Deceive (Declan Reede: The Untold Story #2) (31 page)

My angel cut through the crowd and knelt in front of me.

“Shh, Dec,” Alyssa—my personal angel—said. “It’s all right. I’m here now.”

Without thought, I reached for her and rested my head against her chest. She held me tightly, and calmly directed everyone else to leave. There were murmurs of dissent at first but somehow she convinced them all to leave us alone for a moment.

After a while she pushed me off her and stared into my eyes. “I’m going to ask you a question, and I don’t want you to lie to me.”

“I never—” I was going to tell her I would never lie to her again, but she cut me off with a wave of her hand.

“Just promise me.”

I nodded.

“Did you take anything tonight? Anything to take the edge off?”

I shook my head.

“Are you feeling okay now?” she asked.

I shook my head again. “No,” my voice sounded broken, even to me.

“Can I have your car keys? I want to drive you home.”

I looked at her incredulously for a second. I wondered if she realised
no one
drove my car. Certainly no one else drove it while I sat in the passenger seat. The night of the drags, I had made a once-off exception for her.

Regardless of that, I reached into my pocket and fished out my keys. I placed them into her hand, twisting her fingers into a fist around them.

She stood and helped me up. As she led me from the cloakroom to the front door, I heard whispers all around. I didn’t know what they were saying, and frankly I didn’t give a fuck. I just wanted to go, to be home, with Alyssa. That, and maybe to vomit a few more times before bed. I had no idea who had lured me into the cloak room, but it was clear they’d intended on seducing me. Fucker.

Why couldn’t people take, “I’m happy leave me the fuck alone,” as an answer.

With her shoes off and carried in her hands, Alyssa supported me as we walked back to the carpark. As she unlocked the car, I rested against it and tried to stop my head from spinning. Alyssa came back to my side and she helped me into the car.

I crawled into the passenger seat, leaning my head against the headrest as Alyssa fastened the seat belt around me. Even though I’d been worried about handing over the keys, I was too far gone on the ride home to acknowledge whether Alyssa was treating my car right.

I didn’t even realise we were home until I woke up in bed with Alyssa fast asleep beside me the following morning.

When I went to climb out of the bed, it became clear I still wasn’t fully recuperated from whatever had happened the night before. My hands shook and my head spun. My lips were dry, so I slicked my tongue across them. It didn’t help because my mouth was just as parched.

Standing as still as I could for a few moments, I thought about the night before. The more I considered the way I’d felt, the reactions I’d had, the more certain I grew that I’d been slipped something. It was the only logical explanation, because I sure as fuck didn’t take anything. Nor had I had enough to drink to cause that sort of response.

With a glance down at Alyssa, lying peacefully in the bed, a thought formed in my mind. Had she truly believed me when I’d said I hadn’t taken anything? Had our relationship really grown that strong again? Or did she think I was lying to her?

I snuck out of the bedroom quietly. It was only when I’d made it halfway down the hall that I realised I was wearing nothing more than a pair of boxers. I didn’t know if Phoebe was at home or still at Alyssa’s folks’ house, but I was glad I had something covering my arse just in case.

Heading straight for the fridge, I grabbed a glass of orange juice to get rid of the taste in my mouth and relieve my desiccated throat. It honestly felt like I’d spent the night licking an ashtray. After I downed my first glass of orange juice, I hunted through Alyssa’s pantry for some paracetamol, or anything that would at least reduce the throbbing in my head to a dull ache. I threw a couple into my mouth and downed them with a second glass of O.J.

“You popping pills again already?” Alyssa asked from behind me.

The sound of her voice startled me—I’d thought she was still fast asleep. I spun around to face her. Her words confirmed my fears from earlier; she didn’t believe me after all. She thought I’d fallen back to my old patterns. I had to convince her otherwise or she might run.

“I . . . um . . . I really didn’t . . .” I shook my head furiously, fighting back the fear.

Her face dropped and she stepped over to me quickly. “I’m sorry, poor choice of words. I know you didn’t take anything last night.” She pressed her lips to mine, and I relaxed into her. “At least not knowingly.”

“But how?”

“When was the last time you took drugs? And I don’t mean sleeping tablets or prescription medication.”

I dropped my head to my chest and murmured, “Over three and a half years ago.”

“Exactly,” she said, nodding. “I know you have . . . issues . . . with alcohol. But that wasn’t alcohol that made you act like that last night. I think someone might have spiked your drink.”

I met her eyes and smiled slightly. The faith she showed in me was one hundred times more powerful than the doubt Josh and Curtis had brought back to the surface.

