Chapter Eleven
Honor knew Griff was awake beside her, though he didn’t speak.
She was loath to break the silence. It felt good to lie next to him with his arms around her.
She could pretend this was her new normal, that they belonged together.
Even if it was only for the moment. She had no idea how to casually mention staying in Legacy for a while and was afraid of how badly it would devastate her if he wasn’t interested.
The last two days had been hell. Her dad had been determined to cart her back with him to whatever his location was.
She’d had to remind him he’d fired her and told her to go have a “normal” life.
His glance had bounced between her and Griff, and the next thing she’d known, he’d been grilling Griff.
Luckily, Griff had taken it all in stride. He didn’t seem surprised by the questions. The moment her dad had agreed to leave without her. she’d known he approved of Griff. Otherwise, she’d be waking in a much different bed right now. Alone.
“Stace and Shep won’t be back until after the weekend. They called Jack and said they were staying another week with Chloe. He didn’t mention you or anything that happened here.” Griff’s lips brushed over the top of her head where it rested on his chest.
“She’ll be pissed later, but she has enough to deal with, right now. I hope Chloe is okay. Maybe, they’ll bring her back here with them.”
“I think Stace had plans along those lines. But Chloe seems to think she has to handle this on her own and feels as if she’s failing. She’s a tough girl, though,” Griff said.
“She is.” Honor cleared her throat. “Maybe, I should stick around until she gets back. See if there’s anything I can do to help.”
He tensed under her, and her heart started to break. He didn’t want her to stay. Pride had the next words spilling out.
“There are plenty of places I can stay while I’m in town. I can move into another place here, or I’m sure it would be safe to go back to a hotel.”
“Don’t.” One word and it was more vicious than a jagged blade to her heart. She would not fucking cry.
“Sorry.” She struggled to pull away from him, but his grip tightened. “Let go, Griff. If you don’t want me here, I’ll pack up and head out now. It’s been real. Thanks for a fucking good time.” She brayed out a harsh laugh at the double meaning.
“What the hell are you talking about? And don’t demean us that way.”
“There is no us, asshole. We had fun. Did you think I couldn’t feel you tightening up when I mentioned staying for a bit? Message received, loud and clear.”
“You’re something else, Honor. Fortunately, I like that about you. You’re not like any woman I’ve ever known.”
“Let me go.” She didn’t need to hear how she failed to compare to the other women he’d known. Her emotions were still too raw and close to the surface after the last few days. She’d certainly been on an emotional roller coaster.
“Stop wiggling, and listen to me, please.”
She stilled, though her heart beat like mad in her chest. He shifted beside her, and before she realized his intentions, he was on top of her, using his body to hold her down.
She felt the hard length of his erection and wondered if he wanted one more before they said goodbye.
Wondered if she’d have the strength and common sense to say no.
“I’ve been lying awake all night, thinking. Trying to come up with some way to convince you to stay around for a while.”
“What?”
He sighed and softly brush a kiss over her lips.
“I know we barely know each other. I have no idea what your favorite food is, favorite color, or even if you like sports. But I know the feel of you in my arms is my current craving. And when I’m buried deep inside you, I never want our lovemaking to end. ”
“Griff—”
“Shh.” He put his finger against her lips.
“Let me say this. I want the chance to get to know you better. To explore what we’re just hitting on here.
I want you to stay. You can move into one of the other apartments here.
Spend nights there or here with me, or I’ll stay there with you.
It doesn’t matter. I’ll give you space when you need it and take complete advantage of every moment we’re together. ”
She grinned. She couldn’t help it. How was it that he wanted the same thing she did? She nodded even before he finished talking.
“I want to wake up knowing I get to see you again. No, that’s a lie. I want to wake up with you beside me, so I can be inside you again.”
She laughed at his honesty and saw when he finally took note of her agreement.
“Yeah?” he asked.
“I don’t want to leave.”
“We’ll get you an apartment picked out today. Not that I want you there, but I want you to have the ability to go there if you want to or need to.”
“Thank you.”
“I want to go out to dinner, see a movie, go dancing.” He lifted a brow at her. “Do you dance?”
“Not really. I’m not the most coordinated person unless I’m fighting.”
“Dancing is like sex, which I know you’re good at. I’ll teach you the art of doing it with our clothes on.”
“Dancing or sex?”
“Both.” He moved, pressing his cock against her and rubbing in a way that brushed against her clit and had her moaning. “You’re not leaving?”
She shook her head. “I’m not leaving.”
She didn’t have anywhere to go anyway. The cabin was compromised.
She had no current job. Legacy was as good a place as any to try to have a normal life.
She had no history here. Plus, if she pressed, maybe Jack would hire her to do something for him.
It was the least he owed her since he’d involved her father after she’d asked him not to.
It would be just the rub to get back at her dad for his display while he’d been here checking on her.
Griff tugged down her panties, and she shifted her legs to help him.
“I can’t seem to keep my hands off of you.”
She snickered, but it turned into a whimper when his fingers zoned in on her clit and rubbed. He was rock-hard, and if he dipped his fingers just a little lower, he’d find she was wet and ready, too.
He bent and kissed her. It was slow and easy, a gentle exploration. His tongue was soft and pliant as he licked over her lips and inside her mouth. It was soft and sensual and seemed to set the mood for how he intended sex to be between them this time.
His fingers found her, and one slipped inside to stroke her channel.
She wanted him inside her, but Griff seemed in no rush now that he knew she was staying.
He moved his mouth from her cheek to her chin and farther still until he was nestling between her breasts.
He licked, sucked, and playfully nipped at her nipples while one finger slowly slid in and out of her. It was maddening.
“Griff.” It was part moan, part plea. She needed him.
He moved his mouth lower, licking across her belly to the juncture between her legs.
