Page 50 of Faith

“Come on, Nic. You’re smart. What does he have that all of those other men didn’t? I remember asking you to come to Hawaii when I started my club and you turned me down flat.”

“And you should thank me for that. Dee is the only woman who could put up with you.”

“True. Still, you hold back from men all the time. Why is this man getting under your skin?”

“What do you mean?”

“Any other Dom of his caliber and you would say yes on the spot.”

“I told you. Work.”

He sighed. “I see you aren’t going to be honest with me.”

Guilt nudged at her. “I just haven’t worked through all of it yet.”

“Okay, but at least keep the option open. You two could be great together.”

“Or we could destroy a great working relationship.”

“If there is no risk, it’s just not worth it to try.”

She knew he was talking about his relationship with his wife Dee.

“Kiss that sweet wife for me and those babies. I have things to think about.”

“Sure thing. Call anytime.”

“I was nice. I could have called at six this morning, so behave yourself from now on, or I will.”

She hung up on his sputtering. The call made her feel even worse about the situation. She was ready to say no. She wanted him, but it wasn’t until this moment that she realized how much she valued his friendship. Nicola planned on leaving his employment someday, but she always thought they would remain friends.

Her phone buzzed in her hands. When she saw Serenity’s face on the screen, she knew she couldn’t avoid her.

“What do you want?”

“I was calling to see what went on today.”

“Well, he proposed we enter into an agreement.”

“Not surprised he did.”

“Until we leave the island.”

She snorted. “Yeah, right.”

“Why does everyone have that reaction?”

“Who else did you talk to? You told someone before you told me?”

“Calm down. I had to call Micah and find out what he told Jensen.”

“I guess I can deal with that. Okay, what’s the plan?”

“I had planned on saying no.”

“But?”

“That was before he kissed me.”

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