“But what I can’t figure out is who or why?”

I shrugged, too happy that she believed me to worry about the reasoning behind the sabotage. That was something we could worry about later. Closing the small distance between us, I cupped her face in my hand and brought her lips back to mine. She pushed her tongue forward into my mouth, and I was reminded of the surprise that was waiting for me in the cloakroom.

My brow furrowed. The two events had to be connected. I told Alyssa about it—about the tongue and the hand. My heart broke as I watched her expression drop, and her brows pinch. I didn’t want to hurt her, but I needed her to know. Not only because it might be important to figuring out who the fuck slipped me something, but also because I didn’t want to lie to her. I didn’t want her to find out some other way and know I’d omitted the truth. When I finished, I explained that the kiss was the reason I was bundled in the corner of the cloakroom calling out for her.

She placed her fingers over my mouth when I started to apologise for the fifteenth time. “It wasn’t your fault, Dec. You didn’t ask for it. I’m glad you told me though.”

I pulled her close to me. “Let’s get all thoughts of last night out of our heads for a while,” I suggested. “What’s on the agenda for today?”

“Work,” she said, with a grimace.

“Of course,” I said. “Work.” The word was a curse as far as I was concerned.

I stood staring into her eyes. “Where’s Phoebe?” I asked softly, leaning my lips down toward her.

Alyssa’s eyes fluttered closed. “She’s still with Mum. I didn’t want to pick her up last night . . .”

I’d heard all I needed to. Even though I was happy to have Phoebe in my life, I was a little relieved she wasn’t going to walk out of her room at any second. I closed the distance to Alyssa’s lips and kissed her fervently. I continued to step forward as my tongue battled with hers. Cupping her arse, I pulled her legs around my waist and walked toward the bedroom. If I only had a limited amount of time with her before she started work, I was going to make damn sure we got the most out of it.

I didn’t stop walking until I hit the bed and tumbled on top of her. My lips went from hers to her neck, trailing kisses down to her sternum. My fingers worked the buttons on her pyjamas, pulling them open one by one. Each one that I undid revealed a new expanse of skin for my mouth to explore. Her legs remained hooked around my waist as she ground her hips up to meet mine and moaned in response to my touch.

Leaning all my weight onto one hand, I used the other to start exploring. I kneaded her breasts before bringing one of her nipples into my mouth. I swirled my tongue around the tip, eliciting a panted “oh God” from Alyssa. With my eyes closed, enjoying every sensation, I moved to give the other side some attention.

Alyssa’s hand came to rest on my chest, and then she pushed me away from her. I worried that it was because the memory of what I told her had happened last night was still too fresh.

She stood, pushing me backwards, before twisting me around and pushing me onto the bed. She ripped my boxer shorts off in one fluid motion, and I sat completely motionless while I waited for her to execute whatever it was she had planned. She knelt down on the floor and pulled me to the end of the bed. Before I could really process what was happening, her mouth surrounded my cock.

I threw my head back and groaned. The sensation of her warm tongue flicking across the top of my dick was fucking amazing. I grabbed a pillow and propped myself up, because I didn’t want to miss another second of watching myself slide in and out of her perfect mouth. The sight and feeling were enough to push me to the edge.

“Fuck, Alyssa, you’re fucking amazing,” I whispered, my voice stolen by desire. She sucked the whole of my length in, and I felt myself brush against the back of her throat.

When she pulled back, I stopped her. As much as I wanted her to keep going, there was something more I had a sudden desire for. I sat on the edge of the bed and wrapped my arms around her. I took a moment to explore her skin with my mouth again before pushing her pyjama bottoms off.

“Come up here,” I whispered, pulling her hand to lead her onto the bed. I lay back down and guided her so her legs were straddling my shoulders. I licked her inner thigh while my hands ran up and down over her arse. She moaned at the sensation, but seemed to catch on quickly to what I wanted to do. While her pussy hovered over my mouth, she leaned forward and took my length back into her mouth. I hummed against her skin before turning my head to the other side and gently nipping the delicate skin near her perfect pussy.

I spent a little time running my fingers and lips around her hips and thighs, taking great care to lavish attention on everything but the one spot I really wanted to touch. She moaned around my cock and bucked her hips, presenting herself to me.

Needing to prolong the moment for both of our benefits, I rubbed my nose along one lip before pushing my tongue forward to meet her clit. The instant I made contact she gasped around my dick. I pressed forward more forcefully, running the flat of my tongue across her arousal in long, slow motions as her breath hissed around my cock.

