“Thank you,” Scarlett said, grace and poise and all things lovely.
Griff rolled his eyes. “Why are you out at two a.m.?” he asked the man.
The man shifted underneath him and grunted when Griff pressed harder with his knee. “I drove to Mesquite to play blackjack as soon as the conference ended this afternoon and just got back. Don’t tell my wife.”
Griff shook his head. Don’t tell my wife? He didn’t care about the guy’s wife. Maybe this loser really was innocent.
“Griff.” Scarlett gently massaged his arm, and the connection to his bare flesh almost overwhelmed him. He could not believe what a wimp he was when it came to this woman. “I think he’s telling the truth.”
“This is not a movie set; this is real life,” he shot at her. “You aren’t some human lie detector.” That was a part she’d played recently. To his detriment, he’d never missed one of her movies. If he was deep undercover when one came out, he bought it on Amazon Prime the day he returned home. When she’d referred to her role in The Fearless Warrior, Average Amy, he’d known exactly what she was talking about, but he’d kept his face impassive. He’d messed up now, revealing he’d seen her latest show.
Scarlett didn’t pull her hand back. He was impressed with her bravery, tenacity, and gentleness. “You always trusted my intuition.”
He studied her for a beat. She was right. He had.
“You’re going to draw more attention to us if the police scream in here. Other people might come out and see me. The police will have to question me. I feel this man is telling us the truth. He gambled all night and is going to have to face his wife when he gets home from his conference. Where are you from?” she asked the man.
“Preston, Idaho,” the guy kind of gasped out.
“I’m sure it’s a nice spot,” Scarlett said.
“It is. I have four boys who help me on our little farm, and I work at the bank in town. My wife makes edible flowers. Have you ever tasted one, Scarlett?”
“I have. What a talented lady your wife must be,” she said.
Griff rolled his eyes, jumped to his feet, and pulled the man up with him. “Give me your wallet,” he demanded.
“Griff?” Scarlett’s eyes widened.
“I lost all my cash, but I can give you my credit cards,” the man said obediently.
“I’m not going to rob you; I want to see the address on your driver’s license.”
“Oh.”
Griff released one of the man’s arms, letting him fish out his wallet and hand it over. Griff flipped it open and tried to yank the driver’s license out with one hand. Scarlett moved in closer, and her soft, clean scent about took him down. Dang her for being so appealing. She plucked the wallet from his hand and pulled out the driver’s license, holding it up for him to see: John Eyring Wilcox, 800 East 85 North, Preston, Idaho.
“Thanks,” Griff said to Scarlett.
She slipped the driver’s license back in and handed the wallet to the man. “Will you please not tell anyone you saw me?” Scarlett asked.
“B-but my wife, my boys. They’ll be so excited.”
Griff still had a grip on the guy’s arm, and he could easily break that arm to threaten him into submission. The man was so caught up in Scarlett that he didn’t seem to realize the danger that Griff posed to him.
“Please.” Scarlett batted her eyelashes at him, and the guy stared at her like he’d seen heaven.
Griff felt a surge of jealousy rip through him, similar to every time he saw her kiss another actor in a show. It was stupid and irrational and he forced it away.
“I will for you, Scarlett.”
“You’re going to trust him to not go blabbing he saw Scarlett Lily?” Griff asked Scarlett.
“I’d do anything for her,” the man said, still staring in awe at Scarlett.
“What option do we have?” Scarlett asked.
Griff whipped the man around to face him so he could intimidate him. As a bonus, the idiot was no longer fawning over Scarlett. “You breathe a word of this encounter to anyone, I will hunt you down and I will break both of your arms. Do you believe me?”
The man nodded, his mouth slightly open and his face stricken with terror.
“Go,” Griff growled at him, finally releasing his arm.
The man scurried past them, his gaze darting to Scarlett.
“Thank you,” she said.
He smiled tremulously at her.
Griff watched him go, shoving his hand through his hair. “Get back in the car so I can deal with the clerk now.”
