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“Hey, I’m Avery.” She glanced over at Piper. “Don’t you work at the library?”
Piper eyed her carefully. “Yeah. I’ve seen you there. You like vampire books, don’t you? I’ve got a great one for you.”
Behind Avery’s long brown hair, I shook my head at Piper. The girl looked like she wasn’t even thirteen yet, and I knew the kinds of books Piper liked to read. Piper ducked her head and bit her lip.
“Oh, never mind. Maybe in a few years…”
The kids followed Piper, Eli, and me back to the shop office, where a man sat behind the faux wood desk. From everything Eli had told me about him, it could only be his oldest brother, Adon. Like he was the CEO of a major corporation, his posture gave off intimidating vibes. I stood behind Eli, but as the kids brushed past me, they pushed me forward, out from the safety of my large boyfriend. Odin and Avery sat at the table near the window and pulled out notebooks from their backpacks.
Eli’s brother looked like a slightly older version of Eli, but was less muscular and definitely had fewer tattoos. Only the triangle of their family was visible, crawling up his neck. Glancing up from his work, he noticed us crowding the doorway. Without smiling, he walked over and reached out his large hand to me. His deep-set brown eyes scanned my face.
“Hey there. I’m Adon. You must be Essa?”
“Yes, sir.”
Eli laughed. “Essa, this is Adon, my brother. He used to try to light centipedes on fire with a magnifying glass. He’s not a ‘sir.’” My cheeks felt hot at the faux pas, but I shook his hand.
“She can call me sir if she wants. It’s good to meet you, sweetheart. Are you the one encouraging him to get back in school?”
“Um… I didn’t know about that, uh….” My eyes darted to Eli for help.
Eli cleared his throat and said to me softly, “It was just something I considered.”
Almost whispering to him, I pressed my cheek into his arm. “That’s great, Eli. You should have told me—"
Adon spotted my friend coming in the door behind us. “Uh, you lost?”
“Nice place you have here.” Piper strolled in with her usual confidence and glanced around his office, probably envisioning more plants for the area.
“Oh, Adon, sorry. This is my friend, Piper,” I explained.
“Does she normally waltz in like she owns a place thatisn’thers?”
Piper scoffed. “I’m standing right here.”
At the same time, I laughed to make light of the situation and said, “Yes. Yes, she does.”
Adon nodded once, then walked back to his desk. “Okay. Well, it’s a bit crowded in here. I’ve got to get some work done. Go ahead and take off for the day, baby brother. See you.”
Embarrassment hit me that we had intruded on his time as Eli shuffled us out of the door with his large palm planted on my lower back. Before I could reach the waiting room, Adon stopped me with his resonating bass voice.
“Essa.”
My heart stopped beating like I was in trouble with the principal as I turned back to face him, swallowing nervously. Had I had done something wrong?
Staring at me with his serious face, he said, “You’re taking good care of my brother. We’ll take good care of your car. Glad to meet you.”
“You, too.” I smiled and allowed my shoulders to relax. Despite his brusque nature, there was something very fatherly about him, and I trusted him.
After finding my friends mulling about in the garage, Eli snagged my hand in his and lead us out to his Charger. Piper got in the back, and I buckled up in the passenger seat.
“I apologize for Adon. He can be, um…” Eli couldn’t finish until Piper jumped in.
“Rude? Arrogant? A prick?”
Eli snorted a laugh as I got nervous Eli would be offended by my friend. Piper didn’t seem to care about that as she sat back in her seat, crossing her arms, clearly in a huff. “I guess you could say all that.” Holding my hand over the console, he checked his blind spot, changing lanes, as his shoulders stiffened slightly. “Um… My brother, Rhodes, is having a Halloween party in a couple of weeks at our place if you two want to come.”
Gazing at the side of his face, I asked, “Why didn’t you tell me?”
