Page 109 of Sunkissed Colorado
“Callum.” She laughed as I kept kissing her, rolling her onto her back again. Then she surrendered to the kiss, pulling at my clothes.
In the past, the thought of being someone’s boyfriend had been a foreign concept. But it was like I’d just been waiting around for Zandra to get here. If being her boyfriend meant spending time with her every day, her in my bed every night,andthe rest of the world knowing what she meant to me, then sign me up.
While I had a competitive streak, I’d never been the type to obsess over the outcome of every little game. I still sucked at playing backgammon with Manny. But being victorious wasn’t always the point.
When it came to Zandra, though, winning and losing meanteverything. But it wasn’t about competing for the job anymore.
It was about winningher.
I spotted Dane’s fancy-ass SUV as we drove up to the brewery, which meant my sister was already here. I wanted tonight to go exactly right, and having people arrive on time was a decent start.
I was maybe atadbit nervous. Where was that overconfidence Zandra liked to complain about?
“Are we getting out?” she asked. “Or is this like a drive-in brewery? Can’t imagine that’s legal.”
“Your jokes are almost as cute as your scowls,” I said.
“I haven’t scowled once today.”
I pretended to study her. “I know. It’s slightly unnerving.”
“I’ve been making an effort. Don’t want to be all grumpy in front of your family, and then they don’t like me. I mean, it’s probably not that important that they like me, but?—”
Fuck, it was adorable when she rambled. Was she nervous too? I loved that.
I reached over and touched her hand. “It’s very important. But theywilllike you, I promise. You’re extremely likable.”
“Have you met me?”
Laughing, I parked the truck.
There’d been something new in our interactions since she’d said yes to this outing yesterday. Like we were both dancing around each other, feeling this sense of anticipation. I wanted tonight to be perfect for her. Forus.
“So here’s the deal about my family,” I said, turning to face her. “They do well with grumpiness. Ashford is impossible most of the time, but he means well. His wife Emma softened him up a lot. They’ll probably have my niece Maisie with them.”
“I can’t wait to meet her.”
“Maisie’s going to love you.” A warm feeling spread through my chest. “Ollie too. Piper will be here with him, and Ollie-dude is nine years old and already a fan of any pretty girl. Then there’s Grace and Dane. My sister can seem quiet at times, but don’t let that fool you. Once you get her going, she won’t shut up. Trust me. And Dane—you never know what’s going to come out of his mouth. But it’s probably going to be something about how incredible Grace is.”
“That’s sweet.”
“Theoretically.”
“Never knowing what’s going to come out of his mouth.” She tapped her chin. “How can you stand that? He’s like, yourexact opposite.”
“Ha, ha. He kind of is. He’s a billionaire business owner and I’m…me.” I gestured at myself.
She smoothed a hand down my shirt. “Right. Just a guy everyone adores, who volunteers his time to fight fires and who served his country, who does kind things for people without them even asking. And he’s also far smarter than he gives himself credit for. As smart as anyone I went to business school with, even without any expensive degrees. Not impressive at all.”
I shrugged nonchalantly. “Feel free to talk about me as much as Dane talks about Grace.”
She got an odd look on her face. “Do they know about us, though?”
“I haven’t told any of them specifically. But is it a bad thing if they know about us?” Without letting her answer, I jumped out of the truck, rounding it to open her door. “Let’s go. We need to scope out the beer menu.”
But as I stood there, waiting for her to jump out, she glared at me.
“Callum, I told myself I wouldn’t make a big deal out of this, because we’re meeting with my grandpa on Monday anyway, but now you’re talking like this is… And it’s starting to freak me out, not knowing…”
