Series: Paige Michaels
Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 224(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 224(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
“I’m going to investigate the surrounding neighborhood and the store that last occupied this spot. It could be nothing or something could be happening. If you see something out of the norm, call,” Detective Reynolds requested.
“I will. Promise.”
“Good. And keep listening to that voice in the back of your mind that tells you something is wrong. The fact that man wouldn’t tell you his name was a red flag. He could have just made up a name. You wouldn’t have had a second thought about answering his questions if he had, but perhaps something else would have alerted you. Our brains work in mysterious ways. It wasn’t women’s intuition that had you refuse to say any more when he wouldn’t give you his name. You’d noticed something even if you didn’t realize something didn’t add up. It could have been his shoes, his expression, his accent—who knows? You did good today listening to that inner voice.”
It felt like a million bricks collapsed off her shoulders. Nora smiled her thanks. She’d felt like she was bothering so many people because she hadn’t cooperated with that man. How the detective had known she was beating herself up, Nora didn’t know, but she’d set Nora’s mind at ease with just a few words.
She walked the detective to the front door and paused. Instead of going back to work, she asked Amy if she was okay by herself for a few minutes.
“Sure, boss. I’ve got it handled. Get some fresh air.”
Dashing down the walkway, Nora forced herself to slow down before stepping into the Cuban restaurant. Immediately, she regretted her decision. It was packed inside for the lunch hour.
“Nora! Good to see you. Let me grab Mateo,” a woman Nora recognized as his younger sister, Maya, offered.
“Nora! Is everything okay?” Mateo looked worried as he came to her side.
“Yes. It’s all okay. That’s what I came to tell you. Detective Reynolds has come and gone. She said I did well listening to that warning voice in my brain. She’ll start investigating immediately.”
“That’s wonderful news. And you? Do you feel better?”
“So much better. I was afraid I was causing problems. It turns out my internal warning system worked pretty well.”
“Of course it did. I’m proud of you, Angel.”
“Thanks. That means a lot.”
“Got time to eat lunch with the most handsome fellow at La Havana?” Mateo asked.
“I can’t. I need to get back. I’ve lost so much time dealing with all this. Can I have a raincheck, Señor Guapo?”
“Just for calling me handsome, I’ll let you go back to work. But promise me you’ll eat,” Mateo demanded.
“I’ll eat. Promise.”
“I’ll see you this evening, Angel.” He pulled her in for a light kiss.
Almost skipping down the sidewalk, Nora returned to work. Everything looked much better now. She crossed her fingers when the thought that that guy was still out there entered her mind.
It wasn’t until she was back in the office that she put her hand in her pocket and found the two twenties. She’d forgotten to return them to her Daddy!
Chapter Thirteen
Thank goodness!
Nora ended the call and smiled. It looked like she’d finally found an assistant manager for the store. Opening the store on her own, Nora had worked all the shifts as she trained her staff and assessed how sales would support someone helping her with the store.
Business had been brisk and steady for three weeks. Her profits had risen and her store was busier every day. Even though today had been a Wednesday, which she’d expected to be a slow day, she’d had a steady flow of customers all day. Even looking at things very conservatively, she’d easily decided that an assistant manager was completely possible. Finding the right person had taken about a week.
Paying attention to her intuition, she’d called the references for the young man who’d stood out to her. That was the last one. Every single reference had sung his praises and regretted the day Craig Sullivan had left town to attend art school.
“You look happy.” The familiar deep voice made her jump from her chair to hug him.
“Da… Mateo,” she corrected herself before glancing around and remembering all her employees had left for the evening.
“I’m glad to see you, too, Angel.”
“I have big news for you. I’m getting ready to hire an assistant. I’m glad you’re here. I want our schedules to mesh. Is it easier for you to come in later or get off earlier?”
“I can do either. When is your manager available?”
“He has classes during the day. Most in the afternoon.”
“Would you rather sleep in or go home and spend time together in the evening?”
“Spend time together in the evening.”
“There’s your answer. Have him come in a couple of evenings and maybe a weekend day to give you some special time with your Daddy.”
“I’d love that.”
Mateo slid his hands up her back. “Are you tired? Or do you still want to go to Blaze tonight?”