21
Sitting at the dining room table with Zoë and Zandra, whom Zoë had talked into joining them for breakfast, Ethan was still thrown-off by how his day had begun. While Zandra didn’t eat, saying she had before leaving the house she shared with her brothers, she sipped from a mug of coffee and chatted pleasantly with Zoë. He could hardly believe they shared such a normal conversation after all that had occurred. Indeed, only the incident upstairs was more embarrassing to him than the one he’d endured in the kitchen a little while ago.
When he and Zoë had joined Zandra downstairs, the trio entered the kitchen and Ethan began to make breakfast as he’d promised. He’d completely forgotten about Zoë’s discarded clothing from the night before and watched in horror as Zoë had retrieved her shorts from the floor and slipped them on. She’d only been wearing the T-shirt he’d given her upstairs and, with her height, it had just barely covered her tantalizing parts. That wasn’t the bad part, as the true terror hit when she then examined her torn top as Zandra looked on in interest. He swore his dick had shriveled at the sight. His best friend’s little sister had, in short order, been subjected to the sight of him naked, then Zoë, and then saw the evidence of his and Zoë’s wild night together, one she now knew had started in the kitchen she would soon clean. It was enough to have him blushing again but the women hadn’t seemed affected by it at all, and were now chatting like old friends.
“I met your brothers at the bar last night,” Zoë informed Zandra.
“Oh yeah? They came in late last night and were still sleeping when I left, so they didn’t tell me. I bet you guys had a good night though.”
“It was fun. I like your brothers.”
“Did Boone put the moves on you?”
“Yep.”
“I thought he might have.”
“Wait, what?” he interrupted. The women looked to him and he frowned. “Boone hit on you last night?”
“It was nothing,” she replied with a dismissive wave of her hand. “He got a little handsy, I informed him I wasn’t interested, and that was it. It’s no big deal.”
“It is a big deal,” he shot back. “He knew I was interested in you.”
“Yeah, but you didn’t have me,” she countered. “And it’s not like we’re in a committed relationship or anything so don’t go all caveman over it. I dealt with it, it’s over.”
Boone had broken the guy-code as far as Ethan was concerned and it was a big deal. He had no business hitting on Zoë when Ethan had made his interest in her obvious. What the fuck had Boone been thinking? While normally it was Boone who set his sights on a woman, the pair had an understanding, one developed over years of friendship. If one of them was interested in a woman, she became off-limits to the other. It was simple, and it worked. He wasn’t sure what was running through Boone’s mind last night, but he certainly intended to have words with his friend when he saw him next.
“Rory seems really sweet,” Zoë said, drawing his attention back to the conversation, “I like him. Is he seeing anyone in town?”
“No, he’s a little shy.”
“Yeah, I saw that. He doesn’t seem to have Boone’s, well, um, boisterous nature.”
“No, he doesn’t. And Boone can come off as a little overbearing sometimes but he’s a pussycat at heart. I’m sure he didn’t mean anything by his flirting with you. He’s had his fair share of women but he’s a gentleman with them.”
“He’s had my share too, and probably Rory’s,” Ethan grumbled.
“Ha!” Zoë returned. “I bet you’ve had your fair share.” Unwilling to be pulled into a conversation about how many women he’d bedded, he remained silent as Zoë turned her attention back on Zandra. “How about you? Are you seeing anyone?”
He couldn’t help but tense as he wondered what Zandra’s reaction to that question would be like. Surprisingly, she didn’t seem off-put at all as she shook her head.
“No, I’m not.”
“Well, we’re planning on heading back to The Goose at some point. You should come along the next time. I mean, I had fun last night with the guys, I did, but I’d love to have you there. It’s not always easy being the only girl at a sausage fest.”
Zandra chuckled, but then her face fell. “Oh, um, I don’t really have anything to wear there. I, uh, I don’t go out much.”
Ethan knew the reason for her not going out wasn’t a lack of wardrobe but Zandra’s continuing trust issues with men. While he’d told Zoë of the assault on Zandra, he hadn’t told her of the aftermath and how Zandra had suffered. Now, he wished he had as he hoped Zoë didn’t push Zandra. For years after the rape, Zandra had been little more than a recluse. In fact, it had only been since moving to Bison Bluffs, upon Rory’s release from jail, that Zandra had begun venturing out on her own. It was a slow and painful process and he’d been proud of how far she’d come. However, healing came in baby steps and he feared Zoë, with her forceful nature, might try to push Zandra into taking a leap.
“That’s not a problem,” Zoë announced airily. “We could go shopping or you could borrow something of mine. We’re about the same size.”
“Sure then, that sounds great. I’d love to go. I haven’t been out in ages. I bet it’ll be fun.”
“It’s going to be a blast,” Zoë assured a smiling Zandra.
Clenching his jaw to prevent his mouth from falling open, he was amazed at what he’d witnessed. Boone and Rory had tried repeatedly to get Zandra to go to The Scruffy Goose with them and had failed. Zoë had just effortlessly accomplished the task. He marvelled at her ability to read Zandra and know just how to approach her. He’d inwardly cringed when Zoë hadn’t treated Zandra with kid-gloves as he’d expected after learning of Zandra’s past. If asked, he would’ve said such a tactic would have proved disastrous, but Zoë had just proven him wrong. Again. She was amazing, and he couldn’t help but wonder where her abilities originated. With even more questions about her, he had to solve the mystery of her, he needed answers. You promised not to delve into her background. Nope, he corrected himself, I promised not to push her for information. I never promised I wouldn’t investigate on my own. You’re splitting hairs, Collins, you know she meant for you to promise to keep your nose out of her business. That may well be, but he’d given her his word he wouldn’t push her. As far as he was concerned, he wasn’t going against his word and that’s all that mattered. While still uncertain how, he had to find out about her past and, despite his current irritation with Boone, he figured his friend had just the resources he needed.