“You don’t just boss me around.” Scarlett put her hands on her hips and tossed her long hair. “And you didn’t need to threaten that man.”
Griff marched toward her. She backed up, bumping against the Escalade. He planted his hands on either side of the hood and glared down at her. “Do you have any clue what the man who offered a million dollars for you will do to you if he finds you?”
Scarlett swallowed, and Griff’s eyes were drawn to her lovely neck. He used to love kissing her neck. What he wouldn’t give to brush his lips across that throbbing pulse point. He cursed himself and focused on Scarlett, arching an eyebrow, intent on showing her how naïve she was behaving.
“That man was innocent.” She gave him a sassy look.
Griff couldn’t remember when anyone but a family member had dared to stand up to him. Scarlett was braver than the heroines she portrayed. Man, that was sexy. “He probably was,” Griff agreed. “But the men who will kidnap you and the man bribing them to are not.”
She didn’t say anything, but the fear in her green eyes hurt him.
He looked over her beautiful face and her smooth neck and shoulders, unable to stand the thought of someone taking advantage of her. “Please help me protect you.”
Scarlett met his gaze. Griff wished with everything in him he could press against her and kiss her good and long. Maybe the memories of kissing her and the tension arcing between them were all blown out of proportion in his mind. Maybe if he kissed her, he’d realize she was simply another woman who couldn’t affect him, just a job to get through and protect. And maybe Santa Claus would bring him a real pony like he’d asked for when he was six. He’d gotten a fake lame one instead. That’s what any relationship with a woman besides Scarlett was for him—fake and lame.
She finally nodded. Griff straightened. Right now he could easily take her elbow or her arm in his hand; it would probably even be acceptable to wrap his arm around her small waist. He gritted his teeth, resisted the desire rushing through him, and stalked around the Escalade, opening her door.
Scarlett walked past him, leaving her clean scent in her wake. She slid inside, and his gaze was riveted as her skirt slid up on her thigh. He knew how it felt to touch that leg.
He shook his head and clutched the doorframe tightly. It was either that or drag her back out of the vehicle and kiss her good and long. “I’ll be right back,” he grunted out.
“Okay.”
She looked so small and beautiful sitting in the large sport utility. He didn’t want to leave her for a second. He shook his head. He really needed some food and sleep; he was getting delusional. Shutting the door, he hurried to make sure the clerk wouldn’t be a problem. Then he needed to call Sutton and make him aware of the breach so he could monitor it. Food and sleep weren’t going to happen for a while—if it was even possible for him to sleep with Scarlett in the same room as him.
He jammed a hand through his short hair. This job was a nightmare.
Chapter Six
Sunlight slanted through the closed blinds, and Scarlett stretched on the bed.
“Did you sleep?” Griff said in his deep voice.
Her head whipped to where he was exiting the bathroom. He was fresh out of the shower, and he looked so appealing. She could almost smell his clean scent. Scarlett sucked in air and prayed for strength. “Lord have mercy,” she murmured.
Griff’s eyebrows lifted. “Sleep?”
he asked.
“It was fine, thank you. You?” She was lying. She’d lain awake last night in the hard double bed, listening to his measured breathing in the double bed next to hers. He’d bought them some juice, water bottles, pretzels, and cookies from the lobby before he came back to the Escalade and parked closer to their room. They’d eaten their snack in silence with that tension just growing and growing. Scarlett had slept in her clothes. The need to climb onto his bed and lay her head in the crook of his shoulder grew all night long.
“Horrible,” he admitted, brushing his hand at his hair like she’d seen him do so many times. The move about pulled her under. The muscles in his biceps and triceps flexed. He was much more beautiful than any actor she’d starred with.
“Couldn’t sleep from wanting me?” she said, then clapped her hand over her mouth. That was why she couldn’t sleep and she was projecting her desires onto him, but she liked that he admitted he’d slept badly. Did it have anything to do with her personally, or just because he felt responsible for her and was worried about the job? Or maybe he was used to a better mattress as well.
