Jamie Hill Triple Threat (50 page)

"Okay, I think I've got it."

"Relax! There won't be a quiz." He reached out and squeezed her hand.

"I just want to get it right."

Brady brought her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. "I'm not worried in the slightest. Please just relax and enjoy yourself. This is going to be fun."

"You're right." Gina squeezed his hand in response. Butterflies still zipped around her stomach, but it wasn't like he was leaving her there alone. She'd be with Brady.
I can handle anything as long as I'm with him.

He pulled into the driveway of a nice, ranch style home. Toys were scattered on the front porch and two bikes leaned up against the railing. "This is it." Brady parked and went around to open the door for her. He grabbed the bottle of wine he'd brought, and tucked in under his arm. "Ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." She smiled and squeezed his hand.

He planted a kiss on her temple and said into her ear, "You'll do fine. You're beautiful, interesting, funny, and smart. Oh, did I mention beautiful?"

"I don't think so," she teased and gazed at him, her heart swelling with love.

"Come on." He led her to the front door and rang the bell.

Gina recognized Jack from a photo Brady had of the family. Handsome, with dark hair and a solid build, he was slightly shorter than Brady. His smile was equally wide, though. "Hey you guys! Glad you could make it."

Brady nodded. "Thanks for having us. Jack, this is Gina Morris. Gina, my good buddy Jack Dunlevy."

Before she could speak, Jack grabbed her hand and pumped it. "I've heard great things about you."

"You too. Great to meet you." She smiled at him and for one second, it seemed his eyes clouded. A wrinkle creased his brow. As quickly as it happened it was over.

"Please, come in. The boys are dying for you to get here. I hope you're up for a quick game of catch, Brady. I'm not sure they'll let you eat if you aren't."

"Pretty sure I can handle that." Brady placed one hand on the small of Gina's back and guided her into the house.

"Brady! Brady!" two squeaky voices got louder as they approached.

"Watch out," Jack advised Gina, and stepped back himself.

Both brown-haired boys catapulted at Brady to hug his waist. He scooped them up and carried them deeper into the house, spinning in circles.

Gina could only chuckle in amazement.

Jack grinned at her. "My kids love him. What can I say?"

"Cute kids."

He extended a hand for her to follow them. "Let's go meet them."

She strolled down the hall and found Brady extracting himself from the boys in the kitchen.

"Careful, I almost forgot about this wine." He snatched the bottle that had been slipping from under his arm.

"Better not drop my wine!" The pretty, red-headed woman reached out and grabbed the bottle. "Ooh, good stuff. Thanks, doll." She stood on tiptoes to kiss Brady's cheek but didn't come anywhere close. He leaned down to make it easier, and gave her a light squeeze.

"Hey,
Crystal
. Looking lovely as always. I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Gina Morris." He turned back and smiled at her. "Gina, this is
Crystal
."

"Pleased to meet you!"
Crystal
moved over and shook hands. To Brady and Jack she mouthed,
she's cute!
and waggled her brows.

Gina grinned. "I'm happy to meet you, too. Brady speaks fondly about all of you."

Devon Dunlevy faced Gina. "He took a bullet for us, you know."

Gina smiled at the cute, sincere child. "I heard about that,
Devon
. I'm really glad everyone came out okay."

"It was pretty scary," he agreed.

"I bet it was. I can't even imagine how you made it through that. Hey, nice glasses. I love a man with cool black frames."

Devon
blushed but she could tell he liked the comment. "Really? Thanks."

She gazed at his older brother. "And how are you, Mark? Ready for warm weather so baseball season can start?"

"You bet." Mark nodded, obviously impressed by a woman who understood sports. "I'm playing soccer right now. My team is three and oh."

"Excellent!" Brady held out a hand for a high five, and Mark obliged. "You'll have to let us know your schedule. We might be able to make a game."

The baby monitor on the counter squawked and Gina heard snuffling noises.

Crystal
grabbed the receiver and waved it. "That would be the third member of the chorus. I hate to disappear, but I'll need to feed her before we eat."

"Lucky kid." Jack swatted his wife's ass as she walked by.

Crystal
rolled her eyes at him but Gina saw true devotion in her glance. "Why don't you all go out back and relax before dinner? Jack, open that wine, would you? The potatoes will be done in thirty minutes, so time the steaks accordingly, babe."

"Yes, dear." He motioned to the sliding glass door. "Go ahead you guys. I've got the steaks all ready to go, just need to haul them out."

"Yay!" Mark and
Devon
hopped up and down, and each boy grabbed one of Brady's hands.

He looked at Gina apologetically. "If I play catch with them before dinner, I promise I'm all yours after that."

She waved him off. "Go, have fun." The three of them hurried into the backyard where a golden German shepherd quickly joined them. "And that would be Zeus, I presume."

Jack peered over her shoulder. "Oh, yeah. The other hero of the family. He took a bullet for us, too. It was touch and go there for a while."

"Seems like a really great dog."

"He is." Jack went to the refrigerator and pulled out a foil-covered tray. He grabbed some tongs and four wine glasses. "Could you get that wine bottle and the door, please?"

"Sure." Gina did as asked and followed Jack out to the patio. She set the wine on the nearest table.

"First things first," he told her, and opened the wine. He poured two glasses and passed one over. "We might as well test it out."

"Certainly." She sipped when he did, and they both nodded. "Very nice. Brady has good taste."

