Heart Lies & Alibis Read online

  Grace could get drunk on two glasses of Chardonnay these days and had been even more of a lightweight in college, if that was possible. She had never had eyes for anyone but her husband so her flirting skills were a bit limited but I had to appreciate her determination to celebrate with me.

  "I would like to go out Grace. Thanks. How about I meet you at Tito's around seven?"

  "Okay lady. Sounds good. And chin up, Reagan. Remember you will always have me."

  That last part mattered more than she could have ever known. Especially with what life was about to send my way.

  Chapter 2

  It had been so long since I last went out with the intention of finding a man it took a bit more time getting ready than usual that night. After carefully applying makeup until my hazel eyes really popped and curling and spritzing my auburn hair so it trailed down my back in loose waves, I liked what I saw in the mirror. At 5'10 with an athletic but curvy build, I looked best when I drew attention to my mile-long legs. Skinny jeans and knee high boots did the trick. A silky tank top accentuated my other assets, as they were, but a short fitted leather jacket kept me feeling modest.

  I might not have the body of the nubile twenty-four-year-old banging my husband, I thought cynically as I did one final mirror check, but I looked pretty damn good for just turning forty. And I knew without a doubt, I could still turn some male heads in appreciation, just as I planned to do tonight. I heard the cab honk and took one last look before I headed downstairs. New life, here I come, ready or not.

  The cab dropped me off out front of Tito's and I made my way inside, scanning the tables near the bar knowing Grace had arrived her usual fifteen minutes early and would already be waiting for me. I smiled when I spotted her at the far end of the room. I weaved my way through the boisterous Saturday night crowd, already enjoying a few male eyes following me through the room. Yep, this was going to be a good night, after all.

  When I reached the table I noted Grace looked as stunning as always, dressed head to toe in cream and taupe which set off her mocha skin to perfection. Only Grace would dare wear all white to a restaurant serving salsa. I also knew from experience not a drop would be spilt and she would leave the cantina as pristine as she had arrived. I almost laughed as I looked at her. I would be lucky to leave fully clothed if I had enough margaritas tonight. We were so different it made me wonder how we had stayed friends all these years.

  I met Grace in a women's literature class in my sophomore year at university. We bonded over a shared passion for Emily Dickinson and Audre Lorde poetry and a dislike for most of the typical college girls we shared classes with. We found other shared interests over the years we had been friends but in general, Grace and I were like two sides of the same coin - together we were the perfect match but apart we were incomplete. And I needed her tonight more than ever.

  I smiled as I reached the table. "There she is and looking as lovely as always." She said as she air kissed my cheek before I took a seat. "I took the liberty of ordering your regular." She gestured to the large margarita already settled on the table. It was on the rocks, with a salted rim, extra lime, and a double shot of Patron. My best friend knew me well. I took a long sip, savoring the tartness of the lime before the burn of the tequila kicked in and I could feel the welcome buzz start to flow. Maybe this birthday could be salvaged after all if the drinks kept coming like this for the rest of the night.

  Our waiter returned for our food orders just as I started in on my second margarita. The tequila had loosened me up enough I was now in the mood for some serious Thad bashing.

  "You know what really gets me Grace? He couldn't even be original in his adultery. I mean, seriously, banging his legal assistant? It is so cliché it's almost funny. Almost." I said taking another large swallow. "He couldn't have just cheated with one of his frat brothers' wives or maybe the barista at our favorite coffee shop or damn, even a topless dancer at the local strip club would have proved more interesting. But, he always was a little lazy in the love department, so I guess I shouldn't be too surprised at his choice." I gave a cynical laugh and Grace offered a sympathetic smile.

  I finished the rest of my margarita and signaled for another. Grace raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. She had seen me through enough broken hearts over the years to be prepared for this phase of my recovery. The alcohol infused haze wasn't always pretty but it sure was fun. At least before the hangover arrived.

