Chapter 18

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

K itty had won.

She'd played dirty, and she'd won.

And Declan hadn't seen it coming.

Was he really fit to be a cop if his own mother could successfully lie to him, and he didn't notice?

He was going to have to up his game.

He was pissed, but also impressed. Go, Mom.

Because dinner at the club with his mom had been a farce.

It was a damned fundraiser that had three hundred guests, a live band, and money dripping off every word uttered by the attendees.

Declan stood inside the ballroom doors, tension growing fast and dark inside him as he digested the event that his mother had tricked him into attending. He'd been actually looking forward to dinner tonight. Ready to laugh and feel a lightness in his heart that had come to life last night with Piper.

But when he'd said his soul would be a shriveled corpse by the end of the night, he'd vastly overestimated how long that process would take. In reality, the deed had been accomplished in about three seconds after walking in.

If it weren't for Piper, he would turn around and leave .

If she didn't show up soon, he might have to anyway.

Kitty trotted up, beaming at him. "Declan, my darling! You look so dashing! I have so many people who are dying to meet my reclusive son?—"

"Dinner. That's what tonight was."

She beamed at him unapologetically. "We are eating dinner."

He shifted restlessly. "You didn't say it was a fundraiser."

"You didn't ask, did you?" She was clearly feeling sassy and unrepentant, and he wasn't in the mood for it.

"You knew I wouldn't come," he said.

"How would I know that? You haven't been here in years and suddenly you come for Piper. How do you expect me to know the rules about what you will and won't attend?"

He took a breath, trying to remain calm. "Mom. I can't stay."

"Declan!" Piper's hand slid into his, and he closed his eyes, breathing in the relief that her touch gave him. "I'm so sorry I'm late." She squeezed his hand, her thumb rubbing over his palm. "Hi, Kitty."

His mom beamed at her. "Piper! So delighted you're here. I think Declan was about to hightail it out of here!"

He opened his eyes and looked over at Piper. She was leaning into his shoulder, her blue eyes looking up at him with concern. His breath caught when he saw her. Her hair was falling in adorable curls over her shoulders, and her eyes were luminous with her makeup. He generally wasn't into women who wore a lot of makeup, but the way Piper was wearing it was stunning. "Shit, you're beautiful."

She beamed at him. "You're very handsome as well. I didn't think your body knew how to wear a tie."

"It doesn't."

She patted the tie, which meant her hand settled on his chest, easing the tension gripping him so tightly. "It's okay. I'll protect you from the tie."

He was surprised to feel himself smile. "Appreciate that."

"No problem. I got your back, big guy. "

"Thanks." His equilibrium back on track, he looked over at his mom, who was watching them intently. "What time is dinner?"

"Seven thirty. We're at table three, down in front." She turned to Piper. "I have some folks I'd like you both to meet. Shall we?"

Piper smiled at his mom before he could answer. "We'll catch up with you in a few minutes, Kitty. I need to run a few things by Declan first."

Kitty frowned. "But?—"

"We'll be right back!" Piper pushed Declan to the side, and waved at Kitty. "Promise!"

Declan let out his breath as Piper headed to the bar, her grip tight on his hand. She didn't slow down until she found them two seats at the end of the bar. "Sit."

He sat.

She sat next to him, spinning the bar stool so she was facing him. She leaned in, took his hands, and smiled, using her body language to send the message to the room that it was an intimate moment not to be disturbed.

He was impressed.

"You looked like you were about to drop dead on the spot when I walked up." she said. "What's going on?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. It's fine."

"Now, you're the bad liar. I need to know what's going on with you. There are a lot of people around here who are going to start talking to us really soon, and if you're about to crack, I need to be prepared. Do you need to leave?"

"No. Shit. No."

"What is it?"

He swore, his gaze going around the room, at all the fancy dress and artificial conversations he'd left behind. "I haven't been here since my dad died."

Piper blinked. "You miss your dad?"

"Yeah, well, I mean." Shit. "I don't want to talk about this."

"Doesn't matter. You're on a job with me, and I need the info required to get through tonight. What's going on? "

Declan ground his jaw, and suddenly the story started tumbling out, words he'd never spoken in his life. "My dad was a cop. My mom was a pop star. They met when he did security for her at a concert in town. They fell hard for each other and got married."

