Just play along.
“So, is this twenty questions, or what?” Indina asked him.
He shook his head. “Not twenty. I’m good with five.”
She backed up against the railing and mimicked his pose. “What do you want to know?” She held up a finger. “Just so you know, we’re taking turns. You ask a question, and I get to ask one.”
“Fair enough. You want to go first?”
She nodded. “I’ll make this first one easy. How do you like working at Sykes-Wilcox?”
“Why? Are you thinking about joining an actual firm?” he asked jokingly.
“I’m the one asking the questions, remember? And…maybe.”
Indina could tell that she’d shocked him with her answer.
“I thought you enjoyed freelancing.”
“I do, but my last five jobs have been with Sykes-Wilcox.” She shrugged. “Why not jump on board and have them pay for my health insurance?”
“I can’t argue with that. And I know Mark would love to have you on staff.” He hesitated for a moment before he said, “I’m just not sure how much longer I’ll be there.”
It was Indina’s turn to jerk back in surprise. “Really? Are you being lured away by another outfit?”
“Yeah, in a way. I’m thinking of branching out on my own.” He held his hands up. “It won’t happen any time soon. Probably not for another three or so years, but my plan is to save enough money so that I can take a year off, and then after that year, open up my own engineering firm.”
“You’re a talented engineer, Griffin. I think you would do amazingly on your own.”
The gratitude in his smile warmed Indina from the inside out. “Thanks for saying that.”
“What would you do with the time off?” Indina asked. She bumped him with her elbow. “Take a year-long cruise around the world?”
He chuckled. “That’s tempting, but I plan to go back to Ghana.”
“Back to Ghana?” She was lucky she could still stand after being hit with these back-to-back waves of shock.
Griffin nodded. “I’ve been there twice, but only for about a month each time. I volunteer with an organization that helps to set up filtration systems in areas without access to clean drinking water. My last trip was right before you joined the team at Sykes-Wilcox.”
Indina just stared at him for several moments, completely blown away. “That’s amazing, Griffin. I can’t even imagine how rewarding something like that must feel.”
“It’s hard to describe. I’ve never felt more needed—as if my life were necessary—than when I was in Ghana. We take for granted how easy it is to turn on a faucet and have clean water at our fingertips. Even in those villages where we have set up the water systems, people still have to walk to the water station and carry huge jugs back to their homes. It isn’t convenient by any means, but it’s better than drinking water filled with parasites.”
The passion in which he spoke touched something deep within Indina’s soul.
“So, yeah, that’s what I’m hoping to do,” Griffin continued with a shrug, clearly unaware that he’d just elevated himself to superhero status in her eyes. “I want to see at least one project in Ghana through from start to finish. Once I’m done, I come back home and open up my own boutique engineering firm, one where I can control which projects I work on.” He glanced over at her. “I understand that business is business, but I’m not always okay with the projects Sykes-Wilcox chooses to bid on. It’s not easy when faced with working for your conscience and working to keep your job.”
Several moments ticked by as Indina studied his steady features, digesting all that he’d just shared. She’d had no clue that he had this altruistic side, but then again, why would she? She’d purposely placed him in this narrow box. She’d convinced herself over these past eight months that she didn’t need to know anything more about him outside of what he did while on the job or when they were naked in his bed. Anything more personal than that would put her on the slippery slope to an actual relationship. She wasn’t ready for an actual relationship just yet. If ever.
No. Not if ever.
When Timothy broke things off she told herself she would not allow him to turn her into a man-hating, relationship-phobic shrew. But just the thought of investing so much of herself into something that would inevitably fall apart was too much for her to handle at the moment.
What she had going with Griffin was ideal for where she was in her life right now. Complete sexual satisfaction without messy romantic entanglements. It was perfect. Wasn’t it?
“It’s my turn to ask a question,” Griffin said.
Indina sucked in a deep, fortifying breath. “Okay, hit me.” She held her hand up. “Remember to start with an easy one.”
“Okay. What’s your favorite color?”
She rolled her eyes. “Not that easy.”
Griffin chuckled. “But I don’t know what it is.”
“After all this time you don’t know what my favorite color is?”
“You do realize what our relationship consists of, right? Unless your favorite color is sexy brown skin, I wouldn’t have a clue.”
There was no doubt her brown skin now sported a healthy dose of red. Indina had never been one to blush, but there was something about this man that had triggered the reaction way too much today.
“We’ve worked together enough outside of the bedroom for you to have picked up on my favorite color. I wear it all the time,” she said.
Another shrug. “I guess I’m just not that observant. And when we’re inside the bedroom, the only thing I’m thinking about is getting you out of your clothes.”
Great. Just when she thought she had a handle on her blushing.
“It’s green,” Indina said. “But don’t tell that to any of my sorority sisters. If I said my favorite colors were anything but crimson and cream, I’d never hear the end of it.”
“You see there, I didn’t know you belonged to a sorority either.”
“I have the frame on my license plate. What did you think that 1913 stood for?”
He hunched his shoulder. “I had no clue.”
