Charming You (Thirsty Hearts Book 1) (11 page)

"
I
'll be there
in about fifteen minutes," Nick told his sister Amy over the phone.

"Perfect. It'll be good to see you. You're doing okay?"

"Yes," Nick replied.

"Are you sure?"

Nick rolled his eyes. "Positive. See you in a few."

The siblings said their goodbyes and Nick started up the car to head east of downtown to the Lakewood area where his sister lived with her husband James and their two girls. He pulled up in front of his sister's ranch-style house, and Nick braced himself more of his sister's sympathy. Before he could get Natalie out of the car, the front door swung open, and Alice, his older niece, came running out. Amy trailed behind her.

"Uncle Nick!"

"Hey, how was soccer?"

"We won! And I scored a goal!" Natalie grinned.

"Brava! High five!" Nick slapped hands with his nine-year-old niece.

They all walked in and to the back of the house where the family room overlooked a wide backyard with a creek that ran behind the property. Alice dragged Natalie over to the computer, which sat on card table in the corner of the family room.

"James is traveling this week?" Nick asked. He worked in sales and was often on the road.

"Yes, he left this afternoon and won't be back until Friday. So, you get to be the honorary man of the house tonight. Isn't that exciting?"

The scent of tomatoes and garlic flowed from the kitchen into the family room.

"Smells good."

"Thanks. I hope you're okay with spaghetti. The kids love it, and it's easy. It's been a long day."

Amy had her hands on her hips and inhaled as she stretched her chest forward.

"You should have told me. I could have picked something up."

"No, it's fine. You did me enough of a favor taking Natalie for the day. I hope she behaved."

"She did."

Natalie heard her name and shouted across the room from her seat by the computer.

"We got ice cream."

Amy shook her head. "Before dinner, Nick?"

"Sorry. We wanted ice cream."

"We got some with Uncle Nick's girlfriend. Her name is Micky, and she's real pretty."

Alice spun around. "Uncle Nick is getting married, Natalie, remember?"

"No, he's not. Miss Vivienne dumped him," Natalie announced.

"That's not entirely true, Nat. We just decided it was best if we didn't get married."

"We should be nice to Uncle Nick, girls. People get sad when they break up," Amy ordered.

Normally, they do, Nick thought. Of all the reactions he'd had to Vivienne's news, sad hadn't come up. He felt stupid. He worried about his job. Nowhere in his heart was there sadness.

"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. But I do want to keep this to ourselves, girls. It's family business," he said.

"You're really not getting married?" Alice whined. Nick knew the girls were looking forward to being in the wedding. He walked over to the computer table and patted her hair.

"I wanted to be a flower girl," Natalie sighed.

"You know, when someone calls off a wedding, it's mostly sad for the people who were getting married, Natalie. Not the flower girls," Amy reminded her.

"I know. Sorry, Uncle Nick," Natalie said.

"It's okay. Vivienne and I are better as just friends."

"You can still get married. You just have to find another girlfriend. Maybe your friend Micky," Natalie suggested.

Nick grimaced to himself. He wasn't prepared to talk about Micky with his family.

"Who is Micky?" Amy asked. "She seems to have made quite the impression on Natalie."

"She's a woman who works in my building. We ran into her today at the park," Nick explained, trying to sound casual.

"That was quick," his sister said.

"We just met and are only friends," Nick clarified, heaving a sigh.

"I'll bet," Amy remarked, moving her eyebrows up and down with suggestion. Nick rolled his eyes. Amy had rarely said anything to him, but he knew she hadn't ever taken to Vivienne. "Dinner is ready. Let's eat. Girls, get off the computer, and grab the plates and silverware."

Amy laughed as her daughters argued over which glasses to use for dinner. It only got sorted out when Alice rolled her eyes at her little sister and declared that she was "such a baby." Nick loved spending time with his nieces—even with their bickering. It reminded him of his own childhood, and how much fun it was living in a house teeming with activity, fights, and laughter. He still wanted that for himself.

