Decipher (Declan Reede: The Untold Story #3) (6 page)

“The owner of Wood Racing?” His face twisted with confusion. “What’s she got to do with anything?”

The hope that I’d stumbled onto someone who could provide evidence of a set-up fell as quickly as it had been inflated. I used the hold I had to push him away from me. “Which
she
, then?”

“T. My fucking boss, you lunatic.”

“Well, you tell T from me that she and all of her lackeys can kindly back the fuck off, won’t you?” I stepped back and the look of relief on the kid’s face would have been comical in any other situation. He must have seen I would be behaving myself; or at least that his face wasn’t in any immediate danger of an introduction to my fists. “If she dares send anyone after me or my family again, I’ll fucking make her pay.”

Clearly feeling safer than he had when I’d chased him down, he laughed as he turned away. “You really don’t get how this works, do you?” He spun back around to glance at me once more. He raised another camera, one with a shorter lens, and snapped a few photos as he walked backward a few steps. “You don’t have a choice in the matter. As long as the public are willing to read about the many and varied ways you fuck things up, someone will be there to document it in pictures. The sooner you accept that fact, the happier we all can be.”

Even though I recognised the truth in his words, I refused to acknowledge it. I moved closer to him and held up my finger in warning. As much as I wanted to smack the smarm off his face, I forced my temper down. “Just stay the hell away from me.”

“That’s not gonna happen, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Maybe next time, I’ll focus on photos of that sweet, sweet arse that you’re tapping. Or should I say, tapping for now.”

Unable to control myself any longer, I charged after him. He whirled around and snapped another photo—one of my fist flying at his camera. Once he had the shot, he ducked to the side and narrowly avoided my punch.

Fuck.
The whole running-scared act had clearly been a fucking set-up to try to get more incriminating photos. The smug expression he wore, with a wolfish grin and eyes set in challenge, confirmed it.

“There’s the money shot.” With a laugh, he turned his back on me. “See you tomorrow, Reede,” he shot back over his shoulder. “Keep an eye out for your close-up in the magazines. Click click.”

It took everything in me to walk away, and by the time I did, my breath came in short, sharp pants. As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. There would be no escape from the photographers so long as there was any public interest in me. They would bait me, just like the reporters with less class had tried to over the phone.

And in this case, I’d fallen for it. Not just hook, line, and sinker, but reel and fucking rod as well.

Fucking idiot!
I kicked the tyre of the nearest car and let loose my irritation.

All I could think was thank fuck Alyssa and Phoebe were heading back home to Brisbane the following day. As much as I needed them with me, I wanted to spare them the humiliation of being front page features just to sell a magazine or two. I could only hope that returning home would keep them away from prying eyes—at least mostly.

CHAPTER SIX: LOCKED IN

I WAS STILL trying to calm myself when I met Alyssa back at the car. She already had Phoebe in her seat and was looking around anxiously for me.

“Fucking vultures,” I muttered under my breath before forcing my mouth into a smile as I pulled the door open.

“What happened?” Alyssa asked.

My smile fell. “Nothing. I told him to piss off.” To stop myself from uttering a hundred other curses that were on the tip of my tongue, I clenched my teeth together until my jaw ached.

“Are you okay?”

“Fan-fucking-tastic.”

“Dec,” Alyssa’s voice held an admonishment, no doubt for my swearing.

I held up my hand just to ask for some time. I needed a moment in my own head, as dangerous a place as that could be.

“Daddy, where was you?”

The sound of Phoebe’s voice should have calmed me, but it didn’t. It only reminded me of the fact that I’d have to contend with the fucking paparazzi for the foreseeable future. That they’d be trying to get photos of me fighting, in any compromising position at all, but the money shot—the ultimate prize—would no doubt be a clear photo of me and my daughter.

My mind travelled back to the days after I first learned of her existence, of looking into the mirror and trying to decide whether I should inflict my screwed-up life on her. Had I made the wrong decision? Not because I didn’t want to be in her life, because I wanted that more than anything, and more than ever, but because being near me would see her caught up in the whirlwind of fuckery. I closed my eyes tightly and squeezed my hands around the steering wheel until my knuckles ached and protested holding on even a second more.

“Daddy just needs a minute, sweetie,” Alyssa said.

My jaw clenched tighter. Their lives may not have been perfect before I came back, but at least they weren’t hunted by the fucking media.

Alyssa’s hand came to rest on my arm, causing my eyes to jolt open. With a frown pinching my brows together as all the reasons the two of them would be better off without me ran through my head, I turned to glance at her.