She spread them wide to accommodate his shoulders.
The finger left her as he opened her folds to his gaze.
She was thoroughly exposed to him, and Griff seemed to love the sight.
The heat of his gaze made her burn with lust, and she wiggled against the mattress.
With a sigh, he lowered his head and brushed his tongue up her folds to her clit.
He paused there to wrap his lips around the bud and give it a gentle suck before releasing it to move back down.
He thrust his tongue inside her, fucking her with it before moving back up to her clit.
He seemed in no hurry, as if he had all the time in the world.
“Please.” She was on fire. She wanted to feel him inside her, the thick length of his cock filling and pumping into her. She wanted the heat of his chest as it rubbed against her breasts. She wanted the look into his eyes when he came, triggering the explosion inside her when he made her come.
He stayed at her clit, suckling her while two fingers pumped inside.
She bucked against his face, hands flying to grip his hair.
She bent her knees, giving her feet purchase to help her ride his digits, to lift into his face.
She looked down her body, enjoying the glimpse of his dark hair spilling over her thighs.
He glanced up, and her skin tingled as his gorgeous blue gaze met hers.
She came with a shout, keeping her eyes wide open and holding his gaze.
She held her breath when he rose over her and positioned his cock to plunge inside.
He held her enthralled, eager for that first thrust. She practically panted for it.
He didn’t disappoint. He drove deep, and her eyes closed as pleasure rocked through her core.
He held still for a long moment, seeming to enjoy being inside her as much as she enjoyed having him there.
Then he moved. Slow and steady. With long, deep thrusts.
“You feel so good around my cock. I love how tight and hot you are. How wet you get for me. I could stay right here forever. Buried deep inside you. Watching the pleasure on your face.”
She forced her eyes back open. “You feel so good. I look at you and find myself getting hotter. I never imagined sex could be this good, this intense.”
“It’ll only get better,” he promised, she knew it was a vow he’d keep.
“Only better,” she agreed.
Her life would only get better from this point on.
She could be practical and think about the what-ifs.
Like what if things didn’t work out between them?
What if they fizzled and burned out? What if it was only sex?
Instead, she pushed all those doubts aside.
Because, what if he was exactly who she’d been looking for?
She’d embrace the moment. Every moment for as long as she had them.
“Come back to me.” His whisper caressed her cheek before he nuzzled her mouth with his.
She moved her knees to grip his hips then dropped her hands to his waist and ran them up his sides until she grasped the tops of his shoulders. Winding her arms around his neck, she lifted her chest up and rubbed it against him, loving the way he felt skin-to-skin.
“I’m right here,” she promised. “With you.” She did her best to urge him to increase their pace.
Griff was in the mood for soft and slow, though, and she was at his mercy.
He took her high, again and again, until she was boneless beneath him.
Then he took her up again. She felt the shudder course through him, the swell of his cock, and knew this time, he’d find his pleasure with her.
They crested as one, their bodies shaking as she wrapped around him and held on tight.
“I could get used to this.” His words washed over her as he collapsed to the bed, shifting so his upper body was beside her while their hips remained joined.
She could get used to it, too. Again, she considered how easy it would be to love Griff.
She recalled the file on him. The one she’d stared at, again and again.
He’d been a mystery man who’d filled her fantasies long before she’d ever met him and realized how much better the real man was.
Her father was right. People were more than merely facts on a sheet.
“Penny for your thoughts.”
She turned her head to meet his gaze and smiled. “I was thinking how happy I am right now.”
“Me, too.” He smiled at her and lifted a hand to brush some of her hair out of her face. “Me, too.”
“I should probably stay in bed for the next forty-eight hours. Just to be on the safe side.”
He moved, his cock easing from the grip of her sex as he lay on his side, facing her. His hand trailed up her body from hip to shoulder, caressing her skin and leaving a trail of goosebumps in his wake.
“I agree with that. The doctor said to take it easy for a few weeks. We’ll stay here. Do a little exploring.”
“What do you think we need to explore?”
“I think there might be a few things we haven’t tried yet.”
A trickle of excitement went through her at his words. What was he thinking?
“Plus, we could play twenty questions,” he continued.
“Twenty questions?” She lifted her brow.
“You ask me something you want to know about me, and then it’s my turn. Help us get to know a little more about each other.”
“That sounds good.”
He slipped from the tangled sheets and slid his appreciative gaze over her sprawled body.
“I love the way you look all spread out on my bed. You steal the air from my lungs and leave me barely breathing.”
She rose to her knees and moved to the end of the mattress. “That’s how you make me feel. Like I can’t catch my breath. I’ve never needed anyone in my life. Never. But I wanted…” She paused as he finally stepped toward her, one hand cupping her face while he brushed the tears from her cheek.
“But you wanted someone to be there for you,” he whispered.
“Someone you could lean on, not because you’re weak.
God knows, you’re one of the strongest women I’ve ever met.
But because everyone needs a safe place to rest.” He leaned down and softly kissed her lips.
“I want to be that place for you. Only for you. I want you to be that person for me.”
“Yes. I know it’s too much too soon, but—”
“It’s exactly right,” he interrupted. “You and me. We were meant to find one another.”
“I like the sound of that.”
“I like the feel of it even more,” he murmured as he maneuvered them back onto the bed.
Honor clung to him as he settled between her thighs and claimed her mouth with a kiss that more than conveyed the words they’d shared. He was everything she never knew she needed. He wasn’t a new beginning for her. He was the beginning of everything she’d been too scared to dream about.
“Griff, don’t let me go, “she begged, clinging to him harder, burying her face in his neck.
“I’ve got you, Honor. Always,” he vowed.
That one word conveyed so much. It was all she needed in that moment. She pressed her lips to his again, dove deeper into the kiss with him, and knew she was home.