As everyone sat down to their spaghetti dinner, the conversation turned away from the demise of his engagement.

"Hey, Uncle Nick, I got a new Mavs shirt the other day to wear when we go to the game," Alice informed.

"Mom said that we get to sit in the suite again. I love sitting in the suite. It's the best," Natalie added.

"You girls are getting so spoiled by Uncle Nick's tickets. I'm afraid he's ruined you for sitting in the rafters with the common folk," Amy observed.

"You should bring Micky," Natalie said.

"Why is that?" Nick asked.

"Maybe if she likes you, you can still get married this summer! And we can still get dresses," Natalie said and giggled.

"You can't go around marrying just anybody, Nat." Alice admonished her younger and, clearly, less-wise sister.

Nick didn't follow Natalie's logic to the conclusion that he should marry Micky, but thought maybe his youngest niece was onto something. Would it be weird to invite her to a basketball game? His family would be there, and they barely knew each other. Nick waved the doubt away and figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.

"Yeah, it's a little early for marriage. She's just a friend that I met. Maybe I'll see if she's free on Saturday. If she comes, you have to be nice. No talking about Vivienne. Girls don't want to hear about your ex-girlfriends," Nick told them.

"You just met her, and we may already get to meet her," Amy said, a little incredulous. Nick could tell she was intrigued beyond belief.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. There's nothing going on with Micky. We're just friendly. It might be fun to get back in the saddle again, and I can't cancel on this bevy of beauties," he said, pointing to his giggling nieces.

"I don't think we met Vivienne until you were practically engaged," his sister mused. "I'd love to get a better preview this time."

"Sure. I'll invite Mom, too, and the two of you can question her like the CIA."

Amy stuck her tongue out at her brother, causing her daughters to giggle.

"How'd you meet?" his sister asked.

"At the office or, more accurately, in the parking garage. She had car trouble, and I helped her out."

"Wait? This is the woman you helped out a few weeks ago? I guess you ended up having drinks with her?" Amy asked. Nick had spoken to his sister on following Saturday and mentioned it to her.

"Yes. It's not a big deal," Nick said, quickly running through a mental Rolodex of topics he could bring up to redirect the conversation.

"You sounded pretty interested when we talked on the phone before. Does she know that you were engaged?"

"Oh, she knows. It's been a topic of conversation," Nick said. Amy gave Nick a sly look. She'd force him to explain that later.

"She has dark hair. I thought boys liked blonde hair better. Like Barbies," Natalie stated.

"Nat-a-lieeeee!" Alice threw her face into her palms. "You can't say things like that about Uncle Nick's new girlfriend. It's rude."

"Men like all kinds of things. Like how smart someone is and whether she's nice and honest. Hair color doesn't matter," Nick said, earning a wink from his sister. "And she's not my girlfriend. She's a friend."

"Does she work in your office?"

"No. She works for a software company in the building. There's really not much more to say," said Nick, trying to close the topic.

"I can't wait to meet her."

Nick rolled his eyes at his sister's smug look.

They finished their dinner, and Nick helped the girls clear the table. Afterward, the girls took the laptop to their rooms to play a few more games before bed. With the girls out of the room, Amy pressed Nick for a bit more honesty as they sat at the kitchen table, sharing a post-dinner bourbon.

"What's the real story with Vivienne? There's something you're not telling us," Amy pushed.

His mom and his sister amazed him with their near psychic ability. They also shared a few traits with the bloodhound, and so he'd have to be clear with them both.

"There is, but I can't discuss it. And I don't want to get into this with Mom. Anyway, it doesn't matter. Whatever the other issues are, the bottom line is that it's for the best. The more I think about it, the more I realize I was forcing it. I think I was so focused on getting married and having that ideal family life to go along with partnership in the firm, I let that keep me from examining whether she and I had a real relationship. We didn't, but I'm truly okay with how things are. It's good actually. Good for Vivienne, and good for me."

