Dani took Jake’s chin in her hand. “Em, when you get bigger and meet a boy who has a grin like this, run the other way. He’ll just be trouble.” She laid a quick kiss on Jake’s cheek, then opened their dinner bags. “I would have gotten you a burger if I’d known you were coming over, but you can have half of mine if you’d like.”
Michael watched Jake closely as he settled on the couch with Emma and her food. Dani and Jake’s friendly relationship confused him. They were supposed to be getting a divorce, but sometimes they looked downright domestic. All that friendliness was annoying.
When Michael had kissed Dani in Annalisa’s den, it’d been motivated by his irritation with her, but then she’d kissed him back, igniting the flame that had always smoldered for her. And then, after spending the afternoon with her, time that had nothing to do with her usual convoluted legal problems, he couldn’t quite shake the feeling that he might be starting to care for her again.
It was like being sucked into a black hole. He didn’t want to but couldn’t help it. Even when he reminded himself of how Dani had betrayed him, abruptly ending their friendship when they were in high school, with no explanations.
That had cut him deep.
His father had just died when he’d met Dani, and she’d helped him heal, always there for him when he wanted her to be but careful to keep her distance when he needed to grieve alone. When she’d abandoned him, a part of his heart had grown cold. He’d felt a similar pain after his divorce last year. “Jake can have my burger. I’ve got to go.”
Dani whirled around, her eyes wide. “You can’t go. I don’t know what to do with the”—she glanced at Emma, who was sitting on Jake’s lap, chowing down chicken nuggets and sharing every other fry with him—“k-i-d.”
“Jake’s here. Again. Let him help. See you tomorrow.” He hadn’t meant to let his annoyance with Jake show. But clearly those two weren’t all the way over, and he wasn’t about to be a damn third wheel.
Dani panicked at the thought of being left alone with the kid. Michael seemed upset with her, so Dani tugged him aside and whispered, “Please? I really need your help, Michael.”
His face tightened. “What do you need me for?”
“For, like, how to change a diaper, and what about a bath? Is she old enough to eat most foods, or are certain things off-limits? What time does she have to go to bed? That kind of stuff. Jake’s good at flirting with and charming anything female, but believe me, when it comes to the messy details, he’ll bolt.”
Shaking his head, Michael sat down next to Jake and unwrapped his burger. He hadn’t promised to help, but she was encouraged that he hadn’t left.
She cut her burger in half and offered it along with her fries to Jake. Her pants had been getting a little tight anyway. She didn’t need the extra calories.
When they were done eating, Michael ran her through all the particulars of taking care of a little girl. There were so many details she was afraid she’d forget some of them and was tempted to take notes.
Michael’s cell rang, and he left to take the call, leaving her with the task of brushing Emma’s teeth.
Jake took advantage of Michael’s absence and squeezed into the bathroom behind her, leaning over her shoulder, feigning interest in the process. He nibbled on the back of her neck and whispered, “God, you’re sexy when you act like a mommy.”
“Knock it off, Jake.” She threw an elbow to his gut.
He chuckled and pulled her closer. “Have my children, Dani. You’re a natural.”
She turned and pointed toward the living room. “Out!”
He sent her one of his slow, sexy grins. “What? That time of the month?”
“No. And if you ever say that to me again, I’ll knee you.” She was tempted to knee him anyway. Couldn’t he see how hard this was for her? He knew she didn’t know anything about kids. If it weren’t for time running out for the search warrant in the pink house, she’d throw him out on his ear. “Go watch the damn movie for clues.”
Jake let his grin bloom before he eased out of the bathroom, nearly running into Michael. “Counselor, if I were you, I’d get the hell out while you still can. She’s ovulating or something in there.”
Dani threw a wet, balled-up washcloth at Jake’s smirking face, but he was too quick and caught it before it made contact. “See, you still love me, or you would’ve thrown the hair dryer.”
A strange sense of guilt at Jake’s “still love me” remark had Dani’s eyes zipping to meet Michael’s.
