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He nodded. “Sort of. I was thinking about Browning.”
“Oh, his name rings a bell. I’ve seen a few emails from him asking about updates.”
“Browning is my mentor. He’s been with Whitley Biotech for about twenty years and knows the business forward and backward.”
“He worked with your dad too?”
“Yes, but he was actually a good friend of Mom’s. After everything went downhill, he was sort of like a father figure to me. I can’t wait to introduce you to him, although he’s rarely at the office these days.”
“I can’t wait to meet him, whenever that may be.”
I was thrilled that he wanted me to meet his mentor.
A few minutes later, we reached the Cascade. It was beautiful, but I couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed. I’d hoped this would have taken us longer. Maybe there were more trails around here we could take.
Colton stood behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist as we watched the waterfall. There were quite a few hikers around us, and more were arriving. But we were nestled in a nook among the greenery, shielded a bit from view.
"Thanks for bringing me out here,” I murmured.
“Thought you might like it because you said you enjoyed going camping with your parents.”
“Thanks for listening to what I say.”
"How could I not?"
I laughed softly. "I don't think I've ever dated someone who took what I said seriously.”
Colton turned me around. "What do you mean?"
"My last ex seemed to think I was a piece of decor or something. No matter how many times I suggested we do stuff and even offered to arrange it, he never had time. Honestly, I don’t think he liked being around me that much."
"Why were you even with him?" he asked.
"I thought... I don’t know, that relationships are supposed to be worked on. After the guy with the whole Tinder thing I dated someone who forgot about my birthday."
"What the hell?"
"We hadn't been dating for long, but still. It made me feel like I was the last thing on his mind, and I have too much self-respect for that. He admitted I wasn’t a priority for him."
I pasted a huge smile on my face.
"And that doesn't bother you?" Colton seemed perplexed.
"Of course it does. I just don't like to admit it, or dwell on it."
"Zoey, it's fine to be bothered by things and have expectations of people."
I frowned. "You think I don't have expectations?”
“Am I wrong?"
I frowned, considering this, then wrapped my hands around the back of his neck even though there were plenty of people around us. I wanted to be close to him, and I couldn't care less. I wasn’t into PDA, but right now, I wanted the world to know I was with this man.
"I don't know. I'm always thinking that if I don't expect a lot from people, they can't disappoint me. Maybe that's why I never expected much of my relationships."
He nodded, threading his fingers through my hair. He really seemed to love doing that.
"I wouldn't know. The last relationship I had was years ago. I don't even remember how it ended."
