Page 91 of Perfect Playbook

There’s a beat of silence, but it isn’t empty, it’s full with anticipation. Will he say I love you?

“See you tomorrow, Logan.”

“All right,pastelito. See you tomorrow.”

Despite my exhaustion, there’s only one thing that could put me back on my feet.

There, in the lobby of the hotel, are Rio and Santi, my brothers I don’t get to see enough these days. Many years ago, they moved out of Starlight Canyon and to California with a business plan and every penny of their savings. It’s a vigilante business they’re in, monitoring software that’s so powerful it’s even proven successful on the dark web. It’s tech that is as controversial as it istitillating, and it took years for them to perfect it, working on patents, and finally, after years of figuring out how to best use their tool, they’re pursuing the private sector.

Somehow, all us Mendez kids turned out to be entrepreneurs. Our parents owned their own business. It’s all we’ve known. But my brothers’ ambition eclipses the total sum of mine and my parents’. They’ll be billionaires at some point, and I’m not even sure it’s so far away. They’re going to be the most rugged, salt-of-the-earth, intimidating-as-fuck billionaires. And then, we’ll all be together again at the compound they’re building in California. We’ll be the Mexican Kennedys.

Would Logan be up for that?

“Nena…” Santi calls me by the name that has stuck since I was little. My brothers don’t call me Shay. They call me “baby girl.” And they still treat me like one despite my gray hair starting to push through.

Santi, the most charismatic of the otherwise broody bunch of brothers, walks toward me with his arms wide open. I fall into his embrace, and he squeezes me in a bear hug.

My voice is muffled against his chest. “Sorry if I stink. The Mojave is hot as hell, and my air-con is crap.”

He lets go and plants a sharp kiss in my hair. “Better stinky than far away.”

My eldest brother by five minutes, Rio, wraps his arm around me and pulls me close. “Good to see you.”

“Thanks for driving down to meet me.”

“Wouldn’t miss it. Gabriel and Enzo wanted to come, but they drew the short straws. We have contracts to get through. There’s a private investor coming through the final stages.”

“Seriously?” I can’t think of four men who deserve this more.

Rio walks toward the hotel restaurant, and I follow.

Santi cocks an eyebrow and tilts his head like he’s the man.

This investment will be massive, but Rio wears the news like he expected it. He displays pride on his broad shoulders but never brags with a smile. My twin older brothers, Rio and Enzo, couldn’t be two more confident men. I wonder if my brothers ever fight about business like they used to fight about the best horses and hardest bulls to ride.

Rio moves me along. “We figured you’d be starving and thirsty so we already ordered.”

He cuts through the hotel, and Santi and I trail his broad back, tracing the wake he leaves behind.

My brothers have always intimidated people with their presence. Even though they are docile as lambs with me and dote on me like I’m still a baby, I’ve seen what they’re like when they’re determined. They’re relentless and all have our dad’s hooded eyes. When they concentrate or stare, it’s a lot to handle, and weakness and uncertainty becomes very clear to them because it doesn’t last long in their gaze.

Rio pulls out my chair. We all sit and, as usual, my brothers have outdone themselves. Every bit of real estate on the white tablecloth is taken up by a tapas dish. They’ve already gotten me a beer. Water. Everything I’m gasping for after that drive.

“Guys, I really needed this.”

“We figured,” Santi says. “You’ve been through some life-changing things lately. And, this high-profile wedding? It’s a big deal. Proud of you.”

I don’t even want to take the credit, and it’s not all mineanyway. I owe some of this to Logan. “Logan hooked me up with some warm introductions. He’s very supportive.”

“Mmm,” Rio hums. There’s more than a one-syllable sentence working behind his eyes.

Santi stabs a piece of chorizo on one of the small plates, and the motion somehow feels like foreshadowing for the conversation ahead. “This whole marriage has been quite sudden. You and Logan.”

I’ve spoken with my brothers multiple times since that morning in Vegas. “I told you we were seeing each other for a while, so it wasn’t sudden for us.”

Rio eyes an olive, picks it up, and when his gaze meets mine, his eyes are subtly narrowed. “It’s fast by anyone’s measure. Even seeing each other for a few months before.”

I shrug. “It’s not like we were strangers. Hell, even if we didn’t date in college we wouldn’t be. Anyway, we’re not kids anymore. At our age, it’s easier to know what you want and what you don’t.”

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