Her attention cut toward her cousin before she looked back at him. “If we’re, um, going to stick with the plan and make them think we’re dating, maybe we should...” The words trailed off but her eyes finished the unspoken thought as they locked on his lips.
If Evie needed the protection of his pretending to be her fake boyfriend to feel safe, then Griffin would gladly take on that role. He leaned closer, giving in to the urge to bury his fingers in the warm cascade of her hair. His pulse pounded in his ears and every muscle in his body tensed with the need to feel her body pressed tight to his own.
He would play his part, but only so far.
“Evie, Evie, Evie.” Her dark-lashed eyes widened and her breath caught as he bent his head to murmur, “When I kiss you for the first time, there won’t be an audience...and there will be nothing pretend about it.”
Chapter Five
When I kiss you for the first time...there will be nothing pretend about it.
Though the drive into Clearville didn’t take more than fifteen minutes, Evie kept her attention laser focused on the phone in her hand. Not that her mind was actually on the dozens of messages popping up faster than she could respond to them. But she needed some kind of distraction from the man behind the wheel.
The luxury car was clearly a rental, a recent enough model to still hold on to a hint of leather and new-car smell. But combining with that was Griffin’s cologne—a scent she recalled all too easily from their turn around the tiny dance floor. The slightest whiff and she might as well have been back in his arms again with the possessive feel of his arm around her waist, the tempting brush of his chest against her breasts, the seduction of his thigh between her own...
Griffin had adjusted the thermostat due to the cool temperatures outside, and as much as she would have liked to blame that for the heat burning in her cheeks, she couldn’t. She knew that fire was of her own making.
She still couldn’t believe she’d practically begged Griffin to kiss her.
Or that he’d actually turned her down.
She’d seen the desire turning his golden eyes molten...hadn’t she? It wouldn’t be the first time she’d totally misread a man. She would have loved a hole in the earth to hide in; barring that, she’d bury her head in work instead. But even as she concentrated on the phone in her hand, she caught glimpses of Griffin out of the corner of her eye. His perfect profile, his casual, confident grip on the wheel. When he reached over with his right hand, her heart actually skipped a beat even though he was doing nothing more than changing the radio station.
Evie almost groaned at the slow, sexy strains humming from the speakers. Honestly, what were the odds?
“They’re playing our song.”
“I don’t know that one dance is enough to make this ours.”
“Sometimes one dance is all it takes, Evie.”
It was a silly, flirty, Griffin-type of thing to say, but if Evie didn’t know better—if she were willing to give in to the scent and sound combining to work against her—she might have believed every word.
Evie had stopped believing in fairy tales years ago, however. Finding out her fiancé was nothing but a fraud had burst any bubbles of belief naively floating around in her head. In its place had come a hardened skepticism that had her questioning everyone—most especially the man sitting in the seat next to her.
So what if he’s flirting? This was all a game to him, and that was okay. As long as Evie ended up winning Hillcrest House in the end.
“We’re here.”
Evie glanced out the window and frowned at the red-and-white-striped awning fluttering over Rolly’s Diner. A winter scene complete with a top hat–wearing snowman decorated the large windows fronting the restaurant. “My car is parked at the bar, remember?”
She barely had a chance to finish the question before Griffin slid out from behind the wheel. He circled around the car to open her door, and her breath caught in her throat as he bent down to hold out his hand. She’d done her best to avoid looking directly at him, and now, hit with the full force of his golden good looks, she might as well have been staring straight into the sun. She blinked to try to reset her senses, but Griffin was still there. Still gorgeous and extending his hand as if they were about to attend some red-carpet event.
“Why are we here?” she demanded, her voice sharper than she’d intended as his fingers closed around hers and a seductive shiver raced down her spine.
“Because it’s time for lunch.”
“I already ate at Alexa’s shower.” Along with the cake, Debbie Pirelli had brought a fruit salad and dozens of bite-size sandwiches. Not that Evie had taken more than a nibble or two.
“Well, I didn’t. You aren’t going to make me eat alone, are you? That would certainly give everyone something to talk about,” he pointed out. “Me sitting all alone after our night of passion. Honestly, Evie, you really need to work on your morning-after routine.”
“Not all of us have a routine.” And even though their night had been strictly imaginary—for the most part—she didn’t like thinking about all the morning-after women who had come before her.
Griffin grinned. “Then let me show you how it’s done.”
“You are impossible,” she complained even as she allowed him to lead her toward the old-fashioned diner that promised mouthwatering, calorie-filled comfort food. The midday Sunday crowd was a mix of tourists and locals out for last-minute Christmas shopping, and she caught more than one speculative glance at the possessive arm he had wrapped around her waist.
Realizing this lunch was bound to be a rehash of the bridal shower with everyone watching and whispering, Evie stopped short on the sidewalk. Griffin spun her out of the way to keep a couple of teenagers behind them from running her down, and somehow she ended up staring up at him, her palms on his chest and his hands bracketing her hips. “This is a bad idea,” she murmured.
