As Hot as It Gets

Danny’s laughter filled the kitchen, and as Jackson prepared two plates for him and Mia, she watched the scene in front of her and a twinge of yearning tugged on her heart. She could get used to this. Jackson in her kitchen, the easy banter, the happy expression on her little brother’s face.

She and Danny hadn’t been lucky enough to grow up in a Norman Rockwell household. They’d been carted around from city to city, barely unpacking their belongings before their mother dragged them to a new place. They hadn’t had one father—they’d had nine. And instead of a mom who loved them unconditionally and put them first, they’d gotten one who cared only about her own insecurities and dived into one marriage after the other in order to feel fulfilled.

“You okay?” came Jackson’s husky voice.

Mia lifted her head with a bittersweet smile. “I’m good. Just thinking about how delicious that omelet looks.”

The three of them ate at the counter, talking about nothing in particular, and then Danny hurried off to gather his school things, leaving Mia and Jackson alone.

“You really don’t need to worry about the beard,” Jackson said in a voice thick with reassurance. “I doubt the team will be goin’ anywhere. We’re just takin’ precautions.”

Mia was relieved. “But if you do have to go, you’ll say goodbye first, right? You won’t just—”

A knock on the door cut her off.

Almost immediately, her shoulders went stiffer than a slab of marble. She and Danny didn’t get a lot of unannounced visitors.

Except for one.

Mia flew off the stool, but she didn’t make it in time. Danny must have been in the living room because he was already on his way to the front door.

She froze, her heart sinking to the pit of her stomach.

Shit.

She was tempted to sprint to the door and stop Danny from opening it, but it was too late. The door creaked open and his dumbfounded exclamation reverberated in the apartment.

“Mom?”

Jackson was well versed in all sorts of explosives, which meant he knew exactly when a bomb would go off. And right now, Mia’s apartment was about to explode. The fuse had been lit, the countdown had started and detonation was imminent.

He slid out of the kitchen just in time to see Danny leading a petite middle-aged woman into the living room.

Jackson noted that the resemblance between Brenda Weldrick—if that was the last name she used—and her two children was uncanny. Dark green eyes, the same generous mouth and sharp cheekbones. Only difference was that Brenda’s features had a weathered look to them. This was a woman who’d lived through a shitload of heartache and disappointment, and the evidence of that was etched right into her face.

“Mia, look! Mom’s here,” Danny said with excitement that his sister clearly didn’t share.

“I can see that,” Mia answered tersely.

Disapproval crept into her brother’s tone. “You’re not even going to say hello?”

Mia spared a pithy glance at their mother. “Hello.”

“Hi, baby,” Brenda said softly. “I’m sorry I took so long to visit again.”

“Again?” Danny echoed.

His mother looked at him in surprise. “Your sister didn’t tell you? I stopped by last month, but you weren’t home.”

A fire of betrayal burned in Danny’s eyes as he swiveled his head at his sister. “Mom was here last month and you didn’t tell me?”

Jackson watched the exchange with growing uneasiness. He felt like he should leave the room, but any move he made would alert them to his presence and make things even more uncomfortable. So he stood there by the kitchen doorway, shirtless and on edge, wishing like heck he could escape undetected, but knowing he was stuck.

“I must have forgotten,” Mia muttered.

“Bullshit!”

“Language,” his sister said in a warning pitch.

“Fuck that! Why didn’t you tell me Mom was here? Why would you keep that from me?”

“Daniel, it’s all right.” His mother spoke in a soothing tone. “I’m sure Mia didn’t mean to be sneaky. She was just trying to protect you.”

“From who?” he snapped.

“From her,” Mia snapped back, jerking a finger at Brenda.

A deafening silence crashed over the room.

Jackson tried to inch his way back to the kitchen, but Mia saw him and shot him a panicked glance.

Don’t leave me, her eyes clearly communicated.

He stifled a sigh and stayed put.

“Look.” Mia cleared her throat and turned to her brother. “I know you’re pissed, but now isn’t the time for this argument. We have to go, otherwise you’ll be late for school.”

“I’ll take him,” Brenda blurted out.

The look in Mia’s eyes could have frozen the Pacific Ocean. “No.”

“Yes,” Danny corrected, his cheeks red with anger. “Mom can drive me to school. I don’t want to be anywhere near you right now.”

Mia’s glacial expression transformed into an eddy of hurt. “Danny—”

“Come on, Mom, let’s go.” Ignoring his sister completely, he marched to the door.

Brenda lingered for a moment, her interested gaze flicking in Jackson’s direction. Then she shifted her head to address her daughter.

“Is it all right if I come back this evening so the three of us can talk?”