The louder she groaned, the more daring and ambitious I grew. One of my hands ran up and down the small gap between our bodies while the other joined my mouth on her pussy.

With practised, unhurried movements, I pushed one finger inside her, rolling it around in a slow circle until I could feel her muscles tighten around the digit. The harder I worked her body, the harder she worked her mouth. I took her clit gently between my teeth and rubbed it with my tongue, all the while moving my fingers in, around, and back out in a slow cycle.

Alyssa’s legs tensed around my shoulders, and I began to work my fingers faster. Even though I sucked and nipped at her body, and it was all fantastic, my focus was somewhere else—lost to all sensation but Alyssa’s mouth around my cock. Speeding my movements, I worked her body hard to ensure she got off before I did, but it was a damn close race.

As she came, her entire body fell apart around me in a series of tight spasms—including her mouth and throat. Nothing felt better than her coming over me. The sensation was enough to finish me off. I blew my load into her mouth and her tongue caressed my length as I came.

“Holy fuck!” I cried as Alyssa dropped her head onto my thighs.

With her whole body boneless and pliant on my stomach, I stroked her back for a few minutes, trying to gather myself back up. My headache was gone, replaced with a general feeling of bliss. Eventually, Alyssa climbed off the bed, grabbing my hand and pulling me up as she went.

“Come on,” she said. “I have to have a shower if I have any chance of getting to work on time.”

It didn’t escape my attention that she was pulling me with her into the bathroom.

After starting the water in the shower, she pulled her hair out of the loose bun it was in. I leaned against the door, watching her perfect, naked body as she went about her tasks. After she’d climbed into the tub and stood under the water she turned back to me, granting me a great view of her incredible tits.

She smirked. “Are you just going to stand there and watch, or are you going to join me?”

She extended her hand to me. I took it, thinking there were many, many worse ways to start a day. It was too bad I wasn’t going to have enough time to completely get my fill of her—then again, that was probably an impossibility anyway.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: ALONE

IT WASN’T UNTIL after Alyssa had left for work that panic over the previous night’s events set in. For hours, I obsessed about everything that had happened. I couldn’t help contemplating the various possibilities of whether someone could have spiked my drink, and who. Who had the means, motive, and opportunity? Who had the most to gain by publicly humiliating me, if that was their intention? The fact was any one of the people at my table could have slipped something into a drink while I wasn’t looking.

Unable to stay still while my mind was so active, I paced around the house. My mind ran circles on itself, twisting down ever-darker paths as I considered the possible suspects. But regardless of how often a name came back around in my mind, I was still unable to answer two key questions: why, and was it connected with whoever was in the cloakroom? The more time I spent fixating on it, the more confused I grew.

After pacing for hours, I gingerly tried some exercises, mostly push-ups and sit-ups, because it had been too long since I’d paid proper attention to my fitness. If I went back to Sinclair unfit for racing, I’d get my arse kicked by my personal trainers.

With only my own thoughts and panic to keep me company, the day passed as slow as treacle. At one point, I ordered pizzas for dinner, specifying a delivery time about half an hour later than Alyssa was due home. Talking to the operator was the highlight of my day.

Finally seven o’clock crept around, the time Alyssa was due home. When I heard a car pulling up out front, I practically ripped the door off the hinges to get to her. I was at her car door in the next second, ready to pull her into my arms. After kissing her to let her know how much I’d fucking missed her all day, I turned and helped Phoebe from the car. As I worked, I asked her about her day. Freeing her from the car, I slung her onto my hip the way I had seen Alyssa do. Phoebe giggled and grabbed on to my shoulders.

“I missed you so much today,” I told Alyssa.

“I missed you too. Unfortunately, real life gets in the way every now and then. I’ve still got bills to pay.”

“Let me,” I said.

“What?”

“Let me pay them. I fu—I owe you. I owe both of you. It’s the least I can do.”

She laughed. “I can pay my own bills.”

“But . . .” I trailed off, readying arguments so I could get them right. “If you’re going to move in with me, then what’s mine is yours. So it won’t matter if I give you some now, will it?”

“I can pay my own bills, Dec,” she huffed. A frown pulled her eyebrows together and I saw it was an issue of contention.

“All right.” I held up my free hand as a peace offering. “But the offer’s there.”

She sighed. “Thank you, but I’m happier paying my own way.”

I put Phoebe down just inside the door.

“What’s for dinner, Mummy?” she asked.

“I don’t know, sweetie. I’ll have a look shall I?”

“Don’t bother,” I said proudly. “I ordered pizza.”

Alyssa laughed. “That’s hardly healthy.”

