Page 6 of Chloé

Proud of himself, Zayne settled back in his seat. They’d come a long way since that first awkward dinner at the estate. Largely because all of the men in Chloé’s life loved her and wanted to make an effort to at least try to get along.

Some of them were better at it than others. But hey, at least they were all willing, and as they drove across town toward Wicker Park, a comfortable silence settled between them.

“So,” Priest said as they came to a stop several minutes later. “Have you and Ethan discussed how a move like this is going to impact your lives on a day-to-day basis?”

Okay, so much for comfortable. “Uh, yeah. I mean, we know things are going to change, but I’m sure it’ll all be fine.”

Priest tapped his finger on the steering wheel. “You think so, do you?”

Well, he had untilnow.

“Yeah. Chloé’s great, and we’re pretty easygoing—for the most part. I’m sure we’ll find our groove.”

“Uh huh.” Priest glanced over at him. “You have met my daughter, right?”

“Yeah…”

“I don’t think ‘easygoing’ is quite the adjective I’d use to describe Chloé. After all, she grew up with aprincesseand truly believes—”

“That she’s one too?”

Priest’s lips twitched. “As she should. Are you two sure you can handle that?”

“I think so?”

“Mhmm.” The light turned green, and Priest started down the main road. “Well, it’s sure going to be fun watching you try.”

Feeling a littlelesscomfortable now, Zayne kept his smile to himself and contemplated Priest’s words. The man always had to get the last one in, and damn if it wasn’t usually something that made you check yourself.

They made several more turns and finally headed down the street the Thornton-Priestleys lived on. Priest pulled up, backed into the drive, and honked the horn several times. Then he turned to Zayne.

“Well, what are you waiting for? If you don’t hurry up, your princess’s carriage will turn back into a pumpkin.”

Zayne opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, Priest shoved open the door and headed up the front steps, his deep chuckle mocking him.

Zayne quickly followed, making his way inside and up the stairs. When he reached the main floor, he noticed Priest had vanished as Chloé came out of the kitchen with a bottle of water and a grin on her beautiful face.

She was wearing a pair of cute denim shorts that were cut so short it should be illegal, and across her purple shirt readHigh maintenance. But I’m worth it.

Yeah, Priest knew his daughter well. But still, Zayne wasn’t worried. He and Ethan had this…right?

“Hey you.” Chloé sidled up to him and wound her arms around his neck.

“Hey yourself.” Zayne tugged her in nice and tight. “Get your packing done?”

“Just about. It’s much easier to pack one room as opposed to a whole house.”

“I imagine so.” Zayne lowered his head and took her sweet lips in a quick kiss, more than aware they were standing in her fathers’ living room. “Are you ready for us to start taking it downstairs?”

“Yep.” She took his hand, guiding him up the hall into her childhood bedroom.

This wasn’t the first time he’d been to her fathers’ home. He and Ethan had been invited to family pasta night a couple of times now. Apparently, it was a tradition that happened every week. But so far, there’d been one person suspiciously missing each time—Justin, Chloé’s brother.

She told them not to take it personally, but they’d noticed the hurt in her eyes every time he was a no-show, and they couldn’t help but wonder if Chloé’s brother was going to be the biggest hurdle of all.

“The muscle has returned,” Chloé singsonged as she all but skipped into her room, and when Zayne stepped in behind her, his eyes widened.

The place looked like a bomb had hit it. There were clothes everywhere, shoes thrown all over the place, and in amongst all of that, Chloé’s cousin Shayla sat cross-legged on the ground, her eyes running up his denim-clad legs and black t-shirt.

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