“The blonde seems to be into you.” Vic said patting me on the back. “I don’t think she’d mind if she didn’t get the job but walked away with you instead.”
I looked at the woman he was referring to our eyes caught and she smiled sweetly. She was pretty enough with her long blonde hair cascading around her shoulders. She was one of the few girls here that wasn’t dressed like a skank. Her petite frame was dressed in an emerald green sweater dress that matched her eyes, which seemed to devour me.
“She’s not really my type.” I said lying through my teeth. The truth was I didn’t have a type. I would screw anything with a pulse because I was a self-destructive asshole but there was that little problem I recently developed. Nikki. “Besides she seems like she would be a better fit for the job than half the people here.”
Victor shrugged his shoulders. “You’re probably right. Sweetheart?” He motioned to the blonde in question summoning her to us. Like all the others we interviewed Victor fired a few questions at her. Once her experience was established and the fact that she had open availability she was hired. She smiled at me a smile, which held an unspoken promise that she’d be happy to work with me in more ways than one. I winked at her in return before looking at Vic again who was putting her resume in the folder with the other new hires.
“When are we doing the rough opening?” I asked him running my palms along the length of my thighs. I needed a break from this shit desperately.
“The night after tomorrow, that should give the employees enough time to get a general idea of their responsibilities and an understanding of what we expect of them” He glanced up at me. “Have you seen Rico yet? He was supposed to test out the sound equipment.”
“No.” I said hearing his name made me wonder if Rico was with Nikki. The thought of her being with him caused an unfamiliar ache in my chest maybe that’s why she was avoiding me. All along, I had been telling myself that she wasn’t answering me because of what had happened between us that I just assumed she wanted it too. She opened the door inviting me to act on the temptations that I had been struggling with every time we were in the same room. Maybe I was wrong, maybe I didn’t know anything about what Nikki wanted.
“I need a break.” I declared. Victor peered up at me raising an eyebrow at the agitation in my voice.
“Alright.” He said suspiciously. “When you get back call Nikki find out if she knows where that boyfriend of hers is. My time is valuable and I will not have my kindness taken for granted by anyone. That guy thinks because he dates my daughter he gets away with murder.”
“That’s your own fault.” I said instantly.
Victor placed the folder on the table beside him leaning back in his chair he crossed his arms against his chest and looked at me almost amused.
“Care to explain?” He said with his voice sounding eerily calm and controlled.
“How do you expect him to act when you don’t set him straight?” I matched his controlled voice. “He mauls your daughter at your dining room table and you barely flinch. He’s a disrespectful prick. It’s blatantly obvious he doesn’t give a shit who you are or what you stand for. If you ask me all Nikki is to him is a trophy.”
“And this is based on your observations?” Victor asked.
“Partially but mostly it’s a gut feeling. My theory might not have a leg to stand on but mark my words his intentions with Nikki are far from pure.” Something about Rico rubbed me the wrong way I didn’t trust the guy. I may not be a good judge of character but something was off with him. I didn’t like him for Nikki. The shitty thing was I had nothing to base my theory on and I wasn’t a hundred percent sure that it wasn’t because I wanted her for myself. Could be that I labeled the one she was with no good for purely selfish reasons and it didn’t faze me one bit.
“She seems happy enough.” Victor said.