Page 76 of XOXO

By the time I made it to the beach, I was hot, irritated and ready to dive into the beach with everything I had on me. There were a lot of people and as I looked for an unoccupied umbrella, it was clear that I would not find any shade. I was hiking my bag onto my shoulder when I heard someone yell my name.

I looked around the crowd when I saw a familiar blond who was dripping wet, waving at me. What are the fucking odds Levi was here? I waved back, walking towards him. I spotted Matteo, which made my steps falter. I continued walking towards them, nervous as hell, stopping dead in my tracks when I saw that Ruwon was with them.

What the fuck was happening?!

I looked at all of them, wondering if this was some sick joke or was this some fucking coincidence.

“Hey, Vi!” Levi yelled, taking the last few steps between us, embracing me in a big hug that lifted my feet off the ground.

“Levi,” I sighed, melting into his embrace

Damn, I had missed him.

“Violeta?” Ruwon said, as Levi set me down.

“Hey, Ru,” I said, feeling my face get even hotter.

“Violeta?” Matteo scowled.

“Hi to you too, Matteo,” I snipped.

“Wait, you know Ru?” Levi asked, sounding too happy for what I was feeling.

“We met on the Amalfi Coast,” I said, tucking my hair behind my ear to have something to do.

“Oh, another Rendezvous.” Matteo narrowed his eyes.

“No,” Ruwon shook his head, looking between all of us. “The Queens invited her to have lunch with them after she was stood up. I arrived after and let's just say we didn’t have the best introduction.”

“Wait, our parents had lunch with her?” Matteo growled.

“Oh my god. Maya and Jacque are your parents?” I looked between Matteo and Levi immediately, seeing the resemblance between Maya and Matteo.

“Shit, you met my dad. That’s cool,” Levi said, as people bumped into us. “Come over, we have an umbrella.”

Levi threaded his hand through mine, leading me to their spot. Ruwon and Matteo followed us and their gaze almost burned a hole into my back. The tension behind me felt like it was brewing, activating my fight-or-flight instinct.

“This is us,” Levi said, as shoes and a bag were scattered around. “Damn, we didn’t think to bring a blanket to sit on.”

“Oh, I have one, but I don’t know if it will be big enough for all of us,” I said, digging in my bag for it.

“I’m getting a drink,” Matteo said, disappearing quickly.

It felt like the festival all over again. Damn, maybe I should leave.

“This will be big enough for us,” Levi said, grabbing the thin blanket, extending it out, arranging it so it was all under the shade.

I glanced at where Matteo had left, finding Ruwon looking at me. I smiled, hoping to break our awkwardness. He didn’t return it. There was nothing but distrust on his face.

“So, how do you guys know each other?” I asked, sitting down.

“Our parents have been friends since we were little,” Levi said, sitting next to me.

“That’s really cool,” I said, feeling so damn uncomfortable. “Your parents were so cool.”

“What are the chances you met our parents and met each of us in Europe?” Levi grinned.

He was so fucking sweet, completely unaware that Matteo and Ruwon did not want me here or trust me.