by Addison Fox
“You think it’s bunk?”
“I think it’s fine if you want to live your best life. Having it shouted at you from billboards and TV ads feels like overkill. It also feels like it’s about a business instead of what it should be. Actually helping people.”
“You have a business and you help people.”
His wry smile was a little lopsided and it did something funny to her heart. One moment it was beating like normal and then in the next it seemed to flip over on itself.
“Touché.”
“Which isn’t to say I’m not grateful for your help.” She felt a little better having made the joke, some of the equilibrium she couldn’t find in the drive back into town returning. “But you were sort of an easy target with that one.”
“I guess I was. But what was it about the AAG that had you upset?”
She knew it wasn’t fair to tease Nikolas, but no matter how much she tried, she’d always been very good at pointing out things that were incongruous or off-kilter. Perhaps that was what made her a good stylist—she had an eye that didn’t miss the things that were out of place. But that also went for comments and statements that didn’t match someone’s intentions.
Instead of chalking it up to someone else’s idiosyncrasies, she’d often comment on the matter before she could check herself.
What surprised her was that Nikolas didn’t seem to mind it. Although she was well aware her personality quirk often didn’t sit well with others, he seemed to take it in stride, almost amused at the comparison instead of being upset by it.
Unbidden, a memory of one of her last dates with Ferdy came rushing back. They’d increasingly been at odds and it felt like anything she said to him was dismissed or ignored or, worse, jabbed at like some prize fighter in the middle of a ring. She’d gotten better at holding herself back to keep the peace but he’d mentioned something about one of the subway stops closest to her apartment and she’d corrected him.
“I’m off the 18th Street stop, not the 23rd.”
He barely looked up from the steak he was sawing, grumbling out an answer. “I’ve been to your place, Nova. I know what the hell I’m talking about.”
“And I live there. I think I know, too.”
He did look up then, the knife still in his hand. “Getting mouthy on me?”
“What’s the big deal? My apartment’s on 19th. I take the 18th Street stop, not the 23rd.”
“Right.” He set his knife and fork down slowly, his dark eyes like black coals when they finally settled on her. “What’s the big freaking deal? You have to mess with me about everything, have to comment on everything?”
“It’s where I live. I know the streets near me. That’s all I was trying to say.”
He stared at her another full minute and all she could think as those dark eyes lasered into hers, like a snake charmer forcing back the cobra, was that their discussion wasn’t really about the subway at all. Or where she lived. Or a simple slip of the tongue.
It was about control.
And dominance.
“Nova?” Nikolas’s tone was warm and gentle, and at odds with the harsher one that still had the power to fill her thoughts. “We were talking about the AAG.”
“Yes, of course.” Whatever else those few months with Ferdy had taught her, it was to put on a smile and a happy face, blithely ignoring whatever strange conversation had come before. “I just found them really odd.”
“Did you talk to someone?”
“Yeah. After my interview that didn’t go at all like I’d planned, I was feeling sorry for myself. I’d driven around for a bit, exploring Mustang Valley, and then ended up parking in the lot of one of the shopping centers past the edge of downtown. You snuck blueberries into my take-home bag.”
He did smile at that, the first easing she’d seen in his expression since she walked in. “I did. I believe I also snuck in strawberries and apple slices, too.”
“They were delicious, by the way. You may be a sneak, but you’re a gifted one.”
“So noted.” Nikolas nodded, before returning unerringly to their conversation. “So there you were, eating all that good food, and what happened? Did someone approach you?”
“It was that billboard. The one with the older woman. I don’t know, maybe she’s the founder or something.”
“I know the one.”
“So here she is in the picture, looking like some sort of giving, altruistic executive. Or supposed to be looking like one. But that’s not what I took away from the picture.”
“What did you take away?”
“That’s the problem. I can’t put my finger on it, but here she is supposed to be looking all ‘you go be the best you’ and compassionate and encouraging. I just didn’t see it. Or maybe a better explanation, because it was an ad, was that I wasn’t buying it.”
“Ads are meant to sell. Most people take a quick, snap impression of what the advertiser wants them to see and move on.”
Nova considered that for a minute, finding his description a good one. If she hadn’t been sitting there with her car parked in the direct line of sight of the billboard, she likely wouldn’t have noticed the incongruity of it all.
It was only as she’d sat there, staring at it, that she’d seen something out of the ordinary.
But it was after the conversation, that strange young woman staring persistently at her stomach as if Nova carried a possible new follower, that she’d felt that strange air of malevolence.
What was really going on at the edge of town at the AAG?
And why did she feel that threat even more keenly than Ferdy’s possible reentry into her life?
Chapter 6
Nikolas pulled into the underground garage at his condo complex and kept his finger on the button for the swinging gate door so that Nova could pass in behind him. They’d wrapped up in his office after a long day and he’d told her to follow him before parking in the guest area once inside the gates. After he put his car in his own assigned spot, he’d promised to come back around and help her with her bags.
