4 Chapter 4

“Well…”

“No, that’s later,” Mahiro says and winks as he leads him through a wide-open kitchen with an entire wall of windows on one side and a French door set into the center. Alex trips over the area rug as he walks through. Smooth, Breschi. Fucking hell.

Mahiro steadies him with a hand on his arm. “I was just kidding, Alex. You can relax, you know. We’re just going to talk today. There’s a whole lot we need to go over first.”

Talk. Yes. Alex can certainly do that, and takes a seat on the wicker sofa Mahiro directs him to on his small back patio. He’s got a pitcher of what looks like strawberry lemonade and snacks set out, and a rather intimidating-looking stack of paper sits in a neat pile right next to it. Alex’s hands curl over his knees. He’s not even sure what to do next.