Page 19 of Rejected Plus-Size Mate (Honeyville Firefighter Shifters #5)

I stared at myself in the mirror, taking in the long navy blue dress. I had straightened my hair and applied make-up, wanting to look good for my first day on the job. I was still over the moon when I was given the job. I could hardly contain my excitement.

I headed out of the room and down the hallway to the kitchen. Cayden was sitting at the island with a mug of coffee and a bagel. His eyes snapped up as I stepped inside, and he smirked. "You look nice. That color looks nice on you."

"Thank you," I said as I poured myself a mug of coffee, added a little creamer, and stirred it.

"Are you nervous?" he asked, leaning back in his chair.

"A little, but I'm excited as well. I'm eager to get back to work and start having a normal life. I can't remember the last time I was excited like this."

He smiled. "I bet. I wish you luck." He pushed himself up and walked over, placing a kiss on my forehead. "I have to get to work. I left you a bagel. If you have any questions, just give me a call. And don't be nervous. You'll be great."

A moment later, Cayden was gone, and I sat down with my bagel. I gathered my lunch and headed to work.

When I arrived at the daycare, I found a few kids playing in the front. A lady with a clipboard was watching them. The bell above the door rang, and the lady turned. She smiled as her eyes landed on me. "You must be Riley, our new manager."

I nodded. "I am. I'm a little early. Is Becky here? She said she was going to be showing me around."

"She's on her way. She normally gets here around eight. You're welcome to wait in one of the rooms if you want."

I nodded, looking at the kids there. They were playing with some toys in the corner by the window, giggling at each other. I couldn't help but smile at them.

"Do you need a hand with them?" I asked. I'd rather help than sit in a room waiting.

The gal's eyebrows went up. "Oh, well, if you want, I could use a hand to get these chairs moved to the eating area."

"Yeah, let me help." I pulled my jacket and purse off, hung them up, and then walked over and helped her move the chairs.

"So, Riley, are you new in Honeyville? I don't think I've seen you around."

"Yeah, sort of. I came down on a vacation with a friend and fell in love with the town."

"It has that effect on people," she chirped back with a smile. "Ayden has worked hard to make this a town worth living in."

I thought about all that Cayden had told me, how hard the guys worked to make this town what it was. The longer I was there, the more I understood it was a team effort. The guys worked extremely well together and listened to what the town needed. I could see it when I watched them all dressed up for the festival.

The bell went off above the door, and I turned to find a large black woman stepping into the space. She had long braided hair and a long black coat on. But as I took the woman in, I realized she radiated happiness, and the kids already here squealed with glee when they spotted her.

She smiled as she hung up her jacket and turned to her. "You must be Riley."

I nodded. "I am. Are you Becky?"

The lady nodded her head. "I sure am. And my goodness, you aren't what I was expecting."

I knew that it wasn't an insult because Becky's smile grew. "Let's show you the room and to your office."

We started walking down the hallway to some rooms where Becky pointed. "We have three rooms as well as the front playroom. The kitchen is down this other hallway and one of the three bathrooms."

I took the space to find pictures of kids lining the hallway. "Are these all kids that have been here?"

Becky paused and turned, taking the wall in. She nodded her head. "Yeah, we've had over three hundred children since we opened thirty years ago."

That was impressive, considering the size of the town. "Wow."

"Your office is down here," Becky said as we continued to walk. We stopped in front of a door, and inside was a small space. Like the rest of the place, it lacked character but was neat and tidy.

"Do you have any questions?"

I nodded. "Yeah, not that I'm not grateful for this job, but….why did you guys pick me?" I questioned it after she gave me the call and offered me the job.

Becky smirked. "Because you had all the right answers to our questions. That and I had a conversation with Ayden and Wendy about you."

My eyebrows went up. "You asked them about me?"

"In a way," she said with a shrug. "I asked Ayden if he knew anyone fit for the job, and that was when Wendy mentioned you. She said you handled her kids extremely well and knew how to handle tasks well. It so happened that your resume was on my desk that evening. I looked at your past jobs, and while they weren't extremely long, they all included difficult skills that you did extremely well. I called and asked."

I was stunned. I figured it was partly luck and not because I was the best for the job.

