Call Me Maybe

Disclaimer: Not mine. Not the song that's stuck in my head, not the characters… just the hopping plot bunny I'm feeding carrots to…

Rated: M for language and potential naughtiness…?

A/N: Alright! So the general consensus was 'keep writing', so we are onto chapter four already. Thanks to all the reviewers! You make my day.

Chapter 4

"Oh, for the love of-"

Letty cursed under her breath and rifled through her dresser drawers for the second time, "Where the hell-? I really need to do laundry", she muttered under her breath and chanced another look towards the alarm clock on her dresser. "Ah! Found you, ya little bitch." Letty held up an olive-colored spaghetti strap tank triumphantly, happy it wasn't wrinkled, and threw it on the bed with a pair of jean shorts. She trotted to the bathroom to take a quick shower.

As she got dressed and finished getting ready, Letty considered the predicament she found herself in. Just how in the hell did she let Dominic Toretto talk her into coming to his house for a barbeque? She really wasn't a family-friendly type of girl. This might go over like a lead balloon. She was beginning to understand that Dominic Toretto could be very persuasive, and wasn't used to taking no for an answer. But then again, he hadn't met Letty Ortiz before.

Her favorite place to be was under the hood of a car… or a really hot man if he was worth her time – but that was beside the point. She shook off that last niggling thought and went back to the bathroom to dry her hair and do her makeup.

She had to leave in ten minutes or she would be late.

Letty grabbed her cell phone, keys, and wallet, slipping into tennis shoes before heading out the door.

When Dom had called her yesterday, he had offered to come pick her up. She had snorted indignantly, saying, 'I'll drive my own damn car, thank you very much. Just text me the address.'

She was starting to regret that decision now though, even though she had wanted to shatter any illusions that she would be brought home to meet 'the family' – or however the hell that was supposed to work. She had known her ex casually for years before they hooked up.

But now she would have to make an entrance, more or less on her own, and Letty was feeling a little out of her element. She scolded herself internally to stop acting like such a chicken shit.

Some fifteen minutes later, Letty pulled up to the correct house that matched the address that Dom had given her. She took a brief moment to brace herself and then got out of her car.

Letty was saved from having to knock because mere seconds after her car door was closed, a young woman stepped out onto the front porch.

The girl had a delicate but angular face, and Letty didn't think it would be wise to underestimate her. The girl appraised her discreetly, surprise crossing her face briefly before schooling her features and walking gingerly down the cement steps.

"Are you Letty?" she called.

Letty pushed her sunglasses up onto her head. "Guilty", she answered lightly.

"I'm Mia, Dom's sister", she gave a friendly smile. "Come in, if you dare. Although I doubt Dom gave you any fair warning about the men in our family." She rolled her eyes.

Letty raised an eyebrow. "Warning?" she questioned.

"They have no manners", Mia rolled her eyes.

"Is that different from any other guy on the planet?"

"True", Mia smirked. "Okay. Come on", she gestured to the front door. "Dom's on the grill out back."

Letty hummed her acknowledgement and followed Mia into the house. She took in the homey feel of the lower level of the house, trailing behind Mia into the kitchen and her ears picked up roughhousing coming from the backyard.

Mia opened the refrigerator and gestured to its contents. "Want a drink? Make yourself at home. We've got beer and water." Her eyes rolled briefly, and she grabbed two bottles of Corona. She twisted the cap off of one and passed it to Letty before opening her own and taking a drink.

Letty raised an eyebrow. "I don't look like someone who drinks water?"

"No", Mia grinned, shaking her head. "You really don't. Come on", she nodded at the door. "Dom heard your car pull up. He would have come out if he could trust the Three Stooges around the grill." The back door slammed open easily.

A guy with a short ponytail squeezed past Mia to get to the fridge, pausing only to drum playfully on the top of her head. "As one of the afore-mentioned Stooges, let me just say, we're all offended", he said lazily as he popped the lid off his bottle.

Mia buried a grin. Things had gotten lively when Leon and Jesse showed up two years ago. "Leon, Letty; Letty; Leon", she motioned mildly.

Letty tried not to smirk as the man blatantly checked her out before meeting her eyes, "Nice to meet you. Maybe Dom will shut up about you now that's he finally got you over here." He rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

Letty's mouth twitched. Well then… "It's like that then?" she laughed. "Nice to know I made an impression."

Mia snorted. "That's an understatement. But it was a good one, so don't worry about it."

Dom's voice rang out then as he shouted, "Get your asses out here and stop interrogating her already! Food's almost done."

Mia raised an eyebrow at Leon. "Did he send you inside to come get us?"

He shrugged. "I was gonna be subtle about it."

"Sure you were", she murmured dryly.

Letty laughed under her breath. "Does this happen often?"

"What? Dom being bossy and the following subterfuge? Nope, never", Mia said facetiously. "Come on. If we don't get out there, Vince will eat everything."

Letty followed them out the back door, the sizzling smell from the grill becoming even more prominent.

"See, Dom?" Leon called. "I got them!"

Mia coughed to hide her laughter.

"Sure you did, bro", another scruffy looking man rolled his eyes.

"Hey, there she is", Dom grinned when he saw Letty behind Mia. "I thought maybe my sister tied you up and tried to give you a make-over."

"Keep talking, Dom. I cook most of your food", Mia warned.

Dom checked the chicken on the grill one last time before closing the lid. "Almost done", he declared, ruffling Mia's hair playfully as he passed her to get to Letty. He slid an arm around the young woman's shoulders. "You made it just in time. So, you met my sister and Leon", he nodded. Then he gestured to the scruffy man with tattoos covering his arms, "That's Vince." And then he pointed to a blonde kid wearing a beanie who was sitting opposite Vince at the picnic table and sketching intently on a drawing pad, "And Jesse."

"Jess", Mia prompted quietly, taking a seat beside him. "Put that away for now. I think you're at a good stopping point. It's almost time to eat."

Jesse looked up abruptly. "What? Hey, who's that?"

"I'm Letty", she smiled slightly and slipped into a chair. "What're you working on?"

She heard Vince laugh quietly as Jesse's eyes lit up and he started rattling off graphics and specs. And she ignored the surprised looks when she made her own suggestions. Leon took a spot next to her and the car chatter began in earnest. Mia just watched the conversation ping-pong back and forth in wry amusement. She took a brief moment to peer at her brother who was watching the scene approvingly, and she spared him a wink. This would work out. She was certain of it.

He grinned back at her briefly, before reluctantly breaking up the pow-wow. "It's time to eat!"

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A/N: Part 2 will be in the next chapter. It wasn't as long as I thought it would be, but I thought this would be a good place to stop for tonight, and give you all something to read. Let me know what you think! I'm enjoying all the reviews. Thanks! Hopefully the start of this section works for you. The characters will all meet properly in the next chapter.