His lips curved up and his blue eyes lingered on her before he shut his expression down. “Nope,” he said. “Just a crappy mattress.”
Scarlett let her hopes die once again as she climbed out of the bed. She stretched her arms above her head and heard the sharp intake of breath from him. With a smile, she took her time stretching from side to side, letting her T-shirt slide up on her abdomen. Sneaking a glance at him, she was rewarded to see his mouth slightly open and his eyes filled with hunger.
“Do I have time to shower?” she asked innocently, as if she had no clue how she affected him. It was a shallow satisfaction. He might react to her physically, but it was obvious he didn’t love the real her anymore. She stalked up to him and reached past him for the lotion and conditioner he’d left on the counter outside the shower and toilet part of the bathroom. She let her arm brush the side of his. Wow, his smooth skin felt nice.
“S-sure,” Griff muttered. He backed away from her and ran into the counter.
Scarlett grinned as she sashayed into the bathroom. It was a small victory, but at least he was struggling a little bit. She was struggling far too much and didn’t see the situation improving anytime soon.
Griff praised himself for making it out of that hotel room without forgetting who he’d become, grabbing Scarlett, and kissing her for at least a few hours. His mama had taught him to be tough, and not loving Scarlett was tougher than taking down a drug cartel.
They filled up with gas and drove through Subway for breakfast sandwiches and drinks before heading north again. Thankfully, Scarlett was more subdued this morning. If she tried to tickle him like she had when he’d been driving last night, he’d be sunk. He wasn’t the praying type, but he uttered a quick plea to the saints above that Sutton could find and neutralize the threat so this job would be over soon.
He heard Scarlett’s breath go slow and even. He glanced over, and his own diaphragm relaxed as he realized she was asleep. He knew she hadn’t slept much last night; he’d lain awake and listened to her breathing patterns, tempted over and over again to crawl onto her bed and hold her. He’d never do anything inappropriate. No matter how hardened he was, he loved and respected his mama too much to ever cross lines with any woman. But just to cradle Scarlett in his arms while she slept? That sounded like his version of heaven.
His thoughts stayed in a downward spiral of daydreaming about Scarlett in his arms while he sped up the I-15 corridor. In Nephi, he found a gas station with an outside bathroom.
Scarlett awoke as he pulled up to the gas pump and shut off the Escalade. “Where are we?” she murmured sleepily.
“Nephi.”
“That’s a weird name.”
He smiled. “The people here think he was a prophet.” One of Griff’s buddies when he’d first joined the Navy had been LDS, and he’d explained a lot about it to Griff.
“Like a prophet … here today?”
“Yeah, they have one currently, but this Nephi guy lived in America thousands of years ago.”
“Cool.” She leaned closer to him, obviously interested.
Griff smiled. That was another thing he loved about Scarlett. She was very open to other people’s ideas and beliefs. Even though she was strong in her moral compass, she was one of the least judgmental people he’d ever been around.
“And they have a prophet now?” she asked.
“I think so.”
She nodded. “I’d like to meet a prophet today. Like John the Baptist just walking around in a suit and a tie. That’d be amazing, wouldn’t it?”
Griff’s smile lingered. “I’m sure any person on earth would be willing to set up a meeting with the Scarlett Lily.”
She rolled her eyes and folded her arms across her slender chest. Griff had to force himself to focus on her face. Not that staring at her gorgeous face was much of a hardship on him, especially now that she didn’t have any makeup on. “Lucky you, you get to be with me all the time.”
“Lucky me,” he agreed, his mouth going dry. “I’m going to fill up with gas; then I’ll drive you over to the bathroom.” He jumped out and shut his door quickly, not waiting for her response. Man, this was a rough job.
There was a cool breeze, which he really appreciated. It helped him wake up and clear his head from longing for Scarlett.