  Grace leaned forward and looked at me with concern. "He is an ass Reagan, always has been if you want to hear the truth. Elliott and I always knew you could do better than him but love can have its own plans and you seemed happy for a long time. I'm just sorry it had to end this way." She sipped her Chardonnay and I knew from experience she wanted to say something else but was trying to find the right words that would be the least hurtful or offensive. When she couldn't wait another second a tumble of words spilled from her mouth.

  "You don't have to tell me if it is too painful or embarrassing but I really want to hear all the details of actually catching them in the act. I mean were they doing it?!?!" She blurted, leaning forward and whispering the last few words as if someone might hear our "unsavory" conversation.

  "Ahh Gracie, you can always make me smile." After taking a large drink of my fresh margarita, I laid out all the grisly details for her. We were both in a fit of giggles when I finished recounting the story. We both agreed it sounded like the plot of a bad Lifetime movie, which made it all the more embarrassing.

  "Had my life really been reduced to this disaster?" I asked Grace when we stopped giggling. She gave me a sympathetic smile and a nod. I groaned and drank some more margarita.

  After leaving Tito's, I convinced Grace to have a nightcap with me somewhere before we went home. We were in the cab headed to another bar we knew when I spotted a small Irish pub. It was the type of place I liked to frequent when I was younger but had never been Thad's type of place so I hadn't been to one in a long time. But it no longer mattered what Thad liked and didn't like.

  I told the cab driver to pull over and we went inside. It was exactly the type of place I needed on a night like this and I instantly felt better. The inside of the pub was perfect. One wall was taken up by a long wood bar, there was a tin ceiling, and lots of leather stools and some booths, and in the far corner a couple of guys were playing some fun Irish tunes. Though the clientele was young and casual, I felt right at home. Grace, on the other hand, was a little less thrilled.

  We choose a booth near the bar so we could still talk but also enjoy the music. A friendly waitress came by and I ordered a double Jameson on the rocks while Grace chose an Irish coffee, light on the whiskey of course. She was already looking tired and ready for the night to end so I assured her after one drink and we could leave. That was my plan but then I glanced around the pub and met some eyes behind the bar that had me thinking a change in plans might become necessary.

  The owner of the eyes was tall, broad shouldered, with wavy black hair and a slight stubble on his chiseled face. His arms had some tattoos I couldn't quite make out but was enjoying how they highlighted his olive complexion and muscular structure. Oh my, was he exactly not my type since leaving my wild days behind after law school and yet he was perfect. I knew he couldn't be a day over thirty, if he was lucky, but damn he filled out his jeans in just the right way it really didn't matter. Was this the distraction that could help me forget Thad?

  I was so lost in undressing the bartender with my eyes, I didn't hear Grace talking to me.

  "What? I'm sorry. I missed that. What did you say?" I tore my eyes away from tall, dark and sexy and looked at Grace. I knew I was busted.

  She had a small smile on her face and was shaking her head.I felt my cheeks heat with embarrassment. "I was asking if you were ready to go but I think you may have been a bit distracted. Do you need a moment to cool down? A cold shower perhaps?"

  I felt my face flush a shade darker. God this was humiliating because she was right. I
was feeling more than a bit hot and bothered by my friend behind the bar and I wasn't hiding it well. I tried to play it off though so I didn't sound as desperate as I felt.. "Funny lady. No, I'm fine, I was just.... looking at the woodwork. Yes. On the bar. It is quite lovely, don't you think. Very nice detail." I took another drink and looked towards the band hoping Grace would let the moment go, which of course she couldn't.

  "The woodwork on the bar? Really? I see. And here I thought you were checking out that incredibly hot, and might I add incredibly young, bartender over there because he hasn't stopped checking you out since we came in the bar." She leveled another knowing gaze at me but I continued to play dumb.

