The health scare with her mother showed her that time with her parents was running out. As much as she hated to admit it, even when her mom got better—and she would get better—the years weren’t stretched out in front of her like they used to be.
So Nikki was staying local no matter what.
Either way, she needed to find a cheap and safe place to live. What little money she had saved up from the part-time job working in the campus bookstore wasn’t going to get her very far, but she was getting a paycheck from the de Vincents, which made her feel weird. Her parents refused to allow her to hand over the whole paycheck. She knew they needed the money with everything going on, so after a whole lot of arguing, she was pocketing half and giving the rest to them.
And that felt right, because she was nowhere near as good at running the de Vincent household as her mom was.
Something she was sure Devlin was thinking every time he saw her.
First thing she needed to do was to find a place. Then she would decide what to do in terms of her career, and maybe she’d find someone to . . . distract her. Hadn’t exactly worked well in college, but she’d decided that she hadn’t fully committed herself to being with someone.
She’d dated Calvin most of her junior and senior year. Even taken him home one Mardi Gras to meet her parents. He’d been a really good guy, but she hadn’t . . . yeah, she hadn’t really been there, and he’d sensed that. Calvin had eventually given up on her.
No more of that nonsense.
She was going to go on a date—no, dates, and she wouldn’t compare how she used to feel toward Gabe to how she felt about every man she met since then.
There would be no more of that.
Focusing on her actual life and what to do with it helped her not fall down that rabbit hole known as Gabe. Operation Avoid Him at All Costs, OAHAC for short, was working.
Mainly because he hadn’t showed up for dinner since last Thursday and whenever she saw him in the halls or heard his voice, she engaged ninja stealth mode and darted into whatever room was nearby.
A few times she wasn’t successful.
Now was about to become one of them, because she could hear him talking on the phone as she just finished stacking fresh towels outside the sauna.
Yes.
They had a sauna.
Whipping toward the open door, she wished she’d thought about locking it behind her. She looked over her shoulder. Could she hide in the sauna? Okay, that was excessive. She felt like she did when she was younger, stuck in the pool in her ugly one-piece bathing suit, too embarrassed and awkward to even move.
What was it about this house that made her feel like she’d taken one giant leap backward when it came to personal growth?
“Yeah, I’ll have the frame finished up by the beginning of next weekend,” he was saying, and there was a pause while Nikki seriously considered throwing open the nearby window and crawling out of it.
Gabe laughed.
The air hitched in Nikki’s throat. His laugh. It had been so long since she had heard that sound. It was deep and infectious, and tugged at the corners of her lips. It made her think of lazy summer afternoons when she’d do something stupid just to hear his laugh.
Nikki hadn’t heard that laugh in years.
“The freight charge is going to be the least of his worries.” He was getting closer.
“Damn,” she muttered as she realized she was completely trapped if he came in here.
A second later, Gabe was in the doorway, and her heart stopped in her chest and then restarted, pounding way too fast.
Gabe was shirtless.
Code red! Code red!
Her brain screamed as her greedy, gluttonous eyes took in every bare inch of his skin. Not like she hadn’t seen him shirtless before. She’d seen him hundreds of times without a shirt and she had seen him naked. This wasn’t anything new, but it had been a long time and her memories hadn’t done him justice.
Nikki shouldn’t look, but she couldn’t even help herself. The nylon pants he wore hung indecently low, showing off those drool-worthy indents on either side of his hips. His stomach was ripped. She knew he had that wickedly defined six pack because the man worked out religiously. There was a faint line of hair that trailed from his navel, down his lower stomach, disappearing under the nylon pants. Her heart skipped a beat as she forced her gaze up over the smooth skin of his pecs and the broad width of his shoulders. Earbuds hung from a cord around his neck. He had his hair pulled back into a small bun that was oddly and ridiculously attractive to her.
Only a handful of seconds had passed from the moment Gabe walked into the gym, and she knew the exact moment he realized she was there, standing petrified by the rack of towels.
