Chapter 7
Naomi has to force herself off the couch to get ready for her “date.” Not that she’s worried about it; dating is like networking in a way. She just doesn’t want to stop researching, already engrossed in the mystery of it all, more so than any story she’s worked on—possibly ever.
It’s only when she reminds herself that Leo could have crucial insider info that she gets up and prepares for the usual: A night of polite small talk and a series of leading questions to get to the information she’s after.
But when she lays eyes on him, waiting patiently outside the entrance of Ribalta’s Pizzeria, she finds herself pleasantly surprised—and uncharacteristically nervous.
Naomi expected Leo to be good-looking based on what Amelia said, but he’s giving a new meaning to the phrase tall, dark, and handsome.
His hair is cut short and neat, accentuating his strong jawline, and he’s dressed in a pair of dark faded jeans and a black V-neck tee that looks like it’s about to rip open if he flexes his muscles. She can’t look away.
“Naomi?” he asks, tilting his head to the side as she approaches. His eyes are warm brown, like honey.
“That’s me,” Naomi waves. “Leo?”
“That’s me,” he says, returning her line as he leans in to greet her with a kiss on the cheek. “It’s so nice to meet you. You look beautiful.”
“Thanks.” She blushes, unable to remember the last time someone told her that. Even if it was just a line, he managed to make it sound genuine.
You’re here for work, she reminds herself, trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach. He’s a source.
Not that it’s stopped her before…
“Well, shall we?” Leo gestures inside. “Can’t disappoint Amelia for setting this up.”
“We definitely can’t. She’s probably watching us now, actually,” Naomi jokes, looking around.
“You’re probably right. We’ll have to keep an eye out for a couple in hats and sunglasses.”
Naomi laughs and follows Leo inside.
“Name, please?” asks a hostess with a long blonde braid.
“Leo Valencia, table for two.”
“Sure, right this way.” The hostess grabs two menus and guides them to a table in the back of the restaurant under a softly lit, neon-red sign that showcases the restaurant’s name.
It’s surrounded by couples and groups of friends laughing as they chew their food, some with cheese dripping from their mouths.
She can tell by their reactions and the heavenly scent of fresh garlic, basil, and dough that it’s as good as it looks.
“Amelia tells me you live in LA now, so I figured you could go for some real pizza.” Leo pulls out her seat before taking his.
“You were one hundred percent correct,” Naomi smiles. “It’s probably the thing I miss most about New York.”
“What’s LA like then? You like it there?”
“It’s alright. Aside from the terrible pizza. Can’t complain about the weather, at least.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, why’d you move?”
Naomi tenses at the question, not wanting to get into the details. “Just needed a change of scenery, I guess. And the company I work for has a West Coast office, so it was an easy escape.”
“An escape. I feel you. New York can be… a lot.”
“Have you lived here your whole life?” Naomi asks.
He nods. “Mmhmm. I love traveling but still can’t imagine myself anywhere but New York. It’s home, you know. You from here originally?”
“Upstate a little bit, near Poughkeepsie. But I moved down here for college, so this was home for about nine years.”
“Where do you work? Amelia said you’re a reporter…”
“Sorry, is this an interrogation? Did I miss the memo?” Naomi jokes.
Leo smiles sheepishly, deep-set dimples now on full display. “Sorry, sorry, I ask a lot of questions when I’m nervous.”
“Oh, so you’re nervous?” Naomi retorts, smirking.
He bites his lip and shrugs. She holds his gaze.
“I work for C*Leb News…”
“Oh shit, I know that one.” He eyes her suspiciously now, like most people do when they find out.
“It’s fun, I like it.”
They both look up as the waitress comes over to take their order.
“Water and a Merlot, please,” Naomi says.
“Should we get a bottle? Dinner’s on me if that’s alright with you?”
Naomi likes how he asked. “Fine, but I’ll get the next one.”
Leo smiles before turning back to the waitress, his left dimple facing Naomi. “Can we actually do the 2015 Cabernet from Napa? And I’ll have a water as well. Oh, and some garlic knots too, please.”