  ""What? Really? I mean, you're crazy. He is far too young and hot to be looking my direction. Besides he wouldn't be interested int me with that group of hot young things surrounding the bar ready to fulfill his every need" Still, I looked nonchalantly back toward the bar and found he was looking directly at me. I nearly choked on my drink from the intensity of his stare. I whipped my head back to look at Grace while my entire body erupted with heat and sensations in places I realized had been dormant for a damn long time. I wiggled a bit in the booth trying to calm my raging hormones with no relief.

  Grace laughed out loud and I cringed. "Oh and Mr. Sexy, he's about 27 I would bet. You remember I was always good at the "Guess the Age" game. And yes my friend, his eyes have been on you the whole night, despite the best efforts of those interested young ladies angling for his attention at the bar. Why wouldn't he look at you Reagan? You are a beautiful woman and any man would be grateful to have by their side. Or in their bed. Don't let this bullshit with Thad make you think anything else."

  I smiled at her, the genuine love in her words making my heart feel slightly less broken. "Thanks lady. You are the best friend I could ever ask for, you know that?"

  She blew me a kiss. "You better believe it. I love you, Chica. Alas, I am also a friend who is usually in bed by 10pm so I am going to call it a night. Are you ready?" I think she already knew my answer before she asked.

  I glanced back to the bar and Mr. Sexy smiled when our eyes met. This time I held his gaze. Yeah, he was exactly what I needed tonight. "Umm, you know Grace, I think I might stay a bit longer. Can you get home okay?"

  She studied me for a minute in silence before she spoke. "Reagan, are you sure this is what you want to do?" And we both knew she wasn't referring to having another drink in the bar.

  I tried to play the innocent anyway. "I'm not doing anything, Gracie, but having a drink. Celebrating my birthday for a bit longer. That's it. Besides, I think I deserve it, don't you?"

  She narrowed her eyes, attempting to give me her most severe face, the one I had seen her use on her girls on many occasions. "You do deserve anything you want Reagan but are you sure that is all you are looking for tonight, Reagan? I think we both know you are more than a bit drunk, a lot hurt, and you are looking to ease your broken heart. You may make some decisions tonight you could regret tomorrow. We both know it has happened in the past." Man I hated when she was right. Maybe this was a mistake but tonight I didn't care.

  "Grace, I am a forty-year-old woman on the brink of divorce not a young college student at a frat kegger. Come Monday, in addition to starting the process to end my decade long marriage, I will likely also have to leave a law practice I helped build, and one I dearly love, to start my life all over again. What decision could I possibly make tonight that could make the fucked state of my life any worse?" My argument didn't erase the look of concern from her face.

  She looked back toward the bar and Mr. Sexy-as-hell and then back at me. Her only response was to raise an eyebrow.

  I pushed on. "Trust me Grace. That guy is way too young to want to do more than some innocent flirting with me. I mean look at those young girls at the bar, like you said earlier, they clearly have plans for him. They can barely keep their tits in their shirts. How long can he really ignore them? He'll forget all about me soon enough. I will be fine. I am going to have one more drink and then call a cab and head straight home. Scout's honor." I raised two fingers in mock salute and she smiled in spite of her desire to appear disapproving.

  "Alright, my friend. But you text me the minute you get home. And let's have brunch tomorrow. Okay? I want to hear all the details about this innocent flirting you are about to do. It has been quite a few years since you used that charm of yours on any man but Thad, so this should prove to be interesting to say the least. Be safe. I love you silly girl. Happy Birthday."

  We stood and hugged. "I love you too. And thanks for being there tonight Grace. You are the best."

  "Be good," she called as she floated out of the bar, still a vision in cream.

  The waitress brought me another drink and I was trying desperately to keep my attention on the band but my eyes kept straying back to the bar. Every time they found my young friend, to my excitement and chagrin. He smiled a few times, and nodded once while he gave me an intense stare that made me feel like he could see right through my clothes. The thought of being naked with him had me recrossing my legs again looking for relief from the pressure building inside.

