Your Eyes Don't Lie Page 6

  Was that his doorbell ringing? Pulling on dark gray dress pants and a fitted gray and black button-down shirt, he hurried to the door.

  “Finally!” Tianna said, pushing inside. “What? You aren’t ready yet? I told you we’d be here at six thirty.” His little sister was a miniature of his mother—blond hair, tiny frame, and blue eyes with the same dark lashes—though he knew for a fact that her blond came from a bottle and not from nature like his mother’s.

  “I had to work late. I spent the morning . . . Never mind.”

  “Well, the others are waiting in the car. But I need to eat something right now, or I’m going to puke.” She made a face, grabbing her stomach. “Oops, too late.” With a hand over her mouth she ran across his living room and down the hall. He heard her gag into the toilet. Ugh.

  “Is she okay?”

  He turned to see his other sister, Rhonda, in the doorway of his apartment. She was tall, brown-haired, and large-boned like their father, and her square face was more arresting than beautiful. She’d had more boyfriends growing up than anyone he’d ever known. “I don’t know.”

  “Well, get your socks and shoes on and I’ll go check. She should be over the worst of it soon.”

  “I thought morning sickness only happened in the morning.”

  “That’s a myth.” She frowned. “Why aren’t you ready?”

  He sighed. “I had some things to take care of.”

  She had started walking across the living room, but now she stopped and faced him. “Is it something to do with mom? Because I happen to know she came to see you yesterday. And she’s been acting weird.”

  What would Rhonda say if she knew they had another sister? She’d probably confront her mother but agree with her that things were better left as they were. She hated clashing with Eli. She was a lot like their mother that way.

  “I just worked late,” he said.

  “I’ve heard they’re slave drivers at Honeywell.”

  He laughed. “I like to keep busy.”

  Tianna took that moment to appear in the living room, her face pale and her blond hair a bit wild. “I’m beginning to rethink this whole pregnancy thing.”

  “Well, we all told you to wait a few years,” Rhonda said. “But don’t worry. You won’t remember any of it once the baby’s born.”

  Tianna rolled her eyes, and Harrison stifled a laugh. Same old Tianna, who hated being mothered by her sister. Only twelve months separated them, but Rhonda had always been an old soul.

  “So are we still going?” Harrison asked.

  “Of course we’re going.” Tianna glared at him, hands on her hips. “A little puking doesn’t change anything. We’re going to celebrate all of us being together again if it kills me. Got it?”

  “Okay, okay.” He hurried to the bedroom for his socks.

  “And fix your hair!” Tianna called after him. “Put some gel in it or something. You look like you just got out of the shower.”

  Harrison laughed. It was good to be home, even if his baby sisters thought they had to take care of him. It was kind of nice for a change, going with the flow instead of trying to figure out a romantic relationship that had soured and dragging himself every day to a job he’d once loved but that had somehow become unfulfilling.

  Fifteen minutes later, Harrison was in the backseat of his brother-in-law’s car. “So, where’re we going?” he asked Tianna, who sat between him and her husband Chad, a man who had been a football player before he started selling air conditioners and whose arms were double the size of Harrison’s.

  “I don’t know,” she said.

  After a little investigation, Harrison realized that everyone had thought someone else had taken care of reservations, and by the time Rhonda’s husband, Graham, turned north on Black Canyon Highway, no one had any ideas where to go, or why he’d turned onto the highway in the first place. “I’m just driving,” he said when Rhonda protested. “Tell me where to go, and I’ll drive there.”

  “How about Sizzler?” Chad asked. “They’re having a special. All you can eat ribs.”

  “Ugh, no,” said Tianna. “Boring.” When she saw the disappointment in his face, she patted his hand. “Don’t worry, once the baby’s born, I’m sure that’s all we’ll ever be able to afford.”

  “Well, there’s really nowhere I want to go in this direction,” Rhonda said as they passed Castles ~N~ Coasters. “Turn around. Let’s go to Bluewater Grill on Camelback.”

  Harrison laughed. He didn’t really care where they ate.

  They were still arguing whether to go to Bluewater Grill or a place called Christopher’s that was a bit further east and served French cuisine when he saw the Sebring in a parking lot off the highway. He did a double take. With that cool blue, it had to be the same car.

