Chapter 9
9
Nikki
W hile they were in front of her son, Mateo was all professional. Well, except for when he got all buddy-buddy with Paxton.
Nikki couldn’t drag her eyes away from them when that happened. The whole trip to the city and back, Mateo acted like the same guy she’d gotten to know a decade ago. He was all charm and smiles—and she wanted to hate it, but she couldn’t deny how good it felt to have the attention of a man like him, even if it wasn’t for romantic reasons.
She’d finished up a simple lunch for the men and wandered out to the corral where Mateo was yet again down on eye level with her son as he discussed the rules for riding. She couldn’t hear what Mateo was saying as his voice was too low, but based on how Paxton was drinking in every single word, she knew it was good.
Paxton nodded, and Mateo grinned at him. He was so good with her son that it made her heart twist in her chest. He would have been such a good father. It was a shame he’d never settled down with anyone after Caroline.
Mateo glanced in her direction, and their eyes locked. She stiffened under his stare. It didn’t matter how many times he looked at her like that; she couldn’t shake the way it sent goosebumps rippling beneath her skin.
In that second, time stood still. There was no other way to describe it. She couldn’t move, and all she thought about was the idea that he saw something special in her. Nikki couldn’t recall the last time someone looked at her like that.
No matter how much she tried to convince herself that there was nothing between them, in this moment, her heart refused to accept it.
Someone nudged her, and Nikki gasped as she turned to find Sophia standing beside her at the corral, watching Paxton’s riding lesson. She smiled serenely as she folded her arms atop the wooden fence pole. “Your kid is adorable,” Sophia said.
Nikki forced herself to drag her attention back to the duo and found Mateo had turned his back to them. Paxton was staring up at the saddle like it was his very own Mount Everest. Mateo’s robust chuckle echoed toward them at something her son had said. “Thanks,” Nikki said.
“He’s a real sweetheart, too.”
Nikki swiveled her attention to Mateo’s sister and regarded her with curiosity. When had Sophia interacted with her son? Sure, they were all staying under the same roof, but Nikki had tried her hardest to make sure that they stayed out of everyone’s way. She didn’t want anyone to complain about her presence, and she’d told Paxton as much. They had a good thing going for them in the larger bedroom. She didn’t want to lose it.
Sophia chuckled and turned to face Nikki. Her eyes trailed over Nikki from head to toe, assessing, and Nikki stiffened. Sophia didn’t seem like the type of person to be judgmental when it came to looks. She had her own set of curves. Though to Nikki, Sophia pulled them off far better than anyone she knew. It came with her ancestry. The woman was made to dance a salsa with some handsome man in a tux.
Shifting uncomfortably, Nikki forced her eyes away from Sophia and nodded toward Mateo. “I never knew how good he was with kids. Did you?” She could feel Sophia’s eyes on her, drilling heat into the side of her face before she turned away from Nikki and watched what was going on.
Mateo had lifted Paxton onto the saddle, and he was talking earnestly to him. Based on Paxton’s pale skin, he wasn’t thrilled with how high up off the ground he was.
Sophia offered a small smile. “Yeah, I knew. Mateo loves kids. Always has. I think it came with his love of dogs. He’s always been a sucker for that sort of thing, and he’s had to fight off women left and right because of it.”
Of course, he did. There was nothing more attractive than a man who loved kids and dogs. Nikki knew it, and so did every other woman on the planet. She burned with questions. Why hadn’t Mateo settled down? Surely there were plenty of women to choose from. He could have literally anyone.
But Nikki kept her mouth clamped shut. Mateo was still her boss. She couldn’t afford for Sophia to notice she had feelings for him. Too complicated.
“Caroline ruined him.” Sophia said it so quietly and so full of bitterness that Nikki wasn’t sure she’d heard her correctly.
“I’m sorry?” she asked.
Sophia turned a sour stare on Nikki, but it wasn’t really directed at her. It was more out of solidarity than anything else—a support for her brother. “She broke him. After he found out that she cheated on him and left with that guy, he swore he wasn’t going to date forever. It took a couple years for me to convince him to go on a date with no strings attached. Slowly, he’s gotten back out there, but he’s refused to get serious.”
Nikki breathed out a surprised breath. “Wow. I mean… I don’t blame him… but…”
“Yeah,” Sophia muttered. “He was so excited to move on to that married stage of his life. He kept talking about how he planned on starting a family right away and—” Sophia cut herself off, snapping her mouth shut before she met Nikki’s eyes again. “It’s just too bad, you know?”
