all it had taken for Nikki to understand them. Oh, they weren’t perfect, not even close, but it was their unconditional love for one another and how they had each other’s back that impressed her.
Sadie had also made the short list. Nikki had only talked with her a couple times, but the woman sure seemed to know when to speak up and when to keep her opinion to herself. Nikki had been a wreck the night Matt had gotten into a fight protecting her. Every instinct had screamed for her to find the guys and get even, show them they couldn’t mess around with her or her family. Growing up, she’d learned to protect her own because no one else would.
But Matt had brought her to Montana so she could have a new life. Leave her troubled past behind. Sadie hadn’t known her circumstances, yet she’d seen the thirst for payback in Nikki’s eyes and in a few well-chosen words, convinced her it wasn’t worth it. When Nikki thought about it now, she had to hold back a shudder. The people here didn’t understand what she was capable of. Not even Matt got it. He hadn’t known her as a teenager.
That same night Trace had come into the bar with her, and to be fair, he’d played a big part in calming her down. He’d sat and listened and told her he wouldn’t blame her one bit for wanting to slap those guys into the next zip code. And then he’d reminded her that it wasn’t over—the men would be fired and the pleasure should be Matt’s.
God, it still bothered her that she’d told Trace little things about her past she wished she’d kept to herself. She’d known him less than a week, had never spoken to him one-on-one before that night. At the last minute he’d shown up to help Matt and ended up with a split lip. Not a big cut, just a small nick near the corner of his mouth. It had stopped bleeding pretty quickly, but every time she looked at him, she was reminded he’d been hurt because of her.
That was the only reason she’d opened up to him. Why she’d confessed that she hated Wallace more than she thought humanly possible, that he deserved to be sick, and how she was glad he was dying. She hadn’t censored her vile thoughts. They’d tumbled out of her mouth, and Trace had just sat there, without a hint of judgment.
Of course some of it wasn’t news to him. The McAllisters knew quite a lot from Matt because he trusted them. The scary part was, for those two rocky hours she’d sat with Trace, she’d actually trusted him, too.
That was enough to rattle her. She just didn’t put that kind of faith in people. She trusted Matt, but getting there had taken nearly a year of ups and downs. The only other person she completely believed in was her mother, who loved her no matter what. Her mom was the main reason Nikki was giving Blackfoot Falls a try. She’d met a businessman from Mexico City who wanted to marry her. But it wouldn’t happen, she’d never leave Houston as long as Nikki was there.
No, trust didn’t come easy for Nikki. Especially with men. They always disappointed her. And a guy like Trace with his looks, his family’s clout, money and a bright future... He was the worst kind of man to count on. Good-looking smooth guys like him couldn’t seem to help themselves. They had charm to spare and felt they owed it to the female population to spread it around.
She’d fallen for a man like that before, and she’d been burned. Badly. Just like her mom had been crushed by Wallace all those years ago. If nothing else, Nikki had learned a lesson from the experience. Or so she’d thought until that night she’d blabbed to Trace.
“You need anything else besides those tequila shots?” Sadie asked, with a glance at Nikki’s loaded tray.
“No, this is it. Thanks.”
“I wouldn’t worry about Trace.”
Nikki hefted the tray at the same time Sadie spoke and almost let the pitcher slide off. “Where did that come from?”
“You’ve been staring at the door the last five minutes. I figured you were worried about him.”
“Why would I be? That’s crazy.”
Sadie smiled. “My mistake.”
Nikki dropped off the pitcher first. She’d been carrying heavy trays and serving drinks since she was old enough to work. But something in Sadie’s smug expression had thrown her