His grin turned wicked.
“Yeah. That’s better.” I liked the idea that he called the place home.
He kissed me again, this time until my breath heated to a dangerous level. Then with a whispered command to stay safe, he headed out of the cabin. All the air seemed to relax around me with his departure.
I waited until I heard his truck drive away before grabbing my phone to call Nana O’Shea.
“Hi, honey,” she said upon answering. “It’s nice of you to call in the middle of the day. I know how busy you get with your court hearings and clients.” Her Irish brogue was sweet and slight.
“Hi, Nana,” I said. “I have bad news and wanted to let you know, but you have to promise not to do anything about it.”
Even her gasp held hints of Ireland. “Oh, no. You and Aiden didn’t break up, did you?”
“No.” I sank against the pillows. “Why?”
“Because that would be terrible news,” she retorted instantly. “He’s Irish and the perfect match for you. There’s nothing wrong with taking it slow, so long as you’re moving forward.”
We’d only been dating for months. Shouldn’t the pressure start at the one-year mark? Even so, I didn’t want to mess with fate. “Are you sure you’re just curious?”
“Of course. I see good things for the two of you.”
What a relief. I thought she’d gotten a warning sign. Taking a deep breath, I let her have the bad news. “I wanted to let you know that Lenny Kristoff is one of the Cupid robbers.”
She groaned. “He can’t be.”
“I’m sorry, Nana. He is.” I told her about the day’s events, including that he’d tied me to an armoire at the antique store.
“That jerk,” she muttered. “I’m going to go borrow Nonna Albertini’s spoon and have a little talk with him.”
That would be a disaster. “No, Nana. You can’t tell anybody. Pierce hasn’t found him to arrest yet. But I wanted to let you know all the facts in case he contacts you. If he does, you need to call me or Detective Pierce immediately. Okay?”
“I promise,” she said. “I am so disappointed in Lenny.”
I winced. She’d put a curse on him, although he would deserve it. “As am I, Nana. I’ll talk to you later. Okay?”
“All right. Love you.” She hung up.
I settled myself back on the pillows and called Pierce for an update, but he didn’t answer. I wasn’t surprised.
I heard a knock on the front door before it opened.
“Yoo-hoo,” Nonna Albertini called out.
“Hi, Nonna. I’m in the bedroom.”
She shut the door and moved through the house to reach me, wearing her fairly new trench coat, dark sunglasses, and a wide, pink purse. Nonna was all Italian, with dark hair peppered with gray and sparkling brown eyes. She was a stunning woman. I’d always thought she could have been a movie star.
I tried to smile. “Nonna, what are you doing here?”
She also carried a pan that no doubt held her famous lasagna. “I’m going to put this in the fridge.” She disappeared in a rustle of her detective getup.
Maybe I shouldn’t have given her the code to the front door, but she was my grandmother.
She returned and removed her coat, draping it over the lone chair by the dresser. “Are you all right? I could not believe that Tricia held a gun on you.”
“I’m fine, Nonna,” I said. “They were actually a lot of help in calling the police after the robbery. How do you know Tricia, anyway?”
“She and her sidekick are from Sandpoint. Sometimes their mah-jongg group and ours get together and play. We’ve known each other for years. She’s all right, but honestly, I can’t believe she held a Smith & Wesson 500 on you. I mean, give me a break, right?”