I shrugged. “It’s a treat. Besides, I wanted to cook and I didn’t have a clue where to start. This just seemed easier.”

“Well, I guess it shows you are thinking about us at least,” Alyssa whispered, as she stepped closer to me.

“I always think about you,” I replied. Her mouth met mine with a soft, warm kiss. A proper welcome home. It was strange how comfortable I felt being so . . . domestic. If someone had told me two months ago that I would be back with Alyssa, that I would be a father, and that I would be the fucking happiest I’d ever been, I wouldn’t have believed them. In fact, I probably would have turned around and smacked them in the mouth just for daring to mention her name.

Now, I was ready to do anything to have a life with her.

To have both my girls permanently by my side—the sooner, the better.

“So!” I exclaimed, clapping my hands together for emphasis. “Who’s up for some games before dinner comes?”

We spent half an hour playing with Phoebe’s toys before the pizza arrived. Then we settled down and watched a little TV. Phoebe drifted off to sleep sitting beside us on the couch so I carried her to her room. As I placed her in the bed I placed a delicate kiss on her forehead.

“I love you, baby,” I whispered, before turning to follow Alyssa into our bedroom.

Friday passed in much the same fashion as Thursday. Except it was even less exciting, and my mind had more time to contemplate all the darkness I’d experienced lately. I still wasn’t any closer to figuring out the culprit behind the drugging at the charity event. My mind kept vacillating between Alex and Tillie, but I couldn’t figure out a motive. Somehow Tillie didn’t strike me as the sort of person who needed to spike drinks to get what she wanted.

Thankfully though, there had been minimal fallout on TV and in the newspapers. It was the third headline of the sports segment on the morning news, but they didn’t talk about drug use or alcohol, instead rehashing old press statements regarding the “stress” that had seen me go on hiatus from Sinclair Racing, and speculating if it was the cause of my breakdown. It made page five of the sports pages in the newspaper. I knew enough to know that negative front-page headlines were bad news when it came to sponsors, but buried on page five hardly rated a mention—maybe a slap on the wrist.

It was heading into the late afternoon before my boring peace, and non-stop inner monologue, were silenced by a phone call. Danny’s voice came down the line.

“Declan, I need you back in Sydney,” he said, without any introduction or small talk.

“Uh, sure . . .,” I replied. It was unlike Danny to not make at least a little small talk before launching into business.

“I’ve arranged a flight for you for tomorrow morning. It’s imperative you come straight here on arrival. I need to see you as soon as possible.” His clipped tone was so unlike the last time we’d spoken, and it made my breath catch in my throat.

“Sure thing,” I said, trying to stop my heart from racing in my chest and stealing my voice. “Can I ask why?”

“We can discuss that when you arrive. Your itinerary is on your email. See you tomorrow.”

He hung up, leaving no room for discussion. I stared blankly at my phone for a number of minutes until it beeped a few times and switched off. I’d spent so little time on it lately that I hadn’t realised the battery was so low. I found a spare outlet in the bedroom and plugged in my charger, not bothering to turn my phone back on. There was no need for it if all it was going to offer was more confusion and questions.

As I stood, a sick feeling crept up on me. Trying to force it down, I reminded myself that page five was not a big concern. I’d seen drivers get worse and not be reprimanded. Fuck, I’d done worse without rebuke.

Working to avoid a panic attack, I even tried to convince myself that Danny wanted to see me just to run some tests with the new car. It didn’t work. There was no need for a test so early, and even if there was, all of the engineers were still in Bahrain. Fuck, even Danny was supposed to be in Bahrain. My heart pounded and my head spun with possibilities.

The worst thing was, no matter whether the reason Danny wanted to see me was good or bad, I wouldn’t find out until the next day. Familiar feelings crept up in my body. My heart raced, my palms grew clammy, and my throat constricted. My stomach twisted, and I couldn’t contain the food I’d eaten any more. I ran to the toilet and hurled. Falling onto the floor of the bathroom, I curled into a ball. I couldn’t get my breathing back under control, no matter how hard I tried.

Alyssa found me a few hours later, curled into a corner in the bathroom experiencing a full-blown panic attack. As soon as she came near me—as soon as her skin made contact with mine—my breathing calmed and I was able to open my eyes. She helped me to my feet, and I held her close to me until my heart rate returned to normal and I was able to function again.

She brushed the hair away from my face. “What happened?” she asked in a quiet murmur. “What’s wrong?”

“Danny Sinclair called today,” I said. “He . . . he wants me back in Sydney, but I don’t know why.”

