Leo shrugged. “She wanted to bring something.”
Jessie scoffed and yanked the plate out of Faith’s hand. “Absolutely not. Here.” She pushed a bottle of rum into Faith’s fingers. “Give them this.”
“But everyone loves my brownies,” Faith objected.
“Trust me.”
And weirdly enough, Faith did. Even though Jessie’d been kind of a bitch at the Gourd Olde Days Festival, Leo’s sister had actually been a good friend in high school. Jessie was a year ahead of them, so Faith had gotten to spend time with her when she came over to study. Jessie had even been Faith’s cafeteria buddy one semester when her lunch period didn’t overlap with Leo’s or Thea’s. She’d been shocked by his sisters’s hostility at the fairgrounds, but especially Jessie. Of course, she also understood. She didn’t have siblings, but she did almost rip Aiden limb from limb after he and Thea had their falling out. If she’d felt that protective over her best friend’s broken heart, she couldn’t even imagine how three older sisters had reacted after her breakup with Leo.
“It’s true.” Leo nodded gravely. “Rum is the way to every Puerto Rican’s heart.”
Faith tilted her head. “And you’re just telling me this now? I’ve been wasting time being nice to you and…” She let her eyes drift down to the front of his jeans as she nibbled on a thumbnail.
Leo’s eyes flared as Jessie wailed, “No! Stop!”
“I’m sorry!” Faith clapped a hand over her mouth, her cheeks heating. “I’m so nervous. It makes me inappropriate.”
Jessie ran her assessing gaze from Faith’s head down to her toes before nodding. “You’ll do fine. Leo prepared everybody well.”
What the hell did that mean? Faith desperately wanted to ask, but it was too late. Jessie flung open the front door and shouted, “We’re here! And Leo brought a white girl!”
Faith stepped into the living room that was wall-to-wall people and sound. At least four different conversations were happening at once while a Pixar movie played for a group of children sprawled in front of the television in the corner. Loud dance music poured from the kitchen, along with the clatter of spoons against pots and the most amazing cooking smells Faith had ever inhaled. The dozen or so people in attendance all turned to welcome the newcomers, and she hung back while Leo and Jessie moved around the room, greeting their relatives and exchanging the greeting that she’d heard Leo give his nephews at the fairgrounds.
Once everyone in the room had been hugged and kissed, their eyes all fell on her.
“Hi!” She gave her bestyou’re gonna love mesmile. “I’m Faith Fox. I, um, brought rum?” She held up the bottle, and a cheer went around the room. Then she, too, was wrapped in countless pairs of arms welcoming her to the house.
“Ben-di-she-own,” she said tentatively to an older man with an epic white mustache. She tried to sound it out as best as she could, and he grinned and pinched her cheek, replying in Spanish with the phrase everyone had just said to Leo and Jessie.
After the man moved away, Leo wrapped his arm around her waist. “Bendición is how we greet older folks in our family, and then they give us their blessing.” He smiled down at her, his eyes warm. “You did good.”
“Thanks.” She grinned right back up at him, feeling warm and welcome all over. Then she tensed up again when his mother speed-walked from the kitchen directly over to them, and Leo stepped forward to hug her.
“Mijo!” Luisa wrapped her arms around Leo and squeezed. She was tiny, at least a foot shorter than all her children, but she hugged him so hard that he could barely do the call-and-response greeting. Then she turned to Faith, surprising her by pulling her into a slightly less intense hug. Apparently Luisa didn’t hold as many grudges as her daughters did.
“It’s wonderful to see you again.” Luisa stepped back but kept her arms on Faith’s elbows. “Leo tells me he is enjoying working with you.”
“I’m enjoying working with him too.” Had Leo not told his family about their relationship? Maybe not. Even though he’d dropped the “girlfriend” word the day before,shebarely knew what he was thinking, so it might be safest to assume nobody knew anything about anybody. She kept it breezy. “I love your new home. When did you move?”
Visiting the Morales family in high school had always felt like taking a trip to Oppositesville. Their house had been small and shabby and bursting with warmth and welcome, while her own was big and sterile and cold.
Luisa was all smiles as she gestured at the yellow living room walls, the overstuffed bookshelves, the framed family photos. This new house was larger, the furniture nicer, but the warmth remained. “About ten years ago. It’s a much better neighborhood, and I have room for my grandchildren when they want to stay.”
“She couldn’t resist slipping in the grandkids line,” Jessie whispered.
Leo grunted. “The first of many.”
Vanessa, Leo’s terrifying older sister, joined their group. “Careful. We might have company, but Momwillbreak out the chancla.”
The three Morales siblings laughed, then Vanessa caught sight of the plate in Jessie’s hands and shrieked. “Girl, what is that? Did you bringdessert?”
Jessie gritted her teeth in a smile. “Yeah, I thought I’d try something new. Everybody loves brownies, right?”
Luisa took the plate, holding it out in front of her as if it might be radioactive. “Mya made her flan, and Sofia brought pineapple rum cake, but we’ll… we’ll find a place for these on the table.” She shoved the plate into the hands of a passing woman who was headed to the kitchen, then turned to Faith, all smiles. “And you brought rum! What a thoughtful girl.”
Luisa plucked the bottle from her fingers, and moments later, one of the out-of-town cousins she’d been introduced to earlier slid a glass into her hand. “Drink up!” he said cheerfully.
Faith glanced around to see that the siblings all had their own glasses, so she shrugged and joined in. It was rum, and it was delicious, and it made the general conversation go down easily as everyone gravitated toward the couches in the living room. Faith sat and sipped and enjoyed the sibling interplay happening over one of theToy Storyinstallmentson the TV, particularly when Cecilia joined them and all four of them started giving each other nonstop shit. As an only child, she found it fascinating to observe.
