Page 14 of The Mountain Man's Curvy Obsession

“This.” He points. “You two together.” There’s a long pause as he waits for us to understand what is apparently very obvious to him until finally he lets out a frustrated sigh. “I wasn’t about to let you leave, Eva. Remember?” More silence. Zephyr leans across the table and looks me directly in the eye. “Slade was giving you a hard time, trying to throw you out of the house that morning you made breakfast. And what did I offer to do?”

His point finally hits me, and I break into a smile. “You offered me a bed at your place.” Slade frowns, shaking his head in fake disgust. I bump my elbow against his. “Zephyr was being nice.”

“No. He was butting into my business where he doesn’t belong.”

“As a big brother should when he sees his little brother making the biggest mistake of his life.” Zephyr regally lifts his chin.

My husband raises his brows. “So you’re suggesting Eva and I are married because of you?”

“No, not completely. I can’t take all the credit.” Zephyr cracks up. “But I helped. Let’s just say I did my best to keep her on this mountain.”

I’m not convinced Zephyr had any idea Slade and I would fall in love again, but I remember crying, and how miserable I felt that morning, and how relieved I was when he gave me the option of crashing at his place. “You did help, Zephyr, and I thank you for it.”

He nods, giving a self-satisfied, “You’re welcome,” before taking another bite of his burger.

“Cool. I’ll help match you up too,” Slade comments, popping a strawberry in his mouth. He gives me a sly grin, and whispers, “In three, two …”

“No,” Zephyr states emphatically, and Slade throws his head back in a laugh.

“I knew you’d react that way. But seriously, big brother, you’re going to be fifty before you know it. Do you really want to live alone for the rest of your life?”

“Just because I refrain from telling the world who I’m seeing, doesn’t mean I don’t have company. Frequently.”

Slade waves him off. “I’m not talking about hookups; I'm talking about real companionship and being with a woman you’re crazy about.” He turns to me. “Someone who makes you as happy as Eva makes me.”

Zephyr’s expression softens. He looks off in the distance as if he’s genuinely considering the possibility of a lasting relationship. He shrugs. “I guess if I had some young, hot little blonde after me, and she was normal, and gave me my space, cooked for me and let me fu,”—he stops himself. “And was verylovingall the time. Who knows? Maybe I would settle down. You never know.”