"I can tell. You really like this woman Micky, don't you?"

"I don't know. She's pretty hot," Nick smirked and his sister smacked his arm. "I might bring her to the game, but keep things light. Okay? I don't need to scare her off with my crazy family."

"Crazy? Never!" Amy laughed. "As long as we convince the girls that eventually they will get to wear a fancy dress and sprinkle flower petals, we can keep them calm. I'm always calm, and you know James was never a big Vivienne fan."

"I gathered that."

"I shouldn't tell you this, but you know what James used to say?" Amy leaned in and lowered her voice. "He was surprised she didn't freeze your dick off."

"That's terrible." Nick grimaced.

"I know. I shouldn't have told you. He didn't dislike her as much as he didn't get your relationship. James thought she was aloof."

"I know. She's a good person, though. Her family puts a lot of pressure on her. She feels like she has to hold it all in, hold it together constantly."

"Listen, I liked Vivienne well enough, and I figured if you loved her and wanted to be with her, I'd support you. If you don't, I still support you. But boy, I can't wait to meet your new prospect."

"I know. You people are too much."

"You love it. What would you do without all these women in your business?"

"Live in peace?"

"Booooo!" Amy said. "Hardly."

"I know."

Nick helped his sister finish cleaning up the dishes before saying his goodbyes for the night and heading home.

O
n Monday morning
, Nick drummed his fingers on the heavy mahogany of his desktop after wrapping up a phone call with the private investigator used occasionally by his firm. He ran his finger over the UPS label on one of the two envelopes Vivienne received.

The return address was for an apartment complex in Fort Worth—just the name of the complex with no apartment number. An online search of the tracking numbers revealed that someone dropped off both at the same UPS Store—also in Fort Worth but on the other side of town from apartment complex.

Rick Calabro, the investigator Nick contacted, suggested that the apartment could be random since UPS requires that you fill in an accurate return address to create a shipment, but the store location could be a place to start.

Rick promised to check out both the store and the apartment complex and check back. Nick liked the work the PI had done for his law firm, and he hoped Rick could be as helpful with Vivienne's case.

A knock on Nick's door drew his attention. Bob asked to stop by to discuss the Moran business and now slipped into the office and sat down. As far as Nick knew, their work on the acquisition continued unchanged. Vivienne told her parents that the she and Nick decided to work on their differences. They thought the wedding was on track—for now. Nick hoped his boss only wanted an update.

"How are things going on the Moran deal?"

"Fine. We're progressing with our examination of Azur's financials and their intellectual property. We're getting background on their operations. My research tells me that we need to buckle down this week and outline some offers before Azur decides to go in another direction." Nick steadied his voice. He knew from experience if he sounded confident, Bob would be confident in him.

"Already?"

"Yes. They may have a competing offer already."

"From where."

"Not sure. I'm looking into it."

"Great. Great," Bob repeated. "I don't need to tell you how important this piece of business is for the firm."

"Of course not." Nick kept his eyes steadily trained on Bob.

"Things are good relationship-wise, then?"

"Yes." Nick smiled with certitude.

"I know it can be awkward when personal interests intersect with business interests. All I expect is that you keep me abreast of any potential conflicts or changes that might impact the business," Bob said. The man's left eye twitched.

"Of course. Has something come up?"

"Not exactly. I spoke with Tom over the weekend. He seemed to intimate that you and his daughter are having some difficulty. I need to know that you can manage this deal regardless of your personal standing with Tom. When you brought us this opportunity, we were naturally thrilled. That's the kind of initiative that earns you a partnership. You've done good work here. I would hate to see that derailed. None of us cares about your personal choices, of course. We just want to ensure that, business-wise, we stay on track."

Nick squeezed the arm of the chair to exorcise his tension. Tom could apply pressure in the sneakiest ways.

