Quinn Family Romance Collection

by Cami Checketts

  “How long can two parties with differing views stay at a truce?” she asked.

  Griff shrugged. “Forty to fifty years?” It was the wrong thing to say. He couldn’t lead her on for forty to fifty years, but he’d never live that long, so it wasn’t really worth worrying about.

  Scarlett hugged him quickly, then skipped to the door like an adorable little girl. No, that was the wrong description; no little girl could look that irresistible in yoga pants and a T-shirt. She tossed a wink over her shoulder before hurrying to her room.

  Griff found a clean T-shirt and put on socks and shoes. He brushed his teeth, applied some deodorant, and exited his room to wait outside Scarlett’s. She came out wearing the same T-shirt from last night, some shorts, and the socks and shoes he’d bought her at Wal-Mart. Her long, blonde hair was tied up in a ponytail.

  Griff reached for her and pulled her in tight. He bowed down low to kiss the soft skin of her neck. Scarlett giggled and pulled his face up to hers. “My lips are up here.”

  “Ah, I usually never miss.”

  She laughed, but he cut it off as he pressed his lips to hers. He pressed her against the wall and took his time kissing her. There was no rush, and they were in their own world. When he pulled back, her chest was rising and falling quickly.

  “I forgot. We’re supposed to work out.” He arched an eyebrow playfully.

  “This is getting my heart beating plenty. But I know what gets your heart beating.” She feathered her fingers along his abdomen.

  Griff started laughing immediately. He used to hate that he was ticklish, but with Scarlett around, it was pure pleasure. He grabbed her hand and held it tight. “Stop.”

  “Or what?” She stared up at him, so innocent and beautiful.

  “Or I’ll kiss you.”

  Her eyes twinkled. “Oh, the threats.”

  He pulled her off her feet and against his chest and kissed her. It was a long time before they got to the basement to exercise. Griff had been involved in cease-fires and truces before. They’d never come close to the joy of Scarlett in his arms.

  Scarlett loved working out with Griff close by. They teased and taunted each other to run faster on the treadmill or lift heavier weights. She could almost keep up with his running speed, but she couldn’t come within a quarter of the amount of weight he could lift.

  This truce they had agreed upon, or rather she’d forced on him, was like stolen, precious moments for her. She knew he was serious that he’d have to leave her again, but she was serious that she’d wait and that he was more than worthy of a relationship with her.

  As he did an overhead press, he caught her gaze in the mirror. His blue eyes filled with warmth and desire for her. How she loved this man.

  “Remember when we used to work out together in college?” she asked.

  He grinned. “Yeah. I could out-lift you then, too.”

  She laughed. “You weigh twice what I do, so it’s not that impressive you can lift twice as much.” He was so impressive that she couldn’t tear her eyes away from him, but there was no reason to inflate his ego.

  “Hmm.” He shelved the eighty-pound dumbbells. “So I just did an overhead press with eighty-pounders, and you did it with …?” He looked at the weights still in her hands. “Fifteen?” He nodded. “Double?”

  Scarlett simply laughed and re-shelved her weights. “But I also remember in college you never lifted weights with a shirt on.” She arched an eyebrow. It was silly of her to bring it up, but she would love, love, love to watch all the muscles in his upper body work in synchrony.

  His smile kind of froze, but he said, “In college, I was just trying to impress you.”

  “And you’re not trying to impress me now?”

  “You’ve made it more than obvious you want me now.” He winked and walked over to the cable machine.

  Scarlett followed him. She put her hands at his waist, fingering the bottom of his T-shirt. Griff froze. She went on tiptoes, leaned against him, and whispered close to his right ear. “Your back is every bit as attractive to me now as it was in college.”

  Griff didn’t move. Scarlett lowered onto her heels, leaned back, and ran her fingertips up under his T-shirt. She trailed her fingers and palms over the bumpy skin of his back, savoring the well-developed muscles underneath and the connection to this amazing man.

