CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
GRIFF
Griff didn’t care that his usual shmoozing with clients included cocktails and dinner. He was on a plane on his way home. No way was he going to let another day go by without being honest with Lori. Seeing her again had changed everything for him.
He gazed out the plane window as they flew up the California coast, not seeing anything below.
Lost in thought, he remembered most details of the couple of days he’d spent in the Presidential Suite at The Beach House Hotel.
He’d gone from feeling like a jackass over being dumped at the altar by a woman he never should’ve dated in the first place, let alone asking her to marry him, to someone at peace with what had happened.
When he met the attractive Loralie Hamlin, someone who was open and honest with him, he relaxed in her company. They’d had fun experiencing new things together. From the beginning, it had been a huge relief to know she wasn’t interested in him as more than a friend.
But that night of the New Year’s Eve celebration, things changed for him as he held her in his arms. A feeling of tenderness, of wanting to protect her, and hot desire had captured him.
She’d rested her head on his shoulder like a wounded animal seeking shelter, and he’d wanted to show her how much he cared.
If the call hadn’t come about Grandad’s stroke, who knows what might’ve happened.
Even now, thinking about it, Griff shook his head. Lori was happily settled in her hometown and obviously dating a man called Guy Phillips.