Choices, Loyalty, & Love (Men of NatEx #3): A Package Handlers Novel Read online

  He squints harder and shakes his head back at me, waving a finger in the air. “No, I’m pretty sure—”

  “Jer,” the woman behind the counter says, her gaze aimed at me. “Wanna get changed?” She looks at “Jer” now. “You don’t want to disappoint the boss on your very first day.” She winks at him, but he doesn’t see her.

  He’s still looking at me. Slowly, he unfreezes and snaps out of his trance. “Yeah, sure,” he says before giving her his full attention. “I think I can make it up to the boss later anyway.” Then he winks back at her, clearly only having eyes for this woman. Then he spins to head through the door again, giving me one last suspicious look before the door closes.

  “What was that about?” Mason asks. “Do you know him?”

  I shake my head again. “No, I don’t.”

  In the past few months, Mason’s learned to take my first answer as the only one he’s going to get. He won’t ask again, even if he doesn’t believe me. It’s part of his newfound best behavior.

  But the woman behind the counter? She doesn’t look like she believes me at all.

  Chapter 3

  Nic

  Mason sets his chocolate croissant down to dig his phone out of his pocket for the third time since we sat down to eat. I’ve told him to answer it. We’re in town for his business, after all. So it only makes sense that he takes the calls he gets. But he keeps insisting that he’s not needed at this hour. Now, I’m putting my foot down.

  “Mason, just answer it. It’s okay.”

  He gives me a look that says he doesn’t agree with me, but he reluctantly hits the button to accept the call anyway and excuses himself from the table. I pick at my peach cobbler Danish, which is incredible. But I lost all of my appetite the moment Aidan’s friend recognized me. It’s not like I was doing anything wrong at Aidan’s house yesterday. For heaven’s sake, Mason had dropped me off there, thinking I could say hi to Aidan by myself while Mason had a dinner meeting. He knows we know each other from before Mason and I started dating, but if he knew the rest of the story…

  Well, he probably wouldn’t have left me there. Especially not after what we’ve been through recently.

  A few moments later, Mason’s back at the table, holding his phone in the air. “That was my boss. They want me in sooner than scheduled today to get through everything.” His expression tells me how sorry he is for having to bail on our breakfast.

  However, I couldn’t be more relieved. So I let him off the hook. “That’s okay. Go ahead,” I tell him, giving him a look to let him know I understand.

  “Want me to give you a ride back to the hotel?” He points a finger over his shoulder, toward the door.

  I pretend like I’m thinking it over, but the answer is absolutely not. Now that I don’t have to hate the woman behind the counter for being Aidan’s girlfriend, I want to know more about her. And I’d like to talk to his friend. So, in the end, I gently shake my head and pick my pastry back up.

  “No, that’s okay. I’ll finish this and get an Uber or something.” I put my most convincing smile to work.

  In his pocket, he digs his fingers around until he emerges with his wallet. Then he pulls a fifty from the fold and slides it over to me. “In case you need anything.” It’s another peace offering.

  I take it because refusing it would feel rude. I am here on this trip because of him, so fifty dollars in exchange for his absence probably feels like the least he can do. Even though I have access to several of his credit cards.

  “Thanks,” I tell him. “I’ll be okay. Don’t worry.”

  He nods once before heading toward the exit. At the door, he waves and blows me a kiss. I pretend to grab it out of the air, but I’m not exactly enthusiastic about it. I give him just enough to let him know that his efforts are noticed and appreciated but still not enough to call things even.

  None of it got past the woman behind the counter though.

  I can feel her staring at the back of my head, so when I turn, I find her watching me intently. I’m not here to cause any trouble, so I go back to picking at my breakfast and remove my phone from my purse. No missed calls. No texts. Nothing to occupy me but my own thoughts.

  Until the chair across from me slides against the tile floor and she takes a seat in it.

  “Is your breakfast okay? You’ve barely eaten it,” she says, scooting her chair under the table more.

  I swallow the piece I popped into my mouth before she joined me. “It’s great. Really, the best I’ve had. I’m just not terribly hungry.”

