Seeing Double (A Heartbreaker Novel Book 1) Read online

  She dug through the bag, then thrust a snack cake in his direction. “My grandmother is a terrible cook, so I got you something just in case she won’t let me make dinner.”

  When it looked as though he were about to protest, she laughed. “Oh, wait, that’s mine. I got you a very healthy granola bar.” She reached into the bag, then tossed the bar to him. Then she unwrapped Em’s snack. “And for you, Little Miss Emma, I got peanut butter crackers and a juice box.”

  “Thank you,” Michael murmured as he watched her open her cream-filled chocolate cake. “You aren’t really going to eat that, are you? Do you know what kind of crap that’s made of?”

  She took a huge bite and, with her mouth full, mumbled, “Good crap.”

  He stared into her eyes for a moment before he lost the battle, and a smile lit his gorgeous face as he pulled out onto the main road. “Now Emma can add talking with her mouth full to all the other decadent things she’s learned while living with you.”

  She took a normal-size bite of her gooey chocolate delight and smiled. “I didn’t have to teach her that one. She’s already pretty good at it.” She turned and faced Emma. “Aren’t you?”

  Emma sent her a big crumb-filled grin. “Yuuuumm.”

  Dani finished off her treat, then reached for her cell phone. “I’m going to try to reach my grandmother one more time. I really wanted to avoid being shot at.”

  “You were serious about that?”

  Nodding, she listened as the phone continued to ring in her ear.

  After ten rings, she gave up.

  Tilting her wrist up so their tail could hear, she didn’t speak directly into the microphone but said loudly, “Okay, I think what we’ll do is send Jerry in first, let him get shot, and then we’ll get a new bodyguard who isn’t so obnoxious.”

  Jerry’s voice sounded in her ear. “Funny, but I’m onto you. I checked out this shooting problem with your mother a while ago.”

  Damn. Her mom had probably ruined all the fun.

  Michael looked as if he might pop a vein, so she had mercy on him. “I was just playing with the bodyguard. She does shoot at trespassers but won’t aim at anyone directly. Her eyesight has been fading in the last few years, so she shoots high. We’ll just get close, then I’ll call out. Thankfully, there’s nothing wrong with her hearing.”

  Michael grunted. “So this is why I’ve never met her. She’s nuts like you.”

  “Yeah, pretty much, but she’s lovable.”

  A slow-growing grin formed as he turned to meet her gaze. “You can be, too. Sometimes.” His hand found hers, and he gave it a quick squeeze.

  After enduring his quiet brooding all day, his sweet gesture sent a wave of warmth rushing through her. Leaning close, she whispered in his ear. “Does this mean I’m forgiven?”

  “For now. I can’t make any promises until after we make it through the shooting gallery.”

  “I’ll take it.” She sat back in her seat and couldn’t help her silly grin. It was like sculpting with granite. It’d take one little chunk at a time to win over his hardened heart.

  Michael drove slowly over the bumpy one-lane road that led to Dani’s grandmother’s house, with Jerry trailing behind. Piñon trees and low scrub brush lined the edges of the gravel drive. The sun was fading quickly, and the trees and vegetation grew denser with each passing minute.

  He’d tried talking himself out of a relationship with Dani for the full three hours their trip had taken but couldn’t do it. He wanted her—more than was reasonable. There was no denying it.

  It didn’t help that she’d been great with Emma. The kid had snoozed on and off during the long drive, but the minute she awoke, Dani entertained her and made them all laugh with the ridiculous road games she’d made up. It reminded him of how much fun he and Dani used to have together. She could always make him laugh, no matter how dire the circumstance seemed at the time.

  So, he’d do his best to keep things simple, as she wanted. And now that the decision was made, he hoped they could start as soon as possible.

  But first, they had to face the threat of being shot by a crazy old woman. “It’s just occurred to me to ask if your grandmother has indoor plumbing and electricity.”

  Dani nodded. “It’s remote, but she has the basics. And since my grandmother won’t leave Taos anymore, my mom has to come here to visit her and sleep in a twin bed or on a pullout couch. You know Annalisa, so you can imagine how well that goes over. Mom never stays long. But I like it up here, and my grandmother gets me, so I always enjoy visiting. And I usually lose a few pounds because the food’s so bad, so that works, too.”