His gaze connected with hers, and the grin slipped off his face. “Hey, I’ve got to go.”
Didn’t seem like he waited for a response, because a heartbeat later he was lowering the phone. Her heart was currently lodged somewhere in her throat.
Almost a week had passed since they’d last spoken.
“What are you doing in here?” he asked.
“I was putting fresh towels away.”
“Sort of looks like you’re just standing there, frozen like a statue.”
She couldn’t tell if he was teasing her or not, but it didn’t matter. Her muscles finally unlocked and she got her feet moving. She went the shortest route that put as much space between them as possible. That required her to walk over one of the four treadmills. She didn’t care how stupid it looked. Not when she could feel his intense gaze following her process.
“You know, there’s an actual floor you can walk on,” he commented.
“I know.” She nodded and then tucked a strand of hair back behind her ear, feeling about five different levels of awkward. “I like walking on treadmills.”
“Uh-huh.”
Her cheeks started to warm as she stepped off the treadmill. There were only a few feet between her and freedom. Just keep walking. Just keep—
“Nic.”
She stopped. It was like she had no control.
Silence.
Biting down on her lip and telling herself she was probably going to regret this, she slowly faced him.
Somehow, and she didn’t know how, he’d gotten closer to her. His gaze was sheltered as he stared at her. She wondered if he was going to ask about her arm. A terse moment passed and then he said, “You didn’t clean my apartment last week.”
Oh.
That was not what she was expecting him to say. “Yeah, I figured you didn’t want me to do that.”
His head tilted just the slightest. “That’s your job, isn’t it?” His cold tone would’ve impressed Devlin. “Why would I not want you to do it?”
It’s your job.
A sharp stab pierced her chest. She had no idea why that statement bothered her so much. Maybe it was because she knew damn well he would never speak to her mom or father with that tone. And maybe it was because it was a painful reminder of just who she was to him now.
A staff member that worked for his family.
That ugly feeling from before turned to a messy knot in her throat, but she lifted her chin. She was done crying over Gabe.
“I figured you wouldn’t like if I was in your room,” she said, keeping her voice level. “But I can clean it this afternoon if you like.”
Something flashed in those eyes and the muscle throbbed along his jaw. “I don’t want you cleaning it today.”
“Then I can do it tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow won’t work either.”
Her brows pinched. “Since tomorrow is Friday, I’m not sure when else I can do it. Next week—”
“You could’ve done it last week like you’re paid to do.”
She folded her arms over her chest like that could somehow help ease the sting of his words. “I’m sorry.” It took every ounce of her self-control to say what she did next. “You’re right. I should’ve done it last week, but I can eit
her do it today or tomorrow. If not, then I will do it next week.”
His features tightened with what appeared to be frustration, but she wasn’t sure what he had to be frustrated about at this moment. He was the one being difficult. “Your suggestions aren’t acceptable.”
Irritation swelled inside her, washing away the hurt. It loosened her tongue. “Then how about you clean your apartment then?”
Surprise parted his lips.
“I mean, you are a grown man who is more than capable of changing his own bedsheets and picking up after himself,” she snapped, uncrossing her arms. “I’m not your mother.”
“No shit,” he shot back. “But thanks for clearing that last part up.”
“So, I don’t know what you want me to say or do. Either I clean your rooms when I said I could or you do it yourself.”
The corner of his lips twitched. “I can’t believe you’re talking to me like this.”
Nikki was beyond telling herself to shut her mouth and she snapped like a twig breaking under strong winds. “I can’t believe you’re being such a dick.”
A surprised laugh burst out of him, and Nikki couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing. She didn’t care at the moment, because she was pissed. “I may be working here for right now, but you need to remember I’m not your servant, here for your beck and call.”
“Actually, you are here for our beck and call.” Gabe smirked. “That’s what you’re being paid real money to do.”