Griffin smiled at that. “Don’t worry. Bad ideas are my strong suit.”
And business was hers. Maybe if she focused on Hillcrest House, on her plan, she wouldn’t notice the way a faint dimple flashed in his cheek when he grinned, or how his spicy aftershave drifted over her on the morning air, or how that same cool breeze had brushed a lock of hair over his forehead, tempting the neat freak inside her to push it back.
Catching her completely off guard, he pressed a quick kiss to her cheek before saying, “I’ll check with the hostess to see how long the wait is for a table,” and walking off as if he hadn’t just kissed her. Or as if kissing her was the most natural, commonplace thing in the world...instead of something that was enough to throw her world completely off balance.
She lifted a hand to her lips where the tingle there spread out like wings, unleashing a flurry of butterflies in her stomach. All from such a short, sweet kiss...
The sound of someone calling her name snapped her out of her stupor, and Evie turned to see Chance striding toward her.
“Here comes the groom.” The slight tease wasn’t enough to ease the frown from her cousin’s handsome face. “What’s wrong? Something with the wedding—”
He shook his dark head. “I heard you left the bar with Griffin James last night, but I really didn’t want to believe it.”
Ah, the joys of small-town grapevines. “It’s not what you think. Griffin isn’t interested in the hotel.”
“The hotel? I’m not talking about the hotel. Look, I know Griffin is Alexa’s best friend, and I...appreciate that he was there for her when I wasn’t.”
Chance’s jaw clenched at the memory. Evie knew his romance with Alexa hadn’t had the easiest beginning. After a weekend fling, Chance had left Alexa to take a photo assignment half a world away. It had been Griffin, and not Chance, Alexa had turned to when she found out she was pregnant.
“You know there was nothing romantic between Griffin and Alexa,” Evie argu
ed, ignoring that she’d had some doubts of her own.
“He’s been a good friend to her, but that doesn’t make him a good boyfriend.” Concern drew Chance’s eyebrows together as he asked, “Has he told you about the conditions of his trust?”
Evie crossed her arms over her chest. “So that’s what you think? That Griffin needs some ulterior motive to be interested in me?”
“That’s insulting, McClaren.”
Evie glanced over her shoulder as Griffin stepped up behind her.
Chance gave a slight scoffing laugh. “Yeah, well, forgive me for hurting your feelings.”
“I’m not talking about my feelings. I’m talking about you and the apology you owe your cousin. Evie is a bright, beautiful, stubbornly fascinating woman. And no man on earth, myself included, would need some asinine hidden motive to spend time with her.”
The butterflies that had barely stilled in her stomach took flight again at Griffin’s immediate defense. Not that she needed anyone to defend her, but it was...nice that he had. Just the kind of thing a boyfriend should do. Had she been looking for a boyfriend. Which she wasn’t. Her cousins had it all wrong. If anyone had an ulterior motive for using someone...
Turning back to her cousin, she insisted, “Chance, I appreciate your concern, but I’m a big girl and I can take care of myself.”
The words did little to ease his frown, and she knew exactly what he was thinking. How she’d said those same words when her family had questioned if Eric was the right guy for her. She’d been so certain, so sure that he was exactly the man he’d been pretending to be.
But this, this was different. This time she was the one pretending, and as long as she didn’t forget that she was fooling her family and start fooling herself, everything would work out exactly as planned.
* * *
“About Chance and Rory...”
Once they were seated in a retro booth with red vinyl seats, Evie leaned over the small table separating them as if the whole diner might be listening in over the piped-in holiday tunes. From what Griffin could tell, the other patrons were more interested in diving into the juicy burgers and salty fries than in any conversation going on around them. Not that Griffin cared what any of the crowd at Rolly’s Diner heard or said about him.
But if whatever Evie had to say was so private that she felt the need to lean close enough for him to see the indigo flecks in her eyes and a hint of freckles on the bridge of her nose and to breathe in the faint scent of floral yet spicy notes from her skin...well, then he was all for sharing secrets.
“This whole thing must seem like it’s totally out of the blue,” she was saying. Or, at least, that was the gist of what Griffin caught once he dragged his attention away from the pale pink lips a salt and pepper shaker away from his own.
“Griffin? Are you listening to anything I’m saying?” she demanded.
“Yeah, sure. Something about your family.”
That must have been close enough, because Evie continued, “You need to give them a break when it comes to—” A hint of embarrassed color filled her cheeks, hiding her intriguing freckles, as she waved a hand between them.
Griffin lifted the laminated menu from the table and gave it a puzzled glance. “I have to give them a break when it comes to Rolly’s menu?”
Evie snatched it from his hand. “When it comes to...us. This pseudo relationship between us.”
“Ah, that.” Griffin wasn’t sure how much Evie remembered from the night before, but he’d been very clear that whatever was happening between them was anything but pretend. Still, he supposed he had given the fake-boyfriend factor some credence by playing up the morning-after scene for her aunt and cousin. If Evie was more comfortable pretending the attraction between them wasn’t real... Well, he was willing to play along with that. For now.