  “Q lounge,” he said, his eyes going to the sign above the building. “Let’s go there.”

  “What?” Rhonda turned around, looking at him. “Really?”

  “The Q lounge serves a buffet in their dance club,” Chad said. “Same food as Bobby-Q next door. Great barbecue. I could go there. We could get in a little dancing. There’s no cover charge until later.”

  Tianna laughed. “Sounds fun. We haven’t been there since we got married.”

  “That was only four months ago,” Rhonda said, with a groan. “You were barely old enough to get in.”

  “Oh, come on,” Tianna said. “Let’s make a night of it.” Her face glowed. “Who wants some stuffy old restaurant when we can scream and holler and dance all night?”

  Rhonda shook her head. “You’re going to be sorry. You know you can’t drink, right? Because of the baby.”

  “Of course I know that.” Tianna snuggled up to Chad. “I don’t need to drink to have fun. Let’s do it.”

  Rhonda looked at Graham, who shrugged and exited the freeway.

  Harrison was already regretting his outburst. What if it wasn’t her car? And even if it was, what did he think he was going to do, ask her out? Throw a can at her feet? Ha.

  It probably wasn’t her car, or she was nearly finished eating and on her way out. Maybe she’d had to park on the lounge side because there wasn’t any parking on the restaurant side. If she was there, he’d probably better keep his distance. Otherwise, she might call the police and accuse him of stalking her. Then again, she’d been the one parked outside the gym today when the note on his windshield had disappeared. Maybe he needed to talk to her about that.

  They went inside, and despite the crowd, Tianna and Chad somehow arranged a table. Graham looked a little out of his element, preferring more conservative venues, but he good-naturedly offered Rhonda his arm. Harrison followed the couple, suddenly wishing he’d opted for the French cuisine instead. Here, they would expect him to hit on some of the admittedly sexy women, but he didn’t know if he was ready for another relationship. Maybe that’s why the woman in the Sebring was so attractive to him—the child with her obviously meant she was out of reach.

  Chad went back for seconds at the buffet, much to Tianna’s disgruntlement, so she pulled Harrison to his feet. “Let’s dance.”

  He grabbed his drink and finished it off before following her out onto the floor. There were a lot of people, but he didn’t feel in danger yet of being trampled. Still, he’d have to keep a close eye on Tianna. She wasn’t showing yet, but what if someone bumped into her? Maybe this was a bad idea.

  He saw her then, the woman from Albertsons. She was dancing with a dark-haired guy wearing a dress shirt and black pants, but she seemed almost to be dancing alone, as though the man were nothing more than a peripheral thought. Her hands wove above her head and then down in a movement so natural and alluring that his feet stopped moving so he could better watch. She looked different than she had in the parking lot yesterday. She wore a fitted black dress that hit a few inches above her knees and showed off the slender figure that had been hidden beneath the jacket and jeans she’d worn before. Her hair was teased and clipped up on her head, with
a few curls escaping, and she was probably wearing makeup because her dark eyes stood out even more. She looked almost otherworldly—and absolutely gorgeous. A lump formed in his throat.

  She seemed unaware of the other dancers, even her partner, her body moving perfectly with the beat. Was the man the father of her child? Or perhaps a date she had no real interest in being with? As he watched, her gaze slid his way and stopped. Her eyes widened in recognition, sending an electric spark through his entire body.

  Tianna chose that moment to speak, stepping closer so he could hear her above the music. “This is the best! We would never have come here without you. I’ve missed you so much.” When he didn’t respond, she followed his gaze. “Who’s that?”

  “I don’t know.”

  She laughed. “Want to meet her? I bet I can arrange it.”

  Dancers moved between them and the woman was lost to his sight. “No. I can handle it.”

  “Whatever.” Tianna laughed again. “Look, there’s Chad. He’s waving. Do you think he’s finally done eating? Come on, let’s go see what he wants.”

  She seized Harrison’s hand and pulled him through the crowd, weaving expertly through the dancers while he had to repeatedly apologize for bumping into someone. So much for protecting her. He glanced back, but the woman from Albertsons was nowhere to be seen.

