Chapter 13
thirteen
GRIFFIN
T his was a terrible idea.
He never should have invited her over for dinner. He didn’t mind cooking for someone else, but having her tantalizing presence in his home was wreaking havoc on his senses.
Her vanilla scent hit him like a Mack truck when he opened the door to find her on his porch.
He tried to ignore the way she’d looked at him, dusky lips parted with a teasing peek of her pink tongue.
It took him a great deal of effort to step aside to allow her to walk past him.
He held his breath to avoid breathing in more of her alluring scent and was caught off guard when her breast grazed his chest.
There was no mistaking the sharp inhale as he tried to control his body’s reactions. His cock, which had been an annoying presence all day, rose to the occasion, taking her brief touch as an invitation for more.
Down, boy .
His cock refused to listen. The traitor.
He’d hoped if she was hidden away in the living room while he cooked, he’d have some more time to wrangle his cock under control. Unfortunately, luck was not on his side, and she’d opted to help him in the kitchen.
He made sure to keep his back toward her while he cooked so she wouldn’t spot the very obvious hard-on in his sweats.
Griffin only typically wore boxers when he left the house.
He hadn’t even thought about putting on a pair of boxers for his guest when he’d hopped out of the shower earlier.
He might have jerked off to thoughts of bending Quynh over in the open doorway of his truck.
It was necessary to get his libido under control before she got here, so he didn’t mount her as soon as he saw her like a feral beast scenting a woman in heat.
Griffin couldn’t recall a time when he’d felt this way about a woman.
He’d had his fair share of flings over the years.
He was no monk and often had a willing woman to take care of his basic needs if he wanted it.
Mostly, they were transactional with no strings attached.
He’d make sure his women were satisfied before he was finished.
Then, once the awkward cleanup of the used condoms was over, he’d say his farewells and head home.
It had always been a hard line for him. He never took the women home with him. The cliche of not wanting a woman to become attached and think there was more to it than just sex was his primary concern. He had no desire to be in a relationship.
Frankly, he’d probably make a terrible boyfriend. Griffin almost chuckled out loud at the idea of being called someone’s boyfriend. The last time he’d been referred to as such was in his twenties. A younger and wilder Griffin who had been reckless with his life until he almost lost everything.
He never wanted to go back to the dark place in his life.
Being single suited his lifestyle just fine.
He put the finishing touches to the chicken piccata with penne pasta, drizzling the lemon sauce he made from scratch over the pate before topping it off with some more capers.
It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was one of his favorite meals to make.
A sudden wave of anxiety washed over him.
What if she doesn’t like it?
He had some microwavable meals he could offer her if she hated it. He turned to grab plates and realized she’d set the table up for the two of them.
Grunting out a thanks, he brought the hot pan over and served the hot meal on each plate. He poured the excess lemon sauce from the pan over the meals before placing the pan in the sink.
By the time he came back around to the table, she was already seated, waiting for him. He flushed as he realized she’d been waiting for him to eat. It had been a long time since he’d shared a meal with someone.
“Thank you for making dinner. It smells delicious.” Her pink tongue made a reappearance as she licked her lower lip.
His traitorous cock stirred at the sight.
He finally was able to get his cock to stand down when he’d been distracted with making dinner, but now sitting across from her would test his resolve.
“Eat.”
Griffin knew he likely came off as rude with his blunt words.
He wasn’t responsible for his conversational skills when all the blood was rushing from his head to his cock.
The very act of breathing was difficult with her so close to him.
Thankfully, the aromas of the freshly cooked meal overpowered her sweet scent.
He pretended to focus all of his attention on the meal in front of him, but really, he was gripping his utensils tightly at all the sounds of pleasure she emitted.
Griffin bet Quynh was not aware she moaned when she ate.
He doubted she knew she groaned with pleasure whenever she bit into the capers, and the salty flavors burst across her taste buds.
Judging by her innocent expression as she devoured her dinner, he would guess she had no idea what she was doing to him.
Is she always like this with food?
