Griffin stared at the snot-laden tissue as she set it in his hand, but he said nothing and simply held up the tissue box. “Just because he didn’t sit with you doesn’t mean anything. Boys do weird things when they like a girl.”
“That’s what Sara said.” Katie blew her nose again. Again with the noise. “So, I went and sat with him, and I asked him why he was avoiding me.”
Griffin grimaced. “Didn’t go well?”
She looked at him, great big tears sliding down her cheeks. “He said the only reason he kissed me was because he thought we were going to die, and he didn’t want to die without having kissed a girl. So, he kissed me because I was the girl standing closest to him.”
“Oh, hell.” Son of a bitch. He wanted to take that kid and... He took a deep breath and put his arm around Katie. “He’s a scum-sucking pig, then.”
Katie stared at him in disgust. “A scum-sucking pig? That’s so old school.”
Griffin raised his brows. “Then what is he?”
“An asshole.”
Griffin burst out laughing. “Well, I agree, but I was trying not to taint your innocent ears.”
Katie gave him a tentative smile. “I’m not that innocent.”
“Innocent enough.” Griffin paused, trying to think of what to say. “Sometimes, men, and boys, aren’t that good at expressing their feelings. Or even understanding them. We’re kind of impaired that way.”
Katie leaned against him, resting her head on his shoulder. Protectiveness surged through him, and he kissed the top of her head.
“Jeremy was pretty clear about his feelings.” She blew her nose again and sniffled.
“Well, yeah, but what he said might not have been how he really feels. Even if he thinks he’s going to die, a guy isn’t going to kiss a girl unless he’s attracted to her. We’re shallow that way.”
Katie lifted her head to look at him. Her eyelashes were clumped together from the tears, and her face looked so vulnerable and fragile. “So, you think he likes me?”
Oh, shit. He didn’t want to give her false hope. “I’m pretty certain he thinks you’re beautiful, or he would never have kissed you.”
A smile worked its way onto Katie’s tear-stained cheeks. “Really?”
“Yes.” He thumbed the tears off her cheeks. “But that doesn’t mean that he’s ready to date you.”
Her face crumpled. “Oh.”
“No, it’s a good thing.” Griffin’s chest tightened at Katie’s anguish. Damn. He had no skills at this. Hillary had always taken the crises with Brooke. But he couldn’t walk away from Katie. The kid had no one else. He had to figure it out. “You can continue to be his friend,” he said slowly, stalling for time while he tried to think of what might make Katie feel better. “But as his friend, you can sit there smugly, knowing that he’s thinking about how beautiful you are, and remembering that kiss. He’s longing for you, Katie, and you have all the power.”
Katie stared at him, and he saw a thoughtful look dawning. “I’m not sure that makes sense, but I like the idea of me having the power.”
“Power is good,” he agreed.
“Huh.” Katie looked down at the shredded tissue in her hands. “I still feel stupid for liking him.”
“Yeah, well, we all feel that way sometimes.”
She gave him a skeptical look that only a teenager would be able to muster with such effectiveness and disdain. “When have you ever felt stupid about something you did? Or for liking someone who didn’t like you back?”
Oh, shit. He was supposed to come up with an answer for that?
“See? You didn’t.” She stood up and started to walk up the stairs. “Nice try, Griffin, but—”
“I felt stupid when I walked in my condo after work and discovered my wife and daughter had left me, and I’d had no idea it was coming.” Yeah, he’d felt stupid right about then. How in God’s name had he not seen it coming? How had he lost control of his family? The list of ways he’d felt stupid that night was pretty damn long.
Katie paused, studying him intently. “That’s really what happened?”
“Hell, yeah.”
She gave him a contemplative look. “That’s even worse than having Jeremy tell me he just wants to be friends.”
“This is true.” He realized that she believed him, and something tightened in his chest at the fact that there was a person in this world, a girl the same age as his daughter, who believed him.
She leaned on the banister. “Then why did Brooke tell me you left them?”
