day before when you came to chase your daughter away."
"I don't know if that counts as actually meeting," I admitted as I offered my hand. "Elena, and I'm struggling a bit to keep up with all the new people."
"Understandable." His fingers took mine, sliding over them softly in an intentionally seductive grip. "I saw your daughter out there waiting for the bus, didn't I?"
"Yep. Her first day at a new school, and she wanted to make sure I didn't embarrass her."
He scoffed at that. "Kids. Trust me, she has nothing to be ashamed of," his eyes flicked down my body, "but she'll figure that out soon enough."
Which still didn't help me know what to do. "So, why are you here?" I asked, all but admitting I was confused.
He pointed toward the back. "Ian's running through a few things with Ash, then we're going to check on the contractors. Have another block of houses going up this month. Since I'm one of the few around here who speaks Spanish..." He let that trail off with a knowing smile.
I looked him over again. Pax was the kind of man who fit the tall, dark, and handsome description, but I wouldn't have guessed Hispanic. "You do?" I asked.
"Mother was Colombian," he explained. "White father. Grew up bilingual. You?"
"My parents immigrated from Mexico before I was born. Gabby's father is American." I paused, realizing how that could sound. "I mean, Latino, but his family's been here long enough that he's pretty mixed."
"Nah, I gotcha," he admitted. "Gut reaction is for people to assume American means white, am I right? But you don't need to worry about racism here. Promise."
I stepped back, overly aware that this conversation had just become a little uncomfortable. "So, I don't even know which desk is mine."
"The big one." He pointed at the monstrosity placed directly in front of the door. "That way, the first thing they see inside will match the view outside. Beautiful."
I couldn't be sure if this guy was a harmless flirt or if he just didn't have any idea about professional boundaries. Or maybe he didn't need to? Well, it didn't hurt to ask. "So you work for the Langdons too?"
"Wolf's Run," he corrected. "I mean, Henry's like an uncle to me - and to the rest of Ian's roommates too, just so you know. That doesn't mean I work for him. I work for Ian."
He made that distinction sound very important, but I couldn't understand why. "Doesn't Ian work for his father? Or did I miss something?"
His mouth opened, Pax paused, then he sighed. "Sorry. Nuances. Henry and Ashley run the business side of things. Ian and the four of us manage the day to day operations. Think of it like they manage the buildings and we herd the people. Community relations, of a sort."
"So, like a homeowners association?" I asked.
He rocked his head from side to side. "I could see how someone would make the correlation. Ian's the community liaison. I organize the subcontractors. Lane heads security. And then Seth and Trent deal with code violations and pitch in where we need it. They're the guys you call when our music is too loud."
"Gotcha." I flashed him a smile. "Just not on school nights, ok?"
"Elena," he said, leaning forward to rest his arms over his knees, "we're a little too old to be partying every night. I promise, we really are good people to live with."
He barely got the last word out before another door opened, distracting me from worrying about his use of "with." Mostly because I heard Ian and a sudden rush of embarrassment hit me. The last time we'd talked, I'd refused his offer of a date. There was no way this conversation wouldn't be a little tense.
A second later, he came down the hall beside Ashley, pointing at a paper held between them. She was nodding, but the moment they entered the front room with us, he stopped, lifting his eyes to mine.
"Good morning. Did Pax show you the coffee yet?" he asked, sounding like nothing but an old friend.
I shook my head. "No, but I didn't ask."
So his eyes turned to his roommate, who quickly pushed himself to his feet and held out his hand. "Cup? I'll make you some. Cream? Sugar?"
"No, that's fine. I brought some with me."
A subtle gesture from Ian let the guy relax, but I'd noticed it. It seemed everyone around here wanted to stay on his good side, which only made me even more