Page 10 of Wrapped in Red

I felt him let out a long sigh before he looked down again. “It would make sense you would date another driver. You can, like, share an RV or whatever.”

“Ez, are you jealous?” I tilted his head back up. “It’s okay if you are. I would be jealous if you had a boyfriend.”

His lips twisted. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“It sort of slipped my mind. We haven’t been seeing one another that long, and all I wanted to do was catch up with you. Besides, I don’t think it’s going anywhere. Noel’s nice, but we haven’t gotten past first base.”

Ezra giggled. “First base? What are you, eighty?”

“I haven’t even spoken to him since I got here, and that was a week ago. A few texts here and there, but that’s it.”

Ezra spun around to face me, wrapping his thin arms around my waist, leaning his head on my chest. “I’m sorry, CC. I know how you really want to settle down and get married.”

“Yeah,” I agreed. “Let’s go back inside and eat those cinnamon rolls before my father wakes up, because if we don’t, you know he’ll eat them all.”

Chapter Three

Ezra

While CC napped onand off on the couch, I happily watched the parade from the floor with my back against the sofa. I loved every single thing about the silly event. The balloons, the singing, the dancing. I watched it with stars and happiness in my eyes every year. I didn’t care how old I was. I would watch this thing until I was an old man.

“Ez.” CC nudged my shoulder gently with his hand. “Next year, I’m taking you to New York City to watch the parade in person.”

My head whipped around to stare at him. “You’re what?”

“You heard what I said.” He grinned at me with sleepy eyes.

I gaped at him. “Okay.”

I didn’t know what else to say. CC had always acted like he didn’t care about the parade like I did. Or Christmas, for that matter.

He patted the cushion in front of him. “Come here.”

I scrambled up onto the sofa with him without a second thought, and when he wrapped his arms around me, it felt like how it always did. Natural, perfect, right.

“Should we be doing this with your parents here? I mean, your mom might get mad because of Noel.” God, I sounded like such a bitch.