"He usually does," Jack agreed and began to prepare the grill. "Hope you like a nice, thick steak."

"Love it." She thought about sitting, but suddenly there was a chill in the air between them and she wanted to address it. "He
usually
has good taste? Sounds like a dig at me, Detective."

He stopped working and smiled at her. "It's Jack. I haven't been with the force for a year and a half, now. I miss some aspects of it, but I don't miss the getting shot at parts."

Gina took another drink. Jack was playing with her, but she couldn't figure out why. "Brady was shot at recently. Grazed his arm. Did he tell you?"

"Yeah, he did. Totally sucks. He was working the import/export warehouse case."

"I believe so."

Jack resumed cooking, placing the meat on the grill. "Was it your father's warehouse? I never asked Brady."

Gina's heart skipped a beat. "Excuse me?"

He finished what he was doing and closed the grill lid. He faced Gina and folded his arms across his chest. "I thought I recognized you. It took me a while, but I finally placed you.
Genevesia Moretti
. Long time, no see, eh?"

She could only stammer. "I don't know what—"

He smiled again, but this one wasn't genuine. "You don't remember me? I'm hurt. I was on duty the night you and your friends rolled that bumsicle. You were pretty wasted, looking for cash if I recall. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised you don't remember."

A bumsicle?
She didn't remember. There
was
some business with the police one night, but her father had gotten her off so quickly Gina had nearly forgotten. "Look, Jack. I'll be the first one to admit I made mistakes in my past. But I've been clean for four years. I have the chip to prove it."

He paused to watch the raucous game of catch in the yard. One or both of the boys was constantly on Brady's back and the dog jumped and barked, adding to the melee.

Gina found the scene amusing, but couldn't concentrate on anything except Jack's announcement.

He turned back to her. "Congratulations on the four years. You know, it's not the drug business that concerns me. The past is the past. I have a few ex-wives and details I'd just as soon wipe clean off my slate, but you know what they say.
It is what it is
." He sipped his wine thoughtfully. "That bum had already frozen to death by the time you kids found him. If you'd been in, shall we say, an
unaltered
frame of mind, you wouldn't have bothered to roll him for cash. He didn't have squat."

"I'm sorry that happened."

He gazed at her squarely. "I'm sorry your old man got you out of there so fast. I'd have let you sit in the pokey overnight, or a few nights. You don't learn anything when someone else swoops in and solves all your problems."

"I learned. Believe me, I learned."

He chuckled. "Learned what? That when your father's a big shot in the Italian mafia, you can pretty much get away with anything? Or that life is easier when you change your name, so no one has to know who your father is?"

Gina scowled. "That's not fair. My father has never been convicted of any crimes."

"Convicted, maybe not. Indicted plenty of times, though. You going to sit there with a straight face and tell me the old man is innocent?"

"You're not a cop anymore, so I don't have to tell you anything."

He shrugged. "
Touche
. But you do have to tell Brady. He's investigating the import companies and your father is one of the top names on his list. He got shot, for Christ's sake!"

Gina bristled. "You think I don't know that?
I
got the call that he'd been shot, and the agony that goes with that.
I
was there to bandage his arm and take care of him."

"People are dying all around this case, and you're sitting on information that might help him out."

"I have nothing to offer. I've never been part of that business."

Jack stepped forward, stopping only when he got two inches from her face. "Nothing but a piece of crucial information. You're Victor Moretti's daughter. You think Brady doesn't need to know that?"

She stifled her first response and said nothing, but it took more self-control than she realized she had.

"You need to tell him,
Genevesia
."

Gina bit her lip, willing herself not to cry.

"If you don't, I will."

She could only glare at him.
"Bastardo."

"Amico.
Friend," Jack countered.

The sliding door opened and
Crystal
appeared with a chubby, red-haired baby. "Here we are! How's everything going out here?"

Jack smiled at Gina one more time. "Peachy." He tore his gaze away and made goofy baby noises in the direction of his daughter. "Hello, beautiful! How was your nap?"

Cindy's face lit up at the sight of her father. She clapped her hands in glee.

He nuzzled her cheek and the baby laughed.

"She is beautiful," Gina added, desperate to focus on anything that would keep her from crying.

"Got her mama's hair and her daddy's appetite,"
Crystal
said. She shooed Jack back to the grill and moved closer to Gina. "Would you like to hold her?"

Before she could reply, Jack spoke up. "Gina's not fond of babies, dear. Don't force her."

Gina snapped her mouth closed and bit the inside of her cheek.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Never mind, then."
Crystal
sat and cradled her daughter protectively.

"I like babies," Gina began, but her words were drowned out as the boys crowded around their mother.

Brady was close behind them. "There she is! Hello, you little cute thing." He clucked Cindy's chin and the baby gave him a sloppy, toothless grin.

"Aw, she's happy to see you,"
Crystal
told him.

Brady pulled up two chairs for Gina and himself, and motioned for her to sit. He reached for the wine and an empty glass. "I'd say that child is an excellent judge of character." He smiled at Gina. "What would you say?"

She tried to match his enthusiasm, but it was tough. "Sure. You bet."

He studied her quizzically for a moment.

Gina sprang up from the chair just as quickly as she'd sat. "I need to use the powder room."

"We don't have a powder room,"
Devon
replied. "Mom has some powder in her room, I think."

His parents chuckled but Mark whacked his brother on the arm. "She means the bathroom, dummy."