  That her grandmother wouldn’t leave Taos must be why he’d never met her when they were kids.

  As they rounded a bend, a porch light shone through the trees. He slowed the car and crept closer, stopping just in front of a cedar cabin with a bright-blue tin roof. Dani reached over and beeped the horn in a long-short-long pattern, then hopped out of the car. Walking slowly toward the porch, Dani called out, “Grandma? It’s Dani.”

  He got out too and then freed Emma from her car seat but held her behind the protection of the car, just in case. He worried about Dani’s safety as well, although she didn’t seem at all concerned.

  Not sure what to expect, he hoped Dani’s gun-toting grandma wouldn’t have wild hair, missing teeth, and a face that would scare Emma.

  When grandma stepped onto the porch, the only part he’d gotten right had been the shotgun.

  It became apparent where Annalisa’s and Dani’s incredible looks came from. Dani’s grandmother didn’t look a day over fifty, had shoulder-length, lightly curly brown hair just like Dani’s, and her jeans and turquoise V-neck sweater showed off fit curves.

  She raised the gun before Dani could call out to her again. “Whoever you are, I didn’t invite you, so go away or I’ll shoot!”

  Jerry jumped in front of Dani with his gun drawn.

  Dani leaned around Jerry’s massive shoulders. “Hold your fire, Annie Oakley, it’s Dani.”

  Her grandmother squinted and stepped closer. “Dani? What are you and your smart mouth doing sneaking up here in the middle of the night? And who’s the thug?”

  “Middle of the night?” Dani glanced at her watch. “It’s only six thirty.”

  “I know honey, but tomorrow’s date night. I’ve got a live one who won’t let me get much sleep afterward, so I need to rest up. I’m getting too old for all-nighters.”

  Dani groaned. “Okay, that was too much information. But if you really want to shoot someone”—she leaned back and waved a hand in Jerry’s direction—“you can shoot the thug. I’ll promise not to tell.”

  Her grandmother chuckled as she leaned her gun against the porch rail. “Your mama put a bodyguard on you again, huh?” After giving Dani a hard hug, she patted Jerry’s cheek. “Poor man. Dani can be a handful, can’t she?”

  Jerry grunted. “You got that right, lady.”

  Then Dani’s grandmother walked over to where Michael was standing and scooped the whimpering Emma out of his arms. She stared into his eyes. “Hmmm, you’re no thug. And you’re not Jake, so he must’ve signed the papers. Dani’s always had good taste in men. My name is Eva, by the way.”

  “Nice to meet you. Michael Reilly.” He shook her outstretched hand.

  How was he supposed to respond to the part about Dani’s men?

  Before he could think of something to say, Eva smiled at Emma. “I’m sorry if I scared you when I yelled, honey. Why don’t you come inside, and we’ll see if we can find you a cookie?”

  Dani grabbed his arm and tugged. “Good idea. It’s freezing. Let’s all go inside.” Then she turned to Eva. “I’ve got cookies, Grandma. I also brought all the fixings for grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup so we wouldn’t put you to any trouble.”

  Michael stepped across the threshold, bracing for what he’d find in the remote cabin, but was pleasantly surprised. Eva had a recently remodeled kitchen, and
the cozy living room with comfortable-looking furniture had a huge flat-screen television and an equally nice computer set up in the corner. The cable box near the television brought hope that they’d have the essentials: ESPN and the Internet.

  Even more interesting were the portraits that hung on every available wall. There were some of Dani and Sara at various ages, many of Annalisa, and the most incredible one of all hung above the fireplace. It was of all the Botelli women—Annalisa, Dani, Sara, and Eva, and it was stunning. He moved closer, studying it. Eva’s name, scrawled in the lower right-hand corner in bold red, surprised him.

  Then it occurred to him that the painting that hung over the fireplace in Annalisa’s living room must have been done by Eva as well. She was truly talented, if not a bit odd.