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fucking terrified, Lys. I don’t know what to do.” My words ran together and fell out of my mouth in a jumbled mess.

“Do you think it’s because of the other night?”

“I . . . I don’t know.” I raked my hand through my hair. “But I just can’t help feeling that something’s wrong. Very wrong.”

“How are you going to get to Sydney?”

“He’s arranged flights. I need to go online and get the details. I just don’t know what to do.” I rested my head on her shoulder.

“You get the details. You fly to Sydney and find out what he wants. We’ll work out the rest after we know what it’s about.” She brought her lips to my cheek.

A mirthless chuckle left me. “As easy as that, huh?”

She smiled. “I never said it would be easy. But we can get through anything together, right?” It was as if she was trying to confirm I wasn’t going to run.

Holding her more tightly in my arms, I confirmed in a hushed whisper against her hair, “Together.”

Phoebe interrupted the moment by running into the room. “Mummy! I’m hungry!” she exclaimed.

Alyssa laughed and dropped her arms, grabbing my hand in one of hers. “C’mon, Dec.”

We walked to the kitchen, and she started throwing together a meal.

After dinner, we put on a movie for Phoebe before retreating to Flynn’s room, where the computer was. As Alyssa booted up the system, I looked around the room. I hadn’t noticed before, but it was surprisingly sparse. Besides the computer, there was a bed and a very small chest of drawers. Half a dozen shirts and a winter coat hung in the cupboard, but there was nothing to suggest a living arrangement of any permanence.

“How often does Flynn stay over?” I asked, trying to keep the jealousy out of my voice.

“It depends,” Alyssa answered distractedly. “But generally one night a week, I guess. It’s helpful, especially if I have to work late.”

“Are you going to miss him when you move to Sydney?”

Focusing on the screen, her fingers found the end of her hair.

“What is it?” I asked, knowing her well enough to know that was her anxious face.

“Well, before—” She cut off. She took a deep breath before continuing, “Before
us,
he was talking about moving to Sydney with me. To help with the costs and everything.”

There was more, I knew it. “And if you’d moved to London?”

She sighed. “He was planning on trying to come too.”

I was floored, but it helped me see one thing more clearly than I ever had before. He and his brother had what appeared to be a successful business in Browns Plains, but he was willing to move to help Alyssa out. “He really does care about you, doesn’t he?”

She nodded. “And Phoebe is his world.”

The reminder that due to my own stupidity someone else had been playing dad to my daughter for the last three and a half years stung.

“Please, don’t be jealous,” Alyssa said, turning to me. “I know how you feel about him and everything, but I’ve relied on him for so long. He’s my best friend.”

One day, I would earn that mantle back. “What’s going to happen now that there is an
us
?” I asked.

“I don’t know.” She turned away, her face thoughtful. “I guess we’ll have to cross that bridge when we come to it. I still need to finalise all my plans when it comes to the move.”

I nodded. She stood and offered the computer to me. The browser was open, and all I needed to do was log in to my webmail. Somehow, the minutes that it took to do that were the longest in my life. It wasn’t long before I found the airline itinerary amongst the pile of unread emails. My hands were shaking by the time I pushed the print button.

When I turned back toward Alyssa, she was staring into space, seemingly lost in thought.

“What is it?” I asked, touching her arm.

She started a little and dropped her gaze. When she spoke, her voice was so quiet I had to strain to hear it. “I was just thinking that perhaps, well, maybe, we should investigate getting the birth certificates amended.”

The emotion in her voice was so thick it was painful to hear, but it also spoke to me of the trust she’d started to feel toward me. Trust I’d thought I might never earn back, and yet ran deeper than I ever would have guessed. A wave of emotion crashed over me. To avoid sinking under it, I stood and pulled her into my arms.

“I’d like that,” I whispered. “If you’re sure?”

She nodded against my chest. “I’m sure. I think, well, I think I would like it too.”

In that instant, it was clear that having to put Flynn’s name on the birth certificate had hurt her as much as it had hurt me to see it there. If things had gone differently, if she hadn’t needed to grieve and hand the reins over to someone else for a while, she might have never done it.

After the conversation, I felt braver. In fact, I almost felt ready to face Danny and anything he could throw at me. After all, how bad could it be?

When Phoebe was tucked in and asleep, I lay in bed with Alyssa curled in to my side. My mind ticked over with all the changes that’d happened in such a short time frame. Despite the pain they’d caused me and my loved ones, I struggled to regret a single thing that’d happened. Each event had led me one step closer to being right where I was. Back to Alyssa. Back to love. Swallowing down the rush of emotion rising within me, I squeezed her more tightly.