Page 65 of Tinsel in Telluride

Three tense minutes pass before the handle to the bathroom jiggles, and Luca appears with Zach in his arms.

I expect shock and horror to be etched on his face, but both my boys are all smiles.

My stomach flips, then tightens.

Nope. Not my boys.

Geez. A single one-sided conversation with Luca about what he wants us to be and I’m already considering him mine. Don’t get me wrong, it’s all I’ve thought about all day. Him and me. Me and him. It’s more complicated than a trigonometry equation. But every time his big blue eyes lingered just a fraction of a second too long in my direction, traitorous butterflies took flight in my stomach, and I definitely took notice.

Something has shifted between us in my mind, and I’m not sure I like it.

Maybe Indie was right, and I just need to fuck him.

It’s not productive or a good idea, but maybe if I get him out of my system, I can think about everything objectively.

I swallow hard, forcing the thought from my mind.“All clean?”

“Yup.” Luca pops the P at the end, as he lowers a squirming Zach to his feet.

“Hote?” Zach asks, pointing to where Holt and Enzo linger for a chance with the pretty redhead behind the counter,pretending to check out the selection of Christmas treats.

Freaking men.

In New York or Telluride, they’re all the same.

“You can go to Holt,” I say, watching as he quickly takes off and crosses the small shop. I wait until Holt has his hand and looks over at me, nodding a confirmation that he has him.

When I turn back, Luca’s watching me with a glimmer of a smile. “You trust my friends.”

I tilt my head to the side, hiding the instant panic that grips my chest. “Should I not?”

“No, it’s not that. I just—” He rakes a hand through his side-swept hair and squeezes the nape of his neck, a sheepish twinkle in his eyes. “It means a lot to me that you’d trust them. They’re my family.”

It takes me by surprise. Not only because he’s right—I do trust them—but also because it’s a slightly foreign concept for me. Sure, I trust my girls back home, and my neighbor Cynthia, who has become a surrogate grandmother to Zach. And then there are the guys on the Renegades. But those relationships took time and a lot of therapy on my part to foster. The Bucket List Boys—they came in like a wrecking ball. From the very moment I arrived, they demanded my attention. My trust. Over and over again, they’ve put my heart at ease, taking care of my son like he was already one of them. With them, it’s just been…easy.

If only it could be that easy with Luca.

“They’re good to Zach,” I admit.

“And you,” Luca adds the part I kept silent.

“And me,” I echo.

Because they have been good to me. A silent force showing me, despite my reluctance, there are people out there outside the family I’ve created who can care about Zach and me.

I’m still reluctant to believe it’s forever, but they’ve made cracks in my walls, and I fear I’ll absolutely miss them whenwe’re back in New York. Because even though they claim they aren’t going anywhere, we are. Home.

Fuck.

Why does this all have to be so complicated?

“What’s going on in that head of yours?” Luca asks as he reaches up and tucks a stray piece of hair behind my ear. His hand lingers on my cheek for a moment, his fingers rough. It’s innocent but feels intimate, and I restrain myself from leaning into his touch.

“I—” I pause, not ready to talk about the revelations of the day. So instead, before better sense takes hold, I blurt out the one thing we’ve yet to talk about. “What about your real family?”

He drops his hand, his face hardening into a scowl. “What about them?”

“Why are you here instead of there?”

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