Griffin sighed and leaned back, resting his elbows on the next stair. “I don’t know.”
“Maybe you should ask her.”
Griffin laughed softly. “I’ll consider that, next time we chat.”
Katie nodded, her face serious. “My mom says that it’s always best to talk instead of being mad in silence. We always talk it out.”
“You’re mom’s a smart lady.”
Katie smiled, a real smile. “She’s cool, isn’t she?”
“Yeah.” Griffin hesitated, thinking of all the weight on Clare’s shoulders as she tried to manage things. She’d taken care of him when he’d had his nightmare, and he owed her a little relief. Now that Katie wasn’t treating him like a pariah, maybe he had a shot. “You know, I attended that MIT summer program when I was a sophomore.”
Katie’s smile faded, and she folded her arms over her chest. “Now, you’re on my case, too?”
“I’m not on anyone’s case. It’s your life. But I just wanted you to know that I went, and it was the best summer I’d ever had. I loved being away from home, the kids were cool, and I enjoyed the work.” He shrugged. “Might not be that bad.”
“Yeah, I guess it might not.” She sighed and sat down on the step below him. Her shoulder was leaning against his knee, and he realized he’d passed her test, whatever that was. He was no longer hated, and he realized that felt good. It was a relief, quite honestly. “But I want to stay here.”
He sensed that was more than a casual desire. “And do what?”
Katie’s eyes shifted away from him. “You won’t tell my mom?”
Shit. How could he make that promise when he didn’t know her answer? He was getting way over his head here. How did parents respond to that kind of question? “What do you want to do?” He settled for not giving her an answer, and hoping she didn’t notice.
It worked.
Katie’s eyes gleamed as she turned to face him. “I want to stay here and do the Shakespeare Festival.” A huge smile broke across her face. “It comes every year, and all these actors and actresses come from all over the North East. They do performances all summer, and it’s one of the biggest tourist attractions in the region.”
Well, damn. He hadn’t seen that coming. That seemed pretty innocent to him. “You want to be an actress?”
“I don’t know. I just want to do the festival. You have to be sixteen to work in it, and I’ll be sixteen in May.” She grinned. “That’s how my dad met my mom, you know. He was in town for the festival, and they met and fell in love right away.”
Griffin nodded, understanding now what she was doing. Trying to resurrect her father. “I think you should tell your mom about this.” Having Katie trying to connect with her dead father by re-living the summer her parents had met was definitely something Clare needed to get involved in.
“No,” Katie sighed. “She would make me go to MIT if she knew that’s why I want to stay. I have to find a way to avoid MIT and not tell her I’m going to do the festival.” She leveled a finger at him. “Don’t you dare tell her!”
“I won’t.” He held up his hands in defense. He was honored Katie had confided in him, and he didn’t want to break her trust. “I wouldn’t recommend you lie to your mom, though. That won’t go well. She seems like she’s a pretty straight shooter.” Which was one of the things he liked about Clare. She wouldn’t fester in silence if she was upset with him, which meant that if she was kind to him, he could trust i
t. After Hillary’s out-of-the-blue defection, Clare’s honesty was like a bright ray of sunshine and relief. He knew Clare wouldn’t disappear without warning. If she wasn’t happy with him, she would let him know immediately, which meant he could trust her warmth when she gave it to him.
“I know.” Katie sighed, her face sad again. “I’m sure I’ll end up at MIT, so it won’t even matter if I tell her or not.”
A heavy silence fell between them, and Griffin shifted uncomfortably. How did one cheer up a fifteen-year-old girl? “I’m going to wash my truck now. Want to help?”
Katie gave him a disbelieving look. “Because that sounds like fun.”
He shrugged, even as an idea came to him. It had been decades since he’d done it, but he knew one surefire way to make anyone smile, even a teenager sporting a broken heart. “Will you at least show me where the hose is?”
“Fine.” Katie hauled herself to her feet and headed toward the door. “Come on, then.”
Griffin stood up, grinning to himself. Did the girl have no understanding of what a car wash meant to teenagers?
