Chapter 35
Griffin
“Griffin?”
I hear her before I see her. Standing on the roof of the porch, I look at where we park, and call out, “Cricket?”
“Griffin?”
Climbing down the ladder, I jump the last five rungs and land on the ground, racing toward the side of the house in a panic. “Cricket?”
“Umf!” Catching her as she collides into my chest, her arms thrown around my neck like a lasso, I lift her and then shift to tighten my grip.
Our mouths crash together in a flurry of lips and tongues, passion and urgency.
I plant my boots on the ground and slide my hand into her hair, kissing her glorious mouth like it should be. Appreciative, enticing, and sensual.
Left breathless and panting for air, she pulls back with a smile, cracking her cheeks wide open.
“Griffin,” she starts, her breath coming out in heavy waves.
“You’ll never believe what happened.” Tightening her legs around my waist, she shamelessly rubs her center against my abs.
I don’t mind, but there are growing consequences she’ll have to deal with.
“I missed you, babe.”
The corners of her eyes soften along with the tails of her smile. “I missed you so much.”
“Those twenty-four hours were hell.”
She laughs. “It was about sixteen, but who’s counting?” A melody of exhilaration rings through her words that has me smiling in response.
It’s early May, but it’s already feeling hot like summer here in Texas.
Her body makes it even hotter, but there’s no way I’ll put her down.
Grabbing hold of my face, she kisses my nose and bursts into laughter.
“I did it,” she says. “I told my parents about you. About us. About you being Jacob’s dad. ”
Shifting my gaze from one of her eyes to the other, I search for the background story to fill in the details. “And you’re here to tell the tale?”
“I am. I survived, but more than that, I told them everything. No more secrets. No more hiding. No more being the perfect daughter.” Tilting her head in amusement, she puckers her mouth wickedly.
“Not that I ever was, but it’s so freeing.
” She abruptly drops back in a trust fall with her legs still leveraged around me.
She’s damn lucky I’m so strong and catch her in my arms. I have a feeling she knew I’d never let anything happen to her.
Throwing her arms wide, she closes her eyes and soaks in the feeling. She lifts, pulling herself up by holding my shoulders and coming right back in for another good kiss.
“I know the history of the feud. There are so many stories of broken hearts and tragedies over seven generations of our families. My dad—”
“Your dad?” This news comes out of the blue. She’s happy, so that means I don’t have to go kick anyone’s ass, but this is quite the turnabout.
“Oh, Griffin, it’s been an amazing day. He and I spent time in the library talking.” She takes a quick breath, and then says, “I’ll fill you in on everything soon, but I need to tell you the most important part now,” she says, her words rushing from her mouth.
“What is the most important part, babe?”
“We are.” Pure delight lights up her expression. “We’re together. We broke the curse. You and I are ending the war between our families.”
It’s not just excitement; it’s love I see so boldly in her eyes as she stares into mine. It’s our future and life together. It’s grandkids and great-grandkids around us as we grow old. It’s a life we build as one. “I want to hear more, but I like this ending.”
“We’re the fairy tale.”
“I promise you happily ever after.” I kiss her again, though I’m a sweaty mess from working outside all day.
It doesn’t seem to bother her because she doesn’t move an inch.
She’s content right where she is. I move to the porch, though, carrying this gorgeous creature to where I really want her.
The daybed. I stripped the sheets, covers, and pillows to keep them clean, but the mattress remains, so I lay her down and then take her in a solid once-over.
Most guys wouldn’t consider work clothes sexy, but damn does she make me want to play office with her.
Bent over the desk, fucking her from— “Hey, Twenty-two,” she purrs, bringing me back to her. “What’s on your mind?”
“You. Always you, babe.” Her top is light, the fabric shifting with the slightest of breezes and giving me a good view of the sexy line of her collarbone right now.
The sky-high black heels have me thinking she most definitely needs to be wearing those once I get her naked.
I kiss her, then pull back to take off my shirt.