He had a point, but he wasn’t getting it. Not even remotely. “What happened to you?” The question burst out of her. “You were never like this. Devlin? Yes. But you? No. What in the hell happened?”
“You happened to me.”
His words were like a psychical push. She stumbled back a step as her gaze latched onto his. She snapped her mouth shut, because that knot had expanded three sizes bigger and she had no idea if she was going to start cursing him or crying.
Nikki did the only smart thing.
Pivoting on her heel, she hurried out of the gym and she thought she heard him curse. And then she flinched, because she thought she heard him throw something—something that shattered against the wall.
And a spiteful part of her really, really hoped it was his phone.
Chapter 9
A shadow fell over Gabe’s workbench, stilling his hands. Gabe looked up from the frame he was chiseling. Despite the shit day he was having, he smiled when he saw Lucian standing there.
And he wasn’t alone.
Troy LeMere was with him and they hadn’t come empty-handed either.
Lucian placed an opened bottle of beer on the bench as Gabe tugged his earbuds out and turned off the music app on his phone. “Figured we’d find you here.”
Grinning, Gabe rose, giving his younger brother a one-arm hug and a clap on the back. The bastard had been gone for about three weeks. “Glad you’re back home.” He turned to Troy, giving him the same treatment. They all went way back, having forged a friendship on basketball courts. “And what did I do to deserve a face-to-face with you?”
Troy grinned as he dragged a hand over his shaved head. “It’s guys’ night?”
Gabe lifted a brow as he picked up the beer. “Guys’ night and you’re spending it at my workshop in the Warehouse District?”
The dark-skinned detective tipped his head back and laughed. “When you get married, that’s how guys’ nights go down.”
“True,” Lucian murmured, taking a swig of his beer.
“What?” Gabe laughed, leaning against the bench. “You aren’t married.”
“Yet,” Troy chimed in, sitting down on one of the stools. “I’m betting they’re married before the year’s out.”
Lucian said nothing, and Gabe shook his head. The last person Gabe ever expected to settle down was his younger brother, but look at him now—wrapped around Julia’s pinky finger and he didn’t even care. “Where is your pretty girl?” Gabe’s smile was daring as he took a drink. “I miss her.”
Lucian’s eyes narrowed. “You have no business missing her.”
He chuckled, loving nothing more than needling his brother when it came to Julia. “Seriously, though, where is she? You’re here and she’s usually wherever you are.”
“She was tired after traveling all day. She’s currently all curled up in my bed, waiting for me.” He eyed the dresser frame Gabe had been working on. “Why in the hell are you here on a Saturday night?”
Gabe shrugged, thinking it must be nice to have someone like Lucian and Troy did. Someone you wanted to get home to and looked forward to ending and beginning the day with. He’d had that with Emma. He’d fucked that up along with the help of his family.
He pushed thoughts of Emma out of his head. “Need to get the order done.”
“Uh-huh.” Troy kicked his long legs up on the bench. “Heard you weren’t in Baton Rouge for more than a few days. What changed?”
His grip tightened on the bottle. Both knew why he’d been going to Baton Rouge. “I needed to give them a little space. That’s the best thing to do.”
Lucian was quiet for a moment. “That’s got to be hard.”
“It is.” He drank half the bottle after admitting that. “You have no idea.”
“I don’t,” his brother agreed. “You know Dev’s going to want to step in.”
“Your brother has no sense of boundaries.” Troy scratched at the label on his bottle.
Gabe snorted. “Don’t we know.” He crossed his ankles. “I don’t care what Dev’s opinion is on the matter. I told him to stay out of it, and if he knows what’s smart for him, he will. This isn’t his life.”
“Dev will back off,” Lucian said. “But not for long. You know what he’ll do.”
Setting the bottle aside, Gabe folded his arms. He knew exactly what Dev was capable of. So did Lucian, and Gabe knew Troy had his suspicions, especially about what really went down with their fucking cousin Daniel—ones Troy wouldn’t vocalize, because once he did, he’d have to act on them. Troy was like a brother to them, but he was a cop, one who took his job seriously.
