I’d just stepped out of the shower when someone started banging on my front door.

Bang, bang, bang!

“Damn it.” I dropped the towel I wore around my waist and pulled on a pair of black boxers and grey sweatpants I’d set on the bathroom counter before jumping in the shower.

I’d only been home from work an hour, and I hadn’t gotten shit done. I still needed to clean up the living room and install the baby gate I’d bought at the foot of the stairs. Toddler proofing the main floor was at the top of my agenda since I planned to have both Shelby and Lucca here as much as possible.

At least until I can move them in permanently.

I didn’t know who the hell was at the door, but I knew it wasn’t Shelby because it was only half past five. There was no way she’d had time to pick Lucca up from daycare and make the thirty-minute drive from Toluca to Kissler, where I lived.

Grabbing a T-shirt from the foot of my unmade bed, I stomped down the hall to the front door. The banging grew louder, more intense with each step I took. “Hold the fuck on!” I yelled in a pissed off voice.

I was ready to kill whoever was on the other side of that door.

Unlocking the deadbolt, I twisted the knob and pulled the door open.

“What?” I snapped, only to be met with the end of a double barrel shotgun. Freezing in place, I stared at the pissed off looking elderly woman holding up a gun that was almost bigger than her.

“Are you that new police detective I’ve heard all about?” I blinked, remaining silent. Without knowing what this woman wanted or how crazy she was, I wouldn't say a word, hell not even a sound. One wrong anything and she’d blow my heart out of my chest. “You hard of hearing, son, or are you being disrespectful on purpose? Because if so, I don’t take too kindly to that sort of behavior.”

She quirked a brow and waited for me to respond.

When I didn’t utter a word, she pushed the tip of the barrel into my left pec, making me sway backward an inch. “Yes, ma’am,” I replied through gritted teeth. “Name is Anthony Moretti.”

“I already know your name,” she responded, calmly. “I wanted to see if you had the balls to answer me or not.”

This woman must be off her meds.

“Well since you know who I am, I think it’s only fair you tell me who you are.” Her cold, blue eyes bored into mine. “And maybe it’s a good idea for you to tell me what you want.”

She didn’t move, didn’t flinch. She only continued to stare. “My name is Doris Davis.”

Doris Davis… Where have I heard that name before?

“But you can call me Grandmama. I live across the street with my son, Keith. You may know him; he’s the fire captain at Station 41 in downtown Kissler.” I’d never heard of him. “But I’m not here to make introductions or get to know you.” Her jaw tightened. “I’m here to ask you a question and, depending on how you answer it, I may be here to issue a warning as well.”

“Yeah?” I whispered. “And what question would that be?”

She shoved the gun into my chest harder, and I took an instinctive step back. Moving forward, she closed the gap between us. “I want to know what your intentions are with my grandbaby.”

What? I didn't know what she was talking about.

Then it hit me—this was Grandmama, the ‘sort of’ grandmother Shelby told me had adopted her and Lucca.

“I’m guessing you’re talking about Shelby.”

She nodded. “She’s the only granddaughter I’ve got that’s still single. The good Lord knows if you’d tried to mess with Maddie, Hendrix Cole would’ve put you six feet under by now.” She paused. “That’s if I didn’t get to you first.”

I took a steadying breath. “So you want to know what my intentions are towards Shelby?”

“That’s what I said, isn’t it?”

“Don’t think that’s any of your business, lady.” I either had balls of brass or was the stupidest man to walk the face of the earth. “I haven’t even had this discussion with Shelby yet. Why would I talk to you about it before her?”

The crazy old woman grinned.

“Good answer.” A second later her smiled wavered, and her eyes narrowed. “But I still want to know what your intentions are. That girl may not be my blood kin, but I love her just as much as I do Maddie.” Her grip on the gun tightened, and her shoulders shook. “And God knows Shelby has been hurt enough, so if you’re toying with her, you might as well stop while you're ahead—” she paused for emphasis “—else you’ll be dealing with me.”

“Yeah? And what are you going to do about it?” It was stupid to goad her, but I could tell she was testing me. She wouldn’t pull the trigger. Not yet anyway. She wanted to see what I was made of, how much I’d endure before I cracked. “You going to shoot me, Grandmama?”

