Chapter 24 #2
She swallowed hard, staring at me for a beat as some realization flared in her eyes. Then she dropped her gaze, but didn’t pull away.
“You’re such an idiot,” she muttered, twisting out of my grip.
I huffed a low laugh, leaning back against the sofa. “Yeah? Tell me something new.”
Violet picked up a new alcohol wipe and started dabbing again.
“Callaghan’s an idiot,” she muttered under her breath.
“Finally, something we agree on.”
Her fingers paused for a fraction of a second before she pressed harder than necessary.
I winced. “Sadist.”
“Shut up.” She dropped the used wipe onto the coffee table and grabbed a fresh one.
Silence stretched. Too thick. Too charged.
She didn’t ask what Callaghan said. Didn’t ask why he swung.
Because she already knew.
I studied her as she worked, taking in the way her hands shook just enough to make me wonder if she was as calm as she wanted to look.
“You’re pissed.”
She didn’t look up. “You’re observant.”
I smirked, but it ached.
Violet pressed her lips together, dabbing at my jaw. “Did you even hit him back?”
I leaned into the sofa, tipping my head back, exhaling through my nose. “Didn’t have to.”
That made her pause, but she didn’t ask what I meant. She tossed the last wipe onto the table, hands bracing on her hips, eyes burning into mine.
“So, what now?”
I shrugged. “Julian and Selene are handling it.”
Her brows shot up. “You’re actually letting them?”
I rubbed a thumb along my jaw, where the bruise had already started to throb. “Not my problem anymore, is it?”
She stared at me. “You don’t believe that.”
I lifted a brow. “Don’t I?”
She sighed, stepping back, arms crossing over her chest, jaw tight. “You really think you can just not care?”
A muscle ticked in my cheek.
She scoffed, shaking her head. “Of course you do.”
I sat forward, forearms resting on my knees, gaze locked on hers. “What do you want me to say, Vi?”
Her throat bobbed.
“I did everything I could,” I said, voice low. “I tried to keep her out of it. I did the right thing, and it didn’t matter.”
“That doesn’t mean you just stop trying.”
“No?” I scoffed. “Because from where I’m sitting, that’s exactly what it means.”
She smiled and it was the last reaction I expected from her.
“You’re a good dad, Griffin.”
Fuck if that didn’t do more damage than Callaghan’s punch.
“I’m going to bed.” I stood, shaking my head, trying to shove the tightness in my chest somewhere else.
“Wait,” she hissed as I turned toward the bedroom door. “I didn’t mean—”
I stopped. Shoulders tight. Fists clenched.
She hadn’t meant what? To say it? To mean it? To dig under my fucking skin and lay me bare?
I turned slowly, jaw ticking. “Didn’t mean what, Vi?”
“You did the right thing.”
I closed my eyes. That should’ve eased the weight pressing against my ribs.
But it didn’t. It just made it worse.
I let out a slow breath, forcing my hands to my hips. “Right. Glad to hear it.”
Violet sighed, stepping closer, but I kept my eyes shut. Didn’t trust myself to look at her.
“Griffin,” she whispered.
I shook my head. “No. You don’t get to say that and act like it changes anything.”
I finally looked at her. Big mistake. Her brows pinched, lips parted like she had something else to say, but couldn’t find the words.
Like she wanted to fix this.
Fix me.
I let out a short, sharp laugh. “You always do that.”
Her brow furrowed. “Do what?”
“Say the thing you think will make it all better.” I tipped my head back against the door, swallowing hard. “Like it’s some magic fucking phrase that stops it from hurting.”
“It was the truth.”
“Yeah?” My jaw clenched. “Doesn’t feel like it right now.”
“What would?” Violet stepped closer, her tone softening.
I released a slow breath, dragging a hand through my hair.
Nothing.
Nothing would.
Because this wasn’t just about Callaghan. Or the press. Or Julian and Selene trying to control the damage.
It was everything.
The way Hazel landed in my arms before I had a chance to brace for impact. The last five weeks of trying to hold my world together with fucking duct tape, carrying it all alone because no one else was supposed to give a damn.
Except Violet did.
I hated how much I needed it.
I swallowed, voice rough. “Forget it.”
She took another step, close enough that I could feel the warmth of her body, close enough that I could smell the faint trace of her shampoo, some sweet, maddening thing that made my head swim.
“I don’t want to forget it,” she murmured.
My fingers twitched. I dragged my gaze to hers, my pulse pounding in my ears. She wasn’t backing down, wasn’t giving me space to bury it.
And it pissed me off.
Because if she wasn’t backing down, neither was I.
I stepped forward, closing the last of the space between us. “Then tell me, Vi. What exactly am I supposed to do with that?”
She swallowed, her lips parting.
I should’ve stepped back. Should’ve thrown up some bullshit defense and walked away.
But I didn’t.
Because she was right there, breathing me in, looking up at me with those dark, fucking eyes, and I—
I kissed her.
Violet sucked in a sharp breath, hands fisting in my t-shirt, climbing me like she’d been waiting for this as long as I had. I picked her up and pressed her against my bedroom door.
Days of tension, of ignoring this, of pretending I didn’t want her more than I wanted my next breath... all of it snapped. Her lips parted beneath mine, soft and warm, her body melting into me like she was made for me.
A low groan tore from my throat as her body slotted against mine like we’d done this a hundred times before.
I deepened the kiss, claiming her.
Her hands slid up, fingers threading into my hair, nails scraping just enough to make my balls ache. I bit her lip in return and she gasped, her body arching into mine.
Fuck.