Gabe just hoped Troy’s duty to the badge never came between them.
“So.” Lucian drew the word out as he ran a hand through his blond hair. If it weren’t for the de Vincent eyes, people wouldn’t even think they were brothers. The fact that Lucian and his twin looked so different from Gabe and Dev had always been a red flag to them. Except, as it turned out, he and Dev had it backward. The whole damn family had. Only Lucian and Madeline were the children of Lawrence. Gabe and Dev had no idea who their father was.
“I learned something else when I got caught up with Dev,” Lucian said. “Heard your long-lost love was back.”
Everything about Gabe stiffened.
Everything.
“Fuck, Dev.” Gabe uncrossed his ankles, widening his stance. “Don’t say that.”
Confusion crept in Troy’s features. “Long-lost love?”
Lucian grinned. “Yep.”
“Do I even want to know who this is about?” Troy asked, lowering his beer.
Lucian chuckled at Gabe’s dark look and then he turned to Troy. “Remember Nikki? Livie and Richard’s daughter?”
Their friend’s eyes widened. “Yeah. She’s at college. Alabama, right?”
“Not anymore.” Lucian pushed away from the bench. “She’s filling in for her mom at the house.”
“I’m going to ask again,” Troy said. “Do I want to know why you’re calling her Gabe’s long-lost love? Because seriously.”
Completely unrepentant, Lucian laughed again. “When she was younger, she had it bad for Gabe. Used to follow him around the house and somehow connived him into swimming lessons.”
Nic hadn’t connived Gabe into those lessons. Like a dumbass, he offered after she almost killed herself in the pool. “Shut up, Lucian.”
Lucian wasn’t shutting up, because of course not. “Gabe just can’t help it. Women just get obsessed with him. I
think it’s the hair.” He reached toward Gabe’s head.
Gabe leaned out of the way.
“Women? As in plural?” Troy asked.
Lucian nodded. “Yeah, you don’t know about Sabrina?”
“Dev’s fiancée?”
Gabe was about five seconds away from punching Lucian.
“Yep. One and the same. Did you know that Sabrina actually met Gabe in college? Met him first.” Lucian’s eyes glimmered with amusement. “Ever since then, she’s been chasing after Gabe’s dick like it’s the last one left in the world.”
Troy’s mouth dropped open. “But it ain’t the last dick. It ain’t even the last de Vincent dick.”
“Can you all stop talking about my dick?” Gabe grumbled.
They ignored him.
“Well, this dick didn’t want anything to do with her, rightfully so, because that woman is a bitch. Hate using that word, but it’s true. Anyways, she went for the next best dick. Dev.”
“No shit,” muttered Troy, shaking his head. “Does Dev know this?”
Lucian shrugged. “Not sure how he can’t. Don’t think he cares, though.”
“Dev doesn’t know she was on my ass all through college. She’s annoying, but she’s harmless,” Gabe said, lip curling in disgust. “And I’d honestly rather forget about all that. Sabrina’s marrying Dev. God help him, but she’s not my problem.”
“Except for when she hunts you down every time you’re home,” Lucian pointed out slyly.
Yeah, and that was another reason getting a place in Baton Rouge was at the top of his priority list. He was not going to live in the same house as Sabrina. Hell no.
“Okay.” Troy arched a brow. “So, let’s backtrack. What’s this shit about Nikki?”
Lucian was about as happy as a damn pig rolling in shit at this point. “The thing is, when Nikki was younger, no big deal. Right? Then Nikki started growing up, and well, I made it my life’s mission to remind Gabe that she may not have looked it at the time, but she was just a teenager.”
His gaze connected with his brother’s. Lucian quirked a brow, and irritation flared deep inside Gabe. People who didn’t know Lucian didn’t give him enough credit. The younger de Vincent missed nothing.
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