CHAPTER TWENTY
Nicola felt her boss looking at her from the doorway before she knocked. She’d been snooping around the computer network and getting nowhere.
“We need to talk,” Aleena said, arms crossed.
Nicola smiled, quickly exiting from programs she shouldn’t have been in. “Sure. Just working on this pile.” She tapped the file folder in front of her. “Trying to catch up.”
“Wonderful. I appreciate that you’re working hard. I just want to make sure you’re not distracted.”
“Distracted?”
“Yes. I’m notified whenever electronic folders and files are accessed. You have a very specific role, using only specific files.”
Well, shit. Busted. She could feel the heat crawling up her neck. “I…”
“You’ve wandered around the computer network.”
“Yes, I was just looking—”
Aleena shook her head. “Doesn’t matter. Besides, I’m sure you’ve found that most everything is password protected.”
“I was just wondering—”
“No one’s asking you to interpret. No one’s paying you to analyze. You are strictly moving transfers and—”
Seriously, if there was a problem, why wouldn’t they want to know? “What if there’s a mistake?”
“There’s not.”
How would she know? Everything Nic read was in Italian, and she knew her boss had a very limited understanding. “But—”
Aleena’s eyes narrowed. “If you’d like the internship to continue, focus on your job, not on mine. The only thing you need to remember is get it done.”
Get it done? Ugh.
That was the most annoying phrase ever, especially when Aleena repeated it constantly, even had it memorialized in trinkets and motivational office decorations.
After Aleena left, Nic couldn’t focus and decided to email her mom. She BS’ed about something Roman had said earlier and talked about Hannah’s attempt at cooking them dinner. Big fail. Then she couldn’t take it anymore. She had to talk to her mom about this stupid job. If this place is cooking their books, I think I’ll drop the internship and redo something next semester.
She sighed, hit sent, and—the email didn’t send. The damn Internet was out. What the hell? This job would drive her to insanity. The router was in Aleena’s office, and she had to go in there to reset it. Considering nothing she needed to do needed the Internet, she was screwed. At least she had class soon enough. Maybe then she could stop obsessing over her work puzzle, which was quickly becoming very perplexing.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Cash spotted Nicola in the back row of the huge lecture hall. It was unlike her to sit in the rafters, and she hadn’t glanced up once to see whatever the professor droned on about. He slipped up the side stairs, scooted across one row, stepped over another row, and whispered, “Boo.”
“Hey.” Her eyes lit with her smile. “What are you doing here?”
“Coming to steal you for lunch. Let’s go.”
“I’m in class.”
“And clearly gleaning all kinds of information.”
Her hand slapped over the notebook. “I am.”
“BS, sweet girl. I saw you, and you weren’t learning a damn thing.” He lifted her hand. Whatever she was making notes on, it had nothing to do with the linguistics professor up front.
“Maybe. Okay, let’s go to lunch.”
It was also very unlike Nicola to ditch class. “What’s all that?”
Nicola shrugged. “Stuff.”
Someone turned around and hissed at them to shush.
He threaded his fingers into hers. “The cafeteria’s calling your name.”
“Okay.” She gathered her notebook and threw it in her bag.
Pulling her over a back row of chairs, he led her out the auditorium before the professor turned around from the white board to see their escape. “Alright, spit it out. What’s going on?”
“I was trying to figure out these numbers from work. They don’t make sense. I—” She shook her head. “I know it’s not my business. But it kind of is.”
“So maybe there are things you don’t know about.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m doing their accounting. It’s black and white. X should equal five bucks, but X is pulling more like fifty thousand bucks.” Her phone rang. She looked at it and gaped. “It’s work.”
“Well answer it.”
“If my bitch boss yells at me one more time—”
“She won’t.”
“You don’t know the lady. Something’s not right upstairs.”
“Then let it go to voicemail.”
She answered it. “Hello?”
Nicola’s brows pinched. Nodding and um-hmming, she didn’t say a lot before hanging up.
