but I decided to come by early when my schedule opened up due to a cancellation. I have some issues for the memorial service that we need to settle."
"Seb, you remember Ryan Beck, don't you?"
His expression grim, Seb shook Ryan's hand. "I do. It's great to see you again although I'd prefer different circumstances."
"As would I."
"Since you're here I'd like to ask you a question," Ryan said. "Did you notice anything out of the ordinary with Brad in the weeks before his disappearance? Anything at all?"
The younger man shook his head. "I'm afraid I didn't. To be truthful, I barely saw him when he was back from university. I'd just come home from school and there this was this girl that I was dating... Let's just say she had my complete attention. You know how teenage boys are."
Ryan did indeed remember.
"If you think of anything let me know."
"I will. We're so grateful that you could do this, Ryan. My family deserves the truth."
Ryan bid the Harringtons goodbye with a promise to check in with them if he learned anything. Seb was right. They did deserve the truth.
But... the thing about the truth was it didn't care if it hurt a person or not. The truth had no morals, no sympathy, no mercy.
The truth about Brad might not be what they hoped for.
6
It was dinner time and Mariah hadn't felt like cooking. It wasn't that much fun to fix dinner for one person which meant she ate far too much takeout. Usually she ordered several entrees and then heated them up for the next few days. Since she worked from home and often strange hours it was more convenient to have a stock of prepared meals in her refrigerator. Tonight she'd ordered from her favorite Italian place and she could already taste the stuffed shells in sauce, smothered in mozzarella cheese.
When her friends would ask her about her love life, she often made the joke that she was in a serious relationship with the pizza delivery guy. She certainly saw him on a more regular basis than her last boyfriend. She'd found that she had much less patience for men's crap than she did when she was younger. She dated here and there but she wasn't looking for anything serious. She’d had a few dates recently with a nice man but it wasn't going to go anywhere. She could already tell.
She took a quick shower to clean off the day and put on a comfortable pair of shorts and a t-shirt that could only be described as scruffy and well-loved. There were holes at the neckline and hem but the material was so soft she couldn't bring herself to throw it out.
Switching on the television, she glanced at the clock. Her food should be arriving any minute now. She'd forgotten to eat lunch so she was starving. She was clicking through the channels trying to find something to watch when her doorbell rang. Tossing the remote aside, she padded on barefoot to the door and opened it, ready to ask Freddie how his girlfriend and cat were doing but her words stuck in her suddenly dry throat.
Freddie wasn't standing there. Ryan was. Holding a giant brown bag of delicious smelling food.
"I think this is yours," he said, holding out the sack. "It was delivered to me by accident."
It took a second for his words to penetrate her brain and for her arms to reach out and accept the food. She was careful that their hands didn't touch.
Damn, he looked good. She'd been right not to let Liza show her a recent picture. As expected, Ryan had only become more handsome since the last time she'd seen him. He was all tall, dark, and gorgeous.
"Freddie delivered this to you?"
It didn't make any sense. She and the delivery guy were on a first name basis. She knew the name of his cat, for heaven's sake.
Hercules, by the way.
But Ryan's sudden appearance had her all in a tizzy, so it wasn't far-fetched that Freddie could have been confused as well.
"It was a young lady," Ryan replied. "So I don't think it was Freddie unless that's short for something else."
"Freddie's a male," Mariah mumbled, staring down at the bag. Her name was clearly written on the slip but the apartment number was smeared. That explained the misguided delivery. "She must be new. I hope Freddie is okay and not sick or anything."
"Is Freddie a friend of yours?"
"Kind of."
How did one go about explaining the significance