"You're not concerned at all? Considering I haven't worked in over two years."

Becky shook her head. "Not at all. If Wendy says you're a good fit, then I take that in."

Being married to the alpha had its perks, and I guess being friends with her helped even more.

"If you're ready, we can introduce you to some of the children. Drop-off time is starting in five minutes. This would be a good time to introduce you to the parents and all the kids."

I nodded and followed her lead. We headed back to the front of the building, where a couple of parents were already dropping off their kids. Becky introduced me to everyone, and I smiled the best I could. All the kids smiled before running off to play.

I quickly gathered that the daycare had thirty-five spots. It had two toddler rooms and two preschool rooms. The smaller business meant that each kid received more attention, which the parents loved.

We waved at the last parents who were leaving when Becky turned to me. "All of the teachers should be here, so let's say hello. We have Rebecca and Ivy, who run the toddler rooms. Quinn and Hillary run the two preschool rooms. Hailly is a float that helps out wherever she is needed. You and I are responsible for helping fill in for lunches and breaks."

I noted that and followed after her.

Most of the day was spent following Becky around and learning my place. I quickly found that the girls worked well together and didn't need much guidance. Everyone got along well, and I felt that I was going to be okay. By lunchtime, I sat down at my desk, looking forward to telling Cayden all about my day.

My phone rang, and I grabbed it, finding it was April. We hadn't talked in a few days, and I knew she would want all the details she could get.

I answered the call and leaned back in my chair. "I'm doing fine before you ask."

"You haven't called me. I was beginning to worry that you made a new best friend and had forgotten about me," she spoke teasingly, and I rolled my eyes.

"Sorry, I've been busy." I was also scared of what she would say when I told her I'd made up my mind and wasn't coming back. She might have been on board before, but I had only mentioned it. I was sure now that I was staying.

"Well, what's been going on since we last spoke?"

I chewed on my cheek for a moment, considering what I could tell her. I wasn't sure how she would feel if she found out her brother and I had slept together. I still needed to discuss that with Cayden and see what he thought about how she would take it.

So, I went with the truth.

"I've decided to stay here. I actually got a job, and I started today as a manager at a daycare. However, I'm not entirely sure if they needed a manager. I feel like I fit here, though."

"That's great," April said, sounding excited on the other end.

"Really? Because last time we spoke, you seemed….unhappy about the idea of me not coming back."

"Well, of course, I hate the idea of not seeing you every day, but you have to do what's best for you. And I want you to be, Riley. If being there makes you happy, do it."

I smiled. "That means a lot. I was actually going to look for places to rent while I was on my lunch break. I'm kind of excited about getting on my own two feet."

"Good. I always said you were too good for Brad. He would be nothing without you."

I shiver at his name, hating how he still had that effect on me. I wanted to move past it all, but I knew it was going to take time.

"Speaking of the ass….how is he?"

"He finally showed up, and I wanted to run him over in my car. But I didn't as I promised."

I chewed on my cheek. "What has he been up to?"

"Same as always. Word on the street is he's looking for a new woman."

I scowled, hating how he moved on so quickly. But who was I to say anything? I slept with someone.

I shook my head, wanting to move past the topic. "Did you get my stuff?"

"Yeah, which is the only reason he's still alive."

I had a few important items at his place that I didn't want to live without.

"I have a box of your stuff. I'll bring it with me when I come down."

I frowned, hating how my entire life fit into a box. It twisted me up, and tears burned in my eyes.

"Speaking of me, how has Cayden been? Has he been treating you well?"

I thought of the other night and the mind-blowing orgasm. I felt a shiver run down my spine, thinking about how he kissed me and how it took my breath away.

I quickly shook my head, not needing to get hot and bothered while I was at work. "He's been treating me well. Your brother has been nothing but a gentleman. He's been amazing."

Minus when you ask him to be. My wolf growled.

"Good. Well, I need to go. My lawyer is supposed to be here soon. You keep me posted."

Before I could ask any questions, the line ended, and I stared at my phone for a moment. I could tell that April was avoiding telling me what was going on, and any other time, I would have pressed her, but I couldn't. I was hardly keeping myself together, and like me, she had to figure things out by herself as well.