“So?” He locked his arm around her neck. “What says the evil bitch boss?”
Nicola’s brow furrowed. “Um, she said thank you.”
“Thanks? For?”
“She said that I uncovered a discrepancy that they’d been missing. That there was an accidental multiplier. So five bucks was really five bucks. Not whatever I just said.”
He nudged her with his shoulder. “Great. Good job, Nic.”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know what?”
She shrugged. They continued down the hall in silence.
“Nicola?”
“Yeah, I don’t know why, but it feels shady. That was so convenient.”
“Okay…”
“I mean, seriously, I start nosing around, asking questions. My boss tells me I’m wrong. Emphatically tells me I’m wrong. I never see anyone else who works there.”
“So she didn’t want to look like an ass. I get it.”
“No.” She shook her head. “It feels all wrong.”
He threw his arm around her. That stupid we’re-friends hug. The only one he could get away with, and damn if he didn’t hate that right now. “Tell me what you really think.”
“That my boss is stealing stuff.”
“Really?” He stopped and pulled her in front of him. “Don’t nose into trouble. If you really think that, then call the cops or whatever.”
“Maybe.”
He squeezed her shoulders. “Why the hell not?”
“Because if I’m wrong, I look like a jerk, and I’ve dragged a perfectly bitchy woman’s name through the mud. I’d feel awful.” She sighed. “You don’t think her phone call was a little too convenient?”
“I think that you’re thinking way too hard about a job that doesn’t pay squat and is distracting you from school. And I think you’re riding close to the crazy train line, Miss Paranoid.”
Nicola sighed, rolling her eyes. “Maybe you’re right.”
Or maybe not. But he sure as hell didn’t want her sticking her cute butt into someone else’s problems.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Backpack slung over his shoulder and his girl under his arm, Cash led them down the hall, still uneasy about Nicola nosing around at her job. Mira and Jaycee rounded the corner.
“Tits McGee and friend alert,” Nicola said under her breath.
The more he saw those two, the more annoying they got, and the more Mira went on a full court press to figure out why he’d been ditching them. Cash changed directions, playing like he hadn’t noticed them barreling his way.
“Cash!” Both Mira and Jaycee said, ignoring Nic.
Damn. Escape plan not smooth enough. He turned slowly, hiding under his cowboy hat, and Mira was up in his face before he could say whoa.
“What’s your deal?” she snapped at him.
“Ha.” Nicola took a step back, amused smile playing on her face and watching his headache unfold. At least she wasn’t the jealous type.
“Mira. Good seeing you.” He started toward the exit again. Nicola still looked entertained and walked an arm’s length away. Mira followed, sidestepping angrily, keeping pace with him.
“What’s gotten in
to you?” she asked then looked over to Jaycee.
Cash shrugged, keeping his eye on the real reason he’d fallen off the party circuit. “Nothing.”
Nicola’s phone rang. She fell away, answering it out of his hearing range. Mira’s smug smile made him want to shake her.
With Nic gone, Mira closed the distance. “You’re never around anymore.”
He moved away. “Yeah, I am. Just not…” Screwing anything that walks. Entertained by the Mira-Jaycee triple X show. “Around.”
She came closer again, and his gentleman gene stopped him from physically moving her away.
“I thought we’ve been having a good time.”
“We did.” No reason to lie. He wasn’t trying to hurt her feelings, but he wasn’t going to make something out of drunken hookups.
“Did. And now you’re done?”
“Yes.” This was getting old. Straight ahead, Nicola ended her call when a football player walked up. If there was one, there were more. He’d been avoiding Jacob for no other reason than he needed to tell the dude he’d been out of line back at Nic’s birthday party. Well, sort of out of line.
“Cash?” Mira gave an exasperated sigh. “Pay attention to me. We’re talking.”
“Mira, look.” He met her gaze, trying to impart the truthfulness in what he was about to say. “I didn’t know we had to talk this out. It was fun. You’re fun. We all had fun. Alright?”
