Heartbreaker Hero: Eddie's Story (Maine Justice Book 4) Read online

  The kids got noisy as they opened their gifts, mostly toys, and tried them out. Eddie gave his sisters scarves, with the gift receipts included. Leeanne wasn’t sure if Eddie had meant that as a thoughtful gesture, or if he knew they’d return whatever he got them. He’d chosen rechargeable flashlights for Wyatt and Ansel, which she thought made a lot of sense.

  Somewhere in there, Mémé cornered Eddie and questioned him extensively in French. Leeanne couldn’t understand most of what they said, except that Eddie seemed to be explaining who she was, and her connection to Harvey.

  “I’ll tell you everything later,” he whispered to Leeanne.

  They ate cake and drank coffee, and finally Eddie excused himself and Leeanne in two languages, and they went out to his truck.

  “I hope that wasn’t too bad,” he said, buckling up.

  “No, no, it was very … interesting.”

  Eddie laughed. “Yup. That’s my family, all right. Interesting. Or is it intéressant?” He turned the engine on but didn’t put the truck in gear.

  Leeanne frowned. “I didn’t mean it in a bad way. Do you think they could ever ... like me?”

  “Of course. What’s not to like? The question is, could you ever like them?”

  She smiled. “I think your family is very lovable. It would just take some getting used to. I didn’t realize your home would be so different.”

  “Different how?”

  “Oh, the language mostly, I guess. You seem so …”

  “Anglicized?” he asked.

  She shrugged, not sure how to explain how out of place she had felt.

  Eddie said, “Most of the French Mainers are no different from their Anglo-Saxon neighbors. By the third generation the accent is gone, and usually the language is, too. But when the old ones live in the home, that keeps it going, I guess.”

  “Your grandmother lives here?”

  “She always did until last spring. She’s in a retirement home now. If she hadn’t lived here when we kids were little, we probably wouldn’t speak a word of French.”

  Leeanne nodded. “It’s your heritage, like your dad said.”

  “I suppose so. My grandfather came down from Quebec to work in the mills. He brought my Mémé, and they never went back.”

  “I like her a lot,” said Leeanne. “What happened to your grandfather?”

  “Fell off a ladder at work thirty years ago. I never knew him.”

  He was watching her closely, and Leeanne wondered what he saw. Her pulse careened, and she gave him a soft smile. Was he going to kiss her? After his trip to Skowhegan in November, she hadn’t seen him again for six weeks. Phone calls and e-mails had helped them deepen their acquaintance, but they’d lost some ground.

  Eddie looked at the house, and she followed his gaze. Monique’s oldest boy, David, was standing up on the couch in the living room, staring out the window at them. Eddie moved the gearshift to Drive and pulled into the street.

  On the way back to Harvey’s, he seemed lost in thought. Finally he said, “You know, I got you a present.”

  “You did?” She smiled. “I got you one, too. It’s at Jennifer’s.”

  “Well, yours is in here. Would it be okay if I stopped for a minute to give it to you?”

  “I guess so.”

  He pulled into an empty parking lot, leaving the engine running so they’d stay warm, and leaned over and opened the glove box. He took out a small package and a flashlight.

  “Here.” He gave her the box and turned on the flashlight, so she could see to open it without turning on the dome light.

  She felt a little breathless. Books, candy, and flowers, her mother used to tell her. Nothing too personal until you’re engaged—but this box was too small for those. Eddie had probably given other girls personal things before, but she didn’t want to know it if he had. She looked up into his eyes. He was watching her anxiously.

  He held the flashlight for her, and she untied the ribbon and carefully removed the silver paper. She lifted the lid.

  “It’s beautiful.” She held up a small cross, less than an inch long, on a gold chain. “What’s it made of?” She held it closer to the light.

  “Jade.”

  “Oh, Eddie.” Her stomach lurched a little. “Thank you. Very much.” She lowered the necklace back into the box and put the cover back on it, and tucked the box into her pocket.

  Eddie leaned over and put the flashlight away and shut the glove compartment. When he sat up, he lifted his arm over her head and brought it down on her shoulders. Her nerves went into overdrive. He put his left hand up to her cheek. She hesitated, then met him halfway. His kiss was gentle, but purposeful. She slid her hands up around his neck and settled into his warm embrace.