  Slowly, she folds her hands on the table, never releasing my gaze. “Does it have something to do with Jeremy?” With her head, she gestures toward the back.

  Involuntarily, I swallow, but this time, there’s no food excuse. Just nerves. And she knows it.

  “Kind of,” I tell her, and then I rush to add, “But not how you might think.”

  She’s calm on the outside when she speaks next, but I’m sure she’s boiling on the inside. “What I’m thinking is he was in Vegas all weekend for a bachelor party and then a strange woman pretends she’s never seen him before in front of her”—she glances at my left hand—“boyfriend.”

  “No, it’s not like that. I wasn’t in Vegas this weekend, and I saw the way he looks at you,” I say, staring at my plate. “Obviously, there’s no one else for—”

  She leans back in her chair as her expression changes to utter confusion. Which makes two of us. “Whoa. Hold on. I’m not worried about if my boyfriend was faithful. We had a rough start, but I assure you.” She holds a hand in the air, her palm facing me. “That’s not the kind of man he is.”

  Cocking my head to the side, I say, “Then what are you worried about?”

  After leaning forward, she quiets her voice. “You. Are you okay?”

  Now, I’m the one taken aback. I mirror the position she had moments ago, leaning against the back of my chair. And I point a finger at my chest. “I’m fine. Why would you think I’m not okay?”

  “You were skittish about knowing Jeremy—which you clearly do, and we’ll get to that. But he was around strippers all weekend, I’m sure. I thought maybe you were in a bad situation or something and the man you were with was…” She trails off, looking around the room as if to find the words she wants to use. “Maybe he was keeping you against your will or something. I don’t know.”

  Before I can stop it, a laugh bubbles out of my mouth. The last thing Mason’s doing is keeping me against my will. In a sense, he’s trying, but will is all mine.

  “I’ve never been to Vegas. Nor have I ever been a stripper. I’m flexible from yoga, but not from stripping. And Mason?” I jut my thumb toward the door, still smiling. “He’s not hurting me or anything.”

  The woman takes a deep breath, visibly relieved that I’m all right. Which makes me laugh a little more, if only on the inside. She’s kind of incredible and I hated her on sight because of a stupid assumption. She’s in a solid, stable relationship with Aidan’s friend, not Aidan. And I’d love to think she and I could be friends if things were different. She’s the kind of person I’d always want in my corner.

  When the relief has settled in, curiosity gets the better of her. “Okay, if it’s not that, then how do you know Jeremy and why didn’t you want to talk about it in front of your boyfriend?” She leans in again. “He is your boyfriend, right? Not your husband?”

  Ugh, that question. I’ve been hearing it for nearly seven years now. And it’s not like Mason hasn’t asked me to marry him. Several times, especially in the last few months. Before I can answer her though, she reels back and gasps. Then she snaps her fingers.

  “Oh! You’re Nic!”

  Yet again, she’s caught me off guard.

  I squint at her. “How would you know that?”

  “Jeremy told me last night that you were at Aidan’s house when they got back from their trip. Now, it makes sense.” Her ponytail flips to the side as she tilts her head. “He said things looke
d awkward though. That Aidan was intense.” Then she shrugs. “Though that’s not unusual for Aidan.”

  Intense? Aidan? I mean, maybe. He certainly was last night, but that’s not really the Aidan I remember. Before I can take that thought any further, another one hits me.

  “So you know Aidan too?” I ask, picking at my jeans for something to do so I don’t look like I’m grilling her for information.

  “Not well,” she says carefully, like she can see right through me. “Jeremy and I only just started dating. And Jeremy’s brother, Matt, is Aidan’s best friend. So I’m sure I’ll be seeing more of him in the future.”

  Just like that, the jealousy I felt earlier when I thought this woman was with Aidan rushes back. She may not be with him, but she’s part of his future here. And that’s something I can’t say about myself.

  “I’m Amelia, by the way.” She reaches a hand out across the table.

  Her kind qualities gently nudge that jealousy aside. It’s unfair of me again, so I let it go for now and shake her hand.