She pulled on his arm. “But you’re done?”
“Yes. I’m sorry if you thought there was more to it.” He really wasn’t trying to be a dick. He glanced at Nicola. “I gotta go. Okay?”
“Oh, no. No freaking way.” Her gaze locked on Nic. “You cannot possibly be serious.”
Cash sliced a look back to her. “What?”
Mira scrunched her face. “Nicola Hart? Seriously?”
And he was done. “Go to hell, Mira.”
Nic waved goodbye to her football buddy and smiled at him, walking back over.
“You know she’s dating Jacob.”
“She’s not.”
Mira smirked. “Kind of a goody-two-shoes.”
The hell she is. “No one asked you.”
“Hey.” Nicola stepped close to him and threw an annoyed glance at Mira. Her look mirrored how he felt. “You ready?”
“How’s Jacob?” Mira’s voice was sickly-sweet.
To his surprise, Nicola smiled. Hugely. “Fabulous, I’m sure. Though you probably know better than me. And how’s the rest of the football team? Baseball? Soccer too?”
“Bitch.”
“Wow, Mira. You’re a class act.” She snickered and leaned over to him. “Roman’s on his way to meet me here.”
Code deciphered: don’t get into a pissing contest with Mira because he wouldn’t be able to walk away from publicly laying claim to Nicola. He nodded.
“We gotta roll. Nic.” He took her by the elbow, they turned back toward the door he’d been inching to reach, and there was Roman. Of course. Mira was still right behind them.
“Nic. Mira.” Roman nodded to them, then turned to Cash. “You go to psych today?”
“Yeah.” And if he could get Roman to walk away with him and Nicola, it’d be a very good thing. No need to rehash a missed psych class when Mira was ready to lob any number of accusations.
“Roman.” Mira caught up to them. “I’ve always heard your opinions of all Nicola’s boyfriends. Nothing to say on… Jacob?”
For the seconds it took Mira to pause for dramatic effect, Cash felt a surge of unease in his chest. Not for him and Roman, but because Nicola was so damn convinced things had to go according to her big reveal plan. But then Jacob’s name came out, and he wanted to wrap Nic in his arms and tell everyone to fuck off.
“Nic’s not a moron, and Jacob’s not stupid.” Roman didn’t slow. Thank God. But he did look at her. “Where’d you hear that anyway?”
“Just chatting with Cash.”
Roman held the door open for the girls, raising his eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”
He shook his head. “Mira’s on crack.”
Mira smirked. “Cash is an asshole.”
Jaycee laughed then waved over her shoulder as she left. “I’m out of here guys. See you later.”
“And I’m not getting in the middle of something between you two,” Roman said.
Cash shook his head. “Nothing to get in the middle of.”
“Right.” Roman laughed. “Let’s go, Nic. We’ll leave these two to bicker amongst themselves.”
Nic glared at Mira, sent him a questioning look, but he had nothing to offer. Mira was mad and doing a damn good job at guessing where and why he’d been preoccupied. He needed out of this situation pronto. “I forgot a book back in class.”
“I’ll take good care of him, Nicola.” Mira’s sing-song voice was going to earn a beat down courtesy of Nicola.
Shaking his head and shrugging goodbye, Cash bailed on Roman and Nicola going one way and tried to leave Mira standing there.
“You aren’t even going to hold the door for me?”
He turned around and took a couple of long steps to hold the door wider. “Look, what do you want?”
“You.” She batted her eyelashes in what he could’ve sworn was an attempt to be more like Nicola.
Didn’t work. “It’s not like that, and you know it.”
“Since when?” Her glossed lips pouted, and this theatrical production was borderline absurd.
Just when shit couldn’t suck anymore, Brandy pushed through the door looking perfectly disgusted with him. “Brandy.”
“You’re an ass,” she said and kept moving.
