Page 5 of Light in Your Eyes (Romero Brothers #1)

Layla

I drag my suitcase, stepping out of the arrival gate. My eyes travel around the airport, and once I spot the sign with my full name on it—written in big, bold letters—I rush toward it.

The man carrying it greets me, "Layla Hayes?"

I nod, flashing him a smile. "Yes. Are you Mr. Andy Wilson's assistant?"

I was told that my client, Andy, would send his assistant to pick me up. I'm just glad that I can find him because I have no idea where to go.

The man greeting me is wearing shades, so I can't really see his face. But he seems young, probably only a few years older than me. He's dressed in a black jacket, jeans, and boots. He doesn't look formal.

"Welcome to Texas." He helps me carry my suitcase before I can decline his assistance, and I have no choice but to follow him toward the parking lot.

To say that I'm anxious would be an understatement.

I never thought that I would fly all the way here to work, but I knew that I wouldn't be able to pass on this opportunity with how much the client would pay me.

Nana and Archer were no doubt shocked when I told them I had to be in Texas early to settle my living arrangements before starting college at Texas Tech University. I said that the flat room I wanted to rent would be passed to someone else if I didn't come here today. They believed me.

When I step out of the building toward the parking lot, the sun is already setting. I wonder if I can sleep soundly tonight, knowing that I still have to adjust to the new place. I guess the tiredness will help—I barely got enough sleep last night because of rushing to pack my things.

A black limo pulls up in front of us, causing me to raise my eyebrows in question. To my surprise, the man carrying my suitcase opens the door for me.

It turns out that Andy Wilson is super rich. I didn't expect that I would be picked up in a limo.

After the man puts my suitcase inside the trunk, he gets into the car after me instead of taking the seat beside the driver.

The driver, who's wearing a formal suit—contrary to Andy's assistant—starts driving, and that's when the assistant presses a button on the armrest that pulls the partition down.

Maybe he wants to talk to me about something confidential, but that doesn't make me less alert because everything happening to me suddenly feels suspicious.

He takes off his sunglasses. "I'm sorry. I haven't introduced myself." He turns his head toward me, and I can see his dark blue eyes, which are in contrast with his blonde hair. A smile forms on his lips. "I'm Cole."

"Mr. Andy Wilson's assistant?" I question again.

Even though I know the answer, he didn't respond to that when I first saw him.

A sigh escapes from his mouth. "I am indeed your client's assistant, but I'm afraid that you'll be needing a lot more explanation."

My brows furrow. "What do you mean?"

He ignores my question, taking out his phone from his jacket pocket instead. While he's scrolling through his phone screen, I notice a tattoo on the inside of his wrist.

It's a tattoo of black wings, with red streaks. Although the tattoo is small, the wings have long, slotted feathers, each of which very detailed and well-crafted.

I’d never seen a tattoo so hypnotizing. It's scary that a tattoo can have such an impact on the person seeing it. The hair on the back of my neck suddenly stands, and I don't even know why. Cole has a dangerous aura I can't explain.

He seems to be reading a text from someone. "He just made the transfer of payment. You might want to check it."

With curiosity building up inside me, I take out my phone from my sling bag and notice a notification from my mobile banking. As soon as I open it, my eyes widen in shock.

The amount of money transferred to my bank account is beyond what I was told by the care agency.

It's way too much, I have to recheck the number of zeros I'm seeing.

With this money, not only I can pay all of Nana's debt for her medical bills but also the tuition fees for the most prestigious university in the country—even in the world.

I can even save it for Archer, for his future .

This is insane. My hand is shaking as I hold my phone.

"What?" I can't help but stutter.

It's not that I don't want the money—this solves all of my family's problems—but there must be a mistake. A huge one.

"The payment was made in full amount instead of every month," the man beside me continues speaking casually like it's no big deal. "He paid in advance for your one-year contract."

I snap my head toward him. My eyes are wide, and my chest is heaving up and down. "I'm sorry. There must be something wrong. I didn't apply for a job with this amount of payment."

"I know that this is a lot to take in, but unfortunately, Layla, he chose you."

