Page 19 of Made for You
Her eyes narrowed. “Rosie’s got a big mouth, I guess.”
I chuckled, instantly enjoying that response because it wasn’t what I’d expected. I didn’t normally even like the unexpected, and yet, every time this woman gave it to me, I wanted more. I’d gotten so used to people being polite and adhering to conventions, and even though nothing about Nikki overtly neglected those kinds of manners, she did tend to step past them in a way that hadn’t yet failed to delight me.
“You also just handed me your résumé, and a simple glance”—I made a show of eyeing the impressive spread of credentials listed on one sheet—“tells me all that, too.”
She tilted her head again. “I’m pretty sure it doesn’t say I’m a genius. I would remember that.”
I huffed a laugh. “Fair enough. That was all your Gram’s fault. But humor me and believe that this job won’t be enough to keep you occupied for long. I also heard from a little bird that you will likely have a spot at Keller Accountancy come the new year, so I’m thinking you’d want to head over there then anyway. If you’re interested, this could bridge the gap.”
“That little bird needs to learn to keep her little mouth shut,” she said, totally straight-faced.
For a second, I worried I’d overstepped, too many assumptions foisted on her and that all of it might just drive her to refuse me.This.Refuse this.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to—”
“It’s fine. I shouldn’t be completely surprised, but I’m trying to figure out what’s in it for you if I come on for three or four months. If I really accept with no intention of staying, isn’t that just setting you back when my time’s up?”
That I could answer with all confidence. “No. If Sarah wants to come back, that’s around the time she’d be ready. And if she decides she wants to stay home or change plans, whatever, then we start the search for someone longer term.”
Her eyes narrowed again. “Feels like a better deal for me than you.”
“That’s because you haven’t seen my spreadsheets.”
She chuckled at that. “Not a big Excel guy?”
“I’ll let you come to your own conclusions about that in time. I don’t really want to throw myself under the bus before you even accept the position.”
Her lips twitched, but she held in her smile. “Well, consider it accepted. Now what?”
“Good news. Now, we talk background checks and make sure you don’t have some sordid past that can get you extorted and put our whole operation in danger.” I tossed it out there, this preposterous notion, and chuckled at my joke as I straightened her resume on my desk.
Until my eye caught on the way her lips pursed, her shoulders raising a touch with tension, and she shifted in her seat. I’d interviewed enough, and studied people even more, to know this signaled a shift. Her body language made me brace for what would come, the signs all pointing to her preparing to reveal something she didn’t want me to know.
She swallowed hard, and as was her usual, said something unexpected. “We should talk about that, because after we do, you may change your mind about wanting me.”
CHAPTERNINE
Nikki
Bruce had no tell, at least that I could see. I wasn’t exactly a poker extraordinaire or anything, but the fact that his face didn’t change, his brows didn’t wing up, his eyes didn’t widen… it proved notable.
“Please, tell me whatever you feel you need to.” He nodded just slightly, and one of his big hands gestured with a casual wave.
Honestly, I admired the calm. I tended to be a bit more reactive, and if someone I was trying to help told me they might have a sketchy past, I wouldn’t be able to play it this cool. Whether this was a sign he was simply unflappable, or a signal that he’d mastered the art of deception and therefore could prove to be an excellent liar and thus not someone I wanted to be working for, time would tell. For now, I dove in.
“I had a fairly extensive record as a teen. I was in and out of juvenile detention before someone finally contacted Rosie.” Not for the first and inevitably not for the last time, I thanked God they’d finally tracked her down.
Bruce kept that same unaffected demeanor and tipped his head enough to show me he was acknowledging but not interrupting, so I continued. “Long story short, I was in foster care on and off from ten to seventeen after my parents were killed in a DUI—their fault. Gram was in heroff the gridphase here in Utah and she’s actually my great-aunt, though for all practical and relational uses she is and always will be my grandmother. My parents weren’t in communication with her after they tried to swindle her out of money before I was born and she had no idea about me, so the courts or whoever worked my case way back when didn’t ever get ahold of her. But one angelic case worker believed my claims that I had a relative out here—my parents had mentioned her a few times over the years—and actually drove out here to find her.”
Bruce’s brows rose at this.
“Exactly. I probably owe my life, or at least my relationship with Rosie and lack of adult incarceration, to Elena Diaz.” We still kept in touch, even after more than a decade.
“I’m glad she was assigned to you,” he said, sincerity in every word.
“Me, too.”
The conversation paused, a natural settling of the moment between us as our eyes met and we both absorbed this reality. What he said next… it mattered.