“Uh oh, do we have a wine snob on our hands?” Naomi teases.
“Hey, in this crazy world, you need to learn to enjoy life’s little pleasures. Like food and good wine…”
And sex, Naomi wants to add, but stops herself. She shifts in her chair, sitting up straight. “So Amelia tells me you’re in the NYPD? How’s that going?”
He tilts his head. “It has its good and bad moments. Not easy being a cop in New York, as you can imagine. Most people hate us…”
“Should’ve been a firefighter,” Naomi jokes. Her face turns red as she thinks about Marcus, the fireman she was hooking up with in LA.
“I know, right,” Leo snorts. “Anyway, I’m hoping I can be one of the good guys. Make a difference, especially in communities like the one I grew up in.”
“Where did you grow up?”
“In the Bronx. My parents moved here from Ecuador, hoping to give me and my brother a better life. So we both try to do our best to make their sacrifice worth it. Make them proud.”
Naomi’s heart sinks at his answer, thinking how she doesn’t have any parents to make proud.
Sure, her dad is out there somewhere, but she wouldn’t even recognize him if he was sitting next to her.
And her mom is dead. Even though Naomi had a complicated relationship with her mother and resented her for things, she still loves and misses her.
Like Faye used to annoyingly say, “Mom’s like a wild horse among wildflowers.
She can’t be tamed.” Seeing her through Faye’s perspective helps Naomi remember the good times, though.
And she knows her mom would’ve been proud of her, would’ve been asking her for all the updates on the Harlow case, no doubt.
But Faye dying would’ve killed her if she hadn’t died first. So it was no use wishing she was still around.
“And how about you, what’s it like being an entertainment reporter?” Leo asks.
Naomi shakes her head before answering. A physical attempt to get rid of the depressing thoughts before refocusing on her date. “It’s good. Sometimes depressing because, well, Hollywood can be pretty fucking toxic. But I’m working on something really interesting at the moment.”
“Oh yeah?”
Naomi clears her throat, trying to ignore the guilt she feels knowing she only agreed to this date to get information from Leo. She’s surprised how much she’s enjoying herself, enjoying his company, but work is work and that’s what she’s ultimately in New York for. So she segues into it.
“I’m actually here to cover the Harlow Hayes case… Amelia told me she thinks the victim is Colton Scott. Can you believe that?”
Leo shifts suspiciously in his seat.
“You know something, don’t you?” Naomi leans forward, eyeing him. “What is it?”
He sighs, narrowing his eyes at her as he finishes chewing a garlic knot the waitress has just set down.
“I’ll tell you on one condition…”
“Name it.”
He leans back and smirks. His amber eyes gazing into hers. “You let me take you out on another date…”
Naomi raises her eyebrows, impressed by his boldness. “We’ve barely been here thirty minutes.” She throws a hand out. “But, fine, it’s a deal… IF your intel is interesting enough,” she smirks, crossing her arms.
A warm excitement courses through her as she holds his gaze, unsure if it’s from the rising sexual tension between them or the imminent prospect of a lead.
Leo holds his hand out across the table, the corners of his lips tugging in a smile. A jolt of electricity runs through Naomi as she shakes his hand. “Deal.”
“So,” he says, leaning forward. “You didn’t hear this from me, okay? But Amelia might be on to something. We responded to a call at Colton’s penthouse last week. I only know because one of the guys said, ‘Mr. America needs the help of the NYPD,’ or some shitty joke like that.”
“So it really is Colton,” Naomi whispers.
He shrugs. “I don’t know for sure. But what I think you’ll find most interesting is the other thing I overheard…”
Naomi cocks her head to the side.
“Well, when I was over at the courthouse on duty earlier, I heard one of the DAs talking to his boss about Harlow’s victims…”
Naomi frowns, looking down at the table and then back up at Leo, blinking as she catches on.
“Wait… did you say ‘victims’?”