Xia's POV:

It was evening time and I had just reached home. Adrian came back in today and spoke about his weekend went. Damn, I wish I could go to visit my parents too.

I had a shower and started picking out clothes to wear to the park nearby. Since I didn't work out much, I made it a point to walk or jog in the park so that I wouldn't have a flabby stomach from all that cupcake frosting.

Feeling a little homesick, I decided that it was probably a good time to call my parents. I picked up my phone and dialed my Mom's number.

"Hello ?" Her voice spoke through the phone.

"Hey Mom." I said, hoping she wouldn't realize that I haven't called her in almost three weeks.

"Hi, Peanut ! How are you ?" She almost shouted, using a nickname that I've always been called; ever since I was a child.

"I'm fine, Mom. How is Dad ?" I asked, letting go of my phone and tilting my head to the side so that my phone rested between my ear and shoulder.

"That old man is doing well. I think he's feeding Oscar." She laughed, referring to the golden retriever back home.

"Honey, are you going to visit soon ?" She asked, her voice hopeful.

"I'll try to, Mom. Soon." I said, feeling a little homesick.

"Don't worry. I understand that you're busy at the bakery. At least you try visit us every few months." Mom sighed, sensing the sadness in my voice. "Your brother barely comes to visit anymore. I'm gonna whoop his ass this Christmas dinner." She murmured the last part.

I laughed at her remark. There are two children in the family, including me. I have an older brother, sorry devil, named Damon.

Damon is older than me with being 31 years of age. He lives in Australia with his wife, Ava and two-year-old daughter, named Olivia. 

"You're not bothering her, are you ?" I heard Dad's voice through the background of the call. I hear my mother giggle and I smile at this.

"Are you sure you are okay, do you need anything?" She asks. "I'm fine, Mom. I'll call you if I need anything and say 'hi' to Dad from me."

"Hi Pumpkin!" His voice chimes through the speaker. "Sorry about your Mom. She tends to get just a tad bit worried about you sometimes."

"I know, I know." I smiled.

"I would love to talk to both of you for longer but I have to go." I said, looking at the window outside. It would get dark in the next two hours so I had to make sure that I left the house now. "I love you both. Bye."

"Love you too, sweetie." Dad said.

"Take care !" I head my Mom's voice.

"I will." I said, and disconnected the call.

About twenty minutes later, I had finished dressing up. I was wearing workout gear; consisting of a long-sleeved peach colored cropped top and matching leggings.

I didn't feel like dressing up much so I just tied my hair up into a ponytail and wore white joggers. Knowing that I would not need my phone, I tucked the keys to my apartment into small pocket that was stitched on the inside of my pants.

As I reached the park, I started jogging the perimeter of the park, enjoying the cool breeze as it flowed on my face. 

Suddenly, the sight of a small boy running around in the playground caught my eye; he lost his balance and fell to the ground.

Without wasting another moment, I ran up to the boy and helped him up, squatting to his level. "Are you alright, little guy ? Are you hurt anywhere ?"

The boy nodded his head 'no' and slowly looked up at me. To my surprise, I saw Nicolas; Antonio's nephew.

"Xia !" He exclaimed, recognizing me. "I missed you !"

Listening to his words brought a warmth in my heart. This boy met me only a few days back and we barely spoke to each other but still he missed me?

A worried voice broke my train of thoughts, "Nico, are you alright ?"

I looked up to see a devilishly handsome man. He was wearing a light blue dress shirt whose sleeves were rolled up to his elbows; the shirt neatly tucked into his navy blue chinos. 

I didn't fail to notice the inked out tattoos which peeked through the forearms of the sleeves, giving him a dangerous but mysterious look.

Since the the shirt fit his figure perfectly, I could easily tell that he had a lean and muscular physique. 

I took in his features; light stubble around his strong jaw that defined his jawline even more.

I looked up a little more and our eyes met. His eyes were a dark brown and looked as though they could pierce through you if you let your guard down near him. 

I've never been intimidated by a single glance before but the way he stood, showed power. There's something intriguing about him; some sort of aura.

His curly dark oak hair was disheveled a little, making the long strands brush over his eyes just a little bit. Overall, this man looked like he had been sculpted by God himself but also like someone you would not want to mess with.

"Dadda, I'm okay. Look at who I found !" Nicolas said, pointing to me.

Dadda ? So this had to be Antonio's brother. Now that I looked at his features closely, he did look like an older version of Antonio. 

Seeing that he was looking down at me, I stood up and only then did I realize how tall he was. He had to be about 6'2 or 6'3 compared to my 5'7 frame.

My cheeks heat up as I realize that I've been staring for too long and I think he knows it it too. I see his lips curve into a small smile, revealing his dimples.

He's too beautiful to be a human.

Since I knew that I had to speak now, I snapped myself out of my thoughts and introduced myself. "I'm Xia."

"I'm Ricardo." His baritone voice spoke and I sensed a slight accent but couldn't put my finger on which one it was. Maybe Mexican....I'm not too sure.

"So you're the one who makes his favorite cookies ?" He asks.

"Who are you referring to ? Antonio or Nicolas ?" I asked, a playful smile on my lips.

He chuckled. "Both."

"You wanna play with me ?" Nicolas asked, looking up at me.

"Of course I'd love to pla-" I didn't get to complete the rest of my sentence because the park was filled with shrill sounds of screams and the pulsing of a machine gun.

--------------------------