Page 3 of Mateo & Nicole
Once again, she nodded. “I’m a hard worker. I’ll make sure everything is in order every single day. I’ll offer variety and quality, and I know how to budget when it comes to supplies?—”
“Okay, okay.” He laughed. “You’ve got the job.”
Her eyes rounded. “Really?”
Mateo lifted a shoulder. “Sure. What are friends for?”
She beamed. “Right. What are friends for?”
His gaze locked with hers for a long, breath-stealing moment. All those fluttery feelings she’d had for him when they were teenagers came rushing back to the surface before she had a chance to stamp them out and suffocate them.
“It really is good to see you, Nikki,” Mateo said with a huge smile. He moved closer to her and brushed his hand down her upper arm. For a split second, she expected him to pull her into another hug, but he didn’t. He merely let his gaze linger before saying, “Come back on Monday. We’ll give you the grand tour after we get you moved in.” He brushed past her, and her skin felt like it was on fire from where his skin had touched hers.
The lump in her throat nearly choked her as she spun to watch him head down the steps and back to the people who were here for their impromptu barbeque.
She’d done it. She’d gotten a job!
Nikki stifled a squeal as she hurried back through the house. She didn’t bother to speak to anyone on her way out, least they see how excited she was.
2
Mateo Palmer
Mateo turned just in time to see Nikki disappear into the house. He’d nearly invited her to stay for the barbecue. But something had held him back. It was probably the bittersweet nature of her arrival. With everything that had gone wrong in his life, she was a bright spot. She’d been the most real person he’d known in high school.
He’d liked to think that she was his friend, but if he were honest with himself, he had to admit their paths would never have crossed if she hadn’t been friends with Caroline.
His ex’s name was just as bitter in his mind as it was speaking it aloud. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t talk about her nor give her any of his energy thinking about her. The woman was poison.
It had started long before he’d gotten engaged to her—long before she’d left him at the altar with a shattered heart.
He shook his head, forcing those thoughts from his mind and choosing to linger on the woman he’d thought about more than once over the last decade. Nicole Reynolds. There had been moments in his life when he’d wondered what it would have been like had he fallen for Nicole first. If he’d allowed himself to push aside the high school expectations of the football player falling for the head cheerleader, he might have seen what Nicole had to offer.
It was a cruel twist of fate that she was here.
Or maybe it wasn’t cruel at all.
She was just as beautiful and vivacious as he remembered—with curves in all the right places. Her eyes were warm and inviting, like a hazelnut hot chocolate on the first snowy day of winter. The way her hair fell around her shoulders in soft waves had made him itch to run his fingers through them.
What would their lives have been like if he’d sought her out back then? Would they be married?
He sighed. This line of thinking never boded well for him. He always ended up feeling down about missing out on an opportunity for happiness.
If Caroline was the ice queen, then Nikki was a fairy princess who could only bring joy. They were opposites in every way, from their looks to their personalities. He’d definitely chosen wrong when he’d started dating Caroline.
A groan slipped from his lips as he stalked toward Daniel, Aria, and Sophia, dropping down on the blanket beside them. Sophia glanced up at him with a smirk that only a sister could master. “Was that Nicole Reynolds?”
Mateo grunted, setting his eyes on the puppy in Daniel’s hands. “So what’s it gonna be? You keeping it?”
Aria tugged the newborn from Daniel’s arms. “We’re definitely keeping it. Thanks, cousin.” She beamed up at him, nuzzling the tiny pup through the blanket.
Mateo glanced once more toward the house as if he expected to see Nicole standing there watching him. It was a ridiculous notion. She’d come here for a job, not to catch up. He hadn’t even gotten a chance to ask her how she’d found her way to this part of the state. They’d both been raised in Montana. It was strange, and yet a thrill still raced through his chest at the thought that maybe this was what his heart had been waiting for.
“What did Nicole want?” Somehow, Sophia always knew what he was thinking. He didn’t know how she did it, but she could see right past his defenses to the deepest parts of his soul.
He looked at his sister, noting the smug smirk on her lips. He knew that look. She was planning something. Mateo rolled his eyes. Fat chance she’d be successful in whatever it was. “She needs a job.”
Sophia lifted her brows, surprise lacing her features. “Really? Did you give her one?”
