“Yeah.” Maxim’s gaze comes to me for a moment and softens. “Baby, this is Aye. Aye, this is April,” he introduces us while his hand lands on my thigh and squeezes.
“Nice to meet you.” I lift my hand and wiggle my fingers, more than a little curious about why he’s sitting outside the gate in his Jeep instead of inside like a normal person.
“You too.” He smiles, then looks at Maxim. “Fair warning—Frank’s here.”
“Shit,” Maxim groans. “I thought he was out of town.”
“He came back early.” Aye laughs, then taps the edge of the window. “Have a good visit.” His gaze meets mine. “I’m sure I’ll see you around, April.”
“Yeah,” I say, not sure if he’s right, and he steps back with a lift of his chin, then pulls something out of his pocket, and the gate in front of us opens. A moment later, we are driving toward the house, which looks just as beautiful from the front, with wide steps that lead up to a covered front porch and double doors that from a distance seem to be about fifteen feet tall.
“Who’s Frank?” I ask as we head around the circular driveway to a covered parking area where there is a Benz Jeep and a convertible parked.
“My dad’s uncle.” He glances over at me. “You’ll love him, but he’s a little crazy at times.”
“And Aye?”
“A friend of the family.”
“A friend of the family who randomly sits outside your parents’ closed gate in his Jeep?” I raise a brow when he stops and looks at me.
“You caught that?”
“I’m not blind,” I point out the obvious.
“He works security for my dad and mom, has since before I was born.”
“Is your dad a drug dealer or something?” I laugh, but the question is one hundred percent serious, because I can think of no other reason someone would need private security for themselves and their kids, who are all grown. I don’t even think movie stars have private security. Then again, they might. What the hell do I know?
“No, but the situation is complicated.”
“Complicated, as in you don’t want to tell me about it, or complicated, as in you can’t tell me about it?” I ask.
He puts the car in park and turns to give me his full attention, his hand on my thigh somehow seeming heavier than before. “Complicated, as in there isn’t enough time to explain the situation properly right now.”
“Right,” I mutter, knowing he’s giving me the brush off and has no intention of ever telling me, since we’ve had a lot of quiet moments together, so he’s had plenty of time to explain things. Really thinking about it now, it’s comical that he was pissed that I didn’t ask questions, since when I do, I get no answers. I reach for my bag at my feet, then turn for the door, disappointment curling tight in my belly.
Without looking at him, I get out, placing my espadrille wedges down on the asphalt, hearing his door slam shut. Once I’m out of the car, I straighten my black linen shorts with their folded hem, then make sure my cream tank top is tucked in as he comes around to meet me.
“We’ll talk when we get back home. I’ll explain things about my family then,” he says close to my ear as he rests his palm against my lower back so he can lead me toward the house.
It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him we don’t need to talk, but before the words are able to form, one side of the front doors opens, and a large, very round, very old man steps outside. I take in his slicked back gray hair, his bright-pink Hawaiian shirt, the layers of gold necklaces around his neck, and the gold-tipped cane in his hand, thinking he must be Frank.
“Maxim.” He laughs, walking toward us with his arms open wide. “Look at you, you slick motherfucker.”
“Hey, Uncle Frank.” Maxim captures my hand as we head up a short set of steps. “I thought you were out of town.”
“I was, but Miami isn’t what it used to be, so I decided to cut my visit short.” He pats Maxim’s shoulder once we are close, then his eyes wander over me. “Then again, if there had been women who looked like you there, I might have been more inclined to stay.” He winks.
“Jesus, Frank.” Maxim sighs, and I barely keep from laughing.
“I’m just fucking with you.” He pats Maxim’s shoulder again, then looks at me once more. “Unless you’re interested.”
“I’m not, but thank you.” I laugh.
“You can’t fault a man for trying.” He shrugs, then turns toward the door, saying over his shoulder, “Come on inside. There is a huge spread of food, and I was told not to touch anything until you two arrived.”
“Frank, I swear you want Myla to shoot you again,” a deep voice says, and I look around Frank at the man standing in the doorway with his arms crossed over his wide chest. With one look, I know instantly he’s Maxim’s dad. They both have the same build, sharp, attractive features, and dark hair, only his dad’s Hawaiian heritage is much more pronounced than his son’s.
“Myla loves me,” Frank says, then his gaze comes to me. “Don’t worry, beautiful. She shot me on accident; she wasn’t trying to kill me.”
“Oh my God, why are you telling her that I shot you at all?” a woman shouts from inside the house before she rushes out onto the front porch dressed in an outfit similar to mine, with her blonde hair pushed back away from her very pretty face with a cool green-and-gold headband with lots of pearls sewn into the material.
“It came up in conversation,” Frank defends, and she shakes her head at him while her cheeks get red with embarrassment or frustration, maybe both.
“Something like that doesn’t just come up in conversation, Frank,” she snaps.
“Maybe not normally, but it did right now,” Frank tells her, and she tosses her arms out at her sides as I press my lips together, trying really hard to hold it together.
“Can you please pretend to be sane, at least until Maxim has had a chance to introduce us to his girlfriend?” she cries, and Maxim’s dad wraps his hand around her hip and pulls her back into his front before leaning down to whisper something in her ear. Watching her eyes close as she nods, I feel my chest warm, because that is something my dad would do with my mom.
“Can I eat?” Frank asks, and her eyes fly open so she can glare at him. “Right.” He holds up a hand. “I’ll just wait for everyone in the kitchen then,” he grumbles before heading into the house.
“Well now that that’s done—” Maxim tightens his hold on my hand. “—Mom, Dad, I’d like you both to meet April. Baby, these are my parents, Myla and Kai.” His mom and dad both focus on me, and my stomach seems to bottom out, which is stupid, since I have been in their presence for a couple of minutes. Then again, up until now, none of their attention was on me. Really, I’m half tempted to shout for Frank to come back outside to distract them.
“It’s nice to meet you both. I mean, it’s nice to see you both again,” I clarify, since we did meet, even if I don’t remember it.
“I’m sorry about this, April.” Myla sighs with her shoulders slumping. “Please know that we’re not normally like this.”