“So I’m guessing you never pledged to a frat while in college?”
He shook his head and leaned both elbows back against the railing again. “I was too busy trying to maintain my grades so I could keep my scholarship,” he admitted. “I knew my parents couldn’t afford to pay tuition if I lost it, and I didn’t want to be buried in student loans.
“But, if you want to know the truth, I didn’t fit in with the whole Greek life. I was the nerdy kid who spent most of his time in the library or the engineering lab. I wasn’t even cool enough to belong to the various engineering clubs on campus, which should tell you something right there.”
She laughed. “I can’t even imagine you as a geeky engineering student.” She tipped her head to the side. “Actually, I could. Geeks are pretty sexy.”
One brow lifted. “You think I’m sexy?”
“Do you think I’d be in your bed twice a week if I didn’t?”
His deep chuckle rumbled through the air, but then his expression turned serious. “Why are you in my bed twice a week?”
His question, along with his suddenly earnest tone, caught her off guard. Indina shifted her weight from one foot to the other in an attempt to buy time before answering his question. She wasn’t sure how to answer his question.
She shrugged nonchalantly. “I thought the reason was obvious. The sex is amazing.”
“Look, the sex is off the charts. There’s no denying that,” Griffin said. “But I want to know why you’ve sworn off relationships.”
“Who says I’ve sworn off relationships?”
“You did. When we first started this, you said you weren’t interested in doing the ‘whole relationship thing.’ But you never said why.”
“You never asked.”
His lips tilted up in a grin. “Touché.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m asking
now. Why have you shied away from an actual relationship?” He paused before asking, “Does it have something to do with the guy your brother mentioned at dinner?”
Indina groaned. She turned toward the water, resting her elbows on the railing as she listened to the slap of the waves breaking against the ship’s hull.
Griffin’s lowered voice broke through the stillness. “You don’t have to talk about it if you aren’t ready.”
She looked at him over her shoulder. “I will never be ready to talk about Timothy with you, Griffin. That’s not what this thing between us is supposed to be about.” She blew out a breath. “This is exactly what I didn’t want.”
“Indina, you can trust me with this. I won’t—”
She cut him off. “Please, Griffin.” Taking his hand, she tugged slightly. “Can’t we just go back to the cabin and do what we do best when we’re together?”
His expression remained serious. When he started to pull his hand away, Indina tightened her hold.
Where was this even coming from? Goodness, she knew she shouldn’t have invited him on this cruise. Without work or sex to occupy their time, she should have known he’d want to do other stuff. Like get to know her.
“Please,” she pleaded. “Talking about Timothy will just put me in a horrible mood. This is supposed to be a vacation. I don’t want to think about my ex on vacation.”
She sensed the moment when he relented and the relief that rushed through her nearly brought her to her knees. Indina started for the door, but Griffin pulled her back. He clasped his hands on her hips and stared into her eyes.
“I won’t push you to share anything you’re not ready to share, but you can talk to me, Indina. I’m good for more than just getting you off.” The barest hint of a smile reached his eyes. “But since getting you off happens to be one of my favorite pastimes, I say we go and do that right now.”
Chapter 4
“Are we gonna get this game started or what?” Toby called from the left side of the beach volleyball net.
When they disembarked the ship this morning, there were three eight-seater shuttle busses waiting to escort them to an all-inclusive beach resort near the Chankanaab area of Cozumel, Mexico. Harrison had pre-booked the excursion, which included a private section of the beach for the Holmes family’s exclusive use.
Indina had to give it to him. Her brother and Monica, the masterminds behind planning this cruise, had thought of everything. It was only their second day and this was already one of the best family reunions the Holmeses had ever held.
And it couldn’t have come at a better time. They were inching ever closer to the six-month anniversary of her mother’s passing, and Indina was worried about how her dad would handle it. Honestly, she was worried about how they all would handle it. The anniversary would fall on what would have been her mother’s sixty-fifth birthday.
She watched as her dad picked eight-year-old Athens up by the waist and tossed him back into the water. The joy on his face helped to quell some of the anxiety Indina had been feeling toward him these past few months. She’d stopped asking him how he was doing after growing weary of his automatic response of “I’m fine.” Clark Holmes had never been one to show his emotions. Indina just prayed that he really was dealing with her mom’s death as well as he seemed to be.
It wasn’t as if they hadn’t known it was coming. Her mom had valiantly fought heart disease for most of her adult life, staying active and following her doctors’ orders to the letter. But it hadn’t been enough. She’d become weaker and weaker over these last few years, and eventually succumbed to her disease.
Indina sucked in a deep breath. The last thing her mother would want is for her to ruin this wonderful day with such melancholy thoughts.
Toby came over to the umbrella-covered beach loungers where Indina and the rest of the Holmes women had staked their claim—except for her sister-in-law, Willow, who’d taken Liliana and Jasmine to get their hair braided and buy souvenirs.
“Hey, we need a few players. Any of you want to play some volleyball?” Toby asked. He pointed to Sienna. “Not you.”
Sienna dipped her head and looked at him over the rim of her sunglasses. “As if there was anything you could do to tempt me to leave this spot.”
