Forever After (Montana Brides) by Leeanna Morgan Page A

her plate. “Tell me why we’re spending Saturday night cooped up with my sister in her apartment?”  
    The prawn on the end of Erin’s fork dropped into the container of take-out. “We’ve got nothing better to do.”
    Nicky had known Erin for most of her life. They’d gone to school together and shared the ups and downs of teenage crushes, adult mistakes and jobs that went nowhere.  
    “And I want to find out what you two have been up to,” Emily added.
    Choking on a mouthful of rice, Nicky grabbed her glass of juice. Erin and Emily wouldn’t find out what she’d been up to. Hot sex with heaps of guilt chucked in wasn’t something she wanted to discuss over Mr. Foo Young’s combination chop suey.  
    “Looks like someone has been up to more than she’s letting on.” Emily laughed. “Spill the beans, big sis. We want to know all the juicy details.”
    “There are no juicy details,” Nicky fibbed. “Last time I checked you were busy with design assignments and a new man. What’s happened to upset your hectic social calendar?”
    Emily lifted a spoon of sweet and sour pork balls onto her plate. “You’re more important to me than a set of firm abs.” At Nicky’s raised eyebrows, she blushed. “Well, maybe first equal to one particular set of abs. I don’t get to see you often and I want to make the most of your time here.”
    Nicky looked across at her sister and smiled. When her dad had married her stepmom, Nicky wasn’t sure she’d get along with the two Californian kids joining her family. Glamour and gloss hadn’t figured highly in her life with her mom, and her new family positively reeked of designer heaven. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t get enthusiastic about the latest colors to hit the runway in Milan, or the grand opening of a new fashion store.  
    Whenever she returned to Montana, Maureen was ready with her credit card and Jimmy Choo sandals, upgrading Nicky from Wal-mart wonder to boutique beauty. Emily and Erin had tagged along, making the shopping trips almost bearable. They’d rolled their teenage eyes behind Maureen’s back, persuading her that Nicky didn’t need another three dresses to take back to Seattle.  
    “So, how’s Sam working out?” Emily asked.
    Nicky’s chopsticks dropped to the table, spraying broccoli and fried rice everywhere.  
    “You’re awfully jittery tonight. Is there something you’re not telling us?” Erin pushed a lock of dark hair off her face, waiting for Nicky’s reply.
    “Sam’s not working out, because Sam isn’t supposed to work out.” Liar, a little voice in Nicky’s head screamed. Heat exploded all over her body as she remembered just how well he had worked out. Hot sex didn’t mean they were in a relationship. It meant they were idiots. It had been a mistake and no one could count mistakes as anything but mistakes.  
    Picking a stray chopstick out of the sweet and sour sauce, Nicky muttered, “He’s my boss.”  
    A cheeky grin lit Emily’s face. “I didn’t mean “working out” like that. Are you enjoying working with him?”
    Nicky bent down, scooping a piece of broccoli off the carpet. “I haven’t seen much of him because I’ve been sorting through a lot of financial documents.”
    “How exciting,” Erin drawled. “Sounds almost as riveting as my collection review at the library.”
    Nicky glanced at Erin, and they both burst out laughing.  
    “Talking about sex…” Emily said.
    “I didn’t know we were.”  
    Emily scoffed at her older sister. “Any conversation I’ve ever had with you about Sam has led to sex. The man positively drools every time he sees you.”
      “I don’t think there’s anything to worry about, Emily.” Erin smiled. “From what Nicky told me, Sam doesn’t drool every time he sees her. He runs for cover.”
    Emily balanced her plate on the edge of the table. “I know he treated you badly, and you’re amazing coming back to work with him. But I think