  They sat there for a few seconds after the kiss ended, with Eddie’s forehead against her temple. She could feel his breathing, and he smelled terrific.

  “You’re welcome,” he whispered at last.

  She laughed a little, glad it didn’t come out as a giggle. She could see his magical smile by the light from the streetlamps. He squeezed her gently and let her go, then he put the truck into gear and drove to Harvey and Jennifer’s house.

  Chapter 4

  When they got back to the Larson house, the tables had been moved out of the study, and Leeanne’s brothers, Travis and Randy, were in there playing computer games. Marilyn nagged at them to go to bed.

  “I’m almost done with this level,” Travis said, and he kept playing.

  George went to the doorway between the kitchen and the study. “You boys quit giving your mother a hard time and get on up to bed!” They reluctantly started shutting the computers down.

  “Hi,” Marilyn said, as Eddie and Leeanne walked by.

  “Hi, Mom,” said Leeanne.

  “Did you have a good time?”

  “Yes, very nice.”

  They walked into the sunroom, where Abby and Grandpa Wainthrop were playing Scrabble.

  “Hey, guys,” said Abby.

  Grandpa looked up. “You missed the pie.”

  Leeanne smiled. “It’s okay. We had gâteau.”

  “What’s that?” Grandpa asked.

  “Cake,” Abby told him.

  “Oh. How do you spell it? Maybe I can make that word with my letters.” He started rearranging the tiles on his Scrabble rack.

  “We’re playing in English, Grandpa,” Abby said, “but if you have all those letters, you can spell gate.”

  Eddie guided Leeanne on into the living room, and finally they found Harvey and Jennifer. At some point in the evening, Harvey had changed into jeans and a Harvard T-shirt, and Jennifer was giving him a back rub on the couch. Eddie couldn’t even think about the possibility of Leeanne giving him a back rub yet. Yes, marriage definitely had some perks.

  “Hi, Eddie,” Harvey said lazily. Sometimes Harvey seemed almost hyperactive, especially at work, but Jennifer had a narcotic effect on him.

  Leeanne said, “I’m going up and get that thing. I’ll be right back.”

  Eddie nodded, and she went off upstairs.

  “How did it go?” asked Jennifer.

  Eddie sat down in an armchair. “Well, my parents are not the most tactful people. I think it went pretty well, considering.”

  “Were they rude to Leeanne?” Harvey asked.

  “No, but they weren’t exactly comfortable with her yet.”

  “It will happen in time,” Harvey said. “Your folks have always treated me well.”

  “Sure, they like you.” It was true. Eddie’s father looked up to Harvey. Maman thought he was a real gentleman, which he was, and Mémé absolutely adored him. She got all coy whenever Harvey was around and told him that if she ever got arrested she hoped he’d be the one to take her fingerprints so she could hold his hand. Stupid stuff like that.

  “You know, Maman has been after me for years to find a nice girl and settle down,” he said.

  “All mothers do that if their kids get to a certain age without marryi
ng,” Jennifer said. “My mom used to ask Jeff all the time when he was going to find himself a wife.”

  “So you’d think she’d be happy, now that I’ve found someone I really like, wouldn’t you?”

  “One might think so,” Harvey said cautiously.

  “Yeah. She treated Leeanne okay, but I could tell she was thinking, ‘No, no, Edouard Jean, not this girl. Find a nice, Catholic, French girl and settle down.’ She didn’t have to say it out loud. And Monique wasn’t much better, even though she thinks she’s above the French culture.”

  “Give them time,” Harvey said.

  Leeanne came back, and she had a small, rectangular package in her hand. She stood uncertainly before Eddie. The jade cross was hanging around her neck, out over the neck of her red shirt.

  Harvey sat up, looking at the package. “Is that Eddie’s present?”

  “Yes,” Leeanne said, blushing. “He gave me this.” She bent toward him and Jennifer, holding out the cross.

  “Oh, nice,” said Jennifer.

  “Pretty classy.” Harvey looked at Eddie with eyebrows raised and an approving nod.

  Travis and Randy came in from the study and went stomping up the stairs.

