Ron gave him a strange look. “Eighteen.”
With that, Alex snapped the head off the tiny turtle and handed it back to Ron.
“Alex!” Sofia said, horrified.
“What’s your problem, man?” Ron asked.
Romero and Eric walked through the front door, oblivious to what was going on.
Alex got in his face. “My problem, asshole, is my sister is fifteen. I could call the cops on you, for trying to mess with a minor, but I’d rather kick your ass myself.”
A few customers walked in, forcing Alex to refrain from doing anything. The only thing that would hold him back from hitting the guy was his dad’s outrage if he made a scene in the restaurant. Still, Sofia stepped in front of him to separate them. Alex didn’t make it easy. “Stop, Alex. We have customers.”
Ron held his hands up and looked at Sofia. “I didn’t know you were fifteen.” His eyes roamed her up and down and with a smirk he added, “You sure don’t look fifteen.”
“Get out.” Alex spoke through his teeth.
Ronald smirked. “I’ll see you at school.”
He walked out, but of course, Alex went after him. Eric and Romero followed. Sofia forced a smile and greeted the customers.
*
The guy hadn’t stopped when Alex asked him to, instead picked up the pace and got in his car. Alex warned him as loud and as obscenely, as only Alex could, about staying away from Sofia.
Eric and Romero walked back in the restaurant behind a fuming Alex. This complicated things. Sofia turned heads now more than ever. The guy was eighteen, for crying out loud. Alex could only do so much to keep the guys away. Next year, like Sal, he’d be gone to college, too. It would be up to Angel.
Eric had to make some kind of move, but how could he, with Alex and Angel so dead set against their baby sister dating?
Alex stalked through the restaurant to the back. Sofia saw him coming and walked to the empty bar area, carrying a basket of chips. Normally, Eric would’ve stayed back and let them speak privately, but this conversation he needed to hear. Was Sofia involved with this guy somehow?
“You wanna explain why there’s an eighteen-year-old guy bringing you gifts?”
“Oh, my God, Alex.” Her exasperation was usually warranted. Alex did tend to overreact, but Eric was with him on this one. “I mentioned to him the other day at school about my turtle collection. He’s just a friend.”
“That’s not what he said to me.”
Eric took his eyes off Sofia to look at Alex for a second, then his eyes were back on her.
She blinked as she and Eric exchanged glances, then she turned back to Alex. “What did he say?”
“He said he was here to ask you out, Sof.”
Sofia glanced back at Eric. Her big brown eyes seemed to almost speak to him. “I don’t know where he would get the idea I’d be interested. I only talk to him during track practice.”
“Well, you’re not anymore.”
Sofia winced. “I can’t even talk to him? Do you even hear how ridiculous that sounds? He’s just a friend.”
“Don’t be naïve, Sof. There’s only one reason he’d be talking to you. Did you not see the way he looked at you?”
“I saw.” Romero finally spoke. Eric thought Romero had been quiet too long.
Alex turned around to look at him. “I should’ve kicked his ass,” he muttered, walking away back into the back office and then turned back. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you, Sofia. I see you around him at school, he’s dead.” To Eric and Romero he added, “I’ll be right out. Just let me grab my keys.”
Sofia held out the chips to Eric and Romero. “You guys want some?”
Romero went right to them. “Yeah, I’m starving.”
Eric took advantage of Romero’s distraction and stared at Sofia. She didn’t look away. Instead, she said, “I really never gave him the impression that I might be interested. I promise.”
Romero didn’t look up from the chips. “Oh, I believe you, Sof. You got any salsa?”
Sofia was still looking at Eric. “It’s in the kitchen. You can grab a bowl.”
Romero walked away into the kitchen. Eric smiled. “You promise?”
Her face flushed. She smiled and nodded. “Promise.”
Subtle as it had been, Sofia officially made the first move. This was all Eric needed. He’d get around her brothers somehow. Alex walked out of the office.
“All right, let’s go. Where’d Romero go?”
Just then, Romero walked out of the kitchen with a small bowl of salsa. Alex made a face. “Can you wait ‘til we’re done unloading my truck? You guys can order whatever you want.”
Eric had to stop staring at her before Alex saw him. She was almost sixteen. He’d think of something.
CHAPTER 3
Sweet 16
Alex and Sal were hardly ever around, and Angel was utterly distracted with a girl he’d met a couple of months earlier. Eric and Sofia were able to hang out together more than ever. Since his brothers were away in college most the time, it had become Angel’s responsibility to chauffer his little sister anytime his parents couldn’t. With this new girl keeping him busy, he’d come to rely on Eric to help him out with the rides. Angel trusted him completely, and of course, Eric was more than willing to oblige.
Though they’d been alone many times, Eric still wouldn’t allow himself to try anything. Sofia had made the first move by caressing his hand in the car when she spoke to him. They’d graduated to holding hands during their rides alone. His insides scorched too many times when he’d been near Sofia. The guilt of what Angel would say if he betrayed him by doing anything more than hold his little sister’s hand now outweighed the fear of what her brothers would do. To be able to touch her and kiss her like he fantasized for too long would be more than worth a beating. Even from Alex. But the guilt he couldn’t handle.