Her lips parted but whatever she might have said was lost in the moment as a waitress swooped by the table to drop off two glasses of ice water. The fortysomething woman’s expression lit as she caught sight of Griffin. “Mr. James, so good to have you with us again.”
Remembering the woman from his previous visit, he returned her smile. “It’s good to be back, Nadine. How’s Will doing in school?”
Nadine’s smile revealed a motherly pride as she said, “He’s keeping his grades up. I think his attendance has more to do with a girl he’s met than an actual interest in his classes, but I’ll take what I can get.”
After reciting the daily specials, the waitress promised to be back for their orders in a minute. Griffin turned his attention back to Evie to find her staring at him in something akin to amazement. “I’ve lived here for months, and yet somehow you know more about the locals than I do.”
Griffin shrugged. “It’s not that hard. Everyone has a story. The easiest way to get people to open up is to reveal something of yourself.”
A small grin lit Evie’s features, teasing him with its warmth before bursting into a full-on smile. “Is that what you were doing this morning?”
Griffin let out a bark of laughter at how much of himself he’d revealed. “Hey, it worked, didn’t it? After all, I got you to reveal that, hidden behind that serious facade, you have a wicked sense of humor...and that you have a beautiful smile.”
Her dark lashes lowered, hiding her thoughts, and Nadine returned before he could say anything more. Griffin placed an order for a roast beef on rye with the potato salad before adding, “And Evie will have...”
“I told you I already ate at the shower.” When he pinned her with a knowing look, she admitted, “Sort of ate. Okay, fine. I’ll take half a turkey sandwich on wheat, no mayo, and a salad with ranch on the side.”
“There, that wasn’t so hard was it?” he asked once the waitress walked away.
“No, but I really need to get back to work.”
“I don’t think it will kill you if you eat lunch away from your desk just this once.”
“How do you know where I eat lunch?”
“What can I say? I’m an observant guy.” And Evie was nothing if not consistent. She’d had the Hillcrest kitchen deliver lunch to her office every day during his last trip to Clearville.
“You make it a habit to observe the eating habits of virtual strangers?”
“I make it a habit to observe the eating habits of a woman I’m interested in.”
Judging by Evie’s automatic eye roll, she wasn’t ready to take the attraction he’d felt from the moment they met seriously, and he wasn’t ready to lay his cards on the well-worn white-flecked Formica table, either. So he turned the conversation to the town’s upcoming winter events, including something he’d read about called Holly and Vine.
“It’s a first-time event with a small group of vendors and local wineries playing off the holiday theme. But if the night is as successful as everyone hopes, it will become an annual festival.”
“And Hillcrest House will have a booth there?”
Evie nodded. “We’ll be cross-promoting with Debbie by giving away some of her mini cupcakes and hopefully encouraging futures guests and couples to stay at the hotel or consider Hillcrest as a possible location for their weddings.”
As Evie talked about name recognition and the research she’d done, tracking how the number of people on their mailing list and online traffic equated to hotel bookings, Griffin was struck by the realization that he could have had the same conversation at a lunch meeting with his father. But while those meetings tended to bore the life out of him, he was fascinated by how Evie’s mind worked.
And while Griffin feared his father would gladly work himself to death, Evie’s face glowed with energy and excitement. “Sounds like you’ve put a lot of work into this event.”
“Well, anything for Hillcrest House.”
“Right,” he said wryly, reminding himself that for Evie, pretending to date him fell into the anything cate
gory.
Her thoughts seemed to take the same track as she returned to the subject of her family and their reaction to her pseudo relationship with him. “Look, the thing is, I haven’t exactly had the best track record when it comes to dating.”
“Everyone makes mistakes, Evie. You can’t tell me neither of your cousins had troubled relationships in the past.” Griffin didn’t know about Rory, but he was well aware that Chance had almost been stupid enough to let Alexa slip through his fingers.
A slight frown puckered her forehead. “I never really thought of it that way.” Griffin wasn’t surprised. Evie struck him as the type to always be harder on herself than on those around her. “But still, that’s different.”
“Different how?”
“Everything worked out for them in the end.”
The admission should have sounded positive—a resounding endorsement for true love conquering all. But Griffin heard the underlying pain and the words she didn’t say: everything worked out for them...but not for me.
He didn’t know what had happened in Evie’s past relationship with her questionable boyfriends and sensed now wasn’t the time to ask. Instead, he reached for her hand resting on top of the laminated menu. He slid his thumb over the delicate ridges of her knuckles and watched as her lips parted in a silent breath. “What if I told you that this time everything’s going to work out for you?”
“You mean...with the hotel? With convincing my aunt I can have a life and run Hillcrest?”
A hint of desperation underscored the words. Because she wanted to believe what she was saying, or because she wanted to believe that was what he was saying? Griffin gave her hand a tender squeeze. “Sure, Evie. That, too. After all,” he said, raising his chin with a pointed glance to the mistletoe hanging overhead, “it is the season for miracles.”
Their Yuletide Promise Page 6