“I know one way I could tempt you,” Toby said, leaning over and kissing her rounded belly. He moved to her mouth.
“Could you two wait until you have this baby before you start working on the next one,” Indina said.
“Oh, honey, this is the last one,” Sienna said.
Toby shook his head. “No, it isn’t. I want a basketball team.”
His wife kicked at his leg. “Get away from me.”
Toby laughed as he spun the volleyball on his fingertip. “Come on, we need a couple more players. Indina? Renee? It’s just until Eli and the rest of them come back from the glass-bottom boat ride.”
Indina looked over at Renee. “You in?”
Renee closed the flap on her eReader cover and shoved it into her bag. “Okay. Let’s do this,” she said.
“Alright, alright, alright,” Toby sang. “We got us some players,” he called over to where Griffin, Jonathan and Reid were standing around the volleyball net.
Indina eyed Griffin as she approached. She still wasn’t sure how to read him after what happened between them last night. Everything had been fine once they returned to the room and got naked. It was after the sex was over that things grew awkward.
Indina hadn’t even come down from her orgasmic high when the panic hit her. She realized they would have to sleep in the same bed, something they had never done before. Normally, once the sex was over, she was out the door within a matter of minutes.
Remaining in bed with Griffin had felt…weird.
But, after a while, it had also felt right. And that’s what had scared her the most. She didn’t want it to feel right.
The panicky feeling returned this morning when she awoke to Griffin’s solid body flush against hers and his arm wrapped around her waist. She’d done her best to hide her dismay, but apprehension over how comfortable it felt to lay in his arms continued to churn in her gut.
Earlier, when they first arrived at the beach, Griffin had invited her for a walk. They’d held hands like a normal couple, and Indina had started to remember all the good parts of being in a relationship. It reminded her of how beautiful it could feel when it actually worked.
But she was still so damn gun-shy after experiencing what happened when it didn’t work. Her heart was still too tender after being broken so badly. Not once, but twice.
It doesn’t have to be that way.
Indina’s chest tightened with a combination of hope and anxiety. She was mentally exhausted after fighting that voice in her head that just would not let up. For every feeble defense she attempted to erect to shield her heart, her brain countered with examples of relationships that had stood the test of time. She didn’t have to look any farther than her own family. Her own parents. Her father was as committed to her mother now, even in death, as he’d been to her on their wedding day.
Was that kind of relationship still possible for her? Could she find it with Griffin?
Indina had never felt so conflicted in her life.
She stuffed those thoughts away, determined to keep her internal battle hidden from her meddling family, especially the women in her family. The one thing she did not need was her well-meaning cousins-in-law shoving her toward a relationship.
As she approached the volleyball net, Indina pasted on her brightest smile. “Ready to get schooled, boys?”
“Wait. You’re playing?” Griffin asked.
“You sound surprised.”
He hunched a shoulder. “I didn’t peg you for the beach volleyball type. You seemed more at home on that lounge chair over there.”
“Is that so?” Indina said. “Well, I hope you’re ready to get your butt spanked.”
“Keep that spanking shit to the bedroom,” Reid sai
d. “Nobody wants to hear about that.”
“Get your mind out of the gutter,” Indina said.
“He can’t,” Toby said. “His mind is in the gutter so often that he’s got a second mailing address there. 123 Gutter Street, USA.”
“Now we see why you could never cut it as a comedian,” Reid told him.
“Are we going to play volleyball?” Indina asked. “Because I didn’t leave my very nice lounge chair to listen to you two trade insults.”
“Bossy ass,” she heard her brother say under his breath.
Indina kicked sand at him, then took up her position on her side of the net.
“Nuh uh,” Griffin said. He pointed next to him. “That teammates thing doesn’t apply only to work. Get over here.”
“You don’t even know if I can play,” Indina said.
“I don’t care. I want you on my team.”
Her heart executed a disturbing little hop. Indina chose to ignore it as she dipped under the volleyball net and joined Griffin and Jonathan. Reid, Toby and Renee made up the other team. Jonathan’s newest girlfriend, Kristy, decided at the last minute that she wanted to play.
Reid complained about his team being outnumbered, but it was soon apparent that Kristy was more of a liability than an asset. She screamed and ran from the ball whenever it came near her.
It didn’t take long for Indina’s competitive side to take over. The game quickly went from friendly family fun to all-out war against her brother and cousins.
It was also way more erotic than a friendly volleyball game should ever be.
She was hyperaware of every time Griffin’s sweaty skin brushed against hers. They bumped into each other several times as they covered their half of the court, arms tangling, chests colliding. And each time they touched it set off another round of tingling in her belly.
It was silly. It wasn’t as if his body was a mystery to her. She’d had her way with him for the better part of eight months. Yet, something about this felt different. They’d shared more than just their bodies last night. For the first time since they began sleeping together, they’d shared their minds. Learning about Griffin’s work in Ghana, and his dreams of opening his own small engineering firm, had triggered a change in the way she saw him.
Chase Me Page 7