to?”
“Well…” Jenna grabbed a throw pillow and hugged it to her chest. “I have to say I think your plan worked. Matthew is definitely jealous.”
“I know. He was acting jealous, wasn’t he? It’s not just my imagination.”
“Believe me, he’s jealous all right. So what’s your next move?”
“I don’t know. I have to finish the walk-through at Dallas’s loft. Take measurements. I need to work up my preliminary ideas and an estimate. And I don’t know how I’m going to do any of that without wanting to jump him.” Nikki stopped when she saw the big smile on Jenna’s face. “What? What’d I say?”
“I was talking about what your next move was with Matthew. But apparently, you’ve got someone else on your mind.”
Nikki squeezed her eyes shut and fisted up both hands. “Please, I can’t even think about Matthew right now. All I can think about is Dallas. What am I going to do? I cannot fall for someone like him.”
“And why not?”
“Because it’s all an act. I mean, yes, sometimes it seems like he’s actually into me, even when Matthew’s nowhere around. And that part is confusing, I admit. But now he’s my client and I should not be trying to bed down my client. As if he’d even want to bed me down. I need to get over myself. I mean, he’s gorgeous. He wouldn’t want someone like me.”
“You’re gorgeous, too,” Jenna said defensively.
“And besides, he’s already made it perfectly clear that he’s not into relationships. In his words, ‘I don’t want to be tied down.’”
“Well, that part sucks. But maybe it’s because he hasn’t met the right woman.”
“Trust me, I’m not the right woman for him.”
“You don’t know that.”
Nikki puffed up her cheeks.
“You know what your problem is,” Jenna said. “You’re still thinking of yourself as that slightly overweight—”
“Slightly? C’mon, I was a total chub.”
“No, you were not a total chub. You had an asshole for a fiancé who made you feel like a chub.”
“And a loser.”
“You were never a loser. That was all dickwad’s warped bullshit perception.”
“Whoa, don’t hold back, Jenna. Tell me how you really feel about him.”
“I’m serious. The point I’m trying to make is that you’re not that girl anymore. You’re bright and talented and you’re getting back on your feet. You’ve got a killer body. You’ve always been gorgeous, and best of all, you don’t have to settle for someone like Matthew.”
“Oh, Matthew.” Nikki squeezed her eyes shut again. “What am I doing to him? It’s not right. I’m trying to manipulate him and right now, I don’t even think I want him anymore.”
“Honey, Matthew’s a big boy. He can take care of himself. And you know the way he is—he doesn’t like the idea of someone else playing with his toys.”
Nikki thought about Blondie’s picture popping up on his phone and she knew Jenna was right. Matthew was territorial. He prided himself on having the newest car, the biggest flat-screen TV, and the latest gadgets. It drove him insane if someone else had something he wanted, or something better than what he had.
“And do I need to remind you,” Jenna said, “that the little asshat broke your heart.”
It was true, but still, Nikki didn’t like the idea of messing with Matthew’s head. Yes, he’d hurt her; yes, he was clearly dating someone new, but he hadn’t cheated on her. He hadn’t hit her or lied to her. He just grew tired of her, which in some ways was almost harder to accept. But still, he didn’t deserve to be played with. Nikki wasn’t a mean-spirited person. She didn’t want to inflict pain on anyone, not even on Matthew. So despite what Jenna said, and despite loving the attention she got from Dallas, Nikki decided she was through playing this “let’s make Matthew jealous” game.
Chapter Ten
That Tuesday, at half past five, Dallas wrapped up his photo shoot for the day. By six o’clock he was antsy
“Well…” Jenna grabbed a throw pillow and hugged it to her chest. “I have to say I think your plan worked. Matthew is definitely jealous.”
“I know. He was acting jealous, wasn’t he? It’s not just my imagination.”
“Believe me, he’s jealous all right. So what’s your next move?”
“I don’t know. I have to finish the walk-through at Dallas’s loft. Take measurements. I need to work up my preliminary ideas and an estimate. And I don’t know how I’m going to do any of that without wanting to jump him.” Nikki stopped when she saw the big smile on Jenna’s face. “What? What’d I say?”
“I was talking about what your next move was with Matthew. But apparently, you’ve got someone else on your mind.”
Nikki squeezed her eyes shut and fisted up both hands. “Please, I can’t even think about Matthew right now. All I can think about is Dallas. What am I going to do? I cannot fall for someone like him.”
“And why not?”
“Because it’s all an act. I mean, yes, sometimes it seems like he’s actually into me, even when Matthew’s nowhere around. And that part is confusing, I admit. But now he’s my client and I should not be trying to bed down my client. As if he’d even want to bed me down. I need to get over myself. I mean, he’s gorgeous. He wouldn’t want someone like me.”
“You’re gorgeous, too,” Jenna said defensively.
“And besides, he’s already made it perfectly clear that he’s not into relationships. In his words, ‘I don’t want to be tied down.’”
“Well, that part sucks. But maybe it’s because he hasn’t met the right woman.”
“Trust me, I’m not the right woman for him.”
“You don’t know that.”
Nikki puffed up her cheeks.
“You know what your problem is,” Jenna said. “You’re still thinking of yourself as that slightly overweight—”
“Slightly? C’mon, I was a total chub.”
“No, you were not a total chub. You had an asshole for a fiancé who made you feel like a chub.”
“And a loser.”
“You were never a loser. That was all dickwad’s warped bullshit perception.”
“Whoa, don’t hold back, Jenna. Tell me how you really feel about him.”
“I’m serious. The point I’m trying to make is that you’re not that girl anymore. You’re bright and talented and you’re getting back on your feet. You’ve got a killer body. You’ve always been gorgeous, and best of all, you don’t have to settle for someone like Matthew.”
“Oh, Matthew.” Nikki squeezed her eyes shut again. “What am I doing to him? It’s not right. I’m trying to manipulate him and right now, I don’t even think I want him anymore.”
“Honey, Matthew’s a big boy. He can take care of himself. And you know the way he is—he doesn’t like the idea of someone else playing with his toys.”
Nikki thought about Blondie’s picture popping up on his phone and she knew Jenna was right. Matthew was territorial. He prided himself on having the newest car, the biggest flat-screen TV, and the latest gadgets. It drove him insane if someone else had something he wanted, or something better than what he had.
“And do I need to remind you,” Jenna said, “that the little asshat broke your heart.”
It was true, but still, Nikki didn’t like the idea of messing with Matthew’s head. Yes, he’d hurt her; yes, he was clearly dating someone new, but he hadn’t cheated on her. He hadn’t hit her or lied to her. He just grew tired of her, which in some ways was almost harder to accept. But still, he didn’t deserve to be played with. Nikki wasn’t a mean-spirited person. She didn’t want to inflict pain on anyone, not even on Matthew. So despite what Jenna said, and despite loving the attention she got from Dallas, Nikki decided she was through playing this “let’s make Matthew jealous” game.
Chapter Ten
That Tuesday, at half past five, Dallas wrapped up his photo shoot for the day. By six o’clock he was antsy
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