Angel texted Eric asking if he could pick Sofia up at the restaurant and take her home. As usual, he was out with his girl and he needed the favor. Eric sat in the car behind their family’s restaurant. His heart thumped when he saw her come out the back door. She smiled big when she saw him.
He took her scent in—soft and sweet—as she slid into the passenger seat. For years he’d come to love the smell, but lately, it had taken on a more womanly hint. Lately, too, he couldn’t help thinking of her as his little Sofie.
Sofia was hardly your typical sixteen-year-old, just one of the reasons she drove him so insane. She was tall, and had filled out beautifully in all the right places. Her dark hair was longer than ever, and though she probably didn’t even realize it, she exuded sensuality. The way she gazed at him sometimes with those beautiful bedroom eyes of hers nearly did him in.
Eric took her hand as soon as she was all the way in. She smiled and took it a step further, caressing her fingers ever so lightly over his. It was all he could do to hold back putting his hand behind her neck and kissing those beautiful lips.
“Do you have to take me straight home?” She gave him those big, pleading eyes.
Eric groaned. This wasn’t the first time she’d asked him that. Just like the last time she’d asked, the temptation to take her back to his house overwhelmed him. His dad wasn’t home, and they’d have the whole place to themselves, but he may as well have a death wish. Finally initiating a first move of his own, he kissed her hand. Her eyes widened. “You know I do, Sof.”
She let out a disappointing sigh. “Then will you come over and have some pie? I made it myself this morning, and my mom’s home so my brothers can’t say anything about it.”
Over the years, Eric had been over the Moreno’s residence plenty of times, even when none of the brothers were home. Living with his single dad, who was working constantly, Mrs. Moreno knew he rarely got a home-cooked meal. The woman, and now Sofia, was always cooking. He’d always get invited to come in and eat, or like today, have a slice of pie. So Angel and his brothers didn’t think anything of it. They made jokes about
him spending more time in their kitchen than they did, but they’d always treated him like family. That only intensified the incredible feelings of guilt about the things he’d been thinking lately when he was around Sofia.
He sat at the center aisle of their kitchen, forced to watch Sofia as she moved around the room. Her breasts full and firm, Eric had been having dreams about them for years now. She bent over, looking for something in the refrigerator and he nearly fell off the barstool.
Sofia pulled out the whip cream bottle and walked over to the pie in front of him. She squirted some on it, then some in her mouth, licked her lips and smiled, wickedly. Those big eyes of hers seemed to taunt him so much lately.
At seventeen, Eric had no control over his raging hormones. He panicked, feeling the development in his pants. If Mrs. Moreno or anyone walked in, there’d be no way he could stand up without it being noticeable.
Sofia giggled, and squirted a little more in her mouth again.
“Sofie.” Eric glanced around. “Stop.”
“Stop what?” Those big innocent eyes appeared genuinely confused.
“That.” He pointed at the can of whip cream in her hand, then tried, unsuccessfully, to adjust himself in his pants. “I’m not gonna to be able to walk for a while thanks to you.irmanks to You better hope no one comes in here.”
He’d never said anything of that nature to her, but things felt different lately. It took a second to register, but when it did, instead of blushing like Eric thought she might, she smiled again. She squirted some on the tip of her finger, then slowly, licked it clean. Eric squeezed his eyes shut, sitting up straight. “You evil little girl.”
Sofia laughed and walked back toward the refrigerator. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not a little girl anymore, Eric.”
“Oh, I’ve noticed.” Had he ever.
She turned and smiled. “Good, now can you please tell my brothers that?”
Good luck. They all still spoke of her, and treated her, as if she was this fragile little flower. The only good thing about that was it kept the guys away. Guys he knew had to be watching and waiting.
Lately, even Eric was having a hard time not losing it when he saw guys around her. He knew Angel thought he just felt the same protectiveness they all did. He did, but not for the reasons Angel thought. He had to break down soon and talk to Angel. He couldn’t hold back much longer.
*
Angel had a girlfriend now. Her name was Sarah, and she was on the track team with Sofia. Sofia liked her a lot, but most importantly, she owed Sarah for all the time she was getting with Eric now.
They walked back to the gym after practice. The football team was just coming off the field, as well, done with their practice. The guys usually met Sarah and Sofia halfway to the gym, but they were interrupted by a couple of giggling girls this time. Both Sofia and Sarah tensed when they saw the exchange. Only Angel kept walking toward them, without giving the girls the time of day.
Eric and Romero, however, stopped to chat. Romero obviously enjoyed the attention. He laughed about something. One of the girls leaned into Eric playfully and touched the curls on his head. The very curls Sofia had only begun running her fingers through in the past week during their time alone.
Eric smiled, glanced in Sofia’s direction, and she looked away. She felt her skin crawl. Too many times, she’d had to endure seeing him with girls. It was so unfair. With just about every guy in school well aware of her brothers, and recently even Romero and Eric stepping up the big brother act, Eric would never have to deal with seeing her with other guys.
