrow, although a day later, would still be tough. For everyone.

  Chapter 13

  When she rolled over the next morning and opened her eyes, she could feel the sting of long dried tears. Her cheeks were tight and hot, her eyes caked with the saltiness left behind. Yet her body hummed with a replete satisfaction. She lay on her back for a long moment, his arms still wrapped around her. She cuddled in close, needing to know she wasn’t alone. And hoping so very much that he would still be the Reyes she knew and loved in this morning after.

  To know that Reyes understood, that he was in the same boat as her was huge. His capacity for understanding and compassion was something she hadn’t seen in anyone else before. And she needed everything he had to give right now. She didn’t even want to think about her mother. She’d always wanted to be a part of her mother’s and sister’s special relationship, and yet, had never been invited to join. Raina needed to find that same teenaged self-acceptance she’d found way back when, after she had first realized how that particular situation stood.

  Indeed she didn’t think she could. Just like the bond from birth between her and her sister, something even stronger existed between her sister and her mother. And, somewhere along the line, that bond between Raina and her sister had soured and had become almost a competition. Only Reana had needed to win, and Raina hadn’t cared.

  She remembered what Jenny had said, and more waves of pain rose to the surface. Raina knew she’d be months dealing with this. It would be even more months before she could look back on her sister’s life and not feel the same heartbreak she currently choked on.

  She glanced at her cell phone and saw it was already almost eight o’clock. In spite of her emotional outburst in the night, and, likely because of Reyes’s wonderful loving, she had slept.

  She slipped from the covers and headed to the bathroom. Her face was puffy, her eyes red and bloodshot. She stepped into the shower and just stood with the heat of the water pouring down over her face. The puffiness probably needed cold water, but she didn’t care. It just felt so good to feel everything wash away under the heavy water flow.

  Finally she shut off the taps, wrapped herself in a towel and perched on the side of the bathtub. From where she sat, her world looked pretty miserable. But then so did her history, as she thought about how broken her relationship had been with her sister. So sad, particularly when they were twins.

  Resolutely she got up, brushed her teeth and, grabbing her bathrobe, walked back out to the bedroom to find some clothes.

  Reyes sat on the side of the bed. He studied her for a long moment, then stood and crossed the room to take her in arms and to cuddle her close. “How are you doing?”

  She gave him a wan smile. “About as well as can be expected,” she said softly. “Every day it will get better.”

  He nodded. “Did you leave me any hot water?”

  Guiltily she whispered, “I’m not sure.”

  He gave a bark of laughter. “I’ll find out.” He kissed her gently, then walked into the bathroom.

  She took the opportunity to find clean clothes, and, when she was dressed, she headed to the kitchen to put on coffee. She could hear him in the shower, so maybe he was either used to cold showers or she hadn’t taken all the hot water.

  Of all the days to not be considerate, this was probably one where she could get away with it. Which was too bad because he’d done so much for her.

  With t
he coffee dripping, she opened the fridge, looking for food. They both needed to have a solid breakfast before they headed out. With any luck, today they’d get the answers they sought. Maybe with the truth, her mother could start to heal, and Raina’s life and her mother’s life could move on.

  Just as she pulled out eggs and bacon, her phone rang. She glanced at it and saw it was the hospital. Her heart sinking, and with dread in her voice, she answered the call.

  “I’m sorry to say,” the doctor said, his voice calm and patient, “your mother had a cardiac arrest a few minutes ago. She didn’t make it.”

  Raina didn’t hear anything else. It was as if the world just spun into a crazy, out-of-control moment.

  Reyes took her phone from her hand, turned her gently and pulled her in. She raised her arms instinctively around his neck. She was still frozen, still locked with disbelief.

  He tilted her face up and said, “What was that?”

  She just stared at him.

  He looked down at the ID for the last caller and winced. “Your mother?”

  “She had a heart attack this morning,” she whispered, “and she didn’t make it.”

  Reyes gave a strangled exclamation and pulled her tighter into his arms.

  Her body had been warm but was now chilled; then it flushed with heat at the panic and rage. Why the rage, she had no idea. God, the pain …

  She had no more tears though, as if she had been completely emptied of them during the night. Dry-eyed, she sat down on the kitchen chair as he poured her a cup of coffee and placed it in front of her. She stared at it, then up at him. It was such a benign action, and yet, that little bit of normalcy helped pull her together.

  “Did she have a heart condition?” he asked.

  She looked at him once more and then slowly nodded. “Yes, she did. Angina I think they called it.”

  “Then maybe this isn’t all that unexpected,” he said quietly. “Devastating, shocking and, of course, painful. With that much more pain on top of your already horrible loss but maybe not so unexpected.”

  She stared at him. “All I can think of is that she is happy now. She gets to be with Reana.”