  “Goodnight, guys,” Harvey said loudly.

  They stopped halfway up and looked back.

  “Goodnight, Harvey,” said Randy.

  “Goodnight,” said Travis. They went on up, and George strolled in and sat down.

  “Maybe you’d like to use my computer for a minute,” Harvey said.

  Leeanne blinked at him. “Huh?”

  But Eddie understood him. “Sure. Come on in here, Leeanne.” He stood up and grabbed her hand and took her into the now-empty study.

  Harvey and Jennifer’s computers and a file cabinet were in there, and tons of bookshelves. Jennifer kept a poster of Harvey on the wall near her desk. He had his old gun drawn, pointing up, and was wearing his Kevlar vest. Eddie smiled every time he saw it, but Harvey found it annoying.

  Everyone who saw it said he looked tough or something. Jennifer loved it because the vest had saved his life. Besides which, it was a pretty good picture of him. He wore his most serious look, like he was about to arrest somebody, but would use the Beretta if necessary. Sort of a grim look, but Eddie thought it meant security to Jennifer.

  He pulled out Jennifer’s desk chair for Leeanne and wheeled Harvey’s chair over close and sat down.

  She smiled and held out the package. “Here. It’s … well, I hope it’s okay.”

  Eddie tried to untie the green ribbon, but his fingers were clumsy, so he worked it over a corner of the box and pulled it off, still tied. He tore the paper off slowly. Inside the box was what looked like a leather bracelet, but he could tell it was some technological thing. He looked up at her.

  Her forehead was all wrinkly. “It’s a fitness band. I thought you might like it when you go running with Jeff and Harvey. It will tell you how many steps you take, and your heartbeat, and all kinds of other things.”

  “Cool.” Eddie sounded stupid to himself. Harvey was right; he needed to increase his vocabulary. He smiled at Leeanne. “I like it a lot. Thanks.”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah. Tony Winfield, my new work partner, has one.”

  “Does he run?” she asked.

  “I don’t know. He lifts weights, I think.” Anyway, Tony could help him figure out the gadget, and it would give Eddie something to ask about when they were out on some boring surveillance duty.

  Leeanne smiled a little, and Eddie wished he could kiss her again, but people were moving around in the kitchen. Leeanne was pretty reserved, and she’d probably die if anyone walked in when he was kissing her.

  “So, what do you want to do now?” he asked.

  “Let’s see what everyone else is up to.”

  Eddie was a little disappointed. She didn’t seem to have gotten to the stage where she wanted to spend every possible second alone with him. But she let him hold her hand as they went back into the living room, and they sat down together on the raised hearth. The fire had burned down to coals by then.

  The Scrabble game was over, and Grandpa Wainthrop and George were in there with Harvey and Jennifer.

  Grandpa said to Harvey, “So, did you catch the murderer?”

  “Not yet,” said Harvey. “Kind of a funny case.”

  “Funny ha-ha, or funny peculiar?” asked Grandpa.

  “Peculiar. We don’t know for sure that it was a murder. But I can’t really talk about it.” Harvey would talk about it with Jennifer when they were alone, though. He told her everything, but she would never betray a confidence. Maybe someday, Eddie would have that kind of relationship with Leeanne.

  “Do you know what Abby got from Greg?” George asked.

  “What?” asked Harvey.

  George shook his head. “A special delivery truck brought it here today. A dozen roses and an iPod full of romantic music.”

  “Oh, Dad, a lot of it’s classical,” said Jennifer.

  “Doesn’t matter,” he said. “It’s too expensive. She should send it back.”

  “What did Peter give her?” Harvey asked.

  “A stuffed tiger and a picture of him and the boys,” said Jennifer. “He gave it to her last night after the wedding.”

  “A tiger?” Grandpa said. “What does that mean?”

  “Their first date was to the circus,” Jennifer explained. “Abby really liked the tigers.”

  Abby and Marilyn came in through the sunroom doorway.

  “Are you talking about me?” asked Abby. She sat down on the arm of the couch by Jennifer, and her mother took the rocking chair.

