Kyrin’s eyes lit up instantly. “For real?”
“For real,” Alejandro confirmed. “And since we’re making improvements… do you have any other requests?”
Kyrin didn’t even hesitate.
“Yeah,” he said, sitting up straighter. “A game room. Like a real one. With racing chairs, big screens, VR, all that. And maybe a snack bar—no, not maybe, definitely a snack bar. Oh—and a movie room with those big reclining chairs. And—”
“Aight, alright,” I cut in, grabbing his arm before he could redesign the entire estate. “We’re only here for a few days, not moving in for the summer.”
Kyrin looked at me as though I’d personally ruined his dreams. “I’m just saying, if he offering—”
Alejandro laughed, a deep, easy sound. “It’s no problem,” he assured, waving a hand. “Some things can be done quickly, others… we’ll have ready the next time you visit.”
“Next time?” Kyrin exclaimed, already smiling.
I shot Alejandro a quick look, but he only smiled like he hadn’t said anything unusual at all.
Alejandro leaned back in his chair and pointed toward Lainey. “And who might you be, young lady?”
Lainey hastily straightened her posture as if she had been waiting for that moment her whole life. “Oh, I’m Lainey, Ajori’s best friend since middle school,” she stated proudly. “We met in seventh grade when she accidentally tripped me in the hallway, and instead of apologizing, she helped me fight the girl who laughed at me.”
I blinked erratically. “That isnothow that went down.”
Lainey waved me off, as if to hush me. “Details,” she carried on. “Anyway, since then, I’ve been emotionally supporting her through bad breakups, bad hair decisions, and the tragic moment she thought bangs were a good idea in tenth grade.”
I shot her a side-eye.
Lainey leaned slightly toward me, keeping her smile fixed for the table while whispering out of the corner of her mouth.
“I know I lied,” she murmured. “But let me be great for a moment.”
“Well,” Alejandro said warmly, “any friend who can survive all that clearly deserves a seat at this table.”
Lainey straightened back up in her chair, still grinning from her moment of glory.
Alejandro chuckled softly before his attention returned to me. “Well, we don’t have to talk business at this very moment. For now, I’d like to know more about you… your life.”
My brows pinched. “Mypersonallife?”
“Yes,” he clarified. “Where you’re from, your family, your work… what makes you tick.”
I dabbed the corner of my mouth with my napkin before answering. “Well… there’s not much to tell.” I shrugged. “I’m finishing my master’s in healthcare administration. I work…a lot. And most of my life revolves around making sure my brother is okay.”
Alejandro nodded slowly, as if he was absorbing every word. “That’s admirable. Family should always come first. Is it just you and your brother these days, or do you have other relatives around?”
I rolled my eyes slightly, a reflexive response to the well-meaning but insistent nature of the conversation. “My mom is around… when she decides to be. But for the most part, it’s been me and Kyrin holding things down.”
My eyes flitted toward Kyrin, who was absorbed in his own world, blissfully unaware of the tension building at the table.
Alejandro nodded, his brow furrowing ever so slightly in thought. “And what about your father? Is he… present in your life?”
There was a gentleness in his voice, but something more pressing, too—a curiosity that nagged at me.
I started with a polite response, but as the questions continued to flow from him, I felt my initial calm transform into a mix of caution and suspicion.
“No,” I stated flatly, the single word carrying more weight than I intended.
Alejandro maintained eye contact, his gaze steady as he pressed further. “Never was?”