A Covert Affair (Deadly Ops #5)(10)

On unsteady legs she stood but gained strength as she took a few more breaths. Time to shelve all those thoughts and get back to her date. She wasn’t going to stay, though. She’d make up an excuse about work soon, whatever it took. Because she couldn’t be in the same place as Nathan and not remember. It didn’t matter that she’d had counseling to get her through what she now knew had been a depression; seeing him was a stark reminder of too many things.

When she opened the stall door, some of the tension fled her when she saw Maria Cervantes standing at a huge, gold-framed mirror on one of the walls, applying lip gloss. “Maria,” she said, pleased it wasn’t a stranger.

Maria smiled warmly, the petite dark-haired woman meeting her gaze in the mirror. “Hey, I’ve been hoping to get you alone tonight.”

“I’m surprised your husband let you out of his sight,” she teased, already feeling more like herself, as she moved to one of the sinks. Maria’s husband, Cade, was huge, probably six feet five, and looked more than a little intimidating. With jet-black hair, a skull trim that made him look fierce, and a plethora of tattoos, the man didn’t look like the society types Maria had been linked to in the past. Amelia wasn’t even sure what Maria’s husband did for a living, but the way he looked at Maria was enough for Amelia to know he was completely head-over-heels for her friend.

Maria snorted and turned from the mirror. “He’s probably hovering somewhere nearby. So, Iker Mercado? He’s quite a catch, according to gossip.” She leaned against one of the sinks as Amelia dried her hands.

Now it was her turn to snort. “It’s our first date and honestly probably our last. He’s very nice, but . . . I don’t know. I just don’t feel that spark, I guess.” She didn’t want to talk about herself, though. “Did you know that Danita quit a couple weeks ago?”

Maria didn’t move from her position against the sink, but her gaze hardened just a fraction, before she smiled placidly. Considering that Amelia’s mother had been a prostitute, she’d learned at an early age to gauge moods and expressions of people, namely her mother’s clients. It was the only way she’d survived her childhood—and it was one of the reasons she’d succeeded in business. She wasn’t ever going to end up like her mother.

“I know.” Maria’s tone was neutral.

Ah, okay, then. “Do you know why?”

“I was hoping you might.” There was a subtle bite to Maria’s words—an unexpected one—that got Amelia’s back up.

How the heck would she know why the woman had quit? Months ago Amelia had started working with Maria, helping get some of the women from Maria’s community center placed in two of Amelia’s restaurants. After how hard it had been for her to make something of herself, she tried to help women in similar situations. It was why she’d reached out to Maria. “I hired her because of your recommendation and because I saw something in her, but . . .”

Amelia shook her head as frustration and a healthy dose of hurt welled up inside her. “She just sent me a lame note, which sadly is more than some employees bother doing when they quit. I didn’t expect it, not when we’d become friends. And, Maria, she’s the fifth person you’ve sent my way to quit like this.” Twelve women had actually come through her restaurant, but seven had given her face-to-face resignations and two weeks’ notice. It was the service industry and for a lot of them, it was a temporary job. She understood and accepted that, but she didn’t like it when employees just quit with no notice.

Clearing her throat, she continued. “Not that I’m blaming you or plan to stop hiring women you recommend. It’s just . . . I don’t know. Danita and I had become friends. She blindsided me.” She felt lame letting her hurt show but decided to go for honesty. There was no reason to hold back.

Maria’s expression softened at her words and she pushed up from her leaning position. “There’s something we need to talk about. It’s important.”

Amelia blinked at the abrupt change. “Okay.”

Maria shook her head. “Not here. Tonight, though. Can you meet me at Bayside? I want privacy for this and we can use my office.” When Amelia hesitated, Maria continued. “It’s about Danita.”

Alarm slid through her veins. “Is something wrong?”

Maria paused. “Maybe, I just can’t talk about it here.”

“Okay, we’ll meet. You want to talk after the auction? Or I was planning to leave early,” she said sheepishly. Which earned her the ghost of a smile from Maria.

“We were too. Cade hates these things. Can you meet me there in an hour?”

“Sure.” The request was a little odd, but Amelia trusted Maria. The woman had been through heartbreak last year, losing her mom in a terrorist attack that killed hundreds of people. Yet Maria was so strong about everything and had never wavered in her work for the community center. It was hard not to like and trust her. “Fair warning, I’m going to make up a work excuse, so don’t blow my cover.”

Maria’s lips quirked up. “Your secret is safe with me.”

“I’ll text you when I leave. Okay?”

“Perfect.”

As Maria headed for the door, Amelia pulled her lip gloss from her simple black clutch. She heard Maria murmuring a hello to someone else, and then the door shut softly behind her. The click of heels sounded before Collette Mercado, Iker’s daughter, stepped into view.