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Deck knew this guy? And he thought he was cool living downstairs? He didn’t seem like he’d fit in with Deck and his commando guys. And he definitely didn’t fit as a friend of Kai’s.
My eyes shifted down his cut body to his legs in snug, worn jeans that had a rip in the left knee and then back up again.
When my eyes met his, he grinned at me, having obviously noticed my perusal. “Deaglan,” he offered. “Your roomie. You must be Catalina? Deck said you moved in upstairs.” He stepped forward, holding out his hand.
“Please, call me Alina.” I hated anyone calling me Catalina ever since Carlos.
I politely shook his hand, despite being a little peeved that he was giving out a spare key to my part of the house. I didn’t mind because it was London, but that wasn’t the point.
He had callouses on his palm, and his handshake was firm. I expected it to be though; he had an air of confidence about him, but not surprising with the way he held himself. “You have a key?”
His brows lifted. A slow smirk emerged and he had deep dimples. “Sure, pet. Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because I live here. And I wouldn’t say roommates exactly,” I corrected.
He shrugged. “Same house. But whatever you want to call it, good with me. Not particular who I live with unless you’re wanting me to fix the shelves for those freaky little statues. You see those things?” I had, but I didn’t respond and he obviously didn’t expect me to because he went on. “Mamó Kane collected them.”
“Mamó?” I asked.
“Grandmother. She was my dad’s mother. Her house.” He shook his head. “Fuckin’ sweetest woman you ever met. A man can’t meet that woman and not love her. She had this garden on the side of the house,” he nodded to the right, “grew carrots and shit, she’d be out there before the crack of dawn digging in the dirt. Miss seeing her there.” He lifted his brows and asked, “You still have all her knickknacks up? I can load them in a box. Never got around to doing that after she passed.”
“I’m sorry for your loss. And the statues are fine.” I didn’t take the guy for a rambler and it wasn’t a nervous ramble. It was more as if he wanted to talk about his grandmother. It was kind of sweet how he talked about her garden.
London frowned, asking, “Wait a sec. Kane?”
“Yeah. Killian’s grandmother,” he said.
“Killian?” I asked.
London replied, “The band that played last night. Killian is the drummer. Everyone calls him Kite though,” London said.
Oh, right. The drummer who had a brow piercing and tattoos… My eyes darted to Deaglan’s as did London’s, who then asked, “So you’re—?”
“Cousins,” he replied. “Our dad’s are brothers. Met Deck a long time ago through Killian. Was taking the wrong road in life and he straightened me out. Now do odd jobs for him. Run in the same circles.”
“Baby, are you coming back to bed,” a female voice called.
Deaglan winked at me then grinned at London. “Last chance.”
Last chance?
“You’re a dick,” London said.
He shrugged. “I’m a twenty-eight-year-old guy. What do you expect?”
He strolled toward the side railing then put both hands on it and hopped over the side and disappeared, but we heard him. “Babe, fuck, get that sexy uniform back on. You need to vacate. Told you, I have shit to do today. Thought you were working another flight?”
Whoa. Vacate? Get dressed? I turned to London and both of us stood with gaping mouths.
London said, “Not sure how Deck is friends with that guy, even if he is related to Kite.”
Yeah, I wasn’t sure either. “Did you want to come in for a coffee?” I asked.
“Sure. I came by to see if you wanted to go to the Center with me. Chess is meeting me there.”
“Umm, okay. I’d like that,” I said.
Chess was Kai’s sister and I met her a few times. She came across as incredibly strong-willed, but friendly and warm. I’d liked her immediately, especially when I’d heard about the place for the kids.
It was a project Tristan Mason, Chess’s man who owned Mason Developments, was building for the kids rescued from the compound. It was called the Treasured Children’s Center and was a project that gained lots of attention considering the size of it and the media coverage over getting the kids immigrated into Canada.
My paperwork was still being processed, but in the meantime, thanks to Deck, I had a temporary visa to stay and work here.
“Do you think Ernie wants coffee?” I asked, glancing out to the street where his car had been last night. I didn’t really want to talk to Ernie after Connor managed to sneak by him, but I did feel bad he’d been out there all night.
