Bouquet of Lies (20 page)

“Never said I didn’t like her. She’s a murder suspect.”

“She didn’t kill anyone.”

“I don’t know that yet.”

“
Yet.
But you’re leaning that way?”

“Didn’t say that. In her dad’s case she has motive.”

“But not opportunity.”

“Could be in cahoots with someone.”

“No. No, she was too distraught. You weren’t with her afterwards.”

“Could be an act.”

“She acts happy when she’s not. Not the other way around. And why kill Maggot?”

“Stark.”

“Yeah, him.”

“To get her money back.” Carrick turned two steaks over to blacken the other side.

“Money doesn’t mean that much to her. Granted, because she has it. But she does have it and doesn’t need to kill for more.  Besides, you didn’t find her money, and you would have because she didn’t know you were coming so she wouldn’t have hidden it.”

“She withheld information.”

“About her mother. That’s understandable.”

Carrick smiled and shook his head. “Okay. Okay.”

“Okay, what?”

“Okay, I bet if we walk in that bathroom, Sally’s things will be gone.”

Dan stood with his lips glued tightly together.

“Huh? Am I right?”

Dan squeezed his eyes shut. “Is that bad?”

Carrick laughed. “Your aunt will be proud.”

“Proud about what?” Aunt Helen’s head poked out the slider. She pointed with one finger. “And I don’t want my steak blood rare. You know that.”

Carrick moved one of the rib eyes to Dan’s side of the barbecue. “Fine. Go check out the master bath.”

Aunt Helen’s brow furrowed and then she grinned. “Ah!” She hurried away to take a look.

Twenty minutes later everyone was seated at the kitchen table. Lacey looked at Dan’s Aunt Helen when she felt her pat her hand for the third time. Helen’s smile was wide. After she’d returned from the master bath her demeanor was almost giddy. She’d been happy before, showing off pictures of Dan as if she was his mother and not his aunt. But now she was downright bonkers. No. That wasn’t nice and a bit too extreme, but not by much. Something in the bathroom had excited her.

“Pass the corn,” Uncle D sort of hollered and Lacey handed him a bowl.

He sat to the right of her and Helen to the left. Dan sat directly across. It was a round oak table, not very large.

Lacey felt Dan’s aunt squeeze her hand and she looked at Dan hoping her eyes conveyed the question,
What’s going on?

“How’s your steak?” Dan said.

Lacey sighed. “Haven’t tried it yet.” She looked at her plate.

“Don’t let it get cold.” Uncle D plunked a bite of meat into his mouth.

“Okay.” Lacey cut into hers and ate. “Mmm.” She nodded her approval. “Good.”

“But not perfect,” the detective said, his brows raised.

“No, it’s fine.” Lacey looked at Dan, again hoping he could read eyes:
What’s going on?

Dan answered spot on. “He thinks steak should be served bloody.”

“Oh.” Lacey looked down and adjusted her napkin. “Must be the homicide in him.” She heard a gasp and looked up. All three were staring at her. “What? Poor taste?” She chuckled at the pun.

This time Dan laughed which made his aunt laugh too. Uncle D rolled his eyes and sucked on his cheeks to keep his lips from turning upward, but Lacey could see the smile in his eyes. Good. He had a sense of humor even if he didn’t want to.

“Made any progress?” Lacey dared to ask.

“My nephew said we weren’t to talk shop.” He shoveled in another bite.

“We aren’t. We’re talking murder. My dad’s, someone my dad hired and the roommate of his ex. If she was an ex. I don’t even know if they ever got divorced. He just started telling everyone she was dead.”

“They didn’t.” Uncle D turned his steak looking for the best place to dig in next. “After we found out that death certificate was phony, we checked. They were still married.” He looked up with a stone expression.

“Why would he do that?” Helen asked.

“Haven’t a clue.” The detective stared at Lacey.

“What?” Lacey asked.

“Sort of throws your inheritance into question, doesn’t it? Her being alive.” He cut into his steak again.

