We’re once again at a distance now that he’s stopped kissing me, and I don’t know if I even have a right to ask him to bridge it.
I’m not sure if it’s my face, or perhaps he feels it in the slight stiffening of my body, but Griff frowns. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m just…” Just what? What am I? “Confused as to what’s going on between us.”
“I thought me kissing you was pretty clear,” he replies gently, his eyes probing mine for some type of acknowledgment I understand.
I’m more confused than ever.
When I pull away from him, Griff’s hand releases my neck and falls to his side. “We’ve known each other a week and a half. We met in an unconventional way in a mishmash of lies and half-truths. Now we have to work together on an important case to bring down a man who ruined my life once and wants to do it again. I’m kind of thinking I’ve got the right to be confused by this. I mean… you and I have a job to do. It’s important work. Should we even be kissing, or… other things?”
His grin is wide and teasing. “I don’t know… depends on what ‘other things’ you have in mind.”
Glaring, I stomp my foot. “I’m being serious, Griff. I need some clarity. I’m not the best person at communicating. I was very isolated for the last seven years. I’m withdrawn and introverted. Why I’m so good at coding and computers is because I understand them a lot better than people. When I got out of prison and reunited with Aaron, I didn’t even know how to talk to him, but what I learned was I actually had to talk. I had to put things out there so they could be addressed. So I’m putting it out there to you… I need to know what this is. Something we should ignore until we bring Bogachev down? Something we should pursue? I need some guidance so I quit worrying about it.”
Throughout my rant, I notice the grin slip off his face and his eyes darken a bit. Perhaps I stepped over a line. Maybe that came off as way too whiny and unattractive to such a self-assured man. Or it could be I’m just the world’s biggest moron.
Griff’s head bows slightly, causing his long hair to fall forward. He scrapes it back with his fingers, tucking it behind his ears. When his gaze comes back to me, I feel a settling deep down in my gut just from the expression on his face.
Lips curled slightly—not in amusement at my insecurity, but in understanding. Eyes warm, empathetic. Jaw set in a determined manner. I just know—deep in my gut—that the words getting ready to come out of his mouth are going to set the course of my relationship with this man.
“You want to know what this is, Bebe?” he asks, but I hold still because of the low, rhetorical rumble of his voice. “It’s everything. It’s fate. It’s serendipity. It’s fucking destiny. Our paths crossed, two people who were probably a billion-to-one odds of ever meeting, yet we were supposed to come into each other’s lives at the moment we did. I was supposed to be the one who was sent to find you, and it was supposed to be you that I was meant to save, and together? Well, together the world is our fucking oyster is what I’m thinking. We’re going to work together—take down the monster who destroyed your life and hurt so many other innocent people. We’re going to do it together. And while we’re at it, we’re going to continue to get to know each other. And if I may be so bold as to say, I already have a fairly intimate knowledge of you and I intend to continue to get to know you. I don’t need for this case to be over to take it to the next level with you, but if you want to take it slow, just know I’m not fucking going anywhere so we can move at a pace that’s good with you. Whatever we decide—we do it together, knowing we’re together for a reason that defies all logic and reason, and I’m not letting this opportunity pass.”
I just stare at him, thinking my ovaries just might have combusted.
“Is that clear enough to you?” he asks.
Nodding, I continue to stare like a wide-eyed owl, wondering if I can get him to repeat that entire speech one more time so I can remember the exact details to tell Dozer about it.
Griffin smiles again. This time, I can tell he’s amused and thinks I’m the cutest thing ever. His hands go to my face, hold me in place, and he bends to kiss me once again.
It’s deep, but not overly erotic. Promising.