Surprise flickered in Piper's eyes. "That's so romantic."

"It is, yeah. But she wanted him to quit being a cop and go on tour with her. To be her arm candy. He refused. He didn't like this world. This superficiality. He never fit in, but she immersed herself in it as her career exploded."

Piper chewed her lower lip and nodded, listening.

Declan continued, surprised how good it felt to talk about it. "Eventually, my mom filed for divorce, because she felt like he didn't support her. Broke both their hearts because they really loved each other. After a couple years of separation, my mom quit touring and came home here to stay. They got back together, but my dad never came to these things unless he had to, and even then, he hated being here. Then my dad got sick. He died a few years later."

Empathy softened Piper's face. "Oh. I'm so sorry."

"Thanks." Declan became aware of how tightly he was holding her hand, but he didn't loosen his grip. He needed to touch her. "Before he died, he told me to be true to who I was. To not get caught up in the fact I was a trust-fund baby. He told me I still needed to be someone, do something, make a difference."

Piper nodded. "Sounds like a great man."

"He was. He left behind a lot of cases unsolved, so I became a cop. My brother is in my mom's world, but I felt like someone needed to keep my dad's legacy alive. So, that's what I did." He didn't tell her what else his dad had told his kids: to embrace love when you were lucky enough to find it. Never to prioritize ego or career or anything over love.

His dad had always mourned the time he'd lost with his wife, especially when he died so soon after they'd reconciled. "He told us not to waste a moment of our lives. To live the best we could, love the most we could, and to never betray the gifts we were given."

"By gifts, he meant who you are as a person, right?"

Declan grinned. Piper got it. "Yeah."

"And for you, that's being a cop."

"Yeah." Wasn't it? He leaned in, rubbing his thumbs over Piper's palms. "I believe that my dad died of a broken heart. The years he lost with my mom almost killed him, and when they got back together, it was too late. She'd rejected him for his lack of commitment to her money and fame, and he was never able to fully recover from that."

Understanding filled Piper's face. "You resent her for that? And you resent the money because of the tragedy it brought to your dad?"

Declan nodded. "I try not to. He forgave her. I love her, and I accept her, but sometimes, I see that same edge to her that drove him away." He waved his hand around the room. "This world haunts me."

Piper squeezed his hands. "We don't need to stay," she said softly. "I'll tell your mom I'm not feeling well?—"

"No." Declan cut her off. "My dad lost the woman he loved because he refused to accept part of who she was. This world is important to you. You need to be here. And I'm here for you."

Piper smiled softly and brushed her finger along his jaw. "We're not married, Declan. You don't need to suffer for me."

"I think…" He paused to kiss the palm of her hand. "No. I believe that you are in my life because I need you to get out of my darkness, and that includes this. You give me reason to walk into this life again, the life my dad rejected, and I rejected as well. My mom and brother live here, and if I can't be in it, then I can't be with them."

Her gaze was kind as she looked at him. "But it's hard."

"It's easier with you." He grinned. "Don't get me wrong. I'm not going to start going to charity events every weekend, but a family dinner here and there? Might be worth it. "

Piper smiled. "It might be. Kitty isn't that bad. I'd take her as my mom."

Declan was feeling so much clearer now. Sharing all that with Piper had lightened a weight that had been clamped down on his shoulders for years. He hadn't even understood what he'd just told her, until the words had come out of his mouth. "What about your mom? She good?"

Piper's smile flickered, just a little bit, but enough that he noticed. "Naughty boy. Trying to start another conversation so we never leave the bar? I see right through those manipulations."

What was she hiding? What was in Piper's story that she was so worried about keeping hidden, even from him?

Her gaze slipped past him, and she sat up. "There's a bride I'm meeting with tomorrow. Can we go dance next to her?"

"Yeah, sure." He couldn't hide his disappointment that she hadn't met him halfway, after he'd laid it out for her. He'd known he had emotional walls, but Piper's were even stronger than his.

But there was something there, deep beneath the surface with Piper, and he wanted to know what it was. He wanted her to trust him enough to tell him. He wanted her all the way.