Page 46 of Tasting Innocence
After we’reall cleaned up and mostly dressed back in his room, he asks, “Do you have to go home tonight?”
My giddy teenage heart skips a beat. “No, my parents think I’m with Scarlet, though they aren’t as strict with me now that I’m eighteen.”
“And now that Zo has his own place, he won’t be scouring the streets for you.”
“Exactly. Maybe he should’ve moved out sooner,” I joke.
“Nah, it was probably nice to have each other.”
“I guess he can be okay sometimes.”
“When he’s not stealing your boyfriends,” he jokes with a smirk.
I smack him in the chest. “Stop. We weren’t technically dating.”
“Right.”
I roll my eyes. “I could tell you seemed a little jealous at the cabins when you thought me and Ronan were together.”
He pulls back, his eyes wide. “What? I wasn’t acting jealous.” My lips pull into a grin as I stare at him. “Okay, maybe I didn’t love that he was there.”
I laugh. “I knew it.”
“So, that was crazy, right? I mean, I know you knew before I did, but not by long. Did you ever think Ronan was into Zo? I knew Zo had a hard-on for him, but didn’t think anything was gonna come of it.”
I turn onto my side and prop my head up with my hand. “I really had no idea. I mean, I was curious when Ronan didn’t make any moves on me, because guys don’t typically wait that long.” He makes a face and I laugh, reaching for his hand. “But no, I didn’t think he was into Renzo.”
“Me either, he played it pretty cool until I saw him sneaking out of Zo’s room,” he says with a snort. “Fucker really blackmailed me not to say anything about him since he knew about me kissing you the night before, and threatened to tell Renzo.”
I toss my head back with a laugh. “I had to tell someone!”
“I didn’t mean to freak you out,” he says, caressing the back of my hand with his thumb. “I wanted to talk about it that next day, but you were so good at keeping us off that topic, so I figured you were really disinterested.”
“No, I was just confused and conflicted.”
“Well, I’m glad everything worked out for everybody.”
My smile falters. “Well, not quite yet. We still have to talk to Renzo.”
“Right.”
“Considering he stole my boyfriend, he owes me one,” I joke.
Dex’s face conveys his concern and I can read the uncertainty in his eyes. Whatever Zo told his friends about not messing around with me must’ve really stuck with him, because he seems more worried about Zo’s reaction than I am.