  They sat and talked for a while, and about ten-thirty, George, Marilyn, and Grandpa headed up the stairs. “I should go to bed, too,” said Abby. “I’m the one who has to work tomorrow.” She said goodnight to all of them and went on up. That left just Harvey, Jennifer, Leeanne and Eddie.

  “You want me to leave?” Eddie asked Harvey.

  “No. You want me to leave?” Harvey looked serious for a second, then started laughing. He squeezed Jennifer. “Just get out of here before midnight, okay? We need to check in at the office in the morning.”

  “You guys are going to make it to church, aren’t you?” asked Jennifer.

  “I hope so,” Harvey said.

  Eddie shifted in his seat. “I was thinking I’d go out to my truck and bring in your presents.”

  Christmas presents had always been a funny thing between him and Harvey.

  A cryptic expression came over Harvey’s face. “Sure, Eddie, go ahead. I’ve got yours right here, too. You skipped out on us earlier.”

  Eddie got up and went out into the cold night, reflecting on the changes in their relationship. They’d been work partners for over five years. The first Christmas he’d known Harvey, they hadn’t been together long. Soon after Eddie went into the Priority Unit, they’d discovered they lived only four blocks from each other and had started carpooling to work. They spent eight hours or more together every day, but they still weren’t exactly close by Christmas. Harvey got exasperated with him at times, and Eddie wanted to please him, but he wasn’t sure if it was worth the effort.

  That first year, Harvey had showed up at Eddie’s apartment on Christmas Eve with a six-pack of beer. He’d never been to the apartment before. Eddie thought it was kind of strange. Harvey wasn’t his boss exactly, but he was Eddie’s senior, and he was responsible for him at work. Eddie had felt he was maintaining a distance on purpose.

  But that night, he came with a melancholy air. Eddie wondered if his old partner Chris used to invite Harvey over on Christmas Eve, to spend the evening with his family. Chris had been shot a few years earlier, and between that and his divorce, Harvey had plenty to make him depressed during the holidays. Christmas Day he would go to his sister’s house, like Eddie went to his parents’, but that night he was definitely at loose ends.

  Eddie took him in and split the beer with him
and tried to cheer him up a little. Harvey never quite loosened up, but when he left an hour or two later, something had changed between them.

  After that, once in a while he’d come over. Eddie could tell when he was really down, and if it was on the weekend, sometimes they’d drink together.

  In the spring, Eddie started running as soon as the temperature went above freezing, and he asked Harvey if he wanted to run with him. That was the real beginning of friendship. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, rain or shine, they went out to run. Half the time they’d eat breakfast together.

  The first time Eddie went to Harvey’s place for breakfast, he got a shock. Harvey hardly had any furniture.

  “How long have you lived here?” He tried to sound casual.

  “Fifteen years.”

  Eddie couldn’t believe it. There was no place to sit in the kitchen, and they ate standing up or went into the living room, where Harvey had three chairs and some bookshelves. It was a long time before Harvey told him about his past, and by then he had Eddie’s absolute loyalty, and furniture didn’t matter.

  The second Christmas Eve, he came again. This time it was imported German beer. Eddie had halfway thought he might come, and he had cookies his mother had made ready. Eddie sipped slowly at his drink, and when Harvey reached for his second one, he saw that Eddie had only drunk a third of the bottle.

  “What’s the matter?”

  “Nothing, only I have to drive later,” Eddie said.

  “You got a date?”

  “Yeah.”

  “When?”

  “Eleven o’clock.”

  Harvey took the cap off his bottle and took a long drink. “Why do you want to go out with a girl like that?”

  “Like what?”

  “A cocktail waitress.”

  “Well—” He was right. She could have been a nurse or a mill worker, getting off at eleven, but she wasn’t. Eddie shrugged.

  “You gonna stay sober all night?” Harvey asked, “because all I need is a call saying you’ve crashed and I’ve got to break in another new partner.”

  Eddie wasn’t helping him throw off his depression that night, but then, Harvey wasn’t helping him any, either. He left soon, walking home in the crisp night. His mood put a damper on Eddie’s, and Lori, the waitress, was less than enthusiastic when he wouldn’t keep up with her drinking. She told Eddie to relax and take a cab home, but he couldn’t get past two beers.