Amy Atwell - Lying Eyes

“I used to pretend I was a thief.” He sat on the bed to pull his boots on, but leaned across to touch her cheek first. “If anything happened to you, I…” He swallowed.

“I know. I worry about you, too. You’ll be careful out there tonight, right?”

“You bet. I’ll be back before dawn, and with any luck I’ll have Cosmo with me.” He tugged the boots on and stood.

Iris shifted onto her knees and leaned in to kiss him once hard on the lips. “Come back to me.”

“I will.”

Moments later, he was gone, leaving Iris with butterflies the size of dragons in her stomach. Some of it was worry for Mickey’s safety, but the bigger portion devoured her because she had a plan-one she knew Mickey would hate.

Which was why she hadn’t told him.

Mickey trod quietly down the service corridor that linked the various stores in the Bellagio’s shopping wing. Hopefully, he could avoid any security guards. He doubted the three he met earlier today would be happy to see him again, and they’d probably made a point to share his picture with everyone else on their team. Michael Kincaid, Madman.

Arriving at the back entrance to Iris’s shop, he pressed the buzzer. Within moments, Ginny opened the door and motioned him inside. Her eyes were alight with excitement.

“This is so cool,” she whispered. “Now tell me, who are you really?”

“You’re better off not knowing. I’m trouble.”

That only made her grin. “Iris doesn’t think so. Although if David gets wind of what’s going on, poof.” She flicked her fingers open like a tiny explosion.

“Poof?” Apparently, David didn’t do anything big. Since it wasn’t Mickey’s place to discuss Iris’s relationships, he redirected the conversation to here and now. “Look, you should get back out on the floor.” The store’s eleven o’clock closing time was only ten minutes away.

Ginny retreated toward the sales floor. “How is this going to work?”

“I’m going to sit back here. You do what you normally do. Put everything away, lock up and go home like normal. The only step you should skip is setting the alarm.”

“Got it.” Her fingers formed a big okay sign, and with a grin she skipped back out to the floor.

Mickey released a tense breath. He didn’t like letting Ginny in on even this much of his evening’s plans, but Iris had been adamant that the girl was reliable. He had to admit, it was a lot easier to let her lock him in here than to try and break in without getting caught.

Getting caught in the act of breaking and entering would be a hard one for him to explain to security. Today of all days.

He sat on Iris’s stool. She’d said Cosmo had been breaking in between eleven and midnight, so once Ginny locked up, he might not have long to wait. Meanwhile… He looked around the workroom. Curious about all the lateral file cabinets, he went over and tested one. Locked. He tried not to take it personally. This was her place of business. It’s not like Iris was purposely keeping more secrets from him.

But he’d sensed she was holding something back. Not while they’d made love, but afterward. Like she’d wanted to say something but didn’t dare. And that meant she still didn’t trust him.

He’d fallen for a woman who didn’t believe in him. Come to think of it, she’d had more faith in him when she thought he was Mickey the thief than she did now. At least she’d been more open with him.

He’d been confiding in her all weekend, asking for her help, depending on her. The only other person he’d ever treated that way had been Brian. Losing his brother had opened up an abyss that had sucked away any good or positive feelings for months. But Iris had helped fill that void. Maybe with her help, he could overcome this paralysis that prevented him from feeling anything.

He sat again and waited, trying to blank his mind to everything except for the moment when he came face to face with Cosmo Fortune again. In a few minutes, Ginny came in the back to shut off the lights and say goodbye. He listened as her key grated in the lock, and then only silence remained.

As solitude enshrouded him, Mickey felt an unaccountable urge to reach out to someone. He thought about calling his parents, but if his mother were in the mood to talk, he might never be able to end the conversation. No, there was one call he needed to make, and he’d put it off far too long.

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed the familiar Boston number before he realized what time it would be there.

Despite it being after two in the morning, she answered on the first ring. “Hello?”

“Suze?”

“Michael.” She drew breath and exhaled, and he knew she’d succumbed to her smoking addiction again. “I wondered if you’d ever have the balls to call me. Still working odd hours, I see.”

“I’m on a job out west. Sorry, I didn’t think how late it would be for you.”

She bit off a laugh. “It’s never too late. That’s something I’ve learned.”

“How are you doing?” He pictured her. Suze Freeman had made varsity cheerleader in her freshman year at high school. Tall, strong, stacked, with long dark hair and walnut-brown eyes. But it was her attitude that attracted the guys more than anything. She’d been named Homecoming Queen her senior year, but long before that she’d staked her territory on the hearts of every male at Channing High School.

Some girls with her looks, brains and talent would have turned into real bitches. Never Suze. He’d noticed her-hell, all the guys had noticed her. Mickey had even thought about asking her out. And then he’d realized the most amazing thing about her: she only had eyes for Brian.

After graduation, she’d gone into advertising while his brother went through the academy. She’d waited patiently while he’d worked his way into the Boston PD. They’d delayed their marriage three times, waiting until they had the incomes they felt necessary to live the life they wanted. Together, they’d planned so carefully, their futures dedicated to each other.

And it had all gone so terribly wrong.

“Sounds like you’re smoking again.”

“Are you worried for my health? Believe me, if the past six months didn’t kill me, nothing will.” She took another slow drag on the cigarette. “Still saving mankind?”

“Something like that.”

“You Kincaid men. Driven. I just don’t understand it.” He heard some rustling, and imagined her sitting up in bed, arranging the pillows, hopefully dabbing that cigarette out before she burned down her home. “What does it get you?”

“It’s who we are, Suze. Didn’t you and Brian talk about it?”

“He said the same truisms-who we are. Maybe I never understood him. All I wanted was a better life for us.”

For her, Mickey thought. Then he kicked himself, because the woman had already had her life pulled apart. Of course she wanted a piece of it back-any piece.

By their first anniversary, she’d done everything she could to convince Brian to quit his job on the force. Apparently, the reality of being a cop’s wife didn’t match up with the preordained image she had of their life together. She wanted him to make more money, work weekdays only, and she’d made it clear to all the Kincaids how she resented that Brian wouldn’t make this one sacrifice for her. She’d finally drawn the line and refused to consider having children until Brian had a safe job.

Brian had laughed it off and said she’d come around. But she’d hurt his brother with that lack of confidence, Mickey could tell. Now he wondered if she still believed she were better off without having a baby, but he didn’t dare broach the question with her.