Page 65 of Sunkissed Colorado

“It would’ve been, if he’d stuck around.” I kept my tone nonchalant, but I saw her eyes widen.

“He left?”

“About six months after Mom died. He hadn’t been around that much before, but after, he was definitely finished with us.”

“I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”

I smiled, wanting to ease the concern in her eyes. “It’s all right. That’s why I’m so close with Ashford and Grace. Same with Teller Landry and his sister Piper. They lived across the street from us.”

“What about your oldest brother?”

I felt my jaw tighten involuntarily at her mention of Grayden. “That’s a really long story, and not as fun.”

She kept her eyes on her food, but her next words were full of understanding. “We don’t have to only talk about fun things. You’ve listened to me about Jessa and my parents. All my failures in Chicago.”

“True.” But there were some things about my history with Grayden that even Ashford and Grace didn’t know. I didn’t want to get into it with Z. Not because I didn’t trust her, but because dwelling on bad shit wasn’t my style. What was thepoint? “I assume being an only child means you have less sibling drama.”

She laughed, but it sounded hollow. “My parents make up for it. They always wanted me to work for their company, but on their terms, not mine. Maybe that’s why I wanted to be a business major. To make them proud. Prove I could do it on my own. I guess that backfired in several ways, because it turned out they liked Ian a lot more than they’ve ever liked me.” She took a sip of wine.

“Good thing you’ve got Aunt Rosie, and she’s worth ten of anyone else.”

That brought a real smile to her lips. “Living with her and Jimmy isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Though I feel like I’m imposing.”

“We do have that spare room,” I said before I could stop myself. The thought of having her sleeping right next door to me was so tempting it was dangerous.

“I couldn’t handle living with you.”

We held gazes across the table, the air between us charged in a way that had nothing to do with the wine. The moment stretched until the laundry machine buzzed.

“Time for the dryer.” I started to get up, but Zandra was already on her feet.

“I can do it,” she insisted.

“You don’t need me to push the buttons?”

She pressed her lips together. “Somehow I’ll figure it out.”

I pointed toward the hallway. “Laundry room’s that way.” But when she got up, I caught her by the wrist, my thumb pressing to her pulse point, feeling how rapidly it was thrumming. “For what it’s worth, your parents and Ian are idiots for not seeing what was right in front of them. You’re brilliant.”

“You don’t have to say that.”

“I’m just stating what’s obvious to me. Even back in high school, I could see it. You’re somebody special.”

Her gaze dropped. “So are you,” she murmured. Zandra wasso tough all the time that when she let up, damn, it did things to me.

Once she was down the hall, I exhaled, glancing at the ceiling.

“Fuuuck,” I whispered.

While she was gone, I put the dishes in the sink. Cut pieces of brownie and scooped oat milk ice cream from the carton I’d bought. All the while lecturing myself about what wasnotgoing to happen. If I kissed her, it could screw a lot of things up.

But it could still be worth it, a very dumb part of me said. The devil in my pants.

“Ice cream too?” she asked, joining me in the kitchen. “I’m going to gain a million pounds around you. Especially if any of this ends up on the Hearthstone menu.”

“I’m sure it’ll look great on you. Like everything else does.”

“Stop flirting, Callum.” But her words lacked their usual bite.