“Everything will be okay. I’m sure everyone would love to meet you.”
“They know about me?”
“Well,” he blushes just enough that I catch it with only the streetlamp a few feet away to reveal his flustered smile. “You know, Vince and I talk business sometimes.” He shrugs, still grinning, a soft dimple showing on his perfect chin. I can’t say no to him; it will only mean having to lie more. Something I’m not ready to do. I already feel bad enough about this mess.
“Okay.”
“Okay?”
“Yeah. I’ll stay with you, Tito.” His eyes toggle quickly between mine before he pulls his hand away from my shoulder and opens my car door for me.
“Great. Follow me there?” I nod quickly and hop into my car, closing the door behind me as he heads over to his. I start my car as I wait for him to pull out from behind the building. Within a few seconds, he appears in a large black van that looks expensive, but has no car name on it. None that I can see anyways. He drives past me and heads up towards the road.
Closely, I follow behind the entire time. As usual, the LA traffic is so thick I think its existence alone could cause the world to end prematurely. The longer we drive, the more nervous I get that this will be way out of my element. He clearly lives in something bigger than a normal-sized house, or else we wouldn’t be heading down this road, the one that leads to the richest parts of LA.
We zoom around a bend and are free from traffic at last, and then within the next few minutes, we pull up to gates that open as soon as he pulls up to them. He says something to the man in a security box to the left of us, and the guard waves him on. I follow him through the gates without so much as a glance from the security, and I know Tito must have said something about my presence. I guess he would have to have a car like mine, I love it, but it’s about three years out from being retired in a salvage yard.
We drive down a long driveway until we reach a rotunda with a gold fountain at the center and the most beautiful flowers I’ve ever seen layered around the outside of a mansion. It’s bigger than I could have pictured in my head. Breathtaking, yet charming. I believe this is a home where a lot is always happening. Lights are on in almost every room as if there’s a party happening, and we’re late to it.
As I park and stare up at it, Tito gets out and comes around to my door, opening it for me and helping me out as I continue to take everything in, slightly dazed.
“It’s extraordinary,” I note as I continue to look around. He closes my car door with a chuckle.
“Thanks. It’s meant many things to me throughout my life, but I am grateful to call it home.”
“I would be, too.” I can feel him smiling at me, so I tilt my eyes to his.
“Ready?” He asks, holding out his hand for me to take.
“I have stuff in my car….”
“We can get it tomorrow. Espie or Olive will be more than happy to let you borrow something from their endless supply of clothes. Hell, they’ll probably try stuff on you like a barbie doll.” I quickly nod and take his hand because I’d rather not go digging through my messy car in front of him and because it could be fun having someone pick out my clothes for me. I never know what to wear and have never put much thought into it. It’s not really a priority, not in my field of work anyway.
Holding Tito’s hand as we walk up to his home, is slightly an out-of-body experience. To the point where I almost forget that I shouldn’t be enjoying this. I need to keep this a strictly professional friendship from here on out. Tito can’t get hurt by my frivolous whims, not more than he already will. I’d only be setting him up to feel the worst betrayal if I give in to my desire for him, only to have him find out I’ve sabotaged his dreams.
No. The best thing I can do now is not be so distant and cold that he wonders why he’s even letting me stay here. The goal is to be friends, work well together, and, most importantly, not act on lustful desires. That’s easy enough.
I glance over at him as he stops in front of the large double doors. The porch light hits his skin so softly that I can see his kind green eyes deepen with intensity. There’s a slight smile on his perfect lips, and his squared jaw tenses with it just as he turns the handle. My stomach flutters as I observe him, and I feel myself slipping into longing. Longing for his hand to be in other places, not just holding mine by our sides.
I can’t, won’t, give in to this, though I want to. I’ve got to stop this. Before I can force my eyes away, we step inside and are met with the loudest greeting. It’s just two girls who I assume to be Espie and Olive, but they could be an army of girls if I close my eyes and picture that. They’re talking over each other, clearly excited to tell Tito about something while also realizing that someone new is here.
Growing up in a home without sisters, or siblings in general, has not prepared me for this loud of a welcome. My little sister was born just after I moved out of the house, or else I might know how to deal with this, but I feel slightly out of my element.I try to smile and nod until they calm down and watch as Tito handles it all very well. He raises his hands for them to silence for a moment, and their laughter subsides.
“Girls, this is Scout Summers.” Their gleeful eyes turn to me. “Scout, this is Espie,” he points to the shorter one, who I can tell is older than the taller one just by the way she holds herself. She waves, and then he pans to the slightly taller one, with short hair, pure olive green eyes, and a soft grin painted over her lips that remind me of Tito’s. “And this is Olive.”
“It's a pleasure to meet you both.” I smile.
“You’re gorgeous. Tito, she’s gorgeous.” Olive shifts her head between us.
“Thank you.” I feel myself blush, and Tito lets go of my hand to wrap his arm around my shoulders. I let him, maybe even lean into it a bit. It’s not smart, letting him touch me this way, even if we are just around his family. He’ll get the wrong idea, or I will, and then all my inhibitions will seem insufficient to what I truly want. Do I truly want Tito? Surely not…
I furrow my brows at the thought as the girls begin speaking with Tito, and I’ve lost track of the conversation. Espie must have noticed my distance as Olive and Tito gab on about something. She reaches over and touches my arm. When I make eye contact, she only smiles to ask if I’m okay. I give her a gentle nod, and she gives me one back before interrupting Tito’s rant about the way electronics should be advancing if we were following the proper speed of growth since their first introduction to the world.
“I’m certain this conversation is something I’d like to get in on later, but it seems like our guest is tired. Should we head to the dining room? Make some coffee?”
Tito raises his brows and pauses for a moment before shaking his head.
“Well, actually, I forgot to mention… She’ll be staying with us for a bit. I was hoping you might have some clothes for her or—”