“Keely,” he groaned, his breath hot against my damp skin. “I’m going to lose it right here on your front porch.”
His mouth was everywhere—my neck, my shoulder, the sensitive skin above the collar of my sweatshirt. Back to my breasts. He was devouring me with his mouth. I was frantic, my hands pulling at his t-shirt, wanting to feel his skin against mine. I needed to know if he was as hard and scarred as he looked.
“I’ve been going out of my mind,” he muttered, his hands sliding down to my hips, pulling me so tight against him that I could feel exactly how much he wanted me. “Thinking about how you’d feel under my hands. Thinking about these curves.”
He captured my mouth again, and this time there was no restraint. It was messy and raw, our movements desperate as we struggled to get closer. I nipped at his bottom lip, and heresponded by lifting me even higher, his hands cupping my rear as he pressed himself into me.
Suddenly, his movements stalled. His mouth left mine, and he went still as stone.
His eyes had shifted to the open door beside me. I followed his gaze. The small table in the hallway held a framed photo of my brothers in their kindergarten graduation caps and one of me and my mother.
“Griffin?” I whispered.
He looked back at me, his face tight, his breathing jagged. He didn’t let me down, but the possessive fire in his eyes was warring with something else. Something I knew on a first name basis.
Responsibility.
“Not here,” he growled, his voice sounding like it was being dragged over miles of gravel.
“No one is home but me,” I argued, even though a part of me knew he was right. This house was for my family, for the duty I carried. It wasn’t for this—not for the raw, primal way he wanted to take me.
“Doesn’t matter.” He finally let my legs slide down his body until my bare feet hit the porch. He didn’t step back, keeping me pinned between the wall and his massive frame. “When I have you, I want it to be where I can hear every sound you make. I want you in my space. My bed.”
I leaned my head back against the wall, trying to catch my breath. The rejection stung, but the promise in his voice was so dark it made my pulse leap all over again.
“My shift ends at seven tomorrow,” I said, my voice finally steadying.
“I’ll be in the lot at six-forty-five,” he stated. He leaned in, his mouth hovering an inch from mine, his scent of leather and cold air filling my lungs. “And when we get to my cabin, youaren’t leaving until I’ve had every bit of you I’ve been dreaming about.”
He didn’t kiss me again. He just turned, walked back down the steps and picked up the crowbar and went to work. I walked back into the house, closing the door softly behind me. I stood there, listening to the rhythmic, almost violent sound of him tearing the rotting boards off the porch, knowing exactly what kind of wrecking ball was coming for me tomorrow night.
CHAPTER FIVE
Griffin
The clock on my dash read six-forty-five.
I’d been in the parking lot of the diner for twenty minutes. I’d finished fixing her porch yesterday and then high tailed it back up the mountain. I’d spent the last twenty-four hours trying to convince myself not to do what I was about to do.
It hadn’t worked.
I was here, waiting for her to come to me, damn the age difference, theI shouldn’t do thislectures spinning around in my mind.
No. Tonight I was going to make her mine.
When she finally stepped out, she looked exhausted and I cursed myself. I should take her home and let her sleep. Care for her. Not fuck her the way I was about to.
She looked beautiful though. Her hair was escaping from her ponytail, and she’d changed out of her uniform into an emerald green top that skimmed over her curves. She saw my truck and walked straight toward me without hesitating. She climbed into the cab before I could get out and help her.
I didn’t say a word. I threw the truck into gear and started the climb up the mountain.
“Thank you for fixing the porch. My mom appreciated it.”
I tightened my grip on the wheel until the leather groaned. “I’m not looking for a thank you, Keely.”
“I know. That doesn’t mean you don’t deserve it.”
I pulled the truck into the clearing in front of my cabin, walking around and opening her door. I didn’t help her down this time. I hauled her out, my hands locking onto her hips as I pinned her against the side of the truck.