  I have to question her, he thought, yet he knew it was only an excuse.

  Chapter Six

  Makay let the crowd draw her away from the man she had met in the parking lot the day before. Funny that he would be here tonight. Who was the woman with him? She was attractive, but the way he’d stared at Makay . . . no, she wouldn’t allow herself to think about it. She was here to have a good time, and that was all. Tessa had been right about her needing a break. The crowd seemed a little young tonight, but mostly everyone her age did these days. They knew so little about real life. About taking care of a child, putting food on the table . . . and blackmail.

  And the man? She didn’t know what his story was. She didn’t want to know.

  Maybe it was time to leave and pick up Nate instead of letting him spend the night. Tessa and the others would understand, wouldn’t they?

  The music stopped and her partner sidled closer, his hand a little too familiar on the small of her back. He was good looking enough, but she wasn’t attracted to him. “You dance great,” he murmured in a tone that sounded like it belonged in the bedroom.

  “Thanks. You, too.” She waved goodbye and started back to her table before he could ask for her number. Fleetingly, she wished the room was completely empty and that she could dance all by herself without having to worry about a man.

  “Hey,” Tessa’s friend Brette appeared at her side. “Don’t look now, but that guy you just danced with is coming after you. You want to dance with him again, or should we take a trip to the bathroom?”

  “Bathroom,” Makay said. “And why do I suddenly feel like I’m back in high school?”

  “I know.” Brette led her to the restroom, holding the door open for her. “That’s why in general I avoid these places. Still, it’s fun with friends.”

  There was a short line for the toilets but they moved toward a mirror that was open. “How long have you known Tessa and Lily?” Brette asked.

  “About five years. Well, Lily, anyway. I met Tessa later, after she got married.” Makay peered into the mirror. The woman staring back seemed a stranger, a party girl. Not someone who was planning to become an accountant and who picked up a kid at the elementary school every day and whose only adult sleeping partner was a dog.

  Brette leaned forward and passed a tube of lipstick over her already painted mouth. She had thick, straight, beautiful brown hair that was a shade lighter than Makay’s and reached clear to the base of her spine. There was no accent in her voice, or anything Makay could pinpoint as foreign, but she definitely had an exotic flare in her beautiful bronze coloring, though perhaps her skin was just tanned. Her eyelashes were twice as thick as Makay’s—and the mascara she wore made them even thicker.

  Brette met her eyes in the mirror. “Tessa told me about your parents. To tell you the truth, that’s the only reason I came tonight. I thought if you could do it, so could I. Go on, I mean.” She hesitated, her voice lowering as she glanced at the other women in the room. “Of course, I didn’t have it nearly as bad as you did, losing both parents. I never knew my father, but I did have my mother all these years. Isn’t it . . . doesn’t it feel weird to know that there’s no one out there? No one to pick you up if you make a mistake. To pay the rent or give you a place to go if you can’t make it. I feel . . . so alone.”

  Makay shook her head and said slowly, “I don’t know what it’s like to have anyone do those things.” She regretted the words the instant they left her mouth. They sounded so self-pitying. Besides, Brette was mourning the loss of her mother and bringing up her own sad history wouldn’t help Brette. “It gets easier,” she added quickly. “You learn to cope. To survive. And you have friends like Lily and Tessa. They’re good people.”

  Brette turned, leaning her bottom against the counter. “Yeah. I feel kind of stupid crashing at Lily’s. I’d been staying at my mother’s since her death—it seemed pointless to keep my apartment when I have to figure out what to do with the house—but suddenly I couldn’t take being there alone anymore. I’m seriously thinking of getting a dog.”

  Makay laughed. “Don’t give in to that urge. You won’t be able to go anywhere without worrying if you’ll have a couch when you get back, or if it’ll pee on the carpet. And the food! My dog eats more than three times what I do. I can’t even think about a vacation because who would I leave him with?”

  “Kind of like a kid, huh?” Brette laughed with her. “Although if all kids are as sweet as your little brother, I think it’d be great having a kid. We had quite a conversation on Thursday when he was there at Lily’s. Well, before he abandoned me to play with Jonny. I think he’s probably the smartest first-grader in Arizona.”