  “Veronica.” I smile at her.

  “So, not Nic?” she asks, her eyes narrowed.

  “Oh, no. I’m Nic,” I answer, my tone conveying a little annoyance, maybe a little pride, but also a lot of disappointment.

  I’m Nic. But the only person who calls me that won’t ever say it the way I want to hear it again.

  ***

  Aidan

  Work always goes way too quickly when I don’t want it to. Of course, it drags ass when I need it to go fast. But the workday has vanished already and I’m not ready to spill my guts to the guys. Not by a long shot. My stupid ass said I would though. So I head toward the meeting spot. The one place I highly doubt I’ll run into Nic since I sent her and Mason there this morning for breakfast.

  Jeremy’s already at the bakery when I arrive, which makes sense. His last week at Nat Ex is this week, but he’s doing double duty as he transitions to work the books for Amelia. I heard all about it this weekend in Vegas.

  Matt pulls up right behind me as I get out of my car. “God, how slow was this day?” He reaches his left hand behind his right shoulder as his right arm makes circles, stretching his muscles.

  While he’s midstretch, I give him a shove. “Don’t even start.”

  Laughing, he straightens himself just before we go through the door. “That’s what happens when you’re looking forward to something. Time slows way the hell down.”

  “Yeah, well,” I start as I follow him in. But, even before the door closes behind me, I stop dead in my tracks. Because the last person I expected to see here is behind the counter, cleaning the top of the display case.

  “Oh, hey!” Matt says loudly, pointing at Nic. “Look who’s here!”

  She smiles politely at the man rudely pointing his finger at her. I want to smack his hand out of the air and ask him who forgot to teach him any manners, but I’m too taken aback from the sight of her.

  “Are you Matt?” Nic asks, setting her rag down. She walks around the counter, making an arc toward him. “Amelia told me all about you. I hear you’re getting married next weekend.”

  “You heard right,” he answers, bowing a little like a weirdo. “Next weekend, I’m marrying the most successful real estate agent in the tri-county area.” Unmistakable pride shines from his eyes. “Somehow, she’s found the time to take a week off so we can get married in front of all of our favorite people”—he sweeps a hand around the room—“and then go to Puerto Rico for our honeymoon.”

  Her smile gets wider, but I’m the only one in the room who can see the cracks in her otherwise perfect mask. “That’s so exciting. Congratulations. I hope it’s a beautiful day.”

  “I’m sure it will be.” Matt glances at me before returning his gaze to Nic. “But hey, why don’t you come? You can be Aidan’s plus-one. He was given one but never—”

  “Matt.” I finally unfreeze and step toward him. “That’s enough.” He doesn’t need to spill my private business to everyone. No one else needs to be aware of how single I am. How painfully single I am.

  Nic gives me a brief eyebrow raise. So brief that I almost miss it. But even her subtle expressions come across like shouts to me. I never miss a single thing she does. Especially the painful shit.

  But she caught that. Now, she knows how painfully single I am. Which feels unfair as hell, seeing as she’s been in a relationship with the same person for more than half a decade. I’m the same as when I left: hung up on her and heartbroken. But she doesn’t need to know that part.

  While Matt’s staring at me with a challenge in his eyes, Nic laughs. “Thanks for the invite, but we’re going home on Friday, so I won’t be in town for that.”

  “We?” Matt asks, directing the question to her. “Oh, right.” Then he peeks over at me again. “You and Aidan’s brother. I remember now.”

  Clearly, he hadn’t forgotten. His tone gave that away. And the sarcastic look in his eyes is the cherry on top of his asshole sundae.

  Nic’s expression turns somber for a split second before she nods at Matt. “Right.” Then she goes back to cleaning the counters.

  Before I can stop the words from coming out, I say, “Why are you doing that?” Though the words themselves aren’t rude on their own, the tone I inadvertently chose to speak them in was. So I clear my throat while she looks at me like a deer in headlights and try again. “I mean, you don’t work here, do you? Shouldn’t Dani be doing that or something?”