  I needed to leave soon before I made a fool of myself in some way but I couldn't get my feet to cooperate. When the band took a short break, I made a move to leave when I felt someone near the table. I turned and found myself looking at the broad chest I had been admiring from a distance all night. Crap. I looked up further and met the eyes of Mr. Sexy from behind the bar..

  "Can I get you another Jameson's, ma'am?" Ouch. Thanks for the nice reminder of our age difference sexy boy. But wait. What was he doing? Oh crap, he's standing close to my chair and he's leaning in towards my ear and oh man does he smell good and crap I haven't answered his question yet.

  "You know, I was actually getting ready to go. But thanks." I smiled as my heart thundered in my chest and I felt a rush of heat fill my cheeks.

  He looked genuinely disappointed. "Really, so soon? Can I convince you to stay? I thought maybe we could talk a bit. Have another drink? Get to know each other?" Seriously, he had an Irish brogue in an Irish pub? Lord help me. My heart was really beating fast now and I was feeling things in all the right places as I looked at him.

  Before I could stop my mouth, I heard myself saying, "Oh. Umm, sure. I guess. Okay. Yeah. One more drink would be great. I'm having..."

  "A double Jameson. Yeah. I know. I have been pouring them all night for you. Be right back."

  Did he just wink at me? Oh my god. Get a hold of yourself Reagan. You sound like a sex crazed idiot. Snap out of it. Just be calm, you can do this. You used to like to flirt. A lot. You got this girl. Thank god I kept my pep talk in my head.

  He returned moments later with the drink and set it on the coaster in front of me before he slid into the seat across from me. He laid one arm along the back of the booth and twirled a napkin with the other. His eyes never left mine. He had gray blue eyes, like the color of the ocean right before a summer storm, and I knew I could get lost in them all night long. Up close I could see the tattoo on his arm better – a scroll with the words Let It Be in swirly print laced through the leaves of a four leaf clover. Below it was the name Fiona and a date. It was beautiful and I found myself wondering what the words meant to him.

  He stretched his hand out. "My name is Declan." Of course it was.

  I took it and the jolt of electricity between us at the touch of skin made me jump. "Reagan."

  Still holding my hand, he leaned across the table, his intense stare smoldering between us. "What brings you to our fine establishment this evening, Reagan?" I loved the way my name trilled off his tongue.

  I smiled nervously finding the pressure of his hand on mine distracting for a moment. "I am celebrating a birthday. My birthday. A big one actually, so I thought I deserved to have a good time." I babbled away like an idiot. I didn't add the part about also wanting to forget my cheating bastard of a husband.

  He cocked an eyebrow at me, a sexy
smile hovering just at the edge of his mouth. "A big one? Really. So, let me guess, it must be your 30th?"

  I laughed out loud. "You, sir, are very kind. But no. It's actually my 40th." Best to get that clear right away.

  He sat back in mock surprise. "No way. I don't believe it." He winked and smiled that gorgeous smile again. "Seriously, and please excuse my boldness, but you look damn fine and nowhere close to being forty." His face spread into a sexy grin.

  Between the whiskey and the lateness of the night, my usual walls of defense were down. I looked at him for a minute. "I appreciate that. Thank you. Even if it's a bit of an exaggeration. Do you mind if I ask you a question?" I didn't wait for his answer. "How old you are you Declan? Because I know it is nowhere close to forty." Please don't let it be as young as I fear.

  He laughed as he leaned towards me across the table. His hand still held mine and his finger traced a seductive trail along my inner ring finger, ironically where it was now bare of the diamond wedding set it had worn every day for the last ten years until this morning when I had tossed it my jewelry box never to be worn again. "How old do you think I am?" The sensation of his touch made words hard to form.

  "You know, I'm actually kinda afraid to guess. I mean, I know you are at least of legal age if you are working as a bartender so that's a relief. But you look to good to be the age I need you to be in order to not feel like one of those cougars I hear about." I watched him as his face broke into a grin and he started to laugh harder.