  Makay’s heart warmed to her. “He is pretty amazing,” she agreed, “despite . . .” She trailed off. Despite what? Despite being born to a druggie? Despite having only Makay to raise him? It all seemed so unfair to poor Nate.

  “Hey,” Brette said, apparently interpreting Makay’s thoughts from her expression, “you’ve done great with him. I wish . . . I wish I had something like him in my life.” She shook her head. “All I’ve got is my mother’s little house that creaks at night, a job at the hospital that I’m probably going to lose because I’ve missed so much with the funeral and everything, and a bunch of my mother’s papers in a foreign language I can’t read but that I’m sure are terribly important.”

  “You’ll make it work,” Makay said. “You have to.”

  Brette smiled. “You’re right. I will.” She moved aside as a woman approached, indicating that she wanted to wash her hands. “Do you think your admirer has given up? He’s probably a stalker, you know.”

  “Nah, he’s just a guy looking for a good time, and if that means dancing, I’m fine with it.” Makay started for the door. It wasn’t like she was going to invite him to her apartment, even though Nate would be at Lily’s.

  “You’re probably right. It’s just all that creaking at night that’s freaking me out. I kind of wish I hadn’t given up my apartment or broken up with my boyfriend so I’d have someone to come over and check out the house—although breaking up with him was the smartest thing I ever did.”

  Makay leaned forward and whispered, “Maybe you should get a gun.”

  Brette blinked. “You have one?”

  “Yeah. Makes me feel better, too.”

  “Maybe you can teach me. But truthfully, getting back with my boyfriend sounds easier.” She sighed. “Unfortunately, it was a promise I made my mother a week before she died. She hated him, and I have to admit that she had reason.”

  Be grateful someone cared who you were dating. But Makay didn’t say the words aloud because
she really liked Brette and the girl had enough on her mind. She stepped around a knot of women and opened the door. Music from the club blasted them in the face.

  Brette squealed. “I love this song!”

  “Well, that guy’s gone.” Makay looked around. “I don’t see anyone else I really want to dance with.”

  “Look! There’s Tessa and Gage. Let’s go dance with them. Gage is man enough, don’t you think?” Brette giggled. “Can’t miss this song.”

  Why not? It didn’t seem to matter if you even had a partner, and dancing with friends meant no awkward moments or making up excuses not to give out your number. Makay was not looking for a relationship, after all. Still, she understood where Brette was coming from regarding their conversation about her ex-boyfriend. It would be nice to have someone around who understood—who wanted good things for her. While Makay had dated a few guys, she’d never had that. Most had just wanted to sleep with her, and when they found out she had a child, well, they lost even that urge.

  Makay forgot her thoughts as she danced to the song. It was a popular one she’d heard on the radio recently, but for the life of her she couldn’t remember who the artist was—or even understand half the words. But the beat was perfect and her body swayed of its own accord. Tessa didn’t mind dancing with them, and Gage’s green eyes seemed rather pleased with all the attention.

  Another song began and she kept dancing. The beat was everything. She let her frustrations slide away—school, Lenny, the fact that she’d have to do another blackmail pickup. For the moment there was nothing but the music. Brette and Tessa laughed as Gage dipped Tessa in an exaggerated movement that clashed with the beat of the music. Tessa was in fine spirits; at night she always came alive, evolving into some sort of vibrant alter ego. Makay laughed with them.

  She became aware of someone behind her and turned slowly, wondering if her previous partner had found her. The music ended just then, and there were several loud thunks! as cans of some kind of food fell to the ground and rolled to her feet. She followed their path back to their origination and found herself staring into the eyes of the man from the Albertsons parking lot. His dark blond hair shone under the flashing lights, and his blue eyes looked black. On his face there was a little scruff, partially hiding a small cleft in his chin, and she suspected he disliked shaving. He wore dark slacks and a gray and black shirt that fit his wide shoulders perfectly while narrowing to a slim waist. Maybe clothes weren’t just to cover nakedness after all, at least not the way he wore them. He was the best looking guy in the entire room. And he was alone.