“Yes. And I always thought Dante had a bit of a crush on her. I know Fernando did.”
“Very interesting. Anyway, he’s involved with her, so I thought I would let you know.”
“Thank you. They don’t tell me anything.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t have known if Jack wasn’t ready to divert my attention. Now, about that trip to England…when do you want to go?”
The talk of the trip took over the conversation, but Joey made a mental reminder to call her daughter-in-law and Jack’s sister, MJ. She’d definitely be able to get more information than a meddling mother.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
They finished cleaning up Dante’s house pretty fast. With Hannah busy at work that morning, Jack had offered to help.
“Not looking bad,” Madison said looking around the living room. “You’re going to need some new frames for a lot of your pictures.”
He nodded, just happy that the family photos hadn’t been damaged. Charlie stirred as Madison walked around the room. Her companion had curled up in a clean corner and slept for most of the time. It actually made Dante happy that she was comfortable in his space. He knew there was a good chance that she wouldn’t ever want to stay there overnight, but it boded well for the relationship.
He paused in his thought process. The word that usually sent an alarm off in his head didn’t seem to worry him. In fact, he liked the idea of thinking of Madison and a relationship.
He had only gotten reacquainted with her in the last few days, but he couldn’t really think of being without her. That should scare the hell out of him. For some reason, it didn’t.
Damned curse, he thought with a smile.
“What are you smiling at?” Jack asked. He glanced at Leo’s brother-in-law and noticed the knowing look in his eyes.
Dante just shrugged. “I believe we have all earned some food, my treat. Do you think Hannah is done yet?”
Jack’s wife was a veterinarian who had to do emergency surgery that morning.
“Let me check,” Jack said pulling out his cell phone and walking into the kitchen for privacy.
“Do you mind if I take Charlie out back?” Madison asked.
He shook his head and was going to go with her, but his phone played Darth Vader’s theme music.
Joey had called his mother.
“Let me guess, that’s Elena.”
“Worse. My mom.”
“I’m going to tell her you use that ringtone next time I see her.” Then she slipped out the back door.
He clicked the phone on. “Hi, Mom.”
“Dante, how are you doing?”
“You and Joey need to be a little more subtle. I was just on the phone with her less than three hours ago.”
She sniffed loud enough for him to hear it over the phone. He smiled.
“And don’t get up on your high horse with me. You probably know who I spent last night with.”
“Yes. Madison. How is she? I always liked her.”
He smiled. “She’s…good. You know she had an incident in country?”
“Yes. Elena had told me a couple of years ago.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked, irritated that everyone had heard about it but him. Seriously, did they just all talk around him and not tell him a damned thing?
She hesitated. “I didn’t think you would care.”
He said nothing to that because, at the time, he probably wouldn’t have cared. He watched her out back with Charlie, running this way and that, laughing. He couldn’t hear her, but he could see her.
“Oh, Dante.”
The moment he heard the catch in her voice, he knew his mother had guessed his feelings. Marcella Santini wasn’t stupid. There was no use hiding it because his mother would soon figure it out. If not now, then in a few weeks when they just happened to visit out of the blue.
“I thought I would be the last one,” he murmured.
“The last one?”
“Yeah. The one who got stuck last.”
She laughed. “Dante, you always did like thinking things through. You don’t sound like you feel stuck.”
“No.” He hesitated, then he plunged ahead. “Did you know her parents that well?”
“Hmm, your father might know her father, but I am not sure we were ever stationed together. Unless it was while your father was at the Pentagon, but you know how big that behemoth is. You could walk for years through that thing and never run into someone.”
“That’s true. It’s just that, well, I think her father might be an ass.”
“Could be. I sensed she always thought she couldn’t measure up to his standards.”
“He hasn’t seen her since she was at SAMMC.”
“That’s unacceptable,” she said, irritation filling her voice. “She’s their only child and so sweet.”
At one time he would have argued about the sweet part, but now that he had spent time with her, he was starting to sense the soft underbelly she hid so well. The fact that she had let him see even a little bit of it was a very good sign in his opinion.
“Yeah, well, I just thought I was imagining it. Ah, here’s Jack.”
“Johnson?”
“Yeah, we’re going out for lunch,” he said as Madison and Charlie stepped back inside. “I’ll call you later.”
“I love you, Dante. Remember, clinging to the thought you can fight the curse will only make it painful for you.”
“Is that something Dad told you?”
She laughed. “Yeah. Tell Madison and Jack hi for me and make sure to check on Elena. Love, Dante.”
“Love right back to you.”
He hung up. “So, is Hannah going to be able to meet us in town?”
He nodded. “She’s just finishing up right now.”
“Great,” Dante said. “I worked up an appetite.”
* * * *
They returned to his house alone a few hours later. Madison had enjoyed herself more than she expected. She liked Hannah a lot. She had been the one who suggested that Madison learn how to train companion pets. It had been something that really meant more to Madison than all the medals she’d garnered in her short time in the Marines.
