Chapter 18
eighteen
QUYNH
Q uynh was out of breath by the time she made it to Griffin’s house.
She ran upstairs to change into leggings and a loose sweatshirt, but Pickles demanded to be fed immediately.
She’d stopped to feed the dramatic Maine Coon and tried to freshen up in the bathroom, but her hair was looking rather limp, so up her hair went in a messy bun.
This was the best it was gonna get. She didn’t want to keep the boys waiting on her.
The front door opened by the time she was on the porch. Rover’s excited barking probably alerted Griffin to her arrival.
Griffin looked her up and down before stepping aside to let her in. Giving him a small smile, she went to walk inside and was almost knocked over by the giant dog.
“Oof!” Rover’s giant paws landed on her abdomen.
“Down, boy! ”
Rover sat down at Griffin’s command.
“You’re a big boy, aren’t you?” she said as she kneeled down, petting the drooling animal behind his ears.
Rover’s excitement was contagious. She never had a dog in all of her life. Her mother and aunt worked a lot, and there wasn’t any room for pets. When she graduated from nursing school, she thought about getting a pet, but the idea of leaving it to itself for long days didn’t sit right with her.
Pickles sort of fell into her lap. She just moved into her apartment, and the loneliness was oppressive. She overheard a coworker, Joe, lamenting about having to get rid of the giant Maine Coon as he was moving for a job and could not take the cat with him.
It was barely a fully formed thought before she’d whirled around and told Joe she’d take the cat. She hadn’t even asked for any pictures. She’d rather take in the cat than have Joe put the poor cat up for adoption. Or worse, leave the cat behind.
Joe was so relieved to find a new home for Pickles.
Several weeks later, she was a mother to a grumpy Maine Coone cat who wanted nothing to do with her.
It wasn’t exactly what she had envisioned when she volunteered to adopt the cat, but she had no regrets.
He was relatively low maintenance, though the litter box was an unpleasant experience.
Thankfully, he came completely litter-trained, neutered, and vaccinated .
In the weeks leading up to the adoption, she’d done a little research on the process to make the transition as comfortable as possible.
It couldn’t be easy to be uprooted from the only home he’d ever known.
She even went out and bought a new cat bed, toys, and anything else she could find at the pet store.
She’d set it all up in her bathroom prior to picking Pickles up.
It took months for Pickles to warm up to her enough to sit next to her. He kept his distance and refused to allow her to pet him for the longest time. Now, though, he was always getting in the way and demanding attention from her.
“No need to take off your shoes. We can go out the back door.”
She followed Griffin and Rover as they led the way to the back of the house. The hallway was a straight shot toward the sliding glass doors, which faced the lake. She could see a small walking path at the edge of the well-maintained lawn.
When Griffin slid the door open, Rover took off like a torpedo, bounding off into the grass and frolicking like the happy puppy he was. She smiled fondly at his antics as they made their way to the walking path.
Rover found a giant stick and brought his prize back to Griffin with a joy that was unrivaled.
Griffin took the stick clenched tightly in Rover’s jaw.
He didn’t toss the stick immediately. Instead, he seemed to be testing Rover’s patience and obedience.
Quynh watched in fascination as the giant puppy sat as still as his giant body allowed, tail thumping wildly against the grass.
When Griffin raised his arm to toss the stick, she was no longer looking at Rover. No, she suddenly became aware of his flexing biceps beneath his dark henley and the way his back muscles rippled with the movement. She tried to rip her gaze away as the telltale heat pooled in her abdomen.
They both watched as Rover took off to retrieve his prize. After a few moments, Griffin led the way along the path, and she fell into step with him.
“It’s so beautiful here.” She looked around at the tranquil setting.
The sun was setting. The magnificent sky was alight with bright colors ranging from pinks, purples, and oranges.
The lake gleamed as it mirrored the sky, making the effect even more ethereal.
She had never seen such a beautiful sight before. It truly was breathtaking.
The temperature cooled, making her shiver beneath her sweatshirt. Though there was a slight chill in the air, it was the perfect temperature for an evening stroll. She wouldn’t have wanted it to be anywhere else at this moment.
The fresh lake air was rejuvenating, so much different from the congestion of city life. The air pollution would probably catch up to her, eventually. A problem for future Quynh. Today, she was breathing in fresh, clean air, and it was wonderful.