  Griff turned slowly to face her, and Scarlett’s hands stopped on his waist. He looked slowly over her face, and then he put his hands on her upper arms and pulled her closer. “Thank you,” he whispered.

  “For?”

  “Loving me.”

  “It’s what I was born to do.”

  Griff smiled at that and bent down, tenderly kissing her. Scarlett ran her hands up under his T-shirt and held on to his broad back. His scars only made him more tough, real, and incredible to her. She savored his kiss and this tender side of the man she loved. She was afraid that all too soon the warrior would reappear and shut himself off from her again.

  For the first time in five days, she prayed that the man who’d offered a million dollars for her would never be found and she and Griff would have to hide in this cabin indefinitely. If Griff knew her prayer, he’d tease her that she was living in a dream world. She didn’t care what world she was living in, as long as Griff was with her.

  After a long workout, they’d eaten a quick breakfast of yogurt parfaits—with a side of six scrambled eggs for Griff—then gone upstairs to shower. It was hard to break away from Scarlett, even to take a shower, but Griff wanted to be clean and get his teeth freshly brushed. His plan for today was to show her he could dance to that Wii thing and then watch a movie while he held her, sneaking in kisses every chance he got. He was certain if his family members and SEAL brothers were watching him right now, they would guess that an imposter had taken over his body, or that Scarlett had bewitched him. He was pretty sure the latter was true.

  He remembered Jasmine telling him to kiss Scarlett. Smiling, he thought that Jasmine would be happy at how sappy he was being, but she would also laugh until her stomach hurt. Thinking of Jasmine made him realize that somehow she and Kaleb made it work. Now that she could possibly be recognized as Kaleb Quinn’s wife, Sutton was very careful what missions he sent her on and she always had an altered appearance.

  Yet the ops that his sister-in-law was involved in were as dangerous as Griff’s, sometimes more so. Quite often she dressed up like a desperate college student, went to bars where young women had disappeared, and allowed herself to be kidnapped, then took down a trafficking ring from the inside while Griff and other of Sutton’s men dismantled it from the outside. Somehow Kaleb dealt with his wife being in dangerous, horrific situations. Would Scarlett be able to do the same?

  He heard a rap on his door and he hurried to it, swinging it open. Scarlett smiled brightly at him, her long hair dark blonde with wetness and her face clean and so beautiful. He didn’t waste any time, quickly tugging her against his chest. Bending down, he kissed her and then inhaled deeply. “Thanks for using the peaches-and-cream stuff.”

  She laughed. “That was pretty cute of you to buy it.”

  “Cute?” Griff scoffed. “You realize you can’t tell anybody that I’m cute, soft, or absolutely, insanely crazy about you.”

  Scarlett’s smile lit up her green eyes. “Sorry. I’m already planning the press conference I’m going to have after I get back home. The whole world will know the fearsome Griff Quinn is nobody to be afraid of.”

  Griff gave her a stern glare, though he felt so happy and light inside that he almost didn’t know how to deal with these foreign emotions. “Then I’m afraid I’m going to have to silence you.”

  “Oh, really? And how do you plan to do that?”

  Griff shrugged. “Remember you left me no choice.” He picked her up, spun her around, and held her against the wall. She gasped out, and he laughed, then proceeded to kiss her until they were both panting for air.

  When he finally lowered her feet
to the ground, he trailed his hands along her neck and smiled as she trembled under his touch. “Sworn to silence now, right?”

  “Not even close, Mr. Quinn. You’ll have to ‘silence me’ daily if you don’t want the truth to come out.”

  “Gladly.” He pinned her against the wall with both hands, bowed his head, and started with her soft neck and then worked his way up to her lips.

  His phone buzzed in his pocket. He groaned and released her, pulling it out. Sutton. His gaze darted to her. Sutton had sent some texts about their progress and the leads they’d found, but he wouldn’t be calling unless …

  Scarlett blinked up at him. “You okay?”

  “I … yes.” He stepped back and slid his finger across the screen. “Sir?”