His brow lifted, silently asking her if she still did.
Well, she didn’t. Not like that anyway. She needed to focus on her task, not the two annoying men in her house.
As she carefully executed all of Michael’s instructions, she didn’t miss the little half grin on his face that proved he was enjoying her ineptitude. He was probably thinking it was karma paying her back for that gun move she’d made earlier at his office.
After the bath and hair washing were done, she wrestled the kid into a pair of footed pajamas they found in her diaper bag. Dani wiped the sweat from her brow, then slid the long zipper up to the neck, completing the task. When she stepped back to admire her good work, Emma raised her hands high and said, “Ta-da!”
She and Michael laughed at what must have been a regular routine the child and her mother shared each night. “You’re a big ol’ ham, Em. I’ll bet you’re going to be a famous actor when you grow up, just like my mom.”
At the mention of the word mom, Emma’s bright expression faded, and she began to cry, “Wan Momma!”
Dani exchanged a glance with Michael. “I really suck at this.” She scooped Emma up. “Hey, let’s go find Jake.”
When Emma and Jake were snuggled up in front of the movie, Michael gathered his things and started for the door without saying a word. Was he still mad at her?
She caught up and laid her hand on his arm to stop his hasty retreat. “Hey, what’s the rush? Do you want to stay for a while? You seem to like these dumb movies.”
Michael slipped into his suit coat. “You’ll be fine now. Just put Emma to bed when she falls asleep on Jake’s lap.”
He was definitely mad at her about Jake. Something inside of her couldn’t stand for him to be angry with her. Annoyed was fine, but not angry.
He stalked toward his car, so she trotted after him. “Michael, wait up.”
His jaw was set when he turned and faced her. “What?”
She sent him her sweetest smile. “Thank you for asking me to help you find a house, for the loan, and for giving me a crash course in babysitting. I appreciate it.” She wrapped her arms around his big shoulders and gave him a hug. When he didn’t hug her back, she quickly released him.
His reaction hurt, but she forced the smile plastered on her face to remain, then started back toward her house.
“Dani?”
“Yeah?” She turned and walked back to his car, hopeful that his mood had lightened.
“How’s Jake getting home?” He crossed his arms and frowned at her again. “Does he need a ride, or is he spending the night?”
She hadn’t even thought about it. Jake must’ve driven her car home for her, hoping to spend the night. “I don’t know. But he’s not spending the night. I’ll just have my mom’s driver take him home.”
He seemed satisfied with that and reached down to open the car door. On an impulse, she laid a hand over his to stop him.
Trying to keep the anxiety from her voice because he might reject her, she cleared her throat. “Have you thought any more about us? I don’t know about you, Michael, but I had fun today. It isn’t every day I get to pull a gun on a roomful of lawyers, you know.” She gave his hand a quick squeeze, hoping he’d make the next move.
He didn’t disappoint her.
Michael moved his hand to the side of her face, gently avoiding her still-tender bruise. He lifted her chin, then kissed her, taking his sweet time about it. When he pulled her more firmly against his hard b
ody, taking the kiss to a deeper level, her heart thudded in her chest, matching the rhythm of his. Desire zinged through her veins as she snuggled closer, running her hands through his thick hair, careful to avoid the bandage on his forehead. They were both a bit banged up, but that didn’t dampen the power of their kiss.
Disappointment filled her when his lips slowly lifted from hers. She could have gladly kissed him for hours. Maybe days.
Staring deeply into her eyes, he whispered, “Get Jake to sign the papers, Dani.”
The buzz still sizzling through her body made her want that more than he’d ever know. “I’m on it.”
Chapter Six
Dani stepped into the guesthouse, with Michael’s hot kiss still lingering on her lips. She sat beside Jake, who had a sleeping Emma snuggled against his chest, intending to get serious about asking him to sign the papers.
He glanced her way. “So, I don’t want to be pushy or anything, but I have to let the scumbag back into his house soon. What are we thinking about the clues?”
