Chapter 11
Eleven
B y seven that night, Declan was antsy. It was an odd feeling for him. He usually loved hanging out in his restaurant and truly enjoyed his work. It wasn’t like there weren’t bad nights or even bad employees. But most of the time, he was happy at work.
Tonight was different. Tonight, Declan would rather be with Eileen. Even thinking her name had his dick twitching. The women already tugged at him on a level he wasn’t sure he liked.
“What is up with you?” Seamus asked as he studied Declan. Out of all of them, Seamus was good at rooting out that something was off with one of them.
“Nothing.”
His brother locked his gaze on Declan as he took a long drink from his beer.
“Stop that. It doesn’t work.”
He smiled because even to Declan’s own ears, he sounded defensive.
“Fine. I sent Eileen lunch. I haven’t heard from her.”
There was a long beat of silence.
“And her partner. I made sure Eddie had something to eat, too.”
Seamus’s eyes widened. “Wooing her with food?”
“No.” Then, “Okay, maybe. She seems to like it when I cook for her.”
“Everyone likes it when you cook for them.”
“No. That Cindy did not like my food.”
His brother snorted. “Cindy didn’t like any food. Why you dated a model, I have no idea.”
Madness in the form of Eileen O’Reilly. Cindy wasn’t exactly a model. She was more of an aspiring model with a few local gigs, and while she was nice enough and the sex had been…okay, she had been the antithesis of Eileen. Eileen wasn’t short, but she was authentic. And she loved to eat. Cindy did not. She wanted to eat as few calories as possible. Nothing wrong with that, but damn, it was complicated to make her a meal.
“Yeah, well, I haven’t heard from her. I mean, she thanked me in a text.”
“That’s good.”
“And she tipped the server I sent even though she didn’t need to.”
“Of course she did. She waited tables when she went to college.”
“Yeah, I know that.” Wait. “How did you know that?”
“Hmm, might have been Kaitlin or Wendy who mentioned it.”
He nodded. “She’s been at work a long time today.”
“She’s used to it.”
He knew that, but it didn’t make him like it anymore. He had always been someone who liked to comfort friends and family. Most of the time, it was with food, but now, he wanted to care for Eileen.
“Hey, they’re talking about Irene,” Sandy said. Declan turned to face the TV closest to him.
“There are sources inside the Baltimore PD that say the two murders could be linked.”
Then, there was a scene outside of Eileen’s precinct. She and Eddie were walking out together, and they were stopped by the camera.
“Detective O’Reilly, do you have a comment about the two cases being linked?”
“No comment, just like I told you earlier.”
She brushed past him, but the reporter wasn’t giving up.
“Don’t you think the women of Baltimore deserve an answer?”
That stopped her, and when she turned around to face the reporter, irritation sizzled in her eyes.
“Oh, damn, that guy is never going to get an interview with Eileen,” Seamus murmured.
Declan curled his fingers to make fists. Fuck, he hated anyone saying things like that about Eileen. She cared so much about her job, and this asshole was making it sound like she was hiding things. Other people might not see how tired she was, but he did. He also was up close and personal with just how little sleep she’d had last night. Guilt hit him when he realized he had kept her up when she should have been resting. Not that he would change anything about last night, but he knew she had to be exhausted.
“I care deeply about the people—men, women, and children—in this city. But linking two murders before we have the entire picture could screw up the investigation, Johnathon. ”
Oh, damn, that tone. That was sexy as hell. Her voice shook with passion and just a little anger. He was pretty sure that most people watching would be on her side.
“So, once again, I will say no comment. When we have more information, then we will let the public know. But there is one thing I have to say.” Her gaze focused on the camera and not the reporter. “No matter if it was one or two different men, we will catch the perpetrators. A man who would do this is weak. In any other case, a woman could take him down. That’s why he does it at night. That’s what cowards do.”
She turned and headed down the steps with her partner.
“Your woman doesn’t take shit off anyone,” Seamus said, admiration filling his voice.
His brother might not understand just what happened, but Declan did. Ice careened through his blood as he stared at the TV. Some commercial was playing, but he barely paid attention to it. Seamus was going on about how badass she was, but Declan could barely respond.
Eileen had just put a target on her back, and he was sure she had done it on purpose.
Getting home seemed to take forever for Eileen. She loved her job, but there were days like today that really tested her abilities. A lot of people thought that cops did their job to go after perps. Granted, that was part of it, but the other part of it was the victims. Today…that had been a hard one to handle.
Eddie had been right. Their victim had been working the streets. Jennifer Rowe was only twenty-three, but she looked older thanks to the life she had led. A runaway at the age of sixteen, she had been homeless for most of those seven years. A heroin addiction had forced her into prostitution. Got to support that habit, right?
Bitterness filled her, and she had to push back on it. It made it difficult to do the job. Relief hit Eileen as she pulled up to the curb in front of her house. Everything seemed to be quiet, thanks to the chilly rain. April was their rainiest month during the Spring, but March could definitely hit them hard because the rain was always so damned cold. Maybe that’s why she couldn’t get her body to warm up today.