  “We got him.”

  Griff faltered for a response. This was great news, fabulous news. His gaze met Scarlett’s. This news meant their time together was over. She’d promised to wait for him, but he could be on another job by tomorrow. The thought of being away from her for even a minute made his shoulders round.

  “Was it the mafia leader from Columbia?” Griff asked.

  “Yeah. Guess he was enamored with her, wanted to marry her. He’s a huge drug trafficker as well, so we killed two birds with one bullet, so to speak.”

  The guy was dead. Griff was relieved … and he hated to have this time with Scarlett at an end.

  She didn’t move, searching his face for answers.

  “I’m sending my Cessna for Scarlett. She’ll have some time to relax this afternoon before she deals with the press tomorrow. Why don’t you get moving and meet the pilot in Salt Lake? It’s a little slower than my Airbus, so it should take you both about four hours to get there. I’ll send you the coordinates to the commuter airport. Do you mind driving the Escalade back here?”

  “Not at all, sir.” Ten hours on the road without Scarlett would be miserable, but Griff had been the soldier for so long that saying no to his superior wasn’t even a possibility.

  “Good work, Griff.”

  “Thank you, sir. You too.” Griff hadn’t done good work. Yes, he’d protected Scarlett, but he’d lost his heart to her in the process, and now he was going to have to break them both into pieces when he left for his next op.

  “Heart of a warrior,” said Sutton, signing off.

  “Heart of a warrior,” Griff repeated. He slid the phone into his pocket, shoved one hand through his short hair, and stared down at Scarlett.

  “Hey,” she whispered. She lifted her hand and massaged at the furrow that had probably appeared between his brows. “Why are you looking all moody and broody over there?”

  Griff forced a smile, captured her hand with his, and placed a lingering kiss in her palm. “Great news, actually.”

  “Oh? Then why are you frowning?”

  Was he still frowning? Was the anguish over losing her again coming through? “They found the guy.”

  “That offered the money for me?”

  He nodded and kept the fake smile on his face, which took more of a concerted effort than battling three men at once. “So it’s over. Sutton’s sending his plane for you. We need to meet him in Salt Lake City, which is about four hours from here, so we’d better get moving.” He stepped back and turned to go to his room. They’d kept the house clean during their stay, but he’d still try to pay for Tucker’s cleaning crew. That would be a battle.

  Battle. He stopped and focused on Scarlett. She didn’t want to battle with him; these hours of cease-fire had been some of the best of his life. She truly loved him, no matter what he’d done, what he’d become. How was she going to cope when he disappeared from her life?

  “You okay?” he asked.

  Her green eyes were filled with concern. “I don’t want to say goodbye.”

  “Ah, Jane.” He gathered her into his arms and simply held her. They’d see each other soon in California, but it would probably only be days before Sutton needed him on a new assignment. Would it be goodbye then? She was probably waiting for him to promise it wouldn’t be goodbye, but Griff only lied to criminals. He couldn’t lie to her, even if it would make her feel better.

  Chapter Twenty

  Scarlett kept Griff talking through the drive to Salt Lake City. Nothing deep, mostly about his family and the experiences she’d had since they’d been apart. He didn’t share much about what he’d done the past ten years. She imagined some of it he legally couldn’t share and much of it he didn’t want to share.

  When they reached the small commuter airport in Salt Lake, the plane was waiting for them. The wind was blowing, and it chilled Scarlett clear through. The good thing about Sutton Smith taking out the guy who’d offered money for her was she’d get back to California and warm weather. The bad thing … She stared up at Griff’s handsome face. Being away from Griff was the bad thing and it was horrible to contemplate that separation.

  The pilot shook their hands, looking a little wide-eyed to be meeting Scarlett Lily. He gestured into the plane. “This way, Miss Lily. We’ll get you home safe, ma’am.”

  “Thank you.” She turned to Griff. “I don’t want to leave you for a minute,” she burst out. It was very thoughtful of Sutton to send his plane so she could have more time to decompress before facing everybody tomorrow, mostly the media, but she wished Griff would’ve told him not to send it.