Hell. Brandy’s ice cold glare caught him off guard. Then again, he was in Mira’s face. Any number of ways that could be taken. He took a step back. “Brandy, wait.”
“Gotta go to class. Have fun with Mira.”
Fuck.
He turned, about two seconds from losing his cool with the girl set to rub her tits all over him.
“Yeah, have fun with me.” Mira smiled. “Come on, Cash. Stop being like this.”
He looked back at Brandy, barreling down the hallway, cell phone now pinned to her ear. “Just back off.”
Pushing past her, he pulled out his cell and called Nic. That beep-ring noise, the one that said she was on the other line, trilled in his ear. Damn it, Brandy was on the phone with Nicola. He was sure of it. Not that Brandy knew something was happening with Nicola, but she had to suspect something after his throw down with Jacob.
Voicemail picked up.
Hey, it’s Nic. You know what to do.
Nothing he could think of sounded right, and he hung up. His hands itched to do something while his mind worked double-time. He needed to rehab his rep. How the fuck was he going to do that with—he scrolled through his phone again and hit send.
After one ring, Jacob picked up. Kind of surprising. “What?”
“Double-deuce, I’m an asshole.”
Jacob laughed. “No shit, dick.”
“We cool?”
“Never weren’t.”
“Alright. See you around.” Cash hung up the phone and didn’t feel like that conversation had done much to rehab anything that Roman would give a shit about, but at least he’d ditched Mira.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Nicola had abandoned Roman in the cafeteria and then listened to Brandy’s theories as to why Cash couldn’t be trusted, none of which she believed. With each passing day, she wanted to march up to Mira and tell her to find some other hard body to cling to, that Cash was hers, in no uncertain terms. That day was coming, but it wasn’t today. So she needed a distraction from slut puppies chasing after her man and decided to focus on her newfound accounting obsession.
Today was the day she would catch up at work, the day she’d show initiative and try to get Aleena to stop hating her so much. It wasn’t in Nic’s nature to fail, and certainly not to fall behind and not meet her goals, no matter how ridiculous her deadlines wer
e. Her boss had extended an olive branch by admitting that things were wrong—Just as I’d thought—so the least Nicola could do was pick up the pace the way Aleena had all but begged her to. What better way to show a reciprocal olive branch than by working extra hours?
She pulled into the office parking lot and saw several dark SUVs with dark windows. Maybe all the fabric-buying action happened when she was at school. This was the most cars she’d seen there. Good, she could meet some buyers or at least get a feel for someone besides bitchy-face Aleena and the rarely there receptionist.
Nic parked her car and got out. She grabbed the office door, pulled, and it didn’t budge. What the? She knocked on the glass and cupped her eyes to peer in. The lights were on, but each knock went answered. Aleena’s fancy-schmancy car was there, and Nicola pulled out her cell, still knocking.
Bam.
The noise startled her and a gaggle of birds that’d been sitting on the nearby fence. They took off, squawking. The noise, the bam, was like a car backfiring, except… different. She looked in the parking lot, expecting some 1970s hoopty to roll in, backfiring and sputtering. But nothing. The entire afternoon was almost eerily quiet.
A chill ran down her spine. She couldn’t explain it and didn’t think anything was particularly wrong or that Aleena was in trouble, but her sixth sense said, get the fuck out of there. She’d call back in a little bit. From the road. And if she didn’t answer, maybe she’d call the cops and say she’d heard something weird, ask them to do a welfare check or whatever.
Not bothering to look over her shoulder, she kept her head down, slipped into her car, and let the conspiracy theories somersault through her brain. By the time she’d hit the main road, she was convinced she was processing payments for drug shipments or—the echo of that bam fired in her memory again—guns? Her stomach dropped. No way. There was nothing worth admitting or thinking about or overreacting over.
***
Cash was seated on her front porch when she arrived home. Still absolutely creeped out from her unannounced visit to work, she just wanted to get inside and let him distract her. Rushing from the car to the door, she bypassed him, only offering a come inside as she passed.
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