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“I don’t mind at all,” I lie a tiny bit, “word away.”
Hiding my pout, I make my way back to my bathroom. Closing the door behind me, I check my phone before I get undressed. I’m surprised when I find an unread message.
Unknown Number: Did you get the code?
I stare at the message for a minute, remembering Mason is monitoring all communication. Careful what to say, I type out my response.
Me: Who is this? I’ve got a pretty good idea, of course, but if Mason is reading to this, I need to keep up the charade.
Unknown Number: Don’t worry, Mason can’t see these messages. -Mom
I huff out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. Why is she texting me? What’s her end game and can she really hide this from my brother? Seeing how she was able to hack into the system and somehow get the overwrite code, I don’t doubt it.
Me: Where are you?
I know I should tell Mason about this. He is already suspicious as hell, but I feel the need to do this myself. This is partly my fault, and I’m the one who can fix this.
Unknown Number: I’ll tell you my location when you are out of the hotel.
My gaze falls to the cabinet under the sink, holding the security overwrite code.
Me: I have eyes on me right now. I’ll come as soon as I can.
I quickly delete the messages before tucking my phone away and start to undress.
As I step into the shower, I wish Dallas would have come with me, really I want both to be here. I guess I can’t always get what I want.
16
GRIFFIN
Dallas eyes me warily once we’re alone. “So? What’s so important? You should probably check in with Mason now that you’re back. Don’t let him wait on you.”
“I missed the hell out of you, too,” I retort, narrowing my eyes at him. “Can’t wait to get rid of me, can you? What, thinking about taking her up on that offer and getting in the shower?”
“If I didn’t know better, I would think you were afraid to leave me alone with her.” He folds his arms and gives me a smirk that immediately tightens my chest. “Or maybe you’re afraid to go talk to Mason? Are you avoiding him?”
“Aren’t you the one always calling me a child? You’re acting pretty fucking childish yourself.”
His brows pull together before he snorts. “What’s on your mind?”
To think I was going to be delicate with this—at least, as delicate as I’m capable of being, which might not say much. But I was going to try. Now? Fuck it. “I want you to back off of her.”
“Pardon?” He even blurts out a short laugh. “What are you saying?”
“I want you to back off of Natalie.”
“Huh. That’s what I thought you said,” he mutters. “Why would I do that?”
“Because I saw how happy she was to see me. So did you,” I add when he rolls his eyes. “You can’t pretend you didn’t notice. Her face lit up. She looked like a kid on Christmas morning.”
“You have much too high an opinion of yourself. Sure, she was glad to see you, the way she would be glad to see a friend.” He emphasizes the word a little too much, no big surprise.
“Is that what you need to tell yourself? Listen,” I tell him when he grumbles like he wants to argue. “Let’s drop the bullshit. Bottom line: while I was away, I realized how much I care about her. Not that I didn’t know it before, but it’s clearer now. Being with her, then being without her, put a lot of things in perspective.” It’s the simplest way I can think to describe it.
I watch as he processes this. “This seems pretty convenient,” he decides. Big surprise.
“What the hell does that mean?”
His shit-eating grin makes my skin crawl. “It means now that you know I’ve been with her, you want what you can’t have.”
I bark out a laugh, shaking my head. To think I was going to be kind to the old fuck. “You know that says more about the way your brain works than it does mine, right? No, that’s not what this is about.”
“So, all of a sudden, your fling meant something more?” Snorting, he looks me up and down—then snickers. “Like I said, it’s convenient. And it doesn’t mean shit,” he continues. “You don’t get to mark your territory and call dibs. That’s not how any of this works.”
“Thanks for the education.”
“You’re welcome. Seems like you needed it.”
Natalie’s going to come out of that shower to find him dead on the floor. I mean, there’s only so much of this bullshit I can take before I have to shut him up for good. “You want me to beg? That’s not gonna happen. But I’m not gonna back down, either. She’s what I want. And I think we could have a real shot, so long as we’re able to give it a chance.”