She noticed a package sitting on the stoop as she approached her door. She frowned, trying to remember if she had ordered anything. She picked it up and saw her name, but there was no postmark. There was a good chance Mrs. Kilpatrick had left her some goodies. As cranky as that woman was, she always made Eileen cookies at least once a month. She bent to pick it up, then heard a car drive up and park behind her. Frowning, she turned and noticed it was Declan.
Warmth filled her as she watched him slip out of his truck and walk toward her. That and a little fear. She was so eager to see him, to feel him slip his arms around her and tell her things would be okay, that it scared her. And embarrassed her. Eileen learned early on that men did not do well with her job, and from the irritated look on his face, Declan was angry that she hadn’t gotten in touch with him today.
Rude, although she did text her thanks. Part of it was on purpose, and part of it was the job.
It’s been one day, and I need him too much.
There were times during the day when she had been irritated or overwhelmed. In those moments, she had wanted Declan. One freaking date, and he was under her skin. That wasn’t good.
“Hey, you okay?”
He was worried about her? She frowned.
“Yeah. Why?”
He shoved his hands into his front pockets. “We?—”
“We?”
“Seamus was by the restaurant. We had the news on since it was so slow, and we saw you sticking it to Carmichael.”
That had brought her some joy. That asshole had tried to ambush her and Eddie when they left the precinct. Sticking it to him on TV had been worth the annoyed text she got from the captain.
“Yeah, we watched you. I take it you had a tough day?”
She nodded. Eileen knew she shouldn’t do it, shouldn’t show weakness, but she couldn’t help herself. “Wanna come in?”
Relief filled his expression. He had been worried she wouldn’t want to spend time with him.
“Only if you feel up to it.”
She blinked. Was he leaving the ball in her court? This was new for her.
“But I do need to talk to you.”
And there it was.
“Come on.”
She unlocked her door, and he followed her into her house. It was warm inside, but she was chilled to the bone. It had nothing to do with the weather but with whatever BS Declan was going to give her. At least he was doing this in person.
It was only one glorious night, and he saw her on TV and realized he wasn’t up for it. Some guys would get off on the notoriety. She had already gotten tons of texts from friends and family about it, and she was sure the few unknowns she had ignored came from reporters. It would only get worse before this was over.
She closed the front door, then walked into the kitchen, setting the package down on the counter.
“What do you want to talk about?”
“What’s wrong?”
That had her glancing over her shoulder at Declan. He was so big and beautiful, and dammit, she wanted to keep him. She yearned to come home to him, to share her day with him. To just be with him.
Oh, dammit. No, this was wrong. Her dependency wasn’t a good thing. All men leave. Her father was different, but she didn’t seem to attract the kind of man who wanted to deal with her job. Or her. He had a lot to deal with.
She studied him as panic clawed at her throat. Eileen knew it was a stupid thing to do, but apparently, over the last few months, she had been falling in love with Declan.
What was she going to do about that?
“Now you look sick. Come sit down.” She was so stunned by the silent admission that she didn’t fight him when he took her by the arm and led her to one of the stools at her counter. He eased her into it.
“I bet you haven’t eaten since lunch, have you?”
She shook her head.
He was muttering under his breath as he opened her refrigerator. “How do you survive?”
“Sarcasm and coffee.”
Pausing his perusal of her fridge, he sent a narrowed-eye glare over his shoulder. “That is not enough.”
“Declan, you said you wanted to talk to me.”
He shut the door to the fridge and then faced her. “I didn’t like what you did tonight.”
“And what was that?”
“You, on camera.”
Oh, so he was one of those. There were a lot of guys who liked the cop for the fetish of the whole thing. Then there was the notoriety. Then, some guys didn’t like that she had a spotlight. They wanted to be the big man in charge.
“It’s part of my job.”
“Bullshit.”
She blinked. Declan was a rough-and-tumble guy, but she rarely heard him cuss. Well, other than in bed. Then, he had been all down and dirty.
“Are you blushing? Why?”
“Stop changing the subject.”
His frown turned darker. “We will come back to that. But I am saying it’s bullshit that you had to put a target on your back like that. You practically dared the asshole killing women to come after you.”
Her skin iced over. It was precisely what she had been doing. That was why the captain sent her several texts. Oh, and Eddie was furious with her.
Every man—including her brothers—had feelings about what she did.
“No—”
He stepped forward. “Yes, you did. Do you think I don’t realize that you look like the women being killed?”
“Similar, just like thousands of other women in this city.”
“I don’t care about those other women.”
“Well, you should.”
“Well, I don’t love them!”
She blinked as her heart boomed in her chest. He looked a little surprised by the comment. “What?”
“Yeah, I didn’t want to tell you this way. I have some game, as you saw last night.”
“One night, Declan.”
He shook his head as he cupped her face in his hands. She felt the calluses on his fingers as he smoothed them over her cheeks. “It’s been months and months.”
“No. This…whatever this is…it just started last night.” Panic hit her again. This isn’t how it was supposed to go. She could keep her emotions on an even level if he just went by the usual playbook. Why was he doing this?
