It Isn't Cheating if He's Dead (16 page)

“We have better resources than the internet.
Let me take a look at him — from a distance.”

“Thank you.” She put her hand on his knee. “I
bet Frank and Angus would love you. You’ll get a huge kick out of them.”

“Were they there a couple of years ago?
When you saw Gerald?”

“Yes. Angus has been hanging his hat in the
park for four years. Frank even longer. Why?”

“I think I might have interviewed them.
Part of the investigation. Them and a few others.”

“I forgot about that. So they know you’re a
cop already.”

“Only if they remember me. I won’t say
anything.”

Jem pulled into her usual spot and parked.
Finn lifted the wagon from the van, filled it with boxes of food and drink,
then hoisted the entire thing over the curb and put the handle in her hand.

She watched him and grinned. “I might get
used to you doing all the heavy lifting. Maybe you should come with me more
often.”

“I could arrange that.” He bent and kissed
her cheek.

She started on the far side of the park.
“Hi Joe. Beautiful morning, isn’t it?” She knelt in front of him. “Tuna today.”

Joe stared past her. She turned around and
glanced at Finn.

“It’s okay. That’s my boyfriend.” That was
the first time she’d said that out loud. Or even thought about it. Her
boyfriend. How odd.

Joe’s posture slackened and he looked at
his sandwich. He glanced up at her as he unwrapped the parchment and took a
bite. She was rewarded with his now-daily thumbs up.

Question after question stalled on her
lips. Today was not the day to push. With Finn here making him nervous, too
much prodding might send him back where he came from. She stood there for a
couple of minutes to be sure he ate his food and tucked his seconds away for
later before making her way around the park.

Frank and Angus waited for her to get to
the other side. They sat with straight backs, their gazes shifting from her to
Finn.

“Good morning, gentlemen.”

“Ruby. Why’d you bring that cop with you?”

“You remember him?”

“Hell yeah, hard to forget. Bit rough
around the edges.”

She grinned. “Not when you get to know him.
He’s been investigating Gerald’s disappearance all these years. He’s cool.”

“Gee, Jem.” Frank looked at his feet.
“We’re starting to think you don’t love us anymore.”

“How so?”

“First Chief comes along and steals all
your attention. Then you bring this big dude around. Not looking so cop-like
today, is he?” The light glinted off Frank’s good eye, a sly smile crept onto
his face.

She put her arm around his shoulder and gave
him half a hug. “Ah, Frank. No one will ever replace the two of you in my
heart.”

“Cop-man replaced Gerald though, didn’t
he?” Frank elbowed her in the ribs.

“We have started… seeing each other. But no
one will ever replace Gerald. I’ve just added Finn to the fold, you know?”

Angus eyed Finn over her shoulder. She
turned and followed his glare. Finn leaned against the passenger side of the
van, looking at his phone. Who the hell was he texting? He was supposed to be
checking out Joe, helping her figure out who he was.

She looked to Joe. He hadn’t moved a muscle.
He watched Finn too, but not with curiosity like Angus. More like with dread.
Had Finn spooked Joe? Maybe she shouldn’t have brought him with her.

“Is he good to you, Ruby?”

“Yes he is. And thank you for worrying
about me.”

“You’re my girl, Ruby. Always will be.”

“I love you too, Angus.”

She glanced back at Finn, he was still
looking at his phone. Damn it, who was so interesting that he didn’t care about
Joe? Wait, was she jealous? Of a text? It was probably work-related. Something
about a case. Get a grip, Jem.

He put the phone to his ear.

What the hell? Couldn’t they leave him
alone on his day off?  

For the first time since they’d started,
what, dating? No. Having a relationship? How could she define what they had?
Friends with benefits? Really, really amazing benefits. Whatever it was called,
this is the first time she was annoyed with him. She balled her hands into
fists and bounced them off her thighs. Maybe he hadn’t understood how important
finding Joe’s family was to her.

She shook her head and admonished herself
under her breath. That's how his wife reacted. Jealous of his work, of his
cases. Jem couldn’t let that happen, couldn't be like the ex. This is who he
was, accept it or end it.

Finn held his phone up at arm’s length and
squinted like he was farsighted. She’d never noticed that before. He didn’t
wear glasses. Never took contacts out at night. She shook her head. He looked
adorable and sexy and strong and vulnerable.

No way was she going to end it.

“Well guys, I’m out of here for today. Any
requests for tomorrow?”

“Bacon.”

“Oh Frank, we’ve got to find you a new favourite.”

She met Finn on the sidewalk.

“How’s Joe?” He picked up the wagon and
loaded it into the van.

“Seems fine. He’s a bit freaked out by you.
I didn’t push him for information. One thing at a time, right?”

They got into the van and she pulled away
from the curb.

“I got a couple of pictures of him. Not
sure how good they’ll turn out on this phone, and from that distance. Tried to
be all casual like I was texting or something. Didn’t work. Had to hold it out
like an old fart reading the Sunday paper.”

Well damn. She was an idiot. All annoyance
melted from her.

“I called in a favour. Gave a colleague a
starter description and sent the photos. If you can get more info, that’d be
great. Maybe you could get a shot closer up?”

“Maybe. He’d hate that. I don’t think he
wants to be found. But he did go to the shelter, showered and shaved. So maybe
he’s coming around.”

Finn reached up and rested his forearm on
the back of her headrest. “Do you realize we’ve never been out on a date?”

Interesting change of topic. “What, barbecue
and endless sex doesn’t count?”

He snickered and ran his fingers down the
back of her neck. She shivered.

“I think you should know I’ve never slept
with a woman on the first date before.”

“You married your high school sweetheart.
How many dates have you had since she left?”