  Griff gave her a soft smile and an even softer kiss. “I’ll drive straight through and meet you at your house a few hours after you get there.”

  Scarlett’s heart beat faster. All she wanted was more time with Griff. Why did it feel like stolen time? She ignored the pilot, who was staring at the two of them. “Don’t drive straight through. You need some sleep or you’ll probably kill yourself.”

  “Do you realize how highly trained I am, ma’am? I’ll be wide awake thinking about being with you again.”

  Scarlett wrapped her arms around his neck and clung to him. The brisk wind stung her back, but Griff held her close and she could stand out here for hours if it meant being in his arms.

  Griff pulled back and gently tugged her arms from around his neck. “It’s okay, love. I’ll see you soon.”

  “You promise?” She hated that her eyes pricked with unshed tears. She didn’t want to be weak. She wanted to be strong, strong enough to stand by this man’s side.

  “I promise.” His blue eyes were somber yet filled with a light she hadn’t seen in them five days ago. He loved her, and he had hope they could make it work. She knew it.

  She kissed him quickly, pulled back, and ran up the short set of stairs to the plane. The pilot followed her on and asked her to please choose any seat. Scarlett glanced back out the still-open door. Griff stood there, looking so strong and irresistible. He grinned at her and lifted a hand. The pilot closed the door. Scarlett felt like her body was being ripped apart by one of those wolves. Griff would see her soon and she was being dramatic and silly. She had to be strong. If knowing she’d be apart from Griff for ten hours was killing her like this, how would she deal with him leaving for an op that took months?

  She buckled up and looked out the window. Griff stood next to the Escalade. He saw her watching him and smiled, inclining his chin to her. She made a heart with her hands and put it up so he could see it. Griff’s smile grew and he returned the gesture. Scarlett wished she could take a picture. She wouldn’t tell the world how soft he was for her like she’d teased him about, but she’d savor the memory of it when she had to be apart from him.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Scarlett was exhausted when she finally walked into her house. It was early evening. She should’ve slept on the plane, but every time she drifted off, she’d remember something Griff said, or did. She loved him so much, and it was a lot more fun to savor memories of him than sleep.

  Sutton was waiting for her at the airport and drove her to her house. He explained how they’d found the mafia leader, Gilberto Rodriguez, at his home in Columbia, and the man admitted he’d put the
million-dollar bounty on her head because he wanted her for his wife. Rodriguez’s men had initiated a shoot-out and the man had been killed. It was such a relief. Sutton had also cleared everything with the police so her home was no longer being watched by them. She’d have to get with her agent in the morning and work on damage control from all the media.

  When she got home, she immediately showered and put on some of her own clothes, a comfy tank top and skirt. It felt good to use her own toiletries and wear her own clothes, but she would miss the clothes Griff had bought her, and she’d miss smelling like peaches and cream. She smiled as she fingered her blonde locks and looked at herself in the mirror. She was going to stay blonde. Nobody would be happy about it, except Griff. His was the only opinion that mattered to her.

  She tilted open the blinds in her bedroom suite and stared out at the view of the ocean. How many more hours until Griff would be here? Maybe only an hour or two if he’d truly driven straight through. She kept praying that he’d be safe and would stop to sleep if he got too tired. She wanted him close, but she wanted him safe more.

  The sun sank into the ocean as she stared at the view. Scarlett simply enjoyed the beautiful sight, in no real hurry. At least, not until Griff got here. Then she’d be in a hurry to kiss him and make the most of each moment they had.

  Walking downstairs, she debated what to make for dinner. The food in her fridge was probably all moldy, and she wasn’t calling her chef or personal shopper tonight. She wasn’t up to answering any questions.

  She was almost to the bottom step when she heard soft breathing. Fear rushed through her, and Scarlett pivoted to run back up the stairs. From behind her, two men grabbed her by the arms