"You don't need to worry about Vivienne and me, or her father and me. I've assured him and his staff of the value we have to offer. Tom is a businessman. He understands that. I didn't mention anything to you because I honestly don't expect anything between Vivienne and me to be a problem." The effort to keep his face impassive triggered a headache.

Bob brightened. "Good. Then we're all on the same page."

"Absolutely." Nick forced a grin.

Bob clasped his hands together and stood up. "Very well. I'll let you get back to it."

After Bob walked out, Nick dropped his head to his desk.
Jesus.
He was walking a tightrope. They couldn't ask him to marry someone for business. They couldn't hold it against him that he called off an engagement, but he certainly couldn't afford to lose Tom Moran's business.

Would the man be vindictive if Nick and Vivienne didn't go through with the wedding? Even Tom couldn't expect Nick to hold a gun to Vivienne's head and make her get married. The man wasn't unreasonable. Nick repeated that to himself over and over again until it sounded true.

"
I
hate to ask
, but your lawyer, what kind of law does he practice?" Taryn asked.

Micky and Taryn were having lunch at the deli around the corner from their office.

"I don't have a lawyer," Micky said, feigning ignorance. She took a big bite of her turkey sandwich and hoped she could out-chew having to answer Taryn's question.

"You know who I'm talking about," Taryn said. "The only reason I ask is that Jeff and his business partners are looking for someone to advise them on selling their company. I thought you said he did something with mergers and acquisitions."

"If you're talking about Nick, then, yes. That's what he said he did."

"Of course, I'm talking about Nick. I thought you had a good conversation the other day, and he told you his engagement is over?" Taryn asked.

"He did."

"Do you think you could hook Jeff up with Nick to get them legal advice on their deal? They're starting to get inquiries to buy their business. Some nice-sized offers, but they're in over their heads on the legal stuff."

"How nicely sized are these offers?"

Taryn grinned. "Tens of millions. Who knew when I was convincing Jeff not to buy all his clothes at Wal-Mart that I was in line to marry money?"

Micky laughed. Money was the last thing on Taryn's mind. What mattered to her was her fiancé's kindness and how much he loved his daughter.

"When you're rich and living the high life, don't forget all us little people," Micky joked.

"I'll take you to the top with me. After all, I'll need to have people."

"Perfect. I'll stand beside you in dark sunglasses with an earpiece and walkie talkie making sure everything you encounter meets your diva demands."

"Deal. We just need Nick's contact information."

Micky grabbed a sticky note and wrote down Nick's number for Taryn.

"I'll give him a call and let him know that Jeff will be reaching out to him," Micky said.

"You don't have to do that if you don't want to."

"It's not a problem," Micky replied.

"Huh," Taryn said, giving Micky a sly look. "Seems like we're killing two birds with one stone. Jeff gets a possible attorney, and you get an excuse to talk to Nick again."

"I don't need to dream up excuses. If I wanted to talk to him, then I would. I am an adult," Micky said and snickered. "Most of the time."

"Please. We're all basically junior high kids in bigger bodies. Except for me. I haven't grown since I was twelve." Taryn could bemoan her petite frame all she wanted. Taryn was adorable, and she knew it.

"You're probably right. Every time I see Nick, I regress. He makes me nervous," Micky admitted.

"That's either a really good sign or a really bad sign."

"I think he has straightforward answers to any questions. He's interested," Micky said.

"I've been suspicious because you've been suspicious, and I want you to listen to your intuition. But I'm also a big fan of getting you hooked up. I want to see you in love."

"That might be nice," Micky acknowledged. She plucked a potato chip from her plate and crunched. "Everyone's getting married. You. Pete is about to get engaged. I guarantee it."

"Clarissa's wonderful."

"She is. I'm meeting him tonight all the way up in Plano because he has something important to discuss."

"That's sounds terrifically serious."

"I think it is."

"Well, then you're next. Clearly."

Micky shook her head and ate another chip. She wasn't even sure she wanted to be next, but she vowed to call him as soon as she got back to her office.