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Grace grinned in response to his obvious discomfort. ‘Damn. And I was so hoping to pop that rather large and lovely chandelier hanging in the Great Hall, into my handbag.’
He burst out laughing, and even Tabby sniggered.
‘Good luck with that,’ Griff said. ‘I happen to know for a fact that it takes at least six men to lift it.’
‘Or one incredibly fit woman, perhaps?’
The look in his eyes as his gaze swept over her sent her nerve endings tingling and jingling, and she could almost hear the sound they might make. Much like the crystal droplets of the chandelier with six men lifting it, she supposed.
Three
Gracewasn’tsurewhathad just happened.
Apart from organising the Mistletoe Dance, she had as good as agreed to decorate Betancourt inside and out for the festive season. And all in the space of two weeks and two days.
But that wasn’t what was troubling her.
For most of her life she had only seen Griff Betancourt as a rather intense boy and then as an admittedly handsome man, but a man who was simply Russell’s older brother.
Since the age of eight she had been in love with Russell. Every year she wished that she could be Russell’s date for the Mistletoe Dance. Not once had she thought of being Griff’s date. Never. Not even for a second. Apart from in those strange nightmares she sometimes had.
Russell Betancourt was the love of her life.
Russell Betancourt was her Destiny.
No man had ever made her change her mind about that.
She had dated about ten men since her teens but Russell had always been the one man she really wanted.
Why then, after all these years, and all the times in the past that she and Griff had been alone together, had her heart suddenly reacted to Grifforde Betancourt?
Why had it skipped several beats when he looked at her?
Why had she blushed at the thoughts dancing around in her head?
Why had she felt a warmth run through her when Griff had smiled at her?
Why had she enjoyed their banter so much?
Why, when she had said she had to go, had she actually wanted to stay?
And most important of all, why, when his gaze had swept over her, did she want to throw herself into his arms?
This was ridiculous.
This was crazy.
This was madness.
This was shock. That’s what it was. This had nothing to do with how she felt or didn’t feel about Griff. This was simply her panic, her confusion, her self-doubt all getting mixed together and making her think things she would never think on a normal day.
And it was because Griff himself had been so different today. Why was that, exactly?
Instead of the sarcastic and sardonic teenager, and the stand-offish and distant man, he was warm, welcoming, fun-loving, and friendly. A bit like he had been when they were young.
He had said that it had taken him years to get over Francesca’s death, but Grace somehow knew that her death wasn’t the only reason for the way he had behaved, all those years. There was something else behind his actions, she was sure of that. Had something happened recently to cause this change in him?
He had said he had never intended to be rude, but that’s precisely what he had been, until today.