Again, she shoved the gun into my chest, causing me to flinch. “If the need calls for it then I sure as hell will. I may be old, but don’t make the mistake of underestimating me. I’ve got two shovels, a solid alibi, and a backyard to bury you in.” Her shoulders trembled, and her hands began to shake. The heavy weight of the gun was too much for her to hold. “You listen, Detective Moretti—my grandbaby has been through hell and, although I don’t know all the details, I know it was bad enough to cause permanent scars.” Her eyes filled with tears. “And I’ll be damned if I let you hurt her too. She’s already been dealt more than her fair share of pain.”

“Lady, I’m not—”

“Close your mouth and listen to what I’m saying, young man.” She paused again. “If you cause a single tear to fall from Shelby’s pretty blue eyes, I will blow your balls straight out of your ass. You understand me?”

“Yes, ma’am, I do.”

Just then, an older man with blond hair that was greying around the edges sprinted up my driveway. “Mama!” He shouted at the top of his lungs. “What the hell are you doing?”

Grandmama didn’t turn to acknowledge him. Eyes still locked on mine, she called back, “Just talking to Shelby’s new beau.”

The man leaped onto the porch and came to a standstill. “Beau? You mean boyfriend?” His eyes moved from hers to mine. “Ah hell, this just got interesting.”

Moving to Grandmama’s side, he placed a hand on her shoulder. “Mama, put the gun down. I’m sure the nice man will treat Shelby right. No need to pull a gun on him.” He looked at me with pleading eyes. “Right?”

I nodded once. “Already told her as much.” I took a step back and crossed my arms over my chest, confident she wouldn’t pull the trigger. “Besides, have you met Shelby? If I hurt her she’ll kill me before you get the chance to.”

The man laughed. “Man, that’s probably the truth.”

Grandmama shoved the gun into the side of my forearm. “Don’t talk about her that way,” she hissed. “My girl is beautiful, smart, and kind. And, frankly, she deserves better than the likes of you.”

I didn’t doubt that for one second.

“Yeah?” I asked. “And how do you figure that?”

She dropped the gun and, for the first time in two minutes, I took a breath. “Because there isn’t a man on this earth that deserves Shelby. She may be broken, and she may be a little crazy, but she’s got one of the purest hearts I’ve ever encountered, and that—” she paused “—makes her too good for you.”

I couldn’t have agreed more.

Ever since the other night, I’d known Shelby had problems, but that didn’t mean shit. She was still the most beautiful thing I’d ever touched or seen. My only concern was finding out exactly what had caused those problems and nullifying it.

Needing to placate the woman standing in front of me, and wanting to assure her I wouldn't hurt our girl, I replied, “Shelby is too good for me—” I paused “—but I’ve always been a selfish bastard”—being an only child will do that to you—“and I’m keeping her anyway.” I took a step forward, placed my hands on each side of the doorframe, and looked Grandmama in the eyes. “Might as well get used to it now, lady, because Shelby and Lucca are both mine, and there isn’t shit you can do or say that will change that. You can threaten to shoot me, cut my balls off, whatever, but none of it will affect me.”

And it wouldn’t.

At that point, my mind was already made up and short of me dying there wasn’t a damn thing that would stop me from claiming either of them.

“What do you mean Lucca is yours?” she asked hesitantly. Before I had the chance to answer her, she continued. “It’s one thing to be laying claim to Shelby but when you bring my great grandson into—”

“The last time I checked they were a package deal.”

Did this lady think I was a fool? Because I wasn’t.

From the moment I saw Lucca perched on Shelby’s hip I’d known I couldn’t fall in love with her without falling in love with him too. And after spending time with him yesterday, he’d already wormed his way into my heart. Lucca may not have shared my DNA, but that didn’t matter; I’d still love him like he did.

The day Shelby became my wife, Lucca would become my son.

I didn’t know who his father was or why he was absent and I didn’t give a shit. If he was permanently out of the picture, then that was good news for me because it made it easier for me to take his place. If he was still around, hanging out in the background, then I’d still step up to the plate and be the father that Lucca needed because the man who’d helped create him was doing a shit job.

Grandmama looked at me like she didn’t know what to make of me. “Just remember what I said, young man. If you hurt Shelby I’ll end you—” she moved closer and raised her chin in the air “—but if you hurt Lucca, I will rip you to pieces using a rusty razor blade and enjoy every second of it.”

Her son’s face dropped. “Mama,” he gasped, “you can’t be doing this!” Running frustrated hands through his hair, he looked two seconds away from losing his mind. “You can’t be threatening to tear people to pieces and you damn sure can’t pull a gun on a cop.”