“Let’s just go home, yeah?” Even as she said the words, her hand traced the length of my arm. When she reached the steering wheel, her fingers closed around mine. My traitorous body followed her lead and my grip on the steering wheel loosened until she was able to pry my hand away and hold it in her own.

“Lys, I—”

She met my gaze and shook her head. “No. I know what you’re thinking—”

“I—” I wasn’t even sure what I wanted to say, but I had to say something.

“I know, Dec. I can see it, and you’re wrong. Just like you were wrong when you thought it in Brisbane.” She leaned across the car and whispered in my ear, “She
needs
you.
I
need you.”

The intensity that burned in her eyes when I met her gaze was too much for me to deal with on top of everything else. Without another word, I turned away from her and started the car. The drive home was tense. To try to alleviate some of the stifling silence in the car, Alyssa turned on the radio, but it wasn’t enough to distract me from my thoughts or break the stilted atmosphere.

When I turned down my street, the first thing that caught my eye was the two cars parked in front of my house. The circular drive down to the garage was long enough that they wouldn’t be able to see everything, but with their telephoto lenses, they’d be able to capture enough. I’d never wanted, or needed, a six-foot-high fence to enclose my front yard, but having to pull into my property and see just how open and vulnerable it was, I wanted one more than anything. 

“Fucking vermin,” I murmured as a camera lens poked out one window, confirming my suspicion about the purpose of the cars.

I drove down the drive and into the garage. After I’d killed the engine, I glanced in the rear-view mirror as the garage door rolled down.

It was when the door was completely closed that I noticed Phoebe was asleep in the back seat. I blew out a sigh of frustration. It should have been easy to pick her up and carry her the short distance to the house, but with the visitors I had camped outside the house waiting for the perfect shot, I couldn’t risk it. I had to draw their attention onto me.

“You’ll have to carry her,” I said to Alyssa even as I shoved open my door and climbed out of the car. Without glancing back, I headed to the small side door to the detached garage and pushed through it.

My steps carried me away from the house and closer to the front of the property. One of the paps obviously saw me coming because a moment later, there was a small flurry of activity as cameras were pointed at me. I paced back and forth along a section of the circular drive, my hands fisted in my hair and a stream of filthy words just behind my lips ready to fly from me at any second.

The desire to curse out every pap, to scream and shout until they all just fucked off and left me alone, was so strong, but I couldn’t. It would only make things worse.

It was almost fucking ironic that I’d spent four years boozing up and fucking almost anything with tits, but the paparazzi only became interested when I was settled down and living a calmer life. When I was trying to do the responsible thing.

Despite the lack of bars, I felt like a caged animal. A fucking zoo exhibit. Trapped within the confines of my own home.

Certain I’d distracted the photographers long enough for Alyssa to get Phoebe into the house, I turned and headed back inside—but not before flipping the bird at the cameras. Let that be their fucking money shot.

The first thing I did when I got inside was to ensure every set of blinds in the house was closed, that every curtain was drawn. I didn’t want any of the fuckers getting a look inside my house. As I paced from room to room in my crazed state, I heard Alyssa singing to Phoebe, no doubt trying to get her back to sleep for an afternoon nap.

I was in the study, trying to see if I could see any of the fuckers on the street from the small window there, when Alyssa found me.

“Do you want to talk about before?” Her voice held no judgement. No anger. Just support.

It was enough to spur me into action. I crossed the room to her, drew her into my arms and claimed her lips. My tongue followed, probing at her mouth to demand entrance. She complied willingly, opening for me in every sense. I stepped between her legs and grabbed her arse to pull her closer to me.

All the fun and desire we’d shared in the water, the fun teasing, had gone—replaced by a craving deeper than any I could explain. I needed to give myself to her; needed her to take me in return. I had to surrender to her hold so that she could remove the doubt surging through me. The salt water lingered on her lips, adding a new dimension to her flavour I’d never tasted before. Each and every time I’d been with Alyssa was like a new experience—one I would never tire of.

All of the doubts that had been slowly twisting through my mind, taking root as dark thoughts and twisting into thick vines through every memory and emotion, were swept away by her touch.

She seemed to understand what I wanted. Seconds after I’d initiated the kiss, the sundress she was wearing came off over her head. Underneath was her still slightly damp bikini.

“Fuck.” The word slipped from my lips at the fresh sight of the black against her skin. It was clear that visions of her wearing that outfit would be frequent visitors while she was back in Brisbane and I was stuck in Sydney.

I kissed my way down her neck, my fingers reaching for the ties on her hips. First one, then the other, and the bikini bottom fell away completely. Without stopping, my fingers explored her skin, pushing the cups of her bikini top down to expose her perfect nipples.

Matching sighs were on our lips as I took one breast in my mouth and rolled the other in my fingertips.