“No holding back anymore. No keeping secrets from anyone. Gossip be damned. You, me, and our son can now be a family.” Her breath hitches, her hand covering her chest like she might need help.
“Is everything okay?” I ask, ready to resuscitate her, if necessary.
“Griffin.” My name is all she manages to say.
I bend over her. My eyes align with hers, and our mouths are just more than a breath away. “What is it?” I whisper, capturing wild strands of her hair and pushing them back from her face.
“You’re staying.”
Her words confuse me, and I shake my head.
“What do you mean?” I climb onto the bed, situating myself between her legs and anchoring my elbows into the mattress beside her head.
I want to be as close as I can to her. “Did you think I could lose you twice and still exist without you?” I kiss her with gentle pressure, only pulling back to look into her beautiful eyes.
“Impossible. You and I broke the timeline. We did it.”
She cups my jaw, dancing her fingers along the edge with a smile that makes me feel alive each time she grants it. “We did it,” she whispers. “We broke the curse.”
I drop my head. “I traveled the planet, went to the most remote beaches and towns, thinking I was escaping the failures of my life. I wasn’t. I was only dragging out the inevitable of facing my troubles.”
Her palms settle on the round of my shoulders, and she asks, “What made you leave? What failures sent you searching?”
Sounding weak is not attractive, but I know to her, honesty is. “My mom died.” I fall to my back, needing air as my heart starts thumping in my chest. She rolls to her side, dipping her head against me and giving me time to say what I need to say without her staring.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers.
I take hold of her hand and kiss it before resting them on my body.
“She’d call me before every game. She was the first and only person I called after I played.
I could ramble about a missed catch or slow return.
I could boast about getting a player out when bases were loaded or hitting a homer.
It didn’t matter to her. She just wanted to hear my voice. I wish I could hear hers now.”
Cricket wraps her arm over my midsection, her breath warming across my skin every time she exhales. She doesn’t understand the comfort she brings me. I tighten my arm around her. “She sounds like an amazing mother.”
I swallow down the balled-up emotions lumped in my throat, though it’s not easy. “She was. The best.” I kiss her head, and say, “You two have that in common.”
A tremble runs through her, and then the softest sniffle as if she’s stifling her tears from releasing. I contort to the side to see her eyes. “Hey, what’s wrong?”
“I know . . .” A tear slips to my chest, and her gaze finally meets mine. “I know how much she means to you, so to hear that you think I could be that kind of mom to Jacob is just so . . . It’s so touching. You’re an incredible man, Griffin.”
“It’s true. Our son is fortunate to have you. I am, too. Who knew you’d slum it with a guy like me twice.”
That warrants a little laugh out of her. “Feels like two different lifetimes, but then the years have sped by quicker.”
It’s these moments when time seems to slow down, and we get to process the present.
Maybe it’s time to release myself from the past so I can be with her and Jacob fully now .
. . “I got in a fight with my teammates. That’s what led to my suspension.
And then it went downhill from there. No fucking way was I going to apologize.
I was so full of anger and resentment, and taking it out on the guys giving me shit made sense in my jaded brain.
They threw the insults. I threw the punches. ”
She shifts onto her stomach and rests on her elbows. “What led to the fight?”
I pause to think about what to say, not because I don’t know, but because the story has never been given my voice before.
It didn’t matter what the sports channels or the broadcasters said, and it didn’t matter that others happily gave their side of the story.
I wasn’t and didn’t. I can now because I trust she’ll love me for who I am and not the lost cause I used to be.
“I was waiting for my mom to call.” My stomach jerks, the memory wanting to cause a revolt.
“They didn’t tell me until after the game.
My family knew, but I played like she was watching.
” I laugh because I’m such a fucking fool.
“It was one of my best games ever, too.”
Cricket places a kiss on my arm, then goes higher, dropping one on my chest before reaching my lips.
When she settles back, she says, “You didn’t play that well because she was watching.
You played that well because you’d spent your entire life building up to that moment.
That was your payoff for all the hard work you’d put in. ”