Nodding wordlessly, Nikki glanced over to where Mateo was joking around with Paxton. There was color back in his cheeks. It was good for him to try something new, and she had a sinking feeling that if it had been anyone besides Mateo, Paxton wouldn’t have taken to it. Mateo was cut from a different cloth. He had a way of drawing people in and making them feel like they were priceless.
A lump formed in her throat and the all too familiar guilt returned to her gut. She slid her gaze to Sophia and sucked in sharply when she noticed Sophia staring at her. Nikki wrung her hands and forced her voice to be stronger than she felt like giving. “I tried to tell him—Mateo—that I didn’t agree with what Caroline did. I mean, who would? It was awful. I still can’t believe she’d risk everything…” She shook her head, feeling sick all over.
The truth of the matter was that she’d stayed friends with Caroline for a couple of years after that experience—and hated herself for it.
Mateo hadn’t deserved that treatment. No one did, but especially not Mateo.
The man was hot. But more than his looks, he was beautiful on the inside. He should have had everything good in life. Karma had practically demanded it… and yet Caroline had come into his life and shattered that good heart of his.
“I’m not friends with her now,” Nikki whispered. “I haven’t heard from her in years.”
“Good.” Sophia’s sharp tone would have made Nikki flinch if she was any other person in the world. She had every right to be protective of her brother, and Nikki found she could appreciate her desire to be just that.
Nikki offered Sophia a small smile.
Sophia returned it in kind before facing her brother. “I’m not going to judge you for your friendships. I wanted you to know that.” She glanced at Nikki out of the corner of her eye. “I’m happy you cut loose the dead weight. You were always too good of a friend to Caroline. She didn’t deserve someone who was as loyal as you.”
Nikki’s brows lifted. “What makes you think I was loyal?”
The woman scoffed, and the sound was followed quickly after with a laugh. “I might not have been in the same grade as you and Mateo, but I spent my share of time hovering in the background whenever you guys came here to hang out. I noticed things. Caroline was a brat with a capital B. You were too good of a friend for someone like that. I always thought that Mateo should have dated you instead of Caroline.”
There was no stifling the sharp intake of breath that ended with Nikki all but choking on her own spittle. She gaped wide-eyed at Sophia, wondering if she’d said as much to her brother.
Worse still, had Mateo said something in response to that sort of statement?
Her legs shook, and she reached out to hold onto the corral with one hand to steady herself. There was absolutely no way she’d ask. She couldn’t afford to add fuel to the fire.
She couldn’t help but wonder if Sophia was fishing for information. Or maybe it was just wishful thinking. If Mateo had sent his sister to find out about Nikki’s feelings, would Nikki finally be able to admit she held some attraction for her cowboy boss?
Sophia laughed. “I take it that you don’t agree.”
Nikki blinked several times and forced herself to shake her head. “No. I mean, sure… but…” Her face burned, and she fought to find the words that would get her out of this blustering mess. “What I meant to say was that I hadn’t really thought about it.”
Liar .
Sophia didn’t look convinced, and why would she? Based on the way that Nikki had just reacted to her statement, there was no reason for her to believe her. And now she’d likely go off and prattle on about her findings to her brother.
Nikki’s hand reached out and landed on Sophia’s arm. “I know what you’re thinking, but don’t.”
One side of Sophia’s mouth quirked upward. “And what exactly is that?”
“That you think I’m attracted to your brother.”
“And you’re not?”
Just like that, the heat intensified tenfold in her face. “Of course, he’s attractive. Someone would have to be blind not to see that. He’s definitely good-looking, but not in the way you think. He’s…” She was desperate. This was so embarrassing! “He’s my boss, Sophia. Nothing more. I would never act on any kind of attraction I may or may not have for someone who is signing my paycheck. So please… don’t make this out to be something it’s not.”
Sophia cocked her head like the pleased predator she was. Then she shrugged. “Okay. I won’t say anything.” She practically beamed at Nikki. “On one condition.”
All relief that Nikki had temporarily experienced went up in smoke.
“If Mateo asks you out, you accept.”
“What? I can’t?—”
“You know what I think? I think the two of you would be good for each other. More than you probably realize.” With that, she hurried away—far too quickly for Nikki to make any semblance of an argument to the contrary.
Nikki stared after her, half tempted to chase her down and tell her she was crazy and half determined to stay where she was with her feet planted. Who was she to argue with something that sounded so… right?
Slowly, she turned around and watched Mateo with her son. Her eyes locked with Mateo’s several other times before she had to excuse herself to start making dinner. She was certain she’d hear all about their lesson from Paxton when she prepared to put him to bed this evening.
Her heart fluttered as she went over the conversation she’d had with Mateo’s sister.
If anything, she felt a little less crazy about her growing feelings for her boss.