Page 71 of Forever to Fall
Evan wrinkled his brow. “Why doesn’t Mal have shoes?”
Beckett felt his stomach sink, a sense of dread creeping down his spine. “Is she okay?”
“She said she had a headache and wanted to get out of those shoes. I’m sure she’s fine.” CeCe patted around her dress until she reached into a hidden pocket. “Let me walk you out and get the shoes.” Over her shoulder she said to Evan, “Bring Julia out front. I’ll meet you both there.” Evan shot them a thumbs-up and ducked back into the dining room.
CeCe sprinted ahead, occasionally glancing around them as if they were being followed. When they reached her truck, she whipped around and whispered, “We have about sixty seconds for me to tell you a lot of information.”
Beckett blinked, suddenly feeling like he was back in school at the principal’s office. “Okay?”
“Don’t say a thing about the ring to Evan. Please? I overreacted and everything is fine.” She took a deep breath before she continued, “And you need to check on Mallory. I don’t know what is happening with you two, but she was clearly upset when she left the diner.”
Running a hand down his face, Beckett swore under his breath. “I need to find her.”
CeCe opened her trunk and tossed him a pair of heels. “You do, and the sooner the better. I’m sorry we tried setting you and Julia up.” She hesitated only a moment before adding, “But you two need to come clean to Evan.”
“I know,” Beckett groaned. “What a mess.”
CeCe opened the driver’s door. “Only if you let it be. Go get her.”
Clutching Mallory’s shoes, Beckett stepped back and watched CeCe pull up to the front of the pub. He stalked over to his car and carefully laid the heels on the passenger’s seat. Mallory must have been pretty upset to leave without her shoes. A knot formed in his stomach at all that had transpired that night, and Beckett wasn’t sure he didn’t need an antacid.
Getting behind the wheel, he thanked his lucky stars he hadn’t drank at the pub. He needed a clear head for what he was about to do. He just hoped Cinderella was ready to see her Prince Charming.
CHAPTER 23
“Mallory, please letme in.” Beckett rested his head against her closed front door, willing her to at least pretend he had been knocking for five minutes. Never had he been so glad for Buckeye Falls and their low crime rate, as not even one neighbor came out to investigate his late-night visit.
From inside, he heard footfalls and a thud. Knocking again, he finally tried the knob and found it locked. Raking a hand through his hair, Beckett struggled to come up with a plan. He wouldn’t literally break her door down, but he also couldn’t stand here and listen to her—potentially—suffering.
Suddenly, he remembered the Lawson family home and their habit of keeping keys in loose bricks by the door. Feeling around the bricks of the door frame, Beckett found a loose block and pulled it free. Just as he’d hoped, a single key was nestled in the void. “I’m coming in,” he announced as he opened the door to her apartment.
He found Mallory instantly, slumped on the sofa with an arm over her face. Her dress from the night was rumpled, and he could smell the alcohol on her breath from five feet away. Fernando sat on her torso, kneading his paws into Mallory’s belly.
“Jesus, Mal. Are you okay? Talk to me.”
He closed the distance in two long strides, easing down on his knees. Beckett carefully pulled her arm from her face and swiped a rogue lock of chestnut hair off her forehead. Her eyes were closed, but her lips were moving in silent conversation. “What did you do, Mal?” Beckett stood and went to the kitchen in search of water and some ibuprofen. In a matter of hours, she was going to have the worst hangover.
