Chapter 9
Present Day
Leo smelt like aftershave, and it was an enormous distraction.
It’d taken me nearly an hour to get to his neighborhood. When I walked up to the iron gate, I had to buzz in. The gates opened as soon as I pressed the button. When he welcomed me at the front door, I tried not to look too impressed by what laid behind him.
Knowing Leo came from a well-off family was one thing and seeing it was another. His parents’ house looked like a museum. The Reyes-Salgado mansion walls were bombarded with gold-framed paintings, expensive-looking tapestries, and hanging shelves full of house plants. Nearly every inch was covered, leaving the red wallpaper in the background with hardly enough space to breathe.
Knitted blankets, earth-toned pottery, and colorful candlesticks filled up the space on various mini tables and cushy chairs. It was cozy chaos, and I felt like I wanted to curl up in a corner with some socks and a good book.
Leo smiled when I did a three-sixty turn in the foyer. The small, candle-shaped lights installed on the walls let off a soft, yellow glow. There was not an overhead light in sight, which was impressive for such a modern home.
I felt like I stepped into what could be the set of a vampire film. The decor screamed, I’ve been alive for longer than anyone can remember, and here’s everything I’ve collected.
“I could give you a tour later,” he offered. “If you’re interested.”
I gave him a one-shoulder shrug. “Sure. That’d be cool.”
He chuckled at my laxed response and told me to follow him. For a second, my stomach fluttered because I thought he was heading for the stairs. But instead of going up, he bypassed them in favor of a hall leading to a living room.
The living room was just as cluttered with art and other kitschy items as the foyer. On a leather, green wraparound couch sat two guys I’d only ever seen in passing when I went to Nate and Leo’s swim meets.
Leo’s older brothers used to be the only guys at Wylan Prep girls felt were worth fawning over. They were gone before I was a freshman, but the stories of them lingered. Now that I was seeing them up close, I understood the fanfare.
“Have you met Vin and Angelo?” Leo paused, gesturing at his brothers.
At the sound of his voice, they both looked up from the horror movie they were watching. One of them paused just as the masked killer stabbed his knife in the back of some poor, unsuspecting teen girl.
“How’s it going?” Vin, the oldest of the three, greeted. He pushed himself into a sitting position as he spoke. “I think I’ve seen you around. You’re the kid of those Olympians, right?”
“That would be me.” I nodded and urged myself to not get too anxious at the mention of my parents. Anytime someone brought them up, there was a decent chance of the conversation going south.
Vin didn’t get up from the couch but offered me his hand to shake. He was a large guy with fingers that nearly made mine disappear in his grasp. Vin’s husky build contrasted with Angelo’s lean frame.
“What’s up?” Angelo asked in a lackluster tone. He looked so much like Leo. I’m sure the two regularly received questions about being twins.
“Hi, how are you?” I asked, cringing a little at how formal my voice sounded.
Angelo didn’t offer his hand and honestly, didn’t really care about my greeting as he switched his focus to Leo and asked, “Did you put in the order?”
“Yeah.” Leo pulled his phone out to check something. “Says it’s on the way. You hungry, Kira?”
I nodded. “I could eat.”
“Perfect.” He smiled. “Could you guys keep an ear out? We’re going out back.”
“Not a part of the agreement, kid.” Angelo shook his head.
Leo let out a heavy sigh. “It’s for a few minutes.”
“Deal’s a deal.” Angelo ran his hands through his black curls, forcing the hair off his forehead.
Vin waved his hand in our direction. “Ignore him. I’ll get the food.”
“Come on, don’t baby him.” Angelo looked pissed.
“We have company,” Vin reminded his brother.