Lacey shrugged. “You’d have to talk to Henderson. He drew up the trust.”

“Gives you motive.”

“Don’t talk with your mouth full, dear.” Helen cocked her head at her husband. He nodded and chewed.

“Guess you don’t know how much money my grandmother left me. If my mother is alive, I’m glad. Not for me, but for Darla. It confirms what she’s been saying all along. And now that the secret is out, it will give Edward a heart attack.”

There was silence. She held her fork midair and eyed everyone.

“Okay, bad choice of words. But it will drive him nuts and maybe he can be committed to that hospital he’s always threatening Darla with.” She put down her fork as she realized something. “And actually, it gives my mother motive to kill my father, doesn’t it?”

“You don’t sound like a girl who loves her mother,” Uncle D said.

“I don’t know my mother. She deserted us.” Lacey picked up her fork again and glanced at Dan. She couldn’t read him. His face was placid. Was he thinking she had a motive to kill her mother? That she might have possibly killed the others? She found she couldn’t bear the thought. She wanted him on her side. And yet, did he even know her side?

She felt tension throughout her body. Of course she wanted him on her side, but this intense feeling she had told her it
really
mattered. What if he was just toying with her for the sake of his uncle’s case?

Dan suddenly gave her a small smile. It was a loving smile and her entire body relaxed.

He looked at his uncle. “You’re searching for Lacey’s mother, aren’t you?”

It was something she’d wondered about. She eyed Uncle D and waited for his answer. She noticed that his steak was gone. He ate fast. Too bad he didn’t detect just as quickly.

“We’re looking for her. We think she might be in danger. Since Honey had her ID, the killer might have meant to kill Tiffany.”

Lacey caught her breath. “I’ve thought of that, too.”

“Well, it’s just a theory. We won’t be able to sort it out until we find her. Good steak.” He patted his tummy and took out a roll of Tums. Evidently he knew what was coming.

Lacey glanced at each of the three at the table. Now was as good a time as any to share her discovery. It might have nothing to do with her father’s murder, but then again, the police didn’t seem to have figured out much. They might as well know about baby Debbie.

“Not to throw another mystery into the works, but I’ve got one for you.” She pushed up from the table.

Uncle D tossed in a second Tums.

Lacey moved to her purse on the living room couch and returned with the newspaper clipping. “I found this. Edward had a sister I never knew about. The story says she was kidnapped when she was six months old. Maybe you can find out what happened. If she’s alive . . .”

Lacey let them all finish the sentence for themselves.

Twenty-five

DAN WAS AS polite as he could possibly be, saying goodnight to his aunt and uncle while trying to hurry them out the door. He had sat across from Lacey all evening. Watched the light play with her hair and smelled the scent of her perfume. Amazed at the way she held her own with his uncle, he was so ready to be alone with her. He wanted her in his arms and all this murder business gone so that there was no distraction.

He wanted the moon.

“I like your girl.” Stalled at the threshold, Aunt Helen whispered in his ear and patted his cheek. “When you get ready to clean out that closet, if you want some help . . .”

His aunt must have snooped when she checked the bathroom. He hadn’t emptied the closet of Sally’s things. The toiletries were gone, but that was as far as he had gotten.

“Come on, woman,” his uncle bellowed from outside. “They’ve got plans.”

His girl? Plans?
No. He had a young woman in his living room he
wanted
to be his, but he was anything but sure about what she wanted.

His aunt kissed his cheek and left. He closed the door. He was crazy about Lacey in a way he’d never been crazy about anyone before. He loved Sally, but he had known her since grammar school, and theirs had been a passionate, but comfortable relationship.

Lacey was foreign territory. She was exciting and unpredictable. Could he handle it? He’d been to war, but this relationship stuff—doing it right—was more threatening in a lot of ways.

“Your aunt’s a peach,” Lacey said.

He looked up. “Yeah. She’s great. So is my uncle, in his own way.”