“I need you, Lys.”

“I’m yours, Dec.”

I wasn’t sure if she realised I meant in general, and not only right then, but either way her answer pacified the need I had to tell her how I felt. Knowing that no further words were needed, I claimed her lips again as my hands explored her body.

Desperate for more, I guided her closer to my desk until her arse was pressed against the edge. I ground my hips against hers. I could feel her heat though the thin material of my boardies as my covered cock brushed against her wet and waiting pussy.

My lips pressed little kisses down her neck. “So fucking tasty,” I whispered against her skin.

She pushed down my boardies and pulled out my cock. The feel of her palm against the engorged flesh was fucking superb. I was so hard it was painful. The relief her touch elicited merely hinted at what was to come.

Without any preamble, she lined me up at her entrance before stroking the head of my cock along her wet pussy. A hiss slipped past my lips at the pure bliss of the sensation. Barely a thought crossed my mind before I thrust hard into her, burying myself deep within her.

My lips and hands roamed and explored, touching and tasting every bit of her that they could. I was a hungry man desperate for a meal—possibly the last I’d enjoy for some time with her going home.

The thought was too much. I pulled away and sank to the floor, dragging her down with me. Taking the hint, she straddled over my hips and lowered herself onto my cock. Sitting up, I wrapped my arms around her waist as we moved together slowly. The dried salt on our skin moistened with the slickness of our sweat. Her breasts pressed against me; her hardened nipples tracing lines along my chest. The moment was messy. It was real. It was perfect.

In my lap, Alyssa was slowly coming apart. I could feel the tension coiling in her body, her pussy clamping tighter around me. I wanted to whisper to her to let go, but the sound of footsteps upstairs stole the moment from me.

“Fuck, Phoebe’s awake,” Alyssa said, climbing off me and instantly breaking the connection. She was dressed again and out of the room before I’d even finished the frustrated groan that left me.

My cock was stiff and sore, slick with the wetness of Alyssa’s pussy. I needed release. Craved it.

Craved her.

But it would have to wait.

Fuck.

I slipped my boardies back up and tucked myself away. Taking a moment to promise my cock that he’d get another chance later, I called out to let Alyssa know I was going for a shower.

A fucking cold one.

AFTER I’D showered and changed, I felt a little more human. At least partly. I went in search of Phoebe and Alyssa. When I found Phoebe, she was alone in the living room playing with her dolls.

“Where’s Mummy?”

“She had to maked a phone call.”

A frown pulled at my brow as I wondered who she could be calling.

“I sorry I made you angry before, Daddy.”

My gaze cut straight to Phoebe. Her eyes were round as saucers and her lip quivered. My frown deepened. She was fucking apologising to me? I sank to my knees and forced my mouth into a smile even though her words had been like daggers. “No, baby, you didn’t. You and Mummy make me happy. Happier than I probably deserve to be.”

Phoebe’s mouth turned down and her eyes pinched together in confusion.

“Before I found you again, Daddy . . . hurt some people. I didn’t mean to, I just wasn’t thinking. That’s what made me angry. I was angry with me.”

“Did you say sorry to dem?”

“What?”

“If you hurt someone you should say sorry.” She placed her hands on her hips and gave me a withering stare. It was a look I’d gotten often from Alyssa, and the sight of it on her little doppelganger was enough to bring a genuine smile to my face.

“To some of them I have.”

“Well, I guess that okay. But you should say sorry to the others.”

“You’re right. I should. I’ll start now, shall I?”

She tilted her head in confusion.

“I’m sorry for all the times you had to go to bed not knowing where your daddy was, or even who he was. I’m sorry for every birthday, Christmas, and milestone I’ve missed. I can’t ever make up for that lost time, but I’ll do everything I can to make every day special from here on out. Deal?”

Her little arms wrapped around my neck and she planted a kiss on my cheek. “Love you, Daddy.”

I cuddled her close to me. “I love you too, baby.”

“Guess what?” She pulled away and grinned.

“What?”

“We’re going on a plane tomorrow!”

Even though her words made my mood slip, I tried to keep a smile on my face so she didn’t think I was upset with her again. “Are you excited?”

Her hair bounced around her face as she nodded. “I’ve only been on one twice before. When Mummy came to work and Nana and Josh came down. I didn’t like it when Mummy went away.”

“I can understand that. I’m not going to like it when you and Mummy leave tomorrow.”

Her jaw fell slack and her eyes filled with horror. “You’re not coming?”

“No. I’ve got to stay here.”

“Why?”

“Because—” I had no reason for her. There wasn’t really anything keeping me in Sydney, not until they moved down at least. “Because I don’t have a plane ticket.”