“Counting tonight?”

Her heart leapt. “Tonight?”

“Yeah. We’re going out. Anywhere you want.
And this will bring my post-divorce tally to one.”

“You haven’t had one date since she left?”

“I haven’t had a date, not a first one
anyway, since grade ten.”

She stole a glance at him. She was only his
second relationship? He wasn’t her second. She’d been, let’s just say, active
before she met Gerald. But Finn didn’t need to know that.

“I don’t know what to say.”

“I guess I’m particular about who I ask out.
What do you want to do?”

She drummed her fingertips on the steering
wheel. “Dinner. And a movie.” She nodded. “Yeah, that’s what I want. But we
need to sit in the back corner.”

“Why?”

“Since you don’t sleep with women on the
first date, then I’m not gettin’ any tonight. So the least you can do is grope
me in the theatre.”

He laughed and squeezed her neck. “I can do
that. And maybe I can break the first date rule too.”

“Excellent.”

They pulled up in front of her house. Finn
grabbed the empty boxes from the back and met her on the doorstep.

Jem pushed open the front door. More mail
littered the entry. She stooped to collect it, and piled it on top of the other
envelopes waiting for her attention. “Coffee?”

“Sure.” Finn fingered the stack of mail.
“Jem, how are you doing?”

“I’m fine. Why?” She slid a filter into the
coffee pot. His arm came over her shoulder and the stack of mail landed on the
countertop in front of her.

“You seem to be avoiding things. We haven’t
talked about nirvana in days. You were going to tell me what you learned about
Gerald, but every time I bring it up, you find a way to put it off.” He rubbed
her shoulders and bent his head towards hers. “I’m worried about you,” he
whispered in her ear. He kissed her cheek and spun her around.

She buried her face in his chest and hugged
him. “I know. I wish it would be done. Find his killer, answer all the
questions, move on and forget. The bad stuff I mean.”

“We’ll get there. Maybe not all the
questions can be answered, they usually aren’t. It’s not like on television
where every loose end is conveniently tied in one moment of clarity from one clue.
Doesn’t work that way.” He pulled back and put his hands on either side of her
face, then landed a sweet kiss on her nose. “Gerald was a pretty complex guy.
The case is complicated by his disease. I think the murder might be the easiest
part to close. And at this point, it’s the only thing being investigated. His
disappearance was solved with the discovery of his body. But that doesn’t help
you, doesn’t explain why he left.” He cupped her chin in one hand and kissed
her lips. “How can I help you?”

She swallowed and pushed down tears. “You
help me every day. By being here, being with me. You’re a miracle. And I don’t
believe in miracles, so that’s big mister.” She poked his chest, and then
buried her face in it again. “Speaking of putting it off.” She tilted her head
back, rested her chin on his chest, and leered up at him. “You wanna fuck?”

“Yes. Always. But not now.” He took her
hand and grabbed the pile of mail. “You catch up on this, I’ll make the coffee.
We’ll talk about what you learned at the funeral. Then it’s out of the way.”

“All right. You’re right. Get it done and
over with.”

“And then we’ll fuck.”

She patted his cheek. “That’s my boy.”

She sat at the table and picked up the
mail. One pile for bills. One pile for junk. One pile for other. Near the
bottom, another insurance company envelope caught her attention. More delays?
More questions? She tapped the short edge on the table and ripped open the
other end. Two pieces of paper slid out.

“Oh my God.” She put a hand to her mouth.

Finn turned and put a cup of coffee on the
table next to her. “What is it?”

She turned the sheet around and held it by the
edges between her thumbs and index fingers.

Finn's eyes widened. “Holy cow.”

She turned it back and stared at it. Two-and-a-half-million
dollars. All on one little piece of paper. “Wow. I didn’t really believe I’d
get this.”

Finn picked up the letter and unfolded it.
“You’ve been cleared of all suspicion.” He put his cup down next to hers and
folded the sheet again, then stuffed it into the envelope. “Of course you have.
I signed the declaration.”

“You did? When?”

“Couple of weeks ago.”

She stared at the cheque. Ran her fingers
over the ink.

He pulled a chair out and sat across from
her. “What are you going to do? Shopping spree? Big trip around the world?”

“No, nothing so frivolous. Pay off the
mortgage. And I have an idea but I have to think it through.” She had to call
the office. And go to the bank.

Finn leaned back in his chair. His eyes
drooped and his body slouched. Very un-Finn like.

“You look exhausted. Go up and get some
sleep before dinner.”

He shook his head. “Nirvana.”

Right. Deal with it now, Jemima. He won’t
sleep until you do. She nodded and steeled herself.

“Gerald’s father did not have a heart
attack.”

“No?” Finn sat up, his eyes bright and aware,
like he had a switch he could flick on any time he needed to.

She held her mug with both hands and looked
into the steaming liquid. “He committed suicide. Hung himself in the basement.”

“Oh, shit. Do they know why?”

“He didn't leave a note. But he’d been
acting odd for years. Paranoid. Seeing things that weren’t there. Listening to
inanimate objects. Sound familiar?”

“So he was schizophrenic too.”

“No one will say that. He was never
diagnosed. It was twenty-four years ago. Maybe the medical community is better
about that kind of thing now. Or maybe Althea shoved her head in the sand back
then too. But diagnosed or not, it all sounds like Gerald.” She picked at a
non-existent spot on her arm. “Gerald knew. He found him. Hanging from a beam. When
he was only thirteen.”

Finn pushed back into the chair. “Oh hell.
That’s enough all on its own to mess with a kid’s brain.” He leaned forward
again, forearms on the table and shook his head. “Poor guy. Can you imagine how
he felt when he started acting the same way as his father?”