She gulped hard, staring straight ahead. She hated this feeling, and lately it was getting worse. Every time she saw or overheard the guys talking about the things they’d done with girls, she wanted to scream. At the moment, she felt on the verge of tears.
Angel reached for Sarah’s hand as soon as he was close enough. He turned in her direction. “You tired, Sof?”
She nodded, unable to even speak. After changing, she and Sarah walked out to meet the guys. It had become routine for Angel and Sarah to drive to the beach and hang out for a few hours every day before he went home. But he always left it up to Sofia if she wanted him to take her home first, or if she wanted to jump in with Eric. This time, she climbed in Angel’s car before he even asked.
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Sofia knew Eric would wonder why, but she didn’t care. She was tired of their charade. Eric got to enjoy their moments and still play the single ready-to-mingle part, while Sofia lived on constant lock down. It was maddening.
The next day, Sofia managed to avoid Eric for most of the day, until the after-school pep rally. Forced to wait with Sarah during the rally, while the principal riled everyone up about the big game that night, she had no choice but to watch the guys around girls again. All the guys on the team wore their jerseys every Friday.
Eric was now as tall as her brother Angel, but the biggest difference was he had light brown curly hair versus Angel’s dark straight hair. He’d really filled out in the last couple of years. The jersey he wore made him look even bigger around the shoulders and he looked so damn cute it killed her.
She watched him from across the rally, where he stood with the rest of the team. When it was over, everyone spread out. The cheerleaders made spectacles of themselves around the players. Angel headed toward her and Sarah, while Romero and Eric, as usual, hung around with all the ogling cheerleaders. Romero lowered himself a bit, letting one of them jump on his back for a ride. He said something to Eric, who then did the same with another cheerleader. The girls laughed so loudly, Angel turned as he reached Sarah and laughed.
Sofia was incensed. It was all she could do to keep from crying. The jerk had seen her—knew she’d be watching, and still went ahead and let that girl on his back. She was done with their alone time. In fact, she was going to look into getting her license. She hadn’t wanted to before, because needing rides from Eric was the perfect excuse to be alone with him, but she was done. Maybe, if she had a car, she would finally get some real freedom.
That night at the game, she sat with Sarah, Sarah’s cousin Valerie, and one of Valerie’s friends. A group of boys she didn’t recognize sat near them. One of the boys smiled at her as he sat down. She smiled back. He was cute. Tall, not nearly as muscular as Eric, but then Eric worked out every day with the football team. This guy was obviously not a player since here he was watching.
The boy glanced over at her a few times before finally scooting his way closer.
“Hi, I’m James. What’s your name?”
“Sofia.” She smiled.
“You have real pretty eyes.” His sheepish smile made it easier to accept the compliment.
“Thanks.” She pulled a strand of hair away from her face.
She didn’t realize Valerie had been listening in until she asked. “You guys go here? I’ve never seen you.”
James shook his head. “Nah, I go to Lincoln. But this rivalry is so big—everyone wants to see this game.”
Valerie nodded. “Well, you sat on the right side.”
James laughed. He introduced the rest of his friends to the girls. He was by far the best looking of the bunch. Two of them were still in middle school.
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Sofia talked with James the whole game. After the game, James and his friends walked them back to the parking lot, where Angel’s car was parked. They always waited there until Angel and the guys were done showering and dressing.
She leaned against one of the cars parked near Angel’s. Sarah was standing on the driver side of Angel’s car, with the door open. She turned the radio on. When Sofia glanced at her, Sarah motioned for her to come over.
“I’ll be back,” Sofia said to James, and walked over to Sarah.
“What?”
“You’re making me nervous,” Sarah whispered.
“Why?”
Sarah chewed her lip and glanced at James. “You don’t think Angel’s gonna be
mad if he sees you hanging out with these guys?”
Sofia smiled. She’d thought of that, but lately Angel hadn’t been so bad. He wasn’t likely to make a scene like Alex would. “That’s Alex.”
She explained Angel wouldn’t be thrilled, but unlike Alex, he wouldn’t do anything unless the guys were disrespectful, and she assured her James wasn’t.
James had made his way over to where Sarah and Sofia stood. Everyone else followed. Sarah still seemed apprehensive. Sofia went back to talking to James. Valerie stuck her head in Angel’s car and turned the radio up a little more.
Sofia walked away from the group with James so she could hear him better. They were standing on the other side of the car very much alone when she glanced over and saw Angel, Romero and Eric approach the group by the car. Romero was the first to speak up. “What is this? A fucking party?”
Her heart thudded when she heard Eric ask what Sofia was doing over there. Both she and James turned to see him stalking toward them. He didn’t look happy.
“Is that your boyfriend or something?” James asked, sounding a little panicked.
“No,” she whispered.
James stood up a little taller, ready to face off with Eric. Sofia felt for him, but she had no way of warning him. Eric was just a few feet away. Unlike her brothers, Eric was usually the calm and more reasonable of the bunch, but his expression now was reminiscent of Alex.