The conversation they’d had in his office hadn’t left his thoughts the entire drive back to his place and he was already planning a call to Spencer Colton, a sergeant for the MVPD, to see how much the man knew about the AAG.
Although he’d never had a reason to look into the organization in the past, Nikolas was mildly aware of them. You couldn’t live in Mustang Valley and not be.
To be honest, he had never really given them a lot of thought. But Nova’s reaction had him wondering.
Although she’d attempted to brush it off and he’d finally satisfied himself that she hadn’t actually been hurt or even overtly threatened, something still didn’t sit well. It had been pure instinct that had her running from her meeting with the AAG employee and he didn’t like it.
Even if he bought her excuse about an overreaction, there was no way she had made up the panic that had settled deep in her eyes.
Nikolas considered it all as he walked from his car toward visitor parking. Once he had her settled in and ordered dinner, he would spend a little time of his own looking up the AAG. A bit of nosing around and a few discreet searches to see if there was anything to look into a little more deeply.
In the meantime, he wanted to get Nova’s mind off her day and thought a hearty meal of Italian takeout might do the trick.
She was already out of her car, the trunk open, when he reached her. “I can help you with that.”
“I don’t have all that much.”
She wasn’t kidding. Beyond a suitcase and an oversize travel bag, there was little else in her trunk.
“Is this all?”
“I travel light.”
“Awfully light, considering you’ve been driving for quite a while.”
“I don’t need much. And I’ve been trying to save fo
r the baby.” She extended her hand and took the rolling suitcase from him. “I haven’t seen any real reason to spend frivolously.”
And there it was. More of that bravado that suggested she wasn’t quite ready to tell him why she’d come all the way to Arizona looking for her father.
Oh, he had no doubt she genuinely wanted to meet Ace and her other family members. That mix of eagerness and trepidation when he’d called Marlowe earlier was real. But as each hour passed he knew that wasn’t the whole story.
Only now wasn’t the time to push it. So he simply gestured toward the elevators. “After you.”
The trip up to his apartment was quick, and in moments he had his key in the lock, opening the door. “I’ll get you a key, as well, so you can come and go as you please. The parking garage is a little bit trickier, but there’s guest parking outside the gate and I can get you a key fob tomorrow from the building manager.”
“I don’t want to be trouble.”
“Nova. You’re not trouble. I’m happy to help you and you can stay here as long as you need.”
She rolled her bag to a corner, pushing it out of the way, before she turned back to face him. “Why are you being so nice to me? Please don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the help. More than I can say really. But I just don’t see why you’re going to all the effort.”
“You came to me for help this morning. I’m going to give it to you.”
“You don’t know me.”
“I’ve seen all I need to know.”
Although he didn’t expect her to magically open up, he was losing his patience when he came to the discussion of why he was helping her. Which was proof it had been a long day and it was time to focus on dinner. “If you follow me down the hall, I can show you where the guest room is.”
The wheels of her suitcase bumped lightly over the hardwood floor as she followed him down the hall. “Your place is beautiful. How long have you lived here?”
Nikolas gestured to the open door of his spare bedroom. Flipping on the light, he walked the rest of the way into the room and settled her shoulder bag on the edge of the bed. “About three years. After my business started to take off, I decided I wanted a place in town. My dad and I got along well enough with each other at the house, but it was time to go it on my own.”
“I know what you mean. I love my mother and I miss her every day, but I didn’t want to live with her. As an adult.”
“Exactly.”
The talk of her mother seemed to put her at ease and after a few more moments looking around the room she sat down on the edge of the bed. “I didn’t mean to sound ungrateful before. I am so thankful to you and I appreciate you having me here in your home.”
His earlier frustration faded. She was all alone and trying to navigate a truly unique set of circumstances. It wasn’t every day a person you’d just met that day was suddenly opening their home and giving you a place to stay.
“Look, Nova. I get it. I don’t understand what you’re going through, but I do know it can be hard to depend on someone else.”
“It is.” Her voice gentled. “But it’s nice, too. I hope you know that.”
“Know you can depend on me. This room’s yours as long as you need it.”
He took her in as she sat there. Just like when she’d sat on the overstuffed couch in his outer office, the queen-size bed seemed to swallow her petite frame. Even with the unmistakable signs of her pregnancy, she was still a tiny little thing. There was something about her that made him want to protect her, yet even as he thought it, he knew those feelings weren’t actually due to her size.
Because there was also something about Nova Ellis—likely Colton—that screamed warrior. The way she was determined to do right by her child. The way she insisted on going after a job. Even in the way she stubbornly resisted taking too much of his offer to help, he saw that strength.
And in it, he understood what it was to feel beholden to somebody else.
“Why don’t you rest for a few minutes? I’m going to go ahead and order us some dinner. I was thinking Italian. Does that work for you?”
