“Natalie.”
“Up here, ma’am.” He helped her up into the high back seat of three rows, assisting her with Emma’s booster seat, and only when he was sure everyone was in did he get back into the driver’s seat. I glanced at him when he fumbled the reverse out of the small drive, but he side-eyed me in his usual Simon way, so I didn’t ask. When we neared the arena Colorado was already outside, waving at us to stop, and clambering up to sit in the middle row with Maddie. He buckled up before twisting to talk to my sister, all of which I could see in the vanity mirror.
“Joseph’s sister!” he announced, and reached for her hand.
“Joseph’s boss,” she replied frostily, although she shook his hand.
Clearly, that went right over his head as he launched into chatting with Emma about emus. He only stopped when Maddie fussed and then he leaned over her and let her play with his hair which was loose around his face. What, with his growing beard, which it seemed was his good luck charm or something weird like that, he looked like a castaway on an island.
A sexy castaway.
“You got the van okay then?” Colorado asked.
“Clearly, as we’re sitting in it,” Simon replied, as dry as the Arizona desert.
“Whatever,” he replied and then twisted again to face my sister. “You can have it, if you like.”
Silence.
“Colorado—” Simon began.
“Hang on—” I said at the same time.
“We don’t need a van,” Natalie remarked loudly and yep, there were icicles hanging off each syllable.
“Okay then, no worries.” Colorado turned to face front in his seat, unfazed by the chaos he caused, and then went back to playing with Maddie.
By the time we reached the mansion I was convinced world war three was about to start. But when Simon muscled me out of the way to help Natalie out of the car and my independent sister thanked him softly and blushed, I wasn’t sure if it was going to be war or flirting that would win. Colorado took Maddie and I helped Emma out then we all headed into the house. There was no sign of Alchemy, but that was probably good because she was intense and kept commenting on my aura as if it was a real thing.
“My grandmother is staying here as well, but she’s taking a fasting and meditation day in the pool house so we might not see her until this evening,” Colorado explained as we entered the wide hallway, and Simon shut the door behind us. He crouched in front of Emma, pushing his hair back from his face, balancing Maddie, and I couldn’t look away from the bunching leg muscles, or the way his tracksuit bottoms molded his rear.
Okay, that was new.
I shook it off as Colorado chatted to Emma, who’d tucked herself behind my sister.
“Want to go swimming, Emma? Did you bring a suit?”
“Dunno,” Emma murmured, and my heart went out to her. I knew how I’d felt when I’d arrived in this huge place and met Colorado, overwhelmed, unsure, and—“Okay then,” she announced and unpeeled herself from Natalie, shocking the hell out of me. “But I gotta do sun stuff everywhere on my skin first. Mom, can you do that?”
Colorado stood and spoke to Simon next. “Did the guy say he’d be here—?”
“He’s here in ten—”
“And the toys?”
“Coming with him.”
“Excellent.” He turned to Natalie, “I didn’t know what Emma liked so I just told them she was five, and that I have a daughter that would be five one day and they should send over whatever, you can tell me if I got any of it wrong. Anyway, there’s floaties for the pool.” He ruffled Emma’s hair. “Yay!”
“Yay!” Emma agreed.
“So come on, guys, I’ll show you where you can all change and we’ll get swimming.”
“That baby can’t go in the pool,” she snapped and pointed an accusing finger at Colorado and then at Maddie.
“Of course Maddie can’t, not yet.” Colorado held Maddie up and then nosed her T-shirt out of the way to blow raspberries on her belly, grinning as she wriggled in his hold. “But soon.” He bounced his daughter, and chatted on about this and that until we reached the kitchen with the views over the property and beyond, and all I could do was trail behind. “So this is the kitchen, Fred and Anna are coming over to do the barbecue, and I want you all to have the best time.”
“So Joseph tells me you asked him to kiss you.”
“Nats, he didn’t—”
“It’s okay, Joe,” Colorado said, and raised his hand to stop me talking before facing my sister head on.
“His name is Joseph,” Natalie snapped.
“Sorry.” Colorado looked contrite, which was an expression I hadn’t seen on him before. I wasn’t sure it worked with Natalie though, as she wasn’t softening. I could see my job, the money, and worst my affection for Maddie and her father, disappearing before my eyes. “I did ask Joseph about a kiss, but I asked if he wanted to. I’m all about consent.”
Point to Colorado.
But Natalie wasn’t backing down. “And what if my little brother had said no? Huh? Would you have fired him and thrown him out?”
Natalie crossed her arms over her chest and I groaned. She was going to lose me a job, and the last thing I wanted was to lose the chance at earning money. And worse, be separated from Maddie or Colorado.
“He’s the very best thing for my daughter right now, so no, if we had acted on our mutual attraction but he’d wanted to step back then I would have accepted his decision because I’m a man who respects my fellow man. He is a wonderful manny, and Maddie loves him, and why would I want to take someone so perfect out of her life, or indeed mine?”
Wow, that was some speech, and I swiveled my gaze to Natalie. She wasn’t snapping at him immediately, so