She felt as if she were a part of something again.
Dante unlocked the door and waited for her to step in. She wasn’t sure what he wanted from her or how to progress from this point. She hadn’t had a relationship in over three years.
“What?” he asked.
She shook her head and stepped into the house. Charlie followed close behind. He must have sensed her relationship with Dante was starting to get to her. He rubbed his snout against her leg and held his head up to be scratched.
“Give me a second and I’ll be ready.”
He kissed her cheek and headed back to his room. So, he expected to go home with her. Or, so she guessed. Agitation rose out of nowhere. She started to pace and before she knew it, she was biting her thumbnail.
“Ugh,” she said. Mentally, she chastised herself for the nervous habit.
Don’t chew on your thumbnail. It will make you look weak.
“Dammit.” She didn’t need her father’s reminder. She knew it was a tell, and it had gotten worse after she returned.
“What’s up, Madison?” Dante asked when he came back in.
She turned around and looked at him. He had a duffle bag packed, and he was holding his boots in the other hand.
“You’re spending the night?”
He nodded. “I might be wrong, but there’s a murderer out there who probably trashed my house. We don’t know if he has your address.”
She sensed there was something else. A year ago she would have let it go, but she needed to know something.
“Is that the only reason?”
For a few long seconds, her question hung in the air. Madison wished she could go back in time and get rid of the question, forget about it and bury her head. It would
be easier.
Then his mouth curved up in that sexy smile she’d come to love. “Well, there is the thing about the sexual addiction I have for you. I mean, I understood you had a condition.”
“Is that a fact? What is this condition?”
“Santiniitis.”
She couldn’t stop the bubble of laughter that tickled the back of her throat. “Sounds like a very serious condition.”
He dropped his bag and his boots and walked forward. Charlie settled on the floor beside her. The determined look stamped on Dante’s face sent a wave of sensual heat rolling through her entire body. He easily pulled her into his arms—not that she would have resisted.
“Well, without regular application of the antidote, it could be very, very serious.”
“Antidote?”
“Yeah, a little kissing,” he said, kissing her nose. “A little cuddling.” He pulled her closer then against her ear said, “A little loving.”
She sighed and melted into him. “And it takes a Santini to administer the remedy?”
“Yeah.”
He continued to nibble on her earlobe. “Do you have Anthony’s number?”
He slipped a hand down her back and smacked her on the ass. “Behave or I will let you suffer longer than you have to.”
He pulled back. His gaze was serious. “This might have thrown us together, but I am not with you just because of that. I want to be with you.”
“And after, if ever, we clear this up?” she asked and immediately hated herself for doing it. She hated to admit she was afraid of the answer. Even scarier, she didn’t know which would be more disappointing.
“I just told you. I want to just let it run…see where we end up. Can we just be together for right now?”
She sighed, relief flowing over her. No pressure. “Yeah. Yeah, I can handle that.”
“Let’s go, because, I am not sure how long that last antidote will last.”
She laughed as she let him lead her out of the house.
* * * *
Zach Ellis was just turning on his computer Monday morning when he heard his name bellowed across the office.
“Ellis,” was the only word Captain Dodson said. Heads turned in his direction and he knew something was up. The captain barely acknowledged his presence most of the time. He walked to the captain’s office.
Of course, the man needed help with his communication skills. Of course, he was the boss and there was no way Zach was about to complain.
He stepped into the office.
“Shut the door.”
He did and waited.
“You were the one who caught that report of a murder the other night?”
“Oh, yes. A woman reported seeing a man shoot a woman.”
The captain handed him a file. There was a picture of a woman lying on the sand. She had been dead at least a day from the looks of it. She was nude. Paper clipped to the file folder was a picture of the woman…how she looked before she’d been murdered. And extensive reports.
“She was stalked?”
“Yes. Her name is Allison Bradley. We could never pin the guy down.”
He scanned the report. “Tom Richards? Damn. I hadn’t heard of this.”
Tom Richards had been a local high school football hero and son to one of the richest men in Southern California.
“It was while you were deployed. We could never pin it on him, but check him out. And take the undead pic; show it to the woman. See if she recognizes her. If she does, it might give us a timeline to this and make it easier to pin it on the bastard.”
Zach nodded and turned to leave.
“Make sure you keep this on the down low, Ellis. We don’t need the damned media getting a hold of it.”
Zach nodded and headed back to his desk. Sitting down, he got to work. Now that he had a possible lead, he wanted to get it set to rights as fast as possible. He couldn’t forget the look in Madison Baker’s eyes when Zach had to tell her they hadn’t found a body.
He would do anything to give her closure.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
On Wednesday, Madison found herself in her therapist’s office a couple days early.