  “Hey!” Dani says as she pushes her head through the door to the kitchen. “I heard that.” When she spots her brother, she says, “Hey, Matt. Here to pick me up?”

  “Actually,” he says, glancing at me, “I was here for something else, but I can see that’s not going to happen, so…sure.”

  “Great! One sec.” She disappears, and a few seconds later, she reappears with her bag slung over her shoulder. Before she’s all the way through the door, she shouts, “Bye, Jeremy! Bye, Amelia! See you at home!” Then she goes straight to Nic and gives her a huge hug, which nearly leaves my jaw on the floor. “It was so great to meet you. I hope I can see you again while you’re here!”

  Nic leans away from the hug and holds the rag in the air. “It looks like I might be here a lot, so I’m sure you will.” Her smile is genuine and sweet, and it makes me wish she were aiming it at me.

  I may never see a smile like that aimed in my direction ever again. That’s the price I paid for being honest.

  Dani makes her way toward the exit, swinging a hand in her brother’s direction. “Come on. Let’s go.”

  Matt spins to leave, making sure to hit me with a look that says Don’t think you’re off the hook on his way out. With his hand on the door, he says, “Nice to meet you!”

  Nic waves at him, a shy tilt to her head.

  As the bell over the door rings, I realize that it’s just me and Nic now. Amelia and Jeremy are in the back somewhere, doing god knows what. But right here, in this part of the shop, it’s just us. And just like last night, I have no idea how to handle that. So I turn around and go to leave, choosing to avoid the whole thing altogether.

  But her silky, sweet voice stops me before I reach the door.

  “Aidan,” she says, and I freeze.

  Fuck if that one word doesn’t do something awful to my heart. My eyes close as my brow creases to hide the fact that she made me flinch. With my back to her, I can only hope she didn’t see that reaction. After a few seconds, I slowly face her again.

  Then I wait for her to finish whatever she was going to say.

  It takes her a few moments of staring at me before she speaks. “Can we talk?”

  “About what?” I fire back.

  She bites her bottom lip and sets the rag on the display case. Then she comes around the end of the counter, approaching me. It takes everything in me to stay where I am. Not to either rush to get closer to her or run the hell away from this. She can’t possibly want to talk about anything good, so I gather all of
my willpower to make sure I stay put and hear her out.

  “I just…” Bringing the back of her hand to her forehead, she sighs. Then her hand falls. “I’ve been here all day, with strangers who feel like…”

  “Family?” I supply for her. Because that’s what they feel like to me.

  Her face lights up for a split second. Then she schools it back to something less excited. “Something like that. Yeah.” After falling silent for a moment, she says, “They’re great. Really great. But I’d just like to see a familiar face for a while.”

  “Where’s your boyfriend?” Crossing my arms over my chest, I let a bit of my willpower slip and put more of that wall up. “Isn’t he more of a familiar face than I am?”

  She smooths her hands down her shirt—a more casual blouse than the button-up she was wearing yesterday. “You know what I mean.”

  “Do I?” I ask, tilting my head.

  Without missing a beat, she tilts her head too. “Can you answer any of my questions without a question of your own?”

  I take her words in and realize that’s what I’ve been doing. So I use my exhale to loosen up a little. “Sure.”

  Her lips curl at the edges, and like an addict desperate for a fix, I nearly lurch forward for more. I don’t have to though; she steps forward instead. So I throw my wall up even higher and root myself to my spot. I won’t go near her, I won’t go near her, I won’t go…

  I don’t realize I closed my eyes until I’m opening them, and all of a sudden, she’s too close to me. Her being in the same state means she’s too close, but her being a foot away is way too close when she’s not mine. When I can’t reach out and touch her like I want to. When I can’t pull her to me and kiss her the way I want to. The way I know from experience she likes.

  My hands tighten into fists as anger and desire rage through my veins and war for dominance. Anger because of our past, because she’s not mine to touch. Desire because of the obvious: She’s Nic. Gorgeous, stunning, beautiful, sexy, smart, enticing Nic. My Nic.