Cap lets out a long breath and rubs his jaw. “Sounds like he was trying to get under your skin.”
“Mission accomplished,” I mutter.
Seb leans back in his chair again. “Yeah. You’re dating my sister and he’s pissed. That asshole thought he’d just leave her high and dry with a baby and she’d fall at his feet for him when he came back.”
Cap grunts in agreement. “He underestimated her. And now he’s trying to rattle the guy who’s stepping up where he didn’t.”
I stare at the bottle in my hands, turning it slowly between my palms. “Yeah…that’s true. The dope is jealous.”
“Speaking of Lyse, how are things with you guys?” Cap asks.
“That’s another thing!”
Seb’s jaw tightens. “What do you mean? What did you do to my sister?”
I lift both hands in surrender. “Nothing! That’s the problem. I didn’t do anything.”
Seb narrows his eyes. “Okay, walk me through it. Slowly. With all the context. Because if you’re telling me you hurt her?—”
“I didn’t,” I cut in. “I swear, man. But something shifted last night.”
Cap sits back in his chair, arms crossed, watching me closely. “How so?”
“She was fine. We were fine. I brought Florecitas for Maya, hung out at the house, everything was normal. Then her phone buzzed, she looked at it, and everything changed.”
Seb leans forward. “Changed how?”
“Her whole vibe. She pulled away, said she forgot she had an early morning, practicallyrushed me out the door. I could feel it in my gut…something was off.”
“And she didn’t say what was wrong?”
“Nope. She didn’t say. Just…smiled tight and shut down.”
Cap lets out a thoughtful hum. “You think it’s connected to Letty and Nico?”
I pause. “I didn’t before. But shit. Maybe?”
Seb exhales sharply, pinching the bridge of his nose. “God, Letty is so damn messy.”
Cap’s eyes meet mine. “You planning to talk to Analyse?”
“I want to. I just don’t want to make it worse if I don’t even know what I’m apologizing for.”
Seb gives me a flat look. “You better fix it. Fast. I don’t want my sister unhappy.”
I nod, chest tight. “Yeah. I’m going to. I don’t want her unhappy either, bro. I just need to figure out exactly what’s going on.”
The door swings open, and Andres walks in, clipboard in hand and a shit-eating grin on his face. “Cap, we got a call,” he says. “It’s Libby’s cat. She ran up that damn tree again.”
“You’ve gotta be kidding me,” Cap mutters, rubbing his temple. “Seb, you’re up.”
Seb recoils. “Absolutely not. That devil cat hates me. Last time I tried to help her, she swiped at my face.”
Andres barks out a laugh. “She’s got taste.”
“Shut up,” Seb fires back, pointing a finger. “I still have a scar.”
“Barely,” I say, smirking.