“Does it work for me?” Sparks of humor lit her eyes and he saw a few more glimpses of the woman he’d welcomed that morning in his office. “Yeah, I think I’ll manage.”
“Lasagna? Garlic bread? Side of meatballs?”
“I hate to break it to you, Slater, but you’re talking to a pregnant woman. That’s pretty much the hormonal equivalent of talking dirty.”
Her green eyes popped open as she realized what she’d said, and Nikolas could only laugh at the reaction. “I had no idea tomato sauce was an aphrodisiac. But I’ll consider myself warned.”
She smiled then, before a big rush of laughter spilled from her throat.
Nikolas smiled back, then pulled the door closed behind him. Even if it hadn’t been intentional, her comment about the food had reset the playing field between them.
He could only hope that dinner might get him the rest of the answers he sought.
* * *
Nova hadn’t intended to fall asleep. But once she sat down on the edge of the bed, it seemed like she couldn’t keep her eyes open. She vowed to herself she would only catch ten minutes, but as she glanced at her watch she realized it was two hours later than when Nikolas had walked out of the room.
“Oh no.” She sat straight up in bed, swinging her legs around to the floor. How had she slept so long?
Or maybe a better question. How had she slept so long in a strange place?
Only it wasn’t strange. She’d continued to press the point on him that she didn’t want to be an intrusion, but the reality was that she felt safe with Nikolas.
You felt safe with Ferdy, too.
Although the thought was unbidden, Nova gave herself a moment to consider the internal warning. She didn’t know Nikolas Slater and he didn’t know her. She’d leaped into a relationship that had gone horribly bad once.
Was she doing it again?
Or could she thank five months on the run and a progressing pregnancy for adding a level of worldliness she hadn’t had when Ferdy came into her life.
Either way, she was here now. All she could do was be vigilant and hope for the best.
And know that she could always go back on the run if she found the worst.
“Might as well go in and help with dinner,” she muttered to herself as she straightened the covers. “Or what passes for dinner when you heat it up in the microwave.”
Fortunately, she had remembered to slip off her flip-flops before stretching out on the bed, so she slipped back into them and padded out of the room and into the hall. The impressions that she had taken in earlier as Nikolas has shown her to the room now had a chance to take root and flourish. The hallway was decorated like much of the rest of the house—or at least what she’d seen of it—and there were a series of framed black-and-white prints that ran down the length of the hallway on both sides.
Curious, she stopped to look at them. And saw a variety of pictures from what appeared to be vistas in and around Mustang Valley. In fact, as she peered closer she recognized some of the same things that she had seen today on her drive around town.
The ridge of mountains that rose up at the edge of Mustang Valley, majestically pointing toward the sky.
A close-up shot of the arid land that surrounded those mountains, a small flower peeking up through cracks in the ground.
There was even a close-up of the main street, capturing the life and movement of people as they walked up and down the sidewalks.
It was fascinating to see, all those different types of shots. Most photographers she had met tended to focus on one type of image. Still life, or scenery, or people. But these seemed to infuse all those things—each distinct, yet each part of a whole.
Had Nikolas done these?
Nova continued on t
he rest of the way into the condo, the hallway spilling back into a great room that was then connected to the kitchen. Nikolas sat in the chair at the table, his focus on his laptop as he typed in a few things. She didn’t want to sneak up on him, but she had a chance to look at him quickly before he realized she was there.
Once again, those dark curls captivated her and she imagined running her fingers through them. Would they be soft? She’d bet anything they would be.
A different time, maybe.
Perhaps, if they were different people, things could work out a different way. But for now, she’d have to leave those curls and everything else about Nikolas Slater firmly in the realm of fantasy.
She was an unwed pregnant woman. And while she had no guilt or embarrassment about that fact, she wasn’t exactly ripe for a relationship. And he was working on a case that threatened to put her biological father away for life.
They were in very different places, without much of a bridge between them.
So she would take the kindness that he offered. And she would be a model guest. And, if things continued on as they’d started, she’d make her first friend in Mustang Valley.
And that would be all.
He glanced up then, a small smile on his face. “Sleep well?”
“I did. Sorry I slept so long. I intended to grab ten minutes, and well, you can see how that went.”
“You and the baby obviously needed it.”
“We did.”
She moved into the kitchen, where a large take-out bag sat on the counter. “I can warm this up.”
“I figured you might want to sleep a little, so I waited to order. Food arrived about fifteen minutes ago. It should be just right, temperature-wise.”
“Even better. I’ll go ahead and get the plates.”
“First cabinet, left of the refrigerator.”
Nova found the plates where he promised and took a shot that the silverware would be in the drawer below. Rewarded with the correct answer, she pulled out what they needed and closed the door with a hip bump.
And realized just how long it’d been since she had been in any kitchen at all, preparing to eat dinner.
