Page 16 of Fixed Up Ever After
In fact, she seemed pissed that he was here, as he came here today to personally offend her. Even annoyance looked sexy on her, which begged the question, what the fuck was wrong with him? He should not be turned on by her pissy attitude, even if it belonged to a beautiful, curvy woman who he couldn’t stop thinking about.
“Well, small world,” Monique said after a beat of silence, pulling Javi away from his lewd thoughts. She gestured at Javi, reminding him of a farmer showing off her most prized possession. “So, Javier helped out with a few renovations and fixes the other day. He was able to get them done faster and better than others I have hired.”
Pride swelled within him. He knew people enjoyed his work from the continued services they booked and the smiles on their faces when he was done. However, hearing praise for him filled him with the assurance and confidence he needed to know he was making the right decision to leave his job and become his own boss.
Lola seemed intrigued by her friend’s words, but almost reluctantly so. Her anger had not faded, he could feel it radiating off her as she scrutinized him from head to toe. “How fast can you finish a job?” she asked.
Javi shrugged. It was a nuanced question because each job was different and required different skills. “Depends on the job. I would have to know what you needed.”
“And I suppose you have a waitlist too.” She sighed.
That he could answer. Javi shook his head. “I don’t. I’m in a transitional period right now. I’m leaving my current job to become an independent contractor. Monique and Mattea are one of my only scheduled clients at the moment.”
He hoped more would come his way though. So many people he worked for swore to keep him in mind, but he didn’t wait for their calls with bated breath. The industry he was in was saturated and any handyman that could do a quick fix at a decent price, no matter the shitty outcome, usually wormed their way onto projects for unsuspecting clients.
A flash of what Javi could only describe as hope gleamed in her eyes, but when she blinked it was replaced with the emotionless shield she had donned earlier. “I see,” she said pointedly. “Unfortunately, I don’t think that’s going to work for me. I need someone who is both dependable and trustworthy. Sorry to have wasted your time.”
Leaving everyone with various levels of shock, Lola turned around, her hair hitting his chest as she walked off toward another table. Monique’s head swiveled between Javi and Lola, opening her mouth to say something, but then closing it the next second as if she thought better of it.
Ofelia stared suspiciously at her brother, her hand on her jutted-out hip. “I don’t understand. Did you say something wrong?”
Bless his sister for always having his back and supporting him, but now wasn’t the time to get into it. Every instinct in his body told him to go after Lola and demand answers from her. Why was she acting so cold toward him? What did he do to warrant such a response? It couldn’t be because he left her six months ago without saying goodbye…could it? They had an agreement and he was following said agreement.
“I’ll be right back.” Javi said, ignoring the protests from both his sister and Monique. He couldn’t hash it out with them right now. He was never one to wait for an answer to show up; he had always been of the mindset that one had to seek answers for themselves. So here he was, seeking the damn answer and hoping it didn’t backfire on him.
He found Lola busying herself at a station for extra supplies, trying to tidy up the already impeccable spread. She was actively ignoring him but he didn’t understand why she was so angry. He understood that the situation was awkward, but was it that horrible to run into him? Apparently, it was.
“Lola.” He spoke her name, and her entire body tensed.
After a few moments, he watched as Lola reluctantly turned around to meet his gaze. Her brows were squeezed tightly together and her lips were pursed together in a tight line. She crossed her arms over her ample chest, pushing together her breasts. Her cleavage was on full display and he did his best to look anywhere but at her chest, no matter how badly the temptation to peek was.
“Lola,” he said again, taking her silence as motivation to continue. “I don’t know why you’re upset with me, but I clearly did something to piss you off. Want to tell me what I did so I can fix it?”
She laughed, her lips forming a cruel smile. “As if you don’t know,” she spat.
“I really don’t,” he said through gritted teeth, knowing if he lost his temper it would escalate the situation.
“Right. You are going to stand here and act a fool when your family is five feet away.”
“I’m not acting. I legit don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“You’re married, Javi!” Her voice was just loud enough that the table nearest to them looked up. The couple gave them reproachful glances before helicoptering over their toddlers again. Lola didn’t notice, or didn’t care, because she continued on. “And you have two kids. Do they know their dad is a player? Is that what you are teaching your son? I swear men are all the same. All dogs. Only wanting the next shiny thing that walks by. I should cut off your—”
“Lola!” Javi had to raise his voice to be heard over her tangent. She was clearly not happy to be cut off and sent him a reproachful glare. Her anger made sense to him now. It was almost comical that he had not realized how it would have looked like to her from the beginning.
His amused expression only made Lola more fiery with passion. “Oh, don’t you look smug now. Just wait until I tell your wife what a bastard you are. She’s gorgeous. She’ll find better—”
“Lola! Damn girl, I’m not married. She’s not my wife.” This time Javi was laughing. Not at Lola, but at the situation. He was so used to doing everything with his sister and their kids now, he never stopped and wondered what it looked like to outsiders. Maybe that was why he wasn’t getting any dates. Cockblocked by his own sister.
“Ofelia is my sister,” he explained, watching Lola’s face heat in embarrassment. “The boy is my nephew. The girl is my daughter though, but I swear to you I’m not married and I don’t have a girlfriend. I also didn’t have those things when we…” He trailed off, trying to find a word for it that was appropriate for their current public setting.
“Fucked,” Lola supplied. So much for decency.
“Yeah.” He brought his hand to the back of his neck, rubbing out a knot that was forming. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how it must have looked until you said something.”
It wasn’t as if he knew Lola was going to be there or had any time to prepare himself for what he was going to do when he saw her, but he hadn't imagined a second meeting with her going like this.
He waited for her to say something, but she chewed on her bottom lip, lost in her own thoughts. He wondered if this was his cue to leave. He took a step back, knowing both Ofelia and Monique were watching the whole exchange. “I should go. It was nice to see you again Lola. I can give Monique some recommendations on contractors for you.” Since she most certainly wouldn’t be hiring him. That was okay though. She needed to find someone she would be comfortable with.