After he filled up, he drove over to the bathroom, blocking the view from the parking lot with the Escalade. He hurried around and got her door. Searching around, he couldn’t see anyone who would get a glimpse of Scarlett.
He took her elbow and hurried her to the women’s bathroom, cracked the door open, and glanced around. Empty and only a single bathroom. Perfect.
“I don’t know if I can walk in there with bare feet,” she muttered.
Griff had forgotten about that. He bent down, unlaced his shoes, and slid out of them.
Scarlett came up close and slid her much smaller feet into his shoes. She glanced up at him as if he’d rescued her from the Eiffel Tower. “Thank you, Griff. That was very thoughtful.”
He was going to kiss her right here and now, and nobody in the world would blame him for it. She moistened her lips, making his heart pound harder. A chill wind swept over them and she shivered.
The wind helped wake him up to his responsibilities. He stepped back, even though all he wanted to do was hold her close and shelter her from the wind and the world. “I’ll be right here.”
“Thanks.”
He stood outside the door and waited. Not too long passed before he heard water running, and then Scarlett pushed the door open, flicking water from her hands. “No paper towels,” she said.
“Why didn’t you use the air dryer?”
Her eyes widened. “You know those things spread germs everywhere, right?”
“I didn’t know that.”
She stared at him. “You know random facts about the religion practiced in this little town, but you don’t know that air dryers pull up all the disgustingness of a public bathroom and put it on your hands?”
Griff laughed. “Good thing we complement each other’s knowledge.”
Her eyes widened, and he wished he could pull the words back. When he and Scarlett had been together, his mama had told him once how Scarlett, or his Jane in those days, was the perfect complement to him. She softened Griff and inspired him in all the right ways. He’d made the mistake of sharing that with Scarlett. Obviously, she hadn’t forgotten.
Scarlett walked close to him, and he pulled in a sharp breath. She slid out of his shoes. “I guess you’ll need these now.”
He smiled and hurried to slip them back on. Straightening, he opened the passenger’s side door. “I’ll hurry and use the bathroom; then you can choose one of the many drive-throughs for lunch.” He was trying to be funny, as there were exactly two fast-food restaurants off this exit.
“I can’t get back in that car,” she said.
<
br /> “You can’t stay out here all exposed,” he insisted. Was he going to have to pick her up and put her in the vehicle? His body heated up just thinking about it.
“Just while you use the restroom. My bum is killing from all this inactivity.”
“No way.” No way could he think about her bum. “You’ve got to be secure.”
“I could go in the bathroom with you,” she said. “I just need to stand up and stretch.”
“You’re not going in the bathroom with me.” He jammed his hand through his hair. “Only the one pair of shoes.” He tried to joke off this tension that she created every time they spoke.
She started doing jumping jacks right there between the bathroom doors and the Escalade.
Griff stared at her. She didn’t even have any shoes on. “What are you doing?”
“My bum is on fire.” She squatted down and shimmied her backside around for a bit, then jumped up into the air. Griff was going to have to pin her down if she didn’t stop soon.
“Please stop …” He wanted to say moving like that, but he couldn’t, so he settled for “Saying bum.”
She squatted low again, reaching her arms up to the sky. “Why?”
“I …” How could he tell her he couldn’t be thinking about her bum? “Just please don’t.”
She glared up at him, sassier than ever. “Bum!” She jumped into the air again, landed in the squat, and pushed her hips to the right, then the left. “Ah. Feels so good.”
That was it. Griff had no choice. He bent down and scooped her off the ground. Straightening, he held her against his chest. “You’ve got to stop.”
Scarlett leaned into him, her lips suddenly within kissing distance. All the oxygen fled his lungs. “Why?” Her green eyes were so clear and appealing that he couldn’t think straight.
“Why what?”
“Why do I need to stop?”
“Because.” His gaze flickered to her lips.
She ran her hands up his shoulders and around his neck. Griff groaned. He needed to throw her in the Escalade, and quick, but he was frozen in place.
Quinn Family Romance Collection Page 44