"My client—"

"You won't be working for Andy Wilson," Cole interrupts. "You will be working for a very important person in our family, and when I say 'family', it means our organization. His name is Kellan Romero."

My heart almost stops because of this nonsense. Kellan Romero? I never heard of him.

"Well, I suggest you stop the car because this is definitely a huge misunderstanding," I say firmly even though my voice shakes at the end of my sentence.

I can't help it. I'm in a car with strangers, and someone just paid me a ridiculous amount of money I still don't know what for.

"I will return the money," I say, ignoring how my heart sinks at that statement.

Just when I thought I could help Nana and Archer, my hope was crushed.

"And you will accept it because this is not the job I signed up for. There must have been a miscommunication with the agency." I swallow. "Unless this is some kind of kidnaping."

Cole's expression instantly turns serious. "We are not kidnaping you, Layla. There's a lot to explain."

"Please do."

"This is indeed the job you were hired for," Cole says. "You signed up for live-in care, and I believe that the agency told you that your client lost his eyesight."

"Yes. I was informed of that."

"You will be working for Kellan," Cole says. "He's twenty. Blind since he was nine. He needs help."

Something stings inside me after hearing that the person lost his eyesight when he was only a child. He was too young when he experienced such tragedy.

While I'm digesting this information, I realize that the same fact was uttered about this client I'm supposed to work for. The agency indeed told me that he was only a year older than me.

"But why was it stated that his name was Andy Wilson?" I ask. "Does the agency know his real identity?"

Cole shakes his head. "Because of our working environment, we couldn't disclose it.

Such information about Kellan Romero being blind might be portrayed as a weakness that could be used against us by our competitor.

We prefer to keep things strictly confidential to outsiders.

We have a team that always makes sure of that through the administrative process. "

Cole's explanation only adds to my curiosity. If Kellan Romero and their organization are that important to where they can't even risk outsiders taking advantage of the classified information about his disability, why haven't I heard of him?

It's like I'm working for an under-protection family member of a military general with potential enemies, but the existence of that family itself is questionable.

Was it even legal what they did to the agency?

As though Cole can sense the burning question in my head, he adds, "You'll find out more about who we are and what we do when you arrive." He clears his throat, looking to the front. "Soon."

"Will I be involved in something illegal?" The question slips from my tongue.

Cole shakes his head again. "Nothing you will do can be categorized as illegal."

"I was told that I'll be helping a blind person, but the agency said that I would only get more details from you."

Cole nods. When his eyes find mine again, I notice how serious he is about this.

I swallow the nervousness rising in my throat.

Maybe I'm indeed going to do a very important job, and that's why they paid me really high.

I just wish they weren't so secretive about this at the beginning because it makes me question a lot of things.

"First, the person who hired you was not Kellan himself," Cole says.

His sentence startles me.

"Then who?" I echo.

"Jaxon Romero, Kellan's older brother. He's the one who hired you."

I nod. "So, he wants me to help his brother because he's blind. Did he have a helper before?"

Cole sighs, and I can hear a hint of desperation. "No. Surprisingly, you're going to be his first helper."

Cole closes his eyes and touches the creases of his eyebrows. He seems to be in deep thought all of a sudden. "I guess Jaxon finally realized that Kellan needed someone, especially while he was away."

"Away?"

"Jaxon is in Italy." Cole opens his eyes again. A look of determination crosses his expression. "He's been there for years. I was assigned to work with him, which is why I have to go back there as soon as possible."

I'm about to ask more questions when he continues speaking.

He faces me again. "Look, you have two tasks.

" Cole is studying me, as though he's trying to see if I'm the right person for it.

"First, while you're living in the house, you have to assist Kellan at all times.

And second, if he goes out, you have to accompany him.

He can't go out without you. He rarely does anyway, so you may think less about the second one.

Kellan prefers to spend most of his time in the house, no matter how suffocated he feels. "

"Can you tell me more about him?" I ask.

Sadness glints in Cole’s eyes. "Kellan has a painful past, and I don't think that he has recovered from that," he says. "He lost his eyesight in a car crash, in which his parents and little sister died. He was the only survivor of that accident, and he was still a little boy."