  He wandered to the computer. A pair of glasses lay next to the mouse. The screen revealed Dani’s grandmother had just been in a chat room. Grandma’s screen name was hotty69.

  Dani slipped beside him and wrapped her arm around his waist. “Would you mind grabbing the diaper bag from the car? I talked my grandmother into changing Emma in hopes of distracting her from helping me in the kitchen. And because I hate changing diapers.”

  “Sure.” He pointed to the glasses. “So your grandmother, an accomplished artist, is only blind when she doesn’t wear her glasses, and please tell me the sixty-nine in her screen name is referring to her age?”

  Dani leaned closer and scrolled up the thread, reading the previous entries. “She used to make her living painting portraits until she either got tired of it or because she had to start wearing glasses. We’ve never really been sure which it was. She’s vain and only uses them when she’s alone, so I’m guessing the glasses are why she quit.”

  As she continued to read, Dani frowned at the screen. “Grandma is sixty-nine, so that must be what it refers to. It couldn’t be . . .” Then she let out a low chuckle, and after reading one of the risqué entries aloud, she said, “Maybe not. I knew my grandmother paired with the Internet was going to be a mistake.”

  After Dani put the last dinner plates in the dishwasher, her grandmother announced what the sleeping arrangements would be, then headed for her bedroom. Dani and Emma were taking the pullout couch in the living room, and Michael and Jerry were taking the spare bedroom with the twin beds.

  Emma was snoozing against Michael’s chest with Wilbur the bunny tucked under her chin while Jerry and Michael both stared like zombies at a sports program, so Dani slipped away to talk to her grandmother.

  She knocked softly on the bedroom door. “Grandma?”

  Her grandmother opened the door and grinned. “I was wondering how long it was going to be before you came to find me. You’ve got a ton of worries, don’t you, sweetheart? Including a very handsome one named Michael.”

  Dani closed the door behind her. “Keep your nose out of that part, and let’s get to the rest. What did you figure out about Emma’s grandmother?”

  “Well, the chances of your babysitting gig being over don’t look so hot.”

  “Great.”

  Not what she wanted to hear. What now?

  Chapter Nine

  Dani flopped onto her grandmother’s bed, preparing to hear about Emma’s grandmother, while Eva crossed to the bathroom to remove her makeup. Grandma said, “Martha Anderson is a drinker, or at least she was the last I heard. She lives off the road that leads to Angel Fire in a little run-down cabin, rarely leaving her house. Used to be she held a job at the post office, but rumor has it they let her go after two trips to rehab didn’t stick. But who knows. People can change. I haven’t seen her in years. She might be on the wagon now.”

  Dani’s hopes of an adult-only trip to Vegas quickly shattered. “Well, that might explain why Julia left Emma with Ron. We’ll pay Martha a visit tomorrow and see if she’s heard from her daughter. Would you mind keeping Emma while Michael and I talk to her? I don’t want Martha to see Emma and start making noises about keeping her. There’s no way I’m leaving Em with a drunk.”

  “Do I detect protectiveness from a woman who insists she doesn’t like children?” Eva walked back into the room and sat beside Dani on the bed. “Because it’s pretty apparent the way Emma never lets you out of her sight for long that you are her hero.”

  Dani lay back and stared at the ceiling rather than meet her grandmother’s curious gaze. Emma’s fear of being left behind was apparent to Dani, too. It tugged at her heart. But, her hero? That was a huge responsibility she wasn’t sure she wanted. “It isn’t that I don’t like kids, exactly. They just scare me. Or they used to. Emma kind of grew on me, and she’s a pretty tough little kid. I guess I’ve always been afraid to like children because I don’t want to be tempted to have my own. I wouldn’t pass the ‘gift’ on to anyone else on purpose. It makes my life a living hell sometimes.”

  “I know, sweetheart.” Eva gave Dani’s thigh a pat. “Your mother and I had those same thoughts. But because I took the chance, I’ve got a wonderful daughter and two terrific granddaughters who I wouldn’t trade for the world.”