He cocked his head to one side and studied her for a second. “What happened to the badass?”
“I have no idea what you mean.”
His mouth twitched. “Damn, I would have never thought you would freak out just because I told you I loved you.”
“I am not freaked out.”
He leaned closer so that his breath feathered over her ear. “Liar.”
It was a whisper that vibrated through her soul. He was right. She was lying.
When he pulled back, she wanted to protest, but instead, she pressed her lips together.
“Do you want to know when I started falling for you?”
She said nothing. She couldn’t. His voice was deeper as if he remembered a moment…just one moment that changed his life.
“You came in one night. This was after you got shot protecting my sister-in-law. You were exhausted. You looked like you wanted to sleep for ten thousand years.”
“So I looked like crap, and you fell in love? Sounds sus.”
He took one hand in his. “You were exhausted, but you gave me crap about being from a firefighter family, but then you told me my Shepherd’s pie was better than anyone else’s—including your ma’s.”
“I complimented your food. Do you fall for every woman who says they like your food?”
“You don’t remember what all you said.”
She shook her head, but she was lying again.
“I won’t call you a liar again, but I’ll tell you. We were talking about that five-alarm fire at an apartment complex. You remember that one?”
She nodded. It had taken too many lives, including one firefighter.
“You asked if my brothers were there, and I said something like yeah, the heroes are at work. You stared me straight in the eye and told me that I did important work. My family agrees with you, by the way, but not everyone sees it that way. I get a lot of shit from some of the firefighters. You were different. You said, ‘Just because you’re not spraying your hose doesn’t mean you aren’t important, Declan. Giving people nourishment is vital, and you should be proud.’”
She blinked as the backs of her eyes started to burn. She would not cry.
“Maybe people think that way, but they don’t say it. Even as you made an inappropriate joke about firefighters, you raised me up. I didn’t realize it, but lust transformed into love. Right at that moment.”
“Because I complimented you?”
“Not just me. I know you are the best tipper. They all tell me. I see the way you treat everyone. Like everyone belongs.”
“Everyone has a role to play.”
His mouth curled. “I fell in lust with you from the first moment I saw you. You stepped into my restaurant, all sassy and badassy, and those suits of yours.” He rolled his eyes. “I must say, detective, you have the best ass I’ve ever seen. “
“Declan,” she whispered, her face flaming. God, he made her blush by giving her a compliment.
“This is where you tell me how wonderful I am.”
“It’s fast.”
He shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. All that matters is that we’re on the same page.”
Fear rattled around in her chest as her heartbeat vibrated through her. She wasn’t so much of a badass now, was she?
“Or, maybe you aren’t.”
“No. Wait. I am falling for you, Declan. It’s just that I’m gun-shy on declarations. The last time I did it, I was in my twenties, and the guy couldn’t handle me or my aspirations.” It was her turn to study him. “You don’t have a problem if I say I want to be the precinct captain?”
“What? Why would I? I’d be freaking proud of you. I have a feeling there haven’t been many women who have done that.”
She shook her head. “I’m one of the few women who even made it into homicide.”
“See,” he said as he brushed his mouth over hers, “definitely badass.”
She settled a hand on his chest. His heart was beating as hard as hers was. “I come with the baggage of the job.”
“Yeah. You also can’t cook.”
“Why did you come here tonight?”
“I had to see you.”
“To tell me how to do my job? That I was wrong?”
He shook his head. “I would never tell you how to do your job. How could I? I’m just a chef.”
“Shut up. You are not just a chef, Declan Matthew Fitzpatrick.” She shook her head. “Jeez, you really are Irish, aren’t you?”
“First, don’t three name me. Second, you have no room to talk, Eileen. What did your parents do? Hear Come On, Eileen ?” Heat stole over her cheeks, and he laughed. “No way!”
“Yes. It’s embarrassing, considering what the song is about.”
He set his forehead against hers. “But back to why I came here. I realized I truly cared about you beyond anything I’ve felt before. While I know you can handle yourself, I wanted to see you were okay with my own eyes.”
She swallowed. “Thank you.”
“For caring? It’s as natural as breathing when it comes to you.”
Her heart melted even more. The way it was going, it would land on the floor in a splat if he kept it up.
“No. For accepting me.”
“Hey, not going to say I won’t read you the riot act for putting a target on your back. Just know that I worry about you. I don’t want to change you, but…” He drew in a deep breath. “It scared the hell out of me, that’s all.”
She opened her mouth, then snapped it shut. She knew that cost him a lot. From his staff to his charity work to his family, Declan took care of people. He wanted to care for her but was man enough to allow her to forge her way forward.
“I was planning on cooking dinner.”
“You’ve cooked me food for the last twenty-four hours.”
“I’d cook for you for a million years.” He sighed. “Too soon, right?”
“We can eat. You can cook, or we can order. But after.”
One eyebrow rose up. “After?”
She smiled. “Yeah, after.”
He scooped her up out of the chair.
“Dude! You can’t carry me up the stairs.”
“I can, and I will.”