Page 102 of Wrong For Me

I bite back a grin. “Have you ever heard of Eve Lidell?”

“The pop star? Yeah, I’ve heard of her.” He snorts. “Bodhi used to have a poster of her on his bedroom wall.”

I nod, holding his gaze, waiting for him to clue in. Realization dawns on his face and he sighs. “Your cousin’s girlfriend is Eve Lidell, isn’t she?”

I nod and he rolls his eyes. “Well, what’s one more insanely famous person in your life, right?”

Leo takes my free hand in his as we approach the apartment, helping to soothe my nerves. Until I open the door and hear a gaggle of voices, many more than just my roommates. “Shit,” I mutter, trying to turn back to the hallway. “Maybe this was a bad idea.”

“Rosie?” Everly calls from the living room. “That you?”

“We’ve got pizza, girl,” Alex yells. “I’m saving you some, but you should get your ass in here before your brothers eat the whole thing.”

Brothers. Plural. Great.

“Need some help with your bags—oh.” Will stops in his tracks. “I didn’t realize you were bringing a friend.” Of course, his eyes go straight to my hand, still clutched tightly in Leo’s.

“You brought a friend?” Everly sticks her head around Will’s shoulder, her eyes immediately going wide. “Oh. Um. Hello.”

I look up at Leo. “Last chance to back out,” I mutter.

He grins. “Not a chance, Miss Ransome.”

I take a deep breath. “Do you guys remember Leo? We met him at the festival in Lake Tahoe this summer.”

“I remember,” Will bites out, crossing his arms over his broad chest. With his burly frame, tattoos, and dark beard, he probably looks intimidating. But Leo merely holds out a hand.

“Nice to see you again. Will, right?”

My cousin ignores Leo’s offered hand and stares at me. I glare right back, silently informing him that he better mind his manners. After searching my gaze for a moment, he sighs and shakes Leo’s hand. “Wasn’t expecting to see you again,” he mutters.

“I told you Leo and I are working together,” I say, a warning bite to my tone. “He was at the conference this week, too. We spent some time together.”

“Holy shit,” Alex says, coming up behind Everly. “Rose are you holding hands with aboy?”

I roll my eyes. “Can I at least put my bag in my room before you all start acting like idiots?”

“What’s going on?”

I bite back a groan. River and Fox have joined our little party in the entryway, and it only takes them a second to turn suspicious glares on Leo.

“I wish someone would have told me we were having a party tonight,” I say through gritted teeth, glaring at Will.

He shrugs, eyes still locked on Leo. “We decided to get pizza and watch a movie. Didn’t knowyouwere bringing company.”

“Yeah,” River agrees. He’s standing shoulder to shoulder with Fox, both crossing their arms, wearing identical disapproving expressions that make them look so much like our dad I would laugh if I wasn’t so annoyed by the lot of them. “Didn’t know you were bringing company, Rose.”

I peek up at Leo, wondering what he must be thinking by the aggressiveness radiating from the guys and the unmasked curiosity from the girls. He meets my eyes and I see his lips twitch. Apparently, he’s amused by this. Or maybe he’s just amused by my obvious annoyance. I scowl at him, and his smirk grows.

“Why are we all in the entryway?” Eva asks, coming to peek around my cousins.

“Thank God,” I mutter. “Someone who isn’t a Ransome.”

She laughs. “Are you guys annoying Rose the second she walks in the door?”

“Of course they are,” I tell her. “It’s what they were born to do, apparently.” I gesture to her. “Leo, this is Eva, who is way too normal to be dating Will.” I nod my head towards my cousins. “I think you met Alex and Everly in Lake Tahoe. River, too. The other scowling string bean is my little brother Fox. Everyone, this is Leo Malone. And now we’re going to put my things in my room so you can all go back to your pizza.”

No one moves. I groan, looking up at Leo. “Should have gone to your place after all.”