Risk (The Men of Matiz 1)

"Are you going to eat all of that?" Gretel points at the food in my hands.

I admit it looks like a lot for one person. I'm holding a meatloaf sandwich and a bag of potato chips for Adley. I also grabbed a medium size container of macaroni and cheese for dinner and a bagel for my breakfast. I must look like someone who hasn't eaten in months.

"My friend and I are sharing it." I look beyond her shoulder to where Adley is standing near a display for a new flavor of coffee creamer. "How are you, Gretel?"

I'm not asking because I care. I don't care how she is. I thought if I ever saw her again it would be inside Matiz. I never imagined that I'd run into her and her daughter at a deli at ten o'clock at night.

"Hi, Ellie," Leila says brightly. "Your hair looks pretty again today."

"You look lovely, Leila." I smile down at her. "That's a beautiful dress you're wearing. Is tonight a special occasion?"

Before the child has a chance to open her mouth, her mother interrupts. "We went to a musical. Leila insisted we go to see that new musical that opened last week. It's no more than a three out of five, but I suppose if you're a kid, it's a home run."

"I loved it." Leila claps her hands together. "I want to go again."

"Your daddy will take you." Gretel pats her daughter on the head. "Go find a snack you can take to daycare tomorrow."

Leila scoots to the side where an assortment of fruit and cheese boxes are arranged in a refrigerated display case.

"I should pay for all of this and get home." I dip my chin. "It was good seeing you again, Gretel."

"You're not going to believe who I saw tonight."

Since the only person Gretel and I have in common besides Leila, is Nolan, I stop. I know I shouldn’t. It was obvious when I stood next to her at Matiz that she'd be all over Nolan if given a chance. I have no idea if she could sense that something was going on between us and this is her way of stirring up trouble, but I'm frozen in place. It's not only curiosity keeping me here. It's self-doubt. I haven't been able to accept that Nolan might actually be serious about me because I'm still tainted from what Tad did. I'm aware of it. I'm working on it, but I'm still not strong enough to walk away from Gretel or what she's about to say.

"Who?" I ask with a playful lift of my brow. "Who did you see?"

"Your boss." She elbows me, almost causing the meatloaf sandwich to roll out of my hands. I grip the food tighter.

"Crew?" I ask with a glimmer of hope. "You saw Crew Benton?"

"I wish." She winks. "I made it with him before I was married. We did it in a photo booth in a restaurant in Times Square. Dirtiest sex I've ever had. The mouth on that man is wicked."

TMI, Gretel. That is way too much information about Crew Benton that I will never be able to erase from my memory now.

Since I don't want to hear any more details about what went happened in that photo booth, I ask the obvious question. "Was it Nolan that you saw?"

"Who saw Nolan?" Adley walks over and taps my shoulder. "Is he here?"

Gretel gives Adley a quick once over. "I'm Gretel Gallant. Are you Ellie's friend?"

"I'm Ellie's best friend." Adley touches the middle of my back. It's a signal we developed years ago for whenever our bitch or bastard radar signals when a person is bad news. "Adley York."

I look at Adley and wink. "Gretel is a Matiz customer. She's here with her daughter."

Adley glances at Leila, who has now wandered over to where the yogurt is. "It's good to meet you, Gretel. Are you wearing Matiz's Beach Blush lipstick?"

Gretel's entire face transforms with a genuine smile. Her eyes brighten and her cheeks redden. "You noticed? It's new for me. What do you think?"

"I think if Matiz is planning a promotional campaign for it, you're the model. Hands down."

I look at Adley. I can't tell if what she just said came from the heart or not. Regardless of its source, it made Gretel happy.

"Speaking of models," Gretel lowers her tone as she glances toward Leila. "I saw Nolan and Shelby Leon having a drink tonight."

I immediately see Adley's gaze drop to her phone. Her fingers skim over the screen. She's doing a search for Shelby Leon to see if it's indeed the woman who was having dinner with Nolan in Vegas. I already know that it's her. I heard her say her full name to the head of security when they arrived at Meadow to escort her out.

"I couldn't tell if it was business or pleasure." Gretel raises an eyebrow. "I'm guessing it was both. Matiz is looking for a model for the launch of some of their new products and Shelby would be perfect. Have you seen her cheekbones? I'd pay good money for those."