Grandmama’s head snapped to the right, and she looked at her son with scathing eyes. “I don’t give a damn if he’s the Pope! I’m gonna do what I need to do in order to protect my family!”

Her head whipped back around, and her hard eyes found mine.

Moments of silence ticked by.

Then, “They still coming over for supper?”

I nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

Blowing out a breath, she shoved the shotgun into her son’s torso. “Hold that,” she demanded, “and make sure you keep your finger off the trigger. Remember what happened last time.”

Walking over to the edge of the porch, she picked up a wicker basket I hadn’t seen before. She lifted it in one quick heave, carried it back over to me, and shoved it in my gut. With a grunt, I took it from her hands. “That’s y’all’s supper.” Her head dipped down, and she looked at me over the top of her black framed glasses. “I’ll let you in on a secret. Feed Shelby good food, and she’ll open up to you.”

Keith laughed.

Thinning her lips, Grandmama turned around and smacked his arm. “Shut up, knucklehead.”

With a frustrated shake of her head, she turned back to look at me. “Like a lot of women, Shelby is an emotional eater. She associates food—especially comfort food—with happiness.” For the second time in the last ten minutes, tears filled her eyes. “I told you I don’t know a lot about her past or where she came from, but going by what I’ve seen and heard over the last two years, I think food is a bit of a novelty for her.”

Every muscle in my body tensed. “You telling me Shelby spent most of her life being hungry?”

“I don’t know.” Her voice quieted to a whisper. “But I’ve got a bad feeling…”

She didn’t need to say anymore. If she did, I feared I’d lose my temper. The last thing I wanted was to be in a rage when Shelby and Lucca showed up.

Clutching the basket in my left hand, I stepped back and placed my right hand on the door. “Thanks for making supper, Grandmama.” I inhaled and forced myself to stay calm. “But I need to get back inside. I’ve still got a lot of stuff to get done before my woman, and her son get here.”

She took a step back. “You do that. But remember what I said, Detective Moretti. One single tear and you might as well bend over and kiss your ass goodbye because I’ll be coming for you.”

With those parting words, she turned around, took her gun back from Keith, and walked away.

Keith exhaled and extended his hand for me to take. “I’m Keith Davis, son of the crazy old bat that just stormed out of here.” He shook his head. “Sorry about her. The older she gets, the crazier she becomes.”

“Name’s Anthony Moretti,” I replied, watching Grandmama walk away. “Don’t worry about her. Crazy or not, I’m glad Shelby has her.” And I was. Even if I didn’t appreciate having a shotgun shoved into my chest, I understood her reasoning.

“Yeah, but that doesn’t give her the right to aim a gun at you.” He looked tired, completely worn out. “But at seventy, I figure she’s set in her ways. Ain’t no use in trying to change her now.” With another shake of his head, he stepped back and tossed a wave my way. “I would say it was nice meeting you, Detective, but under the circumstances…” His voice trailed off, and he chuckled to himself. “Anyway, I’ll let you get back to your business, but before I do, I have something I need to say as well.”

Fuck, here we go again.

“I’m not one to stick my nose in other people’s business, but Shelby is special. My daughter, Maddie, she uh...” He crossed his arms over his chest and looked towards his house where Grandmama was standing on the porch watching us. “Maddie went through a rough patch a while back and Shelby, well, she was the one to help her through it. The only person able to snap Maddie out of it completely was her fiancée, Hendrix, but Shelby kept her close, kept her sane until Hendrix fixed it. If she hadn’t been there…” He swallowed and pinched the bridge of his nose between two fingers. “Damn, why is this so hard to talk about?” He ran his hands through his hair again, causing it to stand on end. “My point is Shelby’s a good girl. She’s special. Just treat her right because, if you don’t, I won’t stand in the way when my mother comes after you. We clear?”

“As crystal.”

Keith nodded once. “Alright.” He turned to face the home he shared with Grandmama. “Well, I guess I ought to get going. I know Shelby will be here soon and I don’t want to be standing here when she pulls up.” He looked at me over his shoulder and grinned. “Girl would probably kick my ass from here to kingdom come if she thought I was trying to warn you away from her.”

Stepping back, I grabbed ahold of the doorknob. “Nice meeting you, Keith. Hopefully, next time I see you it’ll be under different circumstances.”

He chuckled to himself as he descended the steps and headed for the driveway. “You and me both, Detective Moretti. You and me both.”