“Well. Maybe he’s the pit that holds the possibility. What were you thinking about just then?”

“What?”

“When they were leaving. You had the strangest look on your face.”

“I did?” He smiled. “I was thinking about you.”

“Uh-oh. That can’t be good.”

He went to her and put his hands on her face. “No. It’s all good.”

“Good.” She smiled at him, seemingly light-hearted.

No. This is not a light-hearted moment
. He leaned in and kissed her softly. Then his arms went around her and he pressed more deeply. Her lips parted and his tongue gently brushed the inside of her mouth. She tasted wonderful. With his eyes closed, the rest of the world slipped away. It was only the two of them and she felt so good, warm, real and exciting. He never wanted to let her go. He took a breath and kissed her again.

Lacey wasn’t sure which of their hearts was beating faster. The kiss of a man never felt like this before.

As a young teen, kissing boys had been a game. Exciting, stimulating, and at first awkward. The awkwardness made it feel wrong and even a little dangerous; for some reason, that was all the more thrilling.

When she got older, she became practiced and kissing felt natural and fun. Of course when it became ordinary, she experimented and took it to the next level. She loved the attention, the affection, and because she never lost her head, she was always the one calling the shots. Turned on meant:
this is
really, really great. Really, really fun. Boy, am I turned on.

But what she felt now was no game. His touch aroused her in a way she’d never been aroused. She had an ache in her chest that was affecting every cell of her body. She literally felt weak from her head to her toes. His hands on her meant the world. This was personal. This was intimacy. This was . . . love? No. She pushed the word away.
It’s passion.

Her heart jumped and she stroked her tongue along his lips, her hands down his arms. His hands moved under her shirt and pressed her against him. His rock-solid body felt wonderful against hers. He edged her toward the couch, and the kissing began to border on frenzied.

Then suddenly his hands withdrew and they were on her head, tangled in her hair, and his eyes were searching hers.

“What? What?” she asked.

“I don’t have a condom.”

Lacey burst out with laughter. “Well, don’t look so tragic. We can go to the store.”

“No. No, it’s a good thing because we’re not ready for this.”

Not ready? Was he kidding? They were breathless. Both of them heated and coated with perspiration. If their hearts beat any faster, they would be lying unconscious on the floor.

“What are you talking about? Kiss me again. Forget the condom.” She pulled him to her.

“No. No. That’s what I’m talking about. We can’t forget anything. We don’t want to be reckless.”

“Maybe you don’t.”

They looked at each other and he saw a flash of anger in her eyes. If she was mad because he wasn’t ready to make love to her, then that anger was misplaced.

Make love. Yes. It would be making love
, he thought
.
I love her and we can’t forget anything.
His brain discharged an additional thought:
Don’t forget Sally.

He frowned. He wasn’t thinking about Sally. Sally was gone. He loved Sally, but she died. He was thinking about Lacey, and a future with her, and in his book having sex too soon would ruin their relationship.

He’d explained all this to her. Hadn’t she understood?

“All right, then.” Lacey snatched her purse from the couch and slipped it over her arm. “It’s been surreal.”

“You don’t have to go.” He didn’t reach for her. He wanted her to stay, but he would not hold her with any sort of force. She had to stay because she wanted to. If she didn’t stay, that meant sex was more important than their relationship.

“I don’t understand you. I want you. You want me,” Lacey said.

“It’s not that simple.”

“It is.” She stamped her foot.

“You’re mad.”

“I’d be lying . . .” She closed her eyes and sighed. “I’ve been around the block. Not as many times as people probably think. But if that’s what’s bothering you about me, then we have a real problem because I can’t change the past.”

He shook his head. “If that bothered me about you, then I would just have sex with you and not worry about it.”

She stared at him. “Well, I’m talked out. We’ll have to save what you just said for next time.” She went to the door and paused a moment before walking out.

Dan sank into the couch and let his brain chew on her words.

Next time. Thank God there would be a next time.