“Thank you so much for switching your schedule,” Dr. James said. “I have a family thing this weekend, and I wanted to make sure to be there for it. My wife’s family.”
She nodded. “Not a problem. I don’t have a class to teach until tonight.”
“So, any issues since last time? Any nightmares?”
Now that she actually thought about it, she realized other than a couple of smaller panic attacks; she hadn’t had any real issues. Not since Dante had practically moved into her house.
“No. Not really. And it’s kind of odd considering what happened this past weekend.”
“Oh?” he asked without looking up from his notepad.
“Yeah. I was on my way back from my friend’s house and saw a woman get shot.”
He stopped writing and looked up at her. “You saw a murder?”
“Yeah. Or, at least I am pretty sure I did.”
“A murder?” he asked again. His gaze sharpened. “Madison, why didn’t you call me? I’ve told you I am here to help you.”
She sighed. “I had friends with me that night, so I was very lucky. Otherwise I would have called you. In fact, it was only a couple blocks from here, but thanks to Dante, I’m fine.”
“Dante?”
She felt her face heat. “He’s…well, I guess you would say he’s my boyfriend.”
“You’ve never mentioned him before.”
“I’ve known him awhile, but I just started dating him.”
“Ah. Okay, but make sure you call me if you ever need me to help. Now, is there anything you want to talk about?”
She shrugged. “Not really. I did go out Friday night, so I am pretty proud of that.”
* * * *
Later that night, Madison and Charlie arrived home before Dante. She had sent him a text to tell him she was done with work and heading to the house. Dante had offered to pick up dinner. She tried to suppress a smile but found it impossible. It was kind of nice having someone look out for her. The fact that it had only been a few days and it was intense didn’t seem to bother her. It just felt right. She grabbed her purse out of the back just as Jack pulled up.
“Hey, there, Madison,” he said. “Class tonight?”
She nodded. “You still haven’t taken me up on the offer of a free class.”
He rolled his eyes. “I will, however, thank you profusely for getting Hannah involved in yoga. It definitely has made her more flexible.” He wiggled his eyebrows.
“You’ve been hanging around the Santinis too much.”
He chuckled. “I could say the same thing about you.”
She shook her head but kept smiling. “I refuse to engage about my personal life, especially with someone who regularly converses with the head of the family.”
“Night, Madison.”
She waved behind her as she unlocked her door. She stepped inside and instantly felt as if something was wrong. Closing the door, she locked and unlocked the door the regular amount of times. Then she did the same with the light. Gently, she set her purse down and slipped off her shoes. Padding barefoot, Charlie right behind her. He sensed it too. Or, maybe he was sensing her worries.
She brushed it aside and walked through the house. There seemed to be nothing wrong, but she could feel it in the air. She returned to the kitchen and opened the cupboard to grab a glass. There, on the second shelf, were bath towels. She slammed the door shut as her heartbeat tripped up. Her stomach knotted as she stepped back.
No. Not again. She’d had a problem with this before, but it had been over a year. There were weeks during that period that she never knew where to find things. In the end, Dr. James had told her it had to do with stress, which made sense. At the time, she had just been through some major upheavals personally and
acting out like that had made sense. The thing that bothered Madison was that she never remembered when she had done it.
She started to pace, afraid to look at the rest of the house. She didn’t remember it this time either, but she remembered her day. She woke up with Dante kissing his way down her body, then they had breakfast. She had gone to the companion pet training, her therapist’s, and work.
With more courage than she felt, she straightened her shoulders and walked down the hall to the bathroom. Nothing was out of place, but she caught a scent of something that was a new smell.
Dante arrived home and called out to her. “Hey, you beat me home. I was trying to make it here and have dinner laid out for you.”
She walked down the hall to the kitchen. He was smiling when he turned around to face her, but it dissolved when he saw her. A frown marring his pretty face. He set a bag with what looked like Chinese takeout on the kitchen table.
“What’s wrong, baby?” he asked.
She said nothing. She couldn’t. The words seemed trapped in her throat. Instead, she pointed to the cabinet. He opened it then looked back at her.
“The towels?”
She nodded and started to shiver.
“Hey,” he said coming to her. He hesitated, then pulled her into his arms. “It’s okay.”
They stood there in the kitchen as he rocked her back and forth. The warmth of his body eased some of her panic.
“It happened before.”
He said nothing but kissed her temple.
“I never remembered doing it. I would find my clothes in another room, or even the dishwasher. One time, I turned on the oven to preheat and then smelled something burning. A pair of new, very expensive shoes were sitting in there. Ruined. I just…I knew something was wrong when I came home.”
He kissed her again, pulled her back and urged her to sit down. He took the chair next to hers and scooted close to her.
“Do you remember everything you did today?”
She nodded and went through her day.
“Tell me.”
So she did. She went through every action, every person she interacted with. Every minute was accounted for.
ASantiniinLoveMelissa Schroeder Page 10