Page 12 of Blind Trust
Nic glanced back at Kekoa and felt bad seeing the fear lingering on the Hawaiian’s face. “Brother, you don’t remember the mustache debacle?”
Kekoa’s hand moved to his lip. “Oh, right.Princess Bride.”
“I remember that day.” Jack laughed, inspecting Kekoa’s lip. “I don’t think you’ll ever grow hair there again.”
“Brah, I lost a layer of skin from that fake mustache.”
Nic eyed them both. “I’m pretty sure those tight pants she made me wear caused permanent nerve damage to my right leg.”
“Okay, okay, I get it.” Lyla sighed. “I might have a tendency to go overboard for my parties, but they’re always fun.”
“The night wasn’t so bad.”
“See?” Lyla gestured to Jack. “It wasn’tsobad.”
“That’s because he got the girl.” Kekoa wiggled his hips.
“No thanks to you and your untimely interruptions.” Jack shook his head. “It’s a wonder I was able to kiss my bride at our wedding.”
Nic chuckled at the memory, even as a tinge of jealousy flared within him. He was happy Jack had found Brynn and even happier that Kekoa had found someone to loveallof him and his hip-shaking quirks, but their relationships only highlighted the emptiness in his own life.
His gaze collided with Lyla’s before she quickly glanced back down at the candle.
“So, um, what’s the occasion?”
Rocking on his heels, Nic looked between the group and then back at her. “Can we talk?”
Lyla’s blue-green eyes shifted to Jack. Was she nervous? Jack moved to his desk and shut his laptop. “Walsh is at a meeting until one, and I was just heading out to meet Brynn for lunch.” He tipped his head at Kekoa. “You wanna try that new place at Union Station?”
Kekoa’s brows scrunched. “You’re not talking about that salad place, are you?”
Jack rolled his eyes. “Yes, but they also have proteins you can add to the salad. Fish, chicken, steak, and—”
“You think I can ask for a steak salad without the salad?” Kekoa’s lips curved into a smile. “Or steak salad, minus the salad, add some chicken?”
“Get your coat.” Jack shook his head. “It’s like taking a six-foot-four, three-hundred-pound toddler out to eat.”
Nic caught Jack’s curious look before leaving him and Lyla alone in the office. Lyla set the candle on her desk, then did a slow turn to face Nic.
“Everything okay, Nicolás?”
He tugged the brim of his hat down, giving him a second to assess Lyla like he was assessing an explosive device. Gauging her tone, her posture, her facial expression, the way she was biting the inside of her lip like she did when she was trying to figure something out. His opinion that this fiercely independent woman needed to be approached with caution wasn’t an exaggeration. Was she fully charged or—
“I hate it when you look at me like that.”
Heat clawed his neck. “Like what?”
She shifted under his watch, tucking her chin to her chest. “The one where I can’t tell if you like me or not.”
Nic blinked, taking a small step back. He rubbed his neck, caught off guard by her comment and unsure of how to answer.
“Oh my goodness, Nicolás.” Lyla met his gaze. “I know we don’t always see eye to eye on our assignments, and you think I’m impulsive and I think you’re a little uptight, which is funny because you have this whole James Dean meets Matthew McConaughey vibe going on, but I want us to get over it already. We’ve never let our differences get in the way of our friendship.”
Differences? That’s how she saw it? Her inclination to face off with danger and his propensity to understand the cost of riskbefore committing was just a simple variance in how they operated? It was so much more than that, but he didn’t think he’d be able to make her understand that in the few weeks before he left.
“No.”
“Maybe take a few seconds longer to answer next time.” There was a tease in her voice, but uncertainty dimmed her smile. “You had me worried that I’d lost you.”
