Page 57 of Bombshell (Whiskey Dolls 1)

He nodded in complete agreement. “All right. I’ll take care of the Eve situation.”

I let out a sigh and moved to one of the chairs across from his desk, taking a seat. I needed to school the man, and that could take a while. Might as well get comfortable. Also, my super cute professional shoes were starting to pinch my toes.

“Unfortunately, Eve isn’t the real problem in your marriage.”

Leaning forward in his chair, he braced his elbows on his desk and let out a pained groan. “What do I do, Mar? How do I fix this? I know I fucked up. I let this get too far out of hand. I should have been home more, I see that. But doesn’t she understand that the only reason I work this goddamn hard isforher and the kids?”

“You’ve known Tali a long time, Nick. You know her probably better than anyone. Why in the hell do you think she’d care about things like cars and clothes and houses? That’s not my sister. That’s notyour wife. You know that. She’d be happy as a pig in shit living in a van down by the river if she had the three of you. She cares about you and Erika and Matt. You’re her family, and family is all that’s ever mattered to her. She doesn’t want a caretaker, Nick, she wants a partner, and she wants to feel loved and desired by the man she’s been head-over-heels for since she was fifteen years old.”

“I just—” He stopped, looking at his lap and shaking his head in defeat. “I lost sight of what was important.” When he lifted his gaze to mine, his eyes were glinting with sadness and tears. “I can’t lose her, Marin. Without her, without our family, nothing matters. She’s the only woman I’ve ever loved.”

“Tell herthat,” I insisted vehemently. “Tell her all of that, and most importantly, stop making excuses for your fuckups. Own them. Until you do, nothing you say is going to matter. She needs to see how much you still care about her.”

“I can’t breathe without her, Mar. I have to win her back.”

There wasn’t much more I could say to help him out of this situation. All I could do was hope to God he took my advice and that Tali would remember how much she loved him. Rising, I hooked the strap of my purse over my arm and issued one more piece of advice. “Then fight for her, Nick. Let her see you still want her as much today as you did when you first met.”

I turned and started for the door when he called my name. With my hand on the handle, I turned to look back over my shoulder. “Do you think I have a chance?”

“I do,” I admitted. “But I’m afraid this might be your last one. Do me a favor and don’t waste it, yeah?”

“You’re a good sister, Marin. I love you.”

“I love you too, dummy. Now make this shit right so you can go home.”

With that challenge issued, I pulled his door open and stepped out. Heather was at her desk, staring up at me with inquisitive eyes.

“Can I ask you to do me a favor?”

“Yeah, sure. Anything you need. I think the world of Tali, so just name it.”

Oh, I liked this woman. “Watch out for him, would you? I think he might have finally extracted his head from his ass, but he’s a man, so that means there’s still a chance it could get stuck up there again.”

“Don’t worry, I’m on it. He might be a pain in the ass, but he’s a good man.” She chewed on her bottom lip pensively before finally saying what was on her mind. “It was all her, you know.Eve.” She curled her top lip like she smelled poo. “He would never—”

“I know,” I assured her, and smiled when I saw her shoulders slump in relief. She liked Nick as a boss and a person, and maybe together we could help fix things. “Well, I’m off. It was lovely to meet you, Heather. I hope it happens more in the future.”

My phone vibrated in my purse as I took the elevator back down to the lobby after saying goodbye to my new best friend, Cindy. I pulled it out and read the text as I stood at the crosswalk, waiting for the light to change.

Pierce:You in handcuffs yet?

I snickered as I typed out a reply.

Me:Your faith in me warms my heart. Seriously. Stop. I might swoon. Also, shouldn’t you be in court right now?

Pierce:We’re on a brief recess. I wanted to see how it went. You save the day?

Ohman, this guy. Even when he wasn’t near he could make me melt.

Me:Let’s hope so. I did my best.

Pierce:Then I bet everything’s going to be fine.

Me:Stop being sweet when I can’t kiss you.

I imagined his smirk as he read over that message.

Pierce:Can’t help it. You bring that out in me. By the way, you look beautiful today.

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