“Oh, so now that Michael’s gone, it’s back to business, huh? That whole scene in the bathroom was just some male territory-marking thing, wasn’t it?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He smiled and tapped a finger against her forehead. “Any good woo-woo vibes going on in there?”
She closed her eyes, ordered her eager hormones to cool their jets about sleeping with Michael, and cleared her mind. Jake—and the poor woman and her son—needed an answer. “The closet has something to do with it.” And then she saw a vision of the bunny shining a light at the Pink Panther, who was dancing on puffy pink clouds of insulation.
A bunny playing a bass drum, a flashlight, insulation, and the Pink Panther. What did the four things have in common?
Dani bolted straight up. “Wait! The Pink Panther movies weren’t the key. It was television.”
“What do you mean?”
“The bunny has to do with batteries, right? And what does every home have that needs batteries?”
“A vibrator?”
“No, you pervert.” Dani smacked his arm. “A flashlight. The gun is somewhere dark. And the Pink Panther was a television spokesperson for insulation a few years ago, remember? It’s in the attic, Jake.”
He shook his head. “We’ve looked everywhere in the attic, Dani. And you’re forgetting the nail polish. You said that was important, too, remember?”
“You’ve checked the whole attic? A home like that with a complicated roofline can have more than one scuttle.”
He handed Emma to her. “Maybe it was there, but not anymore. Or maybe it’s in an attic in a public place. Why don’t you put her down and I’ll cue up the next movie? The answer has to be here somewhere.”
So sure she’d found the gun’s resting place in the attic, she was filled with frustration over her cryptic clues as she carried Emma into the spare bedroom. Dani pulled the covers back in the darkened room, but then stopped. What if Emma awoke in the night? She’d probably be afraid if she was alone. Changing her mind, Dani took Em to her own bedroom and pulled the covers back. After carefully laying her down and tucking her in, she inched back from the bed and tiptoed out of the room. Before she got to the door, Emma began crying for her mother again.
It could be a long three days.
Not knowing what else to do, she slid beside Emma and pulled the child against her. She gently ran her fingers through Emma’s soft, baby shampoo–scented hair. Dani had always liked it when her mom had done that with her.
After a few minutes, Emma settled down, and her breathing became more regular. Dani closed her eyes as the events of the long day began to catch up with her, trying to work through the bunny clues again. She’d just give it another ten minutes before she snuck out.
Dani blinked her eyes open after waking from a disturbing dream about bunnies and panthers, then squinted at the clock. It was after one in the morning. She’d fallen asleep for hours.
Very gently, she eased out of bed, then went to the living room to turn off the television. The movie was over, and the main menu flashed on the screen, belting out the dreaded theme song. She searched for the remote and found it on Jake’s chest. He was sound asleep on the couch.
Pulling a blanket over him, she laid a kiss on his forehead, then turned out the lights. Looked like he was spending the night after all.
Michael slammed his hand against the steering wheel in frustration. He was going to be late for court because he had to make a stop at Dani’s first. During breakfast, he remembered Dani couldn’t take Emma anywhere without her car seat, and she needed to get her to the lab for her DNA test. He would have had plenty of time to transfer Emma’s car seat from the back of his car and install it in Dani’s if it weren’t for the road construction on the freeway. She probably wouldn’t know how to strap it in correctly and safely, so he’d have to swap keys with Dani and drive like a bat out of hell. That is if her car could go over fifty-five miles an hour.
He tore up Annalisa’s drive, parked next to the ugly green car, and headed for Dani’s front door. He rapped hard, hoping she was up, then wishing he’d thought to call her first.
Dani answered the door in a short, silky red robe that clung to her curves and highlighted her long, slim legs. “Hi there. What’s up?” she asked as she opened the door wider in invitation and stepped back.
When he finally forced himself to take his eyes off her curvy body, he glanced toward the kitchen. Emma sat at the table eating a yellow cream-filled snack cake.
“You can’t feed a kid junk food for breakfast.”
