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Maddox

Fea bursts into my office, waving a piece of paper in her hand. “You need to hire someone for me.”

It’s four o’clock on a Friday, and the calmest woman I’ve ever met looks like she’s about to have a mental breakdown. I close the curtains. “What’s the problem?”

“You need to hire this woman. Her name is Mindy Peters, and she’s in trouble.”

Everyone around here is in trouble. “If she’s in trouble, send her to The Nest. I’ll have a few guys escort her. But we help children here, not grown women. And I don’t have an opening.”

“Make one. This woman won’t go to The Nest.” Fiona shoves the flyer in front of me on my desk.

“I can’t just make a job.” That’s not quite true. I can do anything I want, but what I don’t want to deal with is some teary-eyed woman and her drama.

“How often have I asked you for something?”

Every day. But I’m not stupid enough to say that.

“Not the little things. This is big. Find her a job. She likes those snakes of yours, and she has experience. Let her clean the cages or something.”

Let her clean the cages? “These aren’t some snakes. These are all highly sought-after rare breeds of snakes. They cost tens of thousands of—”

“Don’t care. Otto will be leaving for vet school soon. He can train her and you’ll have someone to take care of those nightmares of yours.”

“You know, I don’t—”

Fea puts her hand on her hip. “Maddox Locke.”

And with that, I’ve lost. “Fine.”

“Good. She’ll be here in an hour. She said she can start tonight.”

Tonight?

“I don’t need to tell you to pay her well, but be kind to her.”

“Kind. I’m always—”

“Don’t even try that with me. You’re rude to every available woman on the face of this earth. Be nice to her.”

That’s not true. I’m not rude… abrupt maybe and very pointed, but I’m not rude.

Fiona does scary well for the kindest person I’ve ever met. She’s also the most beautiful woman. And completely unavailable to me and every other man. We would have made a good couple. Instead, we’re the closest of friends. “Fine, I won’t be rude. But for the record, this is a bad idea.”

Fea turns on her heel and walks to my open office door. “Thanks, Maddox.”

“Whatever.” I lift up the piece of paper, which is really just a flyer advertising pet care services.

Why did I ever agree to Emilia’s wild idea?

***

Canyon steps into the open door of my office precisely an hour later. “Your interview is here. I think you should hire her.”

“Oh, you do?” Because I absolutely don’t think so.

“Yup. She likes snakes and isn’t afraid of me.”

Two things I don’t need around my men. This woman is going to be a distraction. “I’m not hiring some woman for you to flirt with.” Though I am hiring her, regardless.

Mindy steps out from behind Canyon. “You don’t need to worry about that.”

“Hey, now. Don’t break my heart.” He winks at her.

Definitely trouble. And that’s not just because she’s pretty. Not drop-dead beautiful like Fiona. Mindy has the air of the sweet girl next door. The one you bring to school dances, and then home to meet your parents. The girl you say stupid things to, and then change your whole life to make happy.

“Something tells me it would take a lot more than my apathy to do that.” She smirks at Canyon.

“See. I told you she’s perfect for the job.” Canyon struts away with one of those stupid grins on his face.

“Ignore him. He’s an idiot sometimes.” And he’s going to make this even harder. Maybe he’ll take care of her drama and marry her quickly and painlessly.

“That’s okay. He seems harmless.” She steps forward with an air of confidence like I rarely see in a woman. “I’m Mindy Peters. Fiona said you were looking to hire someone to care for your snakes. I have dozens of references and have cared for many snakes over the years.”

The years? You’ve got to be what, twenty-five?

“In high school, I did an internship at the local zoo working with reptiles. Snakes are my favorite.”

Oh really. Let’s test that theory. I hit a button, opening the curtains that cover my pets.

Mindy’s eyes go wide as she stares in awe.

There’s no sign of fear on her face. That’s good at least.

She walks towards the wall, mesmerized by the sight in front of her. “Wow!! There are so many: albinos, super whites, a piebald, a cow python…They’re beautiful.”

Her knowledge is as impressive as her smile. “Thank you.” How is she going to handle the other side? Because regardless of Fiona or anyone else, she’s not working with my venomous snakes.

“These are… That’s a gaboon viper.”

Her smile barely falters. If I had blinked, I would have missed it. “Yes, it is.”

“And that’s a black mamba.” She turns around to face me. “I’m sorry, but I can’t take this job. The non-venomous ones I’m fine with, but these… I’m not trained to handle these. If I even tried, I could endanger my own life and the lives of others.”

It’s my turn to think ‘wow’. Mindy didn’t even try to lie about her experience to get a job that, according to Fea, she desperately needs. I can’t stop myself from testing her a little more. “Are you sure about that? I pay very well.”

She looks at them, shaking her head. “Even for a million dollars, there’s no way I could even think about handling the spicy noodles in that room.”

“Spicy noodles?” A laugh bursts out of me.

She shrugs.

“Do you really know how to care for snakes?” I actually believe she might.

“Not those.” Mindy points to the ‘spicy’ side. “I don’t play with anything that can kill me.”

Good. “The non-venomous ones?”

“Yeah. Those aren’t a problem. I know how to change the substrate, clean the cages, soak them, feed them live and frozen food, and even clean off their shed if need be.”

“Then you’re hired.” And I actually meant that. If she’s as good as I think she is, she’ll be a great replacement for Otto.

“I told you—”

“Only for the non-spicy noodles. I have several herpetologists who take care of the other ones.” They cost an arm and a leg, but they’re worth every cent.

“I need a flexible schedule.”

Even better. Maybe you’ll avoid most of my men, and I’ll avoid your drama. “You can come and go as you please. I’ll provide you with a code to the elevator and the snake room.” I might as well show her around.

What I haven’t seen is a single speck of fear. As a matter of fact, I haven’t seen anything but a pleasant smile on her face and excitement over my collection.

That’s odd. I can normally read people well, especially people who are distraught or terrified.

Fiona isn’t ever wrong about things like this. She has a sixth sense when it comes to people because of all she endured.

So what’s wrong? Something tells me I’d hit a wall if I just tried to ask Mindy that question. “The door on the left leads to the venomous room. And the door on the right leads to the non-venomous room.” I punch in the code that I’m going to give her. “You can store your stuff here. And we will provide coveralls to protect your clothing.” I move quickly through the tour, seeing if she can keep up. “This is the snake room.”

“There are more.”

That’s awe again. “Yeah. We rotate them on occasion so that I can see all of them.”

“Um. How many hours were you expecting this to take?”

“It’s been a full-time job.” Isn’t that what she’s here for? “But you’re welcome to set your own hours. Just leave notes on what you’ve done and what you haven’t.” Otto will show her all of that.

But I need to find out what her problem is.

Mindy's smile softens as she walks up to the cage.

Quickly. Because everything about her is going to make my life harder.