Sam rolled her eyes and laughed, ushering her friend inside. “You mean I look fat. I gained twenty-OK, probably more like thirty—pounds from eating so many carbs. My old dietician would have kittens if she knew. Shit, I don’t even want to remember how much bread and how many green bananas I ate. Let’s just say I have enough cushion on my legs, butt, and thighs to get me through a full hibernation.”
Natalia shook her head. “No. I mean have you seen yourself? Your normally golden skin is glowing, and you’ve got an even deeper tan.” She snatched some of Sam’s loose hair and studied the strands. “Your hair’s amazing. So shiny and gorgeous. I don’t care what you say. If a woman looks as hot as you do now after a year in the jungle, then sign me up for one tour in mosquito-hell.”
Sam chuckled and headed toward the kitchen. Natalia shut the front door and followed behind her.
When she got to the kitchen, she went straight for the coffee maker. “Nat, I warn you, I need coffee. You woke me up, and I’m still exhausted.”
Nat sat on the kitchen table and grinned. “I’m sorry, but I had to see you. Can’t you see I even cut my trip short to get my ass over here to see my best friend? I missed you like a PMSing woman misses chocolate.” She pouted. “It was rough.”
She giggled at Nat’s silliness and set the coffee maker. Afterward, she walked to the fridge and sent a quiet thanks to Jonas for making sure her refrigerator was stocked. Carting items to the island in the kitchen to make breakfast, she listened to Nat complain over how much she’d suffered without her feminine advice.
“So, have you seen your neighbor yet?” Nat asked with enough enthusiasm to rival a kid ready to go to Disney World. She bounced in her seat. Her long red ponytail swung up and down. She was clearly up to something.
“I did. It’s Riel Karven.”
As if unable to contain her enthusiasm, Natalia stood up and sprung toward her. “Isn’t it fantastic?” Her eyes twinkled with excitement. “He’s the guy you’ve had the hots for since…forever! Now you have him a few yards away. How is that not fate?” she gushed.
Sam and Nat washed their hands at the sink while they chatted. Sam started scrambling eggs for breakfast in a large skillet and shrugged. “I don’t know about fate, but the guy is still able to make me freeze into stupidity.”
Nat placed pieces of bacon in the same big skillet. “I think you need to be open-minded and see if things go somewhere with him. I’ve always had the impression he kind of liked you.”
She froze for a moment. She remembered the times she’d come across Riel. He had been really nice and tried to chat with her, but she’d always taken off, afraid he’d notice she was ready to drool over him. “I don’t know. I’ll have to see. I just got back and still need to figure out what’s going on with Ginny’s estate. The entire family is ready to crucify me for getting everything.”
Nat sat down on one of the stools on the other side of the island. “I’m sorry, Sam. I know you loved Ginny. Were they really that bad?”
She nodded furiously. Anger rose within her. She was starting to hate being part of that family. “You’ve no idea. Juan Junior looked like he wanted to take me out back and put me down like a stray dog.” She placed the cooked food on platters and started carting them to the kitchen table. “And you should’ve seen Marcia. I felt so bad for her. He left a hand print on her arm from how hard he’d grabbed her.” She shook her head.
“I don’t know how that woman puts up with him treating her that way. Seriously? I’d have kicked his ass and had him arrested the first time he raised his voice or his hands.”
Sam was in full agreement. “I think she has issues. Ginny used to say that Marcia would always be mistreated by Juan because she was more interested in money than anything else.”
“Still, would you let some man treat you like that?”
Sam lifted a brow. “Are you out of your mind?”
Nat giggled. “I know, dumb question. You’d probably kick his ass the minute he looked at you wrong.”
“I wouldn’t go that far…but if you’re in a relationship with someone, there has to be trust and mutual respect. Those two don’t know what either of those words mean, and that’s messed up because they have kids.” Her heart ached for the children Juan and Marcia had. She’d never been allowed near them because Juan openly hated her, and Marcia wouldn’t dare go against what he said. “The last time I saw them they were toddlers, but I wanted to snatch them up and take them somewhere safe. Ginny said that as long as she was around, she’d ensure nothing happened to those kids, but she’s gone now.”