Water fight on the way.
Chapter Thirteen
It was supposed to be a casual drive-by to see if Griffin’s truck was still at her house. A quick check to see whether it was safe to duck into her place for a snack and some yoga before heading back to the office after her trip into Portland.
The phone call Clare had gotten last night had made her nervous, and by the time she’d finished with her meetings in Portland today, she’d been on edge like she hadn’t been in a long time. She’d hoped it was going to go away. She’d prayed it wasn’t going to transpire. But after today, it was clear. She was being sued for malpractice, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.
She felt like she was going to snap.
There was simply no more room for her to stretch, and she didn’t know how she was going to make it. Right now, she needed to be away from everyone. She wanted to pull out the yoga mat she hadn’t used in months, ground herself, and try to figure out what she was doing so wrong.
The last thing she had time for was dealing with Griffin. Please let his truck not be there.
But as she rounded the corner, she was dismayed to see the big, black truck parked in her driveway, covered in suds. Griffin was leaning over the hood, his muscles flexing as he rubbed it down. Didn’t the man have a daughter to retrieve? But no, he wasn’t off trying to track her down. He was at her house, in her driveway...washing his truck? Seriously? In a tee shirt? What was a man like that doing owning a tee shirt, let alone wearing one that revealed a bicep that was so sinfully tempting? Didn’t he have a hundred businesses to buy? But there he was, soaping up the hood of his truck with one of her giant sponges, claiming her sanctuary as his own.
She ground her jaw as she hit the gas to drive past, but then she saw Katie sneaking around the side of the truck holding their garden hose. Clare frowned, easing up on the accelerator as Katie peered around the tailgate.
Griffin didn’t look up, his muscles flexing as he worked on his truck.
Katie crept closer, and then she held up the hose and sprayed Griffin.
Clare slammed on the brakes, expecting Griffin to whirl around in outrage and shout at her daughter.
But he simply hurled the soapy sponge as Katie shrieked with delight and tried to retreat behind the truck. The sudsy sponge hit Katie in the back, and she screamed with laughter as she grabbed it and lobbed it back at Griffin. When Griffin looked up to snatch it out of the air, Katie sprayed him right in the face with the hose.
“Hey!” His shout was filled with amusement and cheerful threats as he sprinted after Katie, chasing her with the soapy sponge.
Clare smiled, her heart warming at the happiness in her daughter’s voice. She realized it had been too long since she’d heard her daughter laugh like that.
A car honked behind Clare, and she realized she was blocking traffic. She started to drive on, but at the last second, she pulled into her driveway and put herself right in the middle of the chaos, energy and social interactions she’d been so determined to avoid one minute ago.
She parked a safe distance away from the battle, and then got out of her car. “Hello?” But Griffin and Katie had disappeared. Chasing each other into the backyard?
She smiled at the thought of Katie having so much fun and headed up the driveway, peeling off her suit jacket as she went. She so rarely put on a suit for work, but as soon as she’d gotten that call last night that the heirs who were suing her had agreed to meet with her to negotiate a settlement, she’d known she needed to portray the image that a suit would give her. But now that she was home, all she wanted to do was get it off. “I’m home,” she called out.
But again, there was no response.
Some of her anticipation flagged, and she felt the weight of her day descend upon her shoulders again. How was she going to manage this? It was too much—
Cold water crashed over her head, knocking the wind out of her. She whirled around to see Katie grinning at her, a red wash bucket in her hand. “Hi, Mom.” Her daughter’s eyes were dancing, and she had a look of complete and utter delight on her face. “Welcome home.”
Clare smiled at her daughter’s ebullience, at the radiance illuminating her face. “You look beautiful.”
Katie’s smile widened. “I know. I’m completely gorgeous.” Her gaze flicked behind Clare. “Uh, oh—”
Clare turned sharply and promptly got a face full of water. “Griffin!”