  Her grandmother stood and picked up a jar of night cream. She slathered it on her lightly lined face. “The reason I live so far away from people is I’m tired of the noise they put into my head, especially now that I’m advancing in years. You and I don’t have your mother’s ability, or maybe it’s her sheer will, to block it all out, and we tend to get sucked into other’s problems. It can wear you out, or you can learn to deal with it.”

  “Tell me about it.” Dani groaned.

  Her grandmother crossed the room and sat on the bed again. “Your mom had the same fears of having children as you do. But she took one look at you after you were born and told me she’d done the right thing by having you.”

  “Yeah.” Dani blew out a long breath. “She’s always told me that.”

  She rolled over and faced her grandmother. “I’ve had this overwhelming feeling that the guy in my dream is the one I’m supposed to be with. And have children with. I was trying not to think about the kid part, but do you think that man is the one for me, or is he walking away from me and breaking my heart, like mom says? Should I pursue another relationship with someone else?”

  Eva laid her hand on the side of Dani’s face. “You’re wondering if you should sleep with Michael.”

  “No,” she said with a laugh. “I’m definitely going to sleep with him. But I don’t want to start something, then hurt him or me, like I did with Jake. So we’re going to keep it casual.”

  “Casual? Good luck with that Miss I’ve-only-slept-with-three-men.” Her grandmother chuckled before she kissed Dani’s forehead. “But back to Jake. He helped you grow up and see the need for independence from your mom. He was just what you needed at the time, and you’ll always have a dear friend in him. What’s so wrong with that? All you need to do now is get Michael naked. Then you’ll have your answer.”

  “What is it with you and mom wanting me to sleep with Michael?” She rolled off the bed. “Thanks for having us. We’ll be out of your way before your date tomorrow night, hotty69.”

  Grandma snorted out a laugh. “You’re just jealous because I’m getting more action than you are. But before you go, what about this Carlos person who’s after you?”

  Dani opened the door, then turned and faced her. “I talked to Jake earlier. He said there’s a guy outside mom’s gate staking out the place, but they don’t know where Carlos is. Jake doesn’t think they know where I am, but until they find Carlos, I’m stuck with that damn bodyguard.”

  “You could do worse.” Eva wiggled her brows. “He’s kinda cute in an Italian stallion sort of way.”

  “Oh my God. You’re attracted to the thug?”

  When grandma rolled her eyes, Dani caught a clue. Grams was just pulling her chain. Feeling a little foolish, she crossed the room and laid a kiss on Eva’s cheek. “Now I know where my smartass genes come from. Good night, Grandma.”

  “Good night, honey. Sweet dreams.”


  Dani ignored the snickering coming from behind Eva’s closed door and got ready for bed. She slipped as quietly as she could beside Em on the pullout couch that Michael must’ve set up for them. Her mind was full of unanswered questions about Emma’s missing mother and Maeve’s hidden money. But mostly she’d hoped that by leaving town, they’d thrown Carlos Watts off her trail. She flipped over to her side and recited the alphabet backward, then forward, then backward again, forcing her mind to quiet and let her sleep.

  Then the loud, sharp pop of a gun going off made her sit straight up in bed. It was close. From inside the house. Had Carlos Watts found them?

  She needed to get Em somewhere safe.

  Heart pounding, she scooped up the now wide-eyed Emma and held her close as Jerry ran past them in the living room with his gun drawn. Dani leaned down and grabbed the gun from her purse, hoping she really had the guts to use it now that Jerry had given her bullets for it.

  The little red alarm light was still lit, proving the security system was still activated.

  As Jerry headed toward Grandma’s bedroom where the shot came from, Michael rushed in and grabbed her hand. “Too many windows.” He dragged them into the hall bath. “Stay here.”

  He slammed the door in their faces.

  Dani turned on the light and hugged the whimpering Em tighter as they tried to listen through the locked door. Muffled voices sounded, but no more gunshots, thankfully. She strained to hear but couldn’t make out what they were saying. Finally, Grandma shouted, “There. He’s right there!”

  Panic set in again. Dani would never forgive herself if her grandmother was hurt because of her.

  Another gunshot rang out, and her blood ran cold.

  Then, there was nothing but silence. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears. She and Em were sitting ducks if someone was in the house. But where should they hide?