Another thing she noticed was how quiet Willowbrook was compared to the city. At first, it was difficult for her to fall asleep without the usual noises of the city, which normally consisted of a symphony of passing cars, wailing sirens, or sometimes drunk and disorderly pedestrians.
“Definitely beautiful.”
She stopped to admire the view, not realizing she’d been lost in thought. She’d been doing that a lot lately.
I’m losing my damn mind.
When she turned to look at Griffin, he was looking at her.
Was he calling me beautiful? Or am I imagining things?
Was she pretending there was something between them when there was nothing?
She couldn’t help the blush blooming across her cheeks. Hopefully, it was too dark for him to see it. She crossed her arms across her chest, not used to being the center of attention.
“How are you liking Willowbrook?” Griffin broke their silence after a few minutes of following Rover. The walk was otherwise leisurely, pausing occasionally when Rover would run back with his stick before running off to retrieve it when Griffin tossed it.
“It’s…un expected.”
At his questioning glance, she shrugged her shoulders.
“I didn’t expect to ever come back here. It sorta never crossed my mind. It’s like I’ve blocked all memories of ever being here when I was a kid.”
“When did you move away?”
“I was maybe nine or ten years old. Too young to really understand what was happening.”
“Where did you move to?”
“My mom and I stayed with my aunt until she passed.”
The sounds of their footsteps through the dirt path and the gentle lapping of the lake were soothing.
Griffin didn’t push her for more information, which she appreciated.
She had fond memories of her aunt, though it was still difficult to think about all the people in her life who were no longer with her.
Her aunt passed. Her mother followed suit not too long after. And now, she was about to lose a father she barely remembered. It was like she was always in varying stages of grief.
Was she always destined to lose the people around her? Was she cursed to live alone for the rest of her life?
“Where’d you go?”
“Hmm?” She turned to look at Griffin, who paused in the path.
He angled his body to face hers, his back to the lake as his eyes roamed her features.
“You went somewhere. In your head.”
“Oh.”
How did he know that?
“Tell me.”
The command in his voice would have normally made her bristle if it were anyone else, but coming from Griffin, it sounded more like a plea. She knew he’d be respectful if she decided not to respond. He was always respectful to her during the time they’d known each other.
“I was just thinking about my family. Pretty soon, there won’t be anyone left. I’ll be alone.”
She shot him a melancholy smile and continued walking. A hand gripping her arm softly halted her.
She turned to look at him, the setting sun behind him casting his face in shadows.
His green eyes were almost glowing in the dim lighting as he stared down at her, one hand reaching up to cup her chin.
Then, slowly, as if he didn’t want to spook her, he lowered his face.
He hovered mere inches from her lips, giving her the option to make the last move.
She gripped the hand holding her and stood on tiptoes as their lips met in a sweet kiss. It differed from their other kisses, seeming to communicate he understood how it felt to be alone in life.
The kiss was brief, but it ignited her nerve endings, nonetheless. She was dizzy with the intensity of her reaction to him.
She wondered if kissing him would always make her feel like she was coming alive.
It was disconcerting how her body responded to his caresses, as if it were vital to her existence. As if she were a zombie and he injected her with a life-giving serum.
She could get addicted to this. The way her body responded to him was like magic. It was hard to imagine being this way with someone other than Griffin.
All too soon, Griffin pulled away from their kiss. He didn’t go far, bending to touch his forehead to hers. Her hands found their way into his hair while his hand cradled her head, fingers wound in her messy bun.
It probably needed to be fixed, but it was the least of her worries at this moment. Standing nose to nose, breathing in the same air, the rest of the world faded away.
“You are never alone.”
It took her a moment to realize he was responding to what she said before he kissed her. Well, technically, she kissed him, but nobody was keeping track.
Standing in his arms, locked in the intimate embrace beneath the oak tree, she could believe him. She let herself believe she wasn’t alone in this life. It felt nice.
Is this what it was like to have someone on my side? To know there was always someone there for me ?
“Thank you.”
His eyes bounced between hers. It was like he was trying to see if she believed him. Griffin must have been satisfied with what he saw in her eyes as he took a step back and grabbed her hand.
They continued walking hand in hand until the sun was nearly gone from the horizon.