He eased off the spray, and he looked as amused as her daughter did. His dimple was in full force, and water pinned his tee shirt to his body, revealing muscles that she’d only been able to suspect until now. But as he stood there dripping and grinning like some mischievous little boy, his dark hair spiked and wet, and a day’s worth of whiskers along his jaw, she felt a little bit like melting right there into the wet ground.
Then Katie set a bucket of water at her feet, and it sloshed over Clare’s pumps. “Here you go, Mom. He’s tough to get, but between the two of us, I think we can take him.” She backed up, leaving Clare alone to face him. “I’m going to cut off his supply. Be back in a sec.”
“I’m in my suit,” Clare protested, even as she peeked at the bucket. It looked so tempting and soapy. It had been years and years since she’d had a water fight.
“Your suit’s already wet,” Katie called out as she headed toward the house. “It’s already ruined.”
“Ruined?” Clare looked down at her skirt, and she sighed when she saw the water stains oozing along the fabric. Now wasn’t the time to have to buy a new one. Then she realized that her white blouse was also wet. And somewhat transparent. And plastered to her. Yes, she was wearing a bra, but even that had been rendered a little too friendly by the water. Oh, dear Lord. She was way too old for a wet tee shirt contest—
“Clare.” Griffin’s eyes gleamed with wickedness that made her belly alight. “I’ll buy you a new suit. No excuses. Step up and defend the honor of the Gray women.” He waggled the hose. “Or are you afraid?”
Clare’s fingers twitched, and she couldn’t help mimicking Griffin’s wicked expression. “I have to work.” She did. She really did. But the challenge in Griffin’s eyes was tempting. “I’m not afraid.”
“No?” His gaze went to her mouth, and then slid down her body, in a slow, heated perusal. “You, of the closed doors, not afraid?”
She felt her cheeks heat up as she thought of last night when Griffin had knocked at her door. “Um—”
His smile widened, knowledge flashing in his wicked eyes. “You were awake last night, weren’t you? You heard me knock.”
“I had to get up early,” she protested. But oh, how she’d lain there, listening to his deep voice calling her name. The knowledge that he was so close. Right outside her door. She’d stayed so still, terrified he would decide to walk in...and praying he would. And then she’d been so furious with herself when she’d heard the floor c
reak as he’d walked away.
He raised the hose, challenging her. “I dare you to live, Clare.”
Katie was in the flower beds by the faucet that the hose was attached to. “Come on, Mom! Don’t fear him. We can defeat him.”
Griffin’s brows went up in challenge. “No chance. You both will go down.” He brandished the hose. “I’m the one who’s armed—”
The water suddenly stopped coming out of the hose. Griffin looked over his shoulder at Katie, who waved at him from the spigot, where she’d just cut off his water supply. “Go, Mom!”
Clare grabbed the bucket and hurled the contents at Griffin while his head was turned, catching him full on the side of the head. He bellowed in protest and whirled around as she dropped the bucket and began to scramble backward, laughing at his outraged expression. Water and soap were dripping off him. He was totally drenched.
Clare shrieked as Griffin charged her, laughing as he grabbed her around the waist and tossed her over his shoulder, holding her tightly. “You girls are going down now!” He sprinted up toward the faucet, and Katie shrieked and dove out of the way as he turned it on again. Clare braced herself against his back, laughing as she bounced. “Put me down! I’m going to throw up.”
“I’ve got you covered, Mom! Stall him!” It was a race back toward the hose, but Katie beat Griffin to it, grabbed the hose first, and sprayed it.
Griffin immediately turned so the spray caught Clare full in the face. “Hey,” she sputtered, laughing. “Katie!”
“Sorry!” Katie laughed. “It’s sort of hard to get a clear shot at him with you hanging all over him.”
“I’m not hanging all over him,” Clare protested. “I’m being held captive.”
“Well, move!”
Oh, right, because it would be easy to pry herself out of the steel pistons masquerading as arms that had her locked down. Clare looked down at the broad back that she was clinging to, surveyed the rigid muscles, and had a flash of brilliance. “Are you ticklish?” She poked her fingers into his sides and wiggled them.
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