Dani shrugged. “She wouldn’t eat anything else. I tried cereal, a banana, an apple, a granola bar, and then this was all I had left. It won’t kill her, and it can’t be any worse than some of that sugary cereal kids normally eat.”
“You still eat that snack food crap?”
“What? Don’t you?”
When she smiled, the anxiety of being late was forgotten for a moment. “No, and we’ll have a nice chat about our bodies being made of what we eat later.” He didn’t have time to explain to her about kids and sugar rushes. She’d have to figure that one out for herself. “I’m late. Please give me your car keys, and here are mine. You need a car seat to take Emma anywhere today. I’ll call you later after I get out of court, and we can swap cars before we look at houses.”
When Dani turned to retrieve her purse, Jake strolled into the living room with only a towel around his waist. “Dani, this razor’s dull. Do you have another?” Jake pulled up short when he noticed Michael and grinned. “Well good morning, Counselor. What brings you by so early?”
Dani’s eyes grew wide, and she muttered, “Oh, shit!” as she rushed forward, holding out the keys. “Michael, this isn’t—”
“Don’t bother.” He snatched the keys from Dani’s hand and walked out the door, not interested in her lame excuses.
After tossing and turning all night, trying to figure out what to do about his growing feelings for her, his answer was clear. She’d insisted Jake wasn’t spending the night. But she’d lied.
He shook his head as he started her car and headed for the main gate. Dani was obviously still sleeping with him, so that was that. He’d had enough of women lying to him. She could be his damn Realtor and help him find Emma’s mom, helping his own mother in the process, but that was it. He’d just file those hot kisses away right along with his memories of their one night, and forget about wanting more.
Unfortunately, every time he looked at Dani he wanted more.
Dani sipped coffee as she pondered a way to fix things with Michael. She should probably give him a few hours to cool off, then she’d call and explain why Jake had still been there in the morning. When she glanced up from her mug, she caught Jake, who was sitting at the table in the nook, staring at her. “What?”
“You aren’t going to like this, but your mother and I discussed your safety options earlier. She hired a bodyguard for you. His name is J
erry, and where you go, he goes, until this is settled. Is that clear?”
She stared at Jake as anger slowly welled within her. Her mother and Jake had planned her whole safety routine without consulting her? She’d had bodyguards from the time of the kidnapping until she’d turned eighteen, when she finally had the power to insist her mother stop hiring them.
She hated having a tail but was actually pretty good at losing them. Her mom had insisted she take defensive-driving lessons, not realizing that Dani was using those new skills to evade her own protection squad. It had become a game when she was younger. It’d be fun to see how long old Jerry lasted.
Then she glanced at Emma, who was sitting on the floor playing with a stuffed blue rabbit named Wilbur. It was the only toy Dani had kept from her childhood. She’d had the bunny with her when she’d been taken by the kidnappers. Wilbur had given her comfort during the ordeal, and she’d never been able to part with him.
As much as she despised being followed, if Emma was going to be with her, then she’d just have to deal with it. She really needed to find Em’s mother before Friday, when crazy Carlos was going to be released. Otherwise, Em was going to have to stay home in the fortified compound with Mrs. Wilson or one of her mom’s assistants.
“Okay. I can live with that.”
“Good. Then I have one more question for you.”
“What?” The gravity of his tone alarmed her.
“Do you want Michael as much as he wants you?”
She met his gaze, surprised by the sudden tears burning her eyes. She’d never lied to him and wasn’t going to start now. “I think I might. We used to be best friends and . . .” She trailed off, not knowing how to explain how much she’d always loved Michael without hurting Jake. She’d never do that on purpose.
He nodded sharply. “I’ll get the papers.”
Jake crossed the room and picked up the bundle off the kitchen counter, then brought them back to the table. He lifted a pen to sign his name, then stopped. “Here’s my last offer. What if I let you wear shoes while you’re pregnant with our one child? And instead of having a hot meal waiting for me each night, I’ll give you a break and pick up a pizza one night a week?” His forced grin gave away that he was trying to lighten the mood, but he couldn’t quite manage it.
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