Page 121 of Sunkissed Colorado
And how was I supposed to read the fact that Grayden hadn’t told Grace, either? Like he was somehow trying to save his little brother some face.
I hadn’t decided yet about talking to Grayden, but maybe it was time to get things out in the open.
As we drove toward home, I suggested a pit stop at SilverLinings. Z acted like I’d just proposed we streak naked down Main Street.
“Are you kidding? Piper will take one look at us and know exactly what we were doing all night.”
“So?”
She paused. “Right, maybe I don’t care if Piper knows. She’s cool. But Sunday mornings there are busy. We don’t need everyone else knowing our business.”
“Can I at least take you out later and hold you and kiss you on Main Street? So word gets out that I’m officially your guy?”
She fidgeted in her seat. “Tomorrow. We have to tell my grandpa first.”
I really wasn’t worried about Manny. Coworkers dated all the time. A boss and subordinate? That was a bit tougher. But I was confident we could sort it out.
What was Manny going to do, fire me for wanting to take care of his granddaughter and treat her like my personal queen? Nah. Wasn’t going to happen.
Zandra was mine. I was way up on cloud ten, and nothing was going to get me down.
The rest was just details.
When we got home, we snuck in, both of us giggling even though we were trying to stay quiet. I let her wear my ball cap over her hair, because I was a gentleman like that.
I started to follow her into the bathroom when she was going to clean up, and she said there was no way she was letting me shower with her. “You’ll tempt me into doing dirty things. I’m worn out enough as it is.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
While she was showering, I changed into some clean clothes so I was at least decent, and went out to the kitchen to find coffee and breakfast. After I had the coffeemaker going, Darius came out of his room, yawning and scratching his head.
“It was quiet last night,” Darius said, pouring himself a glass of orange juice. “Everybody was out.”
“Connor too?” I poured some coffee and handed it to him.
“Yeah. If you hadn’t been so obnoxiously obsessed with Zandra lately, you might’ve noticed Connor’s been dating someone new. We’re all pairing off.”
“Wait a minute, you too?”
“I’ve got prospects.” Darius sipped his coffee, leaning casually against the counter. “How’d things go last night?”
I felt a huge grin spread across my face as I answered. “The mission was a success.”
He whistled. “First girlfriend. Look who put on his big-boy pants.”
I flipped him off as I laughed. “I was just waiting for the right woman. And Z is it.”
“Here’s a scary thought though. This could be the end of an era. Zandra was willing to move in here, but now that you’re together? She’ll want more privacy. Same with Niko’s and Connor’s girls.”
“You think Z and I should get our own place?” I hadn’t even been thinking about our roommate situation before. I just knew I didn’t want Zandra to move out.
Would she want to get a place with just me? That seemed like a big step.
Darius shrugged. “I’m just saying, things are changing around here. You ready for that?”
The thought didn’t scare me. It might scare Zandra, because I’d had to pull her along at every step. First just admitting she didn’t hate me, then agreeing to be friends and then more. But I liked having her close. It didn’t have to be any more complicated than that.
“I’m not against it,” I said. “If I’m with Zandra, that’s all I need. I’ll miss you guys though if the band splits up. It’s been a blast.”