He imagined her moans as he ate her pussy like she was a hot meal served on a platter for him .
Suddenly, a rush of irrational rage surged as he thought of her making the same sounds with other men.
“Oh my god, this is so good,” she moaned.
His grip on the knife was too tight. He tried to distract himself by eating his dinner, which tasted like ash in his mouth. He had a sudden craving for something else. Or, more appropriately, someone else.
The thought of laying her on this table and tasting her sweet pussy was driving him insane.
Rover’s wet nose nudging into his thigh broke him out of his thoughts. He’d almost forgotten all about Rover’s dinner.
“Excuse me.” He got up and grabbed the freshly shredded chicken he’d made for Rover’s dinner.
“Sit.” Rover sat obediently as Griffin placed his dinner in his food tray. “Stay.” Griffin refreshed the water dish and brought it back before giving the command for Rover to eat.
He chuckled to himself as Rover ate voraciously. It never got old watching him devour his food.
When he came back to the table, he was pleased to find her plate was empty. She ate every last drop.
“Good?”
“Hmm. It was delicious. You’re an amazing cook!”
He tried not to preen with her compliments, but he’d be lying if it didn’t make his chest swell with pride. He sat down quickly so she wouldn’t see another part of his anatomy was also swelling under her attention.
“Thanks.”
His response came out more like a grunt than actual words as he hunched over his plate and finished his dinner.
She didn’t fill the silence with vapid conversation.
Instead, he saw her give Rover attention when he snuck under the table.
Rover was not used to having guests in the house, and the thumping of his tail signaled his enthusiasm for the extra attention.
As soon as he finished the last bite, she stood up and grabbed their plates.
He tried to protest, but she’d shushed him and brought the dirty dishes to the sink.
Washing the dishes was one of his least favorite chores, but being a single man meant he needed to take care of his own dishes.
Griffin would be lying if he didn’t appreciate her for clearing the table, though when she started washing it, he’d already moved to stand.
“You don’t need to do that.” He stood behind her as she soaped up the dish brush and washed the plates.
She turned to look at him over her shoulder with a smile.
“I don’t mind. I appreciate the hot meal. It’s been a while since someone has cooked for me.”
He fought the urge to box her in against the sink. If she had any idea how hard he was for her, she’d probably run away screaming .
They were still practically strangers.
Strangers with an undeniable connection, which was getting harder to resist the more time he spent with her. He didn’t know her story yet, but he wanted to know. For the first time in forever, Griffin wanted to know everything about a woman. Not just any woman. This woman.
Wanted was putting it lightly. He needed to know everything about her. The things that made her unique. Her life story. Her likes or dislikes
Griffin knew she was a kind woman with a huge heart, not only by the way she’d stepped up and taken care of him and the guys but also by making space in her life for her estranged father.
Griffin didn’t know much about what happened between them, but old man Jones was well known on this side of town.
He was one of the richest men here. Griffin recalled some drama that made the rounds, but he had been too young to care.
He wondered if it had anything to do with Quynh and her reappearance.
He’d grown up in Willowbrook all of his life. The only child he’d known Jones to have was Ruth. They didn’t run in the same social circles, but she seemed to be the apple of her father’s eye.
Realizing he was still standing a little too closely behind her, Griffin stomped away before he acted on his impulse to bend her over the counter and strip her out of her pink dress. Her dainty feet were encased in matching pink socks, and he wanted to take them off with his teeth.
Griffin seemed to have developed a foot fetish in the time he’d seen her tiny feet. He’d certainly like to see those toes of hers curl in pleasure.
He was flipping through Netflix when he heard her soft footsteps approaching, followed closely behind by the clacking of Rover’s claws on the wooden floors. She stood on the precipice of the doorway and shifted on her feet.
“Want to stay and watch a movie with me?”
Griffin surprised himself with the words that came out of his mouth. It was probably a bad idea to sit next to her for so long, but he didn’t want her to go back to her place where she’d be alone. Well, alone with her cat. When he was also sitting alone with his dog.
What was the harm in keeping each other company?