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Eden would move here, but I can’t ask that of her until I’m done running. I can’t force her to pack up her life with me every time I need to move, and even though she would, I’d hate myself for making her live her life like that. It’s lonely.
I can’t tell Griffon any of that though. Not without explaining everything and I don’t want to do that. It could put him in danger. No, notcould.If Frank knew I was on a date with another man, he’d go nuclear. Not that I was ever Frank’s woman.Gross.
Griffin’s phone rings, pulling me back into the moment.
“Do you need to get that?” I ask him as I grab another dessert.
“Nope,” he answers automatically.
“You don’t even know who it is,” I say with a laugh and he smiles, seeming to like the sound.
“No one is more important than you or this.”
My heart flips over in my chest, but I have a moment of doubt.
Can I really trust Griffin? Maybe he does this with all the girls in town and I’m just too new to know it. I have no experience with guys or dating and it must be painfully obvious. What if he’s just using me and I’m too naïve to know any better?
Still, some part of me is half in love with him already and I don’t want to lose this chance. I want to savor this time together, this attention. I know that all too soon, my father and Frank will find me and I’ll have to leave again.
Griffin's eyes flash with something possessive, his irises glowing. I blink a few times, not sure I'm really seeing the neon circle around his pupils...
“What’s that look for?” he asks me as he brings a cream puff to my lips to take a bite.
“It’s just… sometimes I could swear that your eyes are glowing,” I tell him before I take a bite.
He tenses and I study him as he takes his own bite of the cream puff. His eyes shift away from me and it hits me then that he’s keeping a secret from me, too.
“That’s weird,” he finally says. Way too late to be believed, by the way. I shift on my stool.
Griffin passes me some kind of brownie and I grab my fork, breaking off a piece.
“What was making you so jumpy last night?” he asks me. I chew the brownie a little bit slower, trying to think of something.
“Well, there was this strange man following after me,” I deadpan. Griffin narrows his eyes slightly, not amused at my joke.
“Someone besides me? Because you were nervous before I was behind you,” he counters. “And when we first ran into each other yesterday morning, you looked like you were hiding from someone. I could smell your fear.”
“Uh, what?”Smell my fear?
“What? Nothing,” he stammers. “I just meant it was obvious you were scared.”
He’s being dodgy again, and I don’t like it.
Focusing my attention on the last few plates we haven’t tried yet, I select a giant cookie covered in pink frosting and rainbow sprinkles. My eyes light up as I take a bite, savoring the perfect blend of buttery cookie and sugary frosting, topped with the sweet crunch of sprinkles.
When I’m done chewing, I set the cookie down and look over at Griffin. His eyes are locked on my lips, and he slowly moves his hand up toward my face, giving me plenty of room to move away. I don’t want to.
Griffin brushes his thumb against the side of my lip, scooping up some pink frosting there. He holds his thumb to my mouth, and without thinking, I suck the sugary sweetness from his digit.
His eyes glow again, this time accompanied by a low growl.
Griffin blinks and shakes his head before scooting away from the table. “I should get you home,” he says, confusing me.
“Um, yeah, sure. Did… Did I do something wrong?”
“No. God, no,” he assures me, though he still won’t look at me. Taking a deep breath, Griffin rolls out his shoulders, then turns to face me. Once again, he holds out his hand, offering to help me out of my seat.
I consider not taking it, but who am I kidding? I crave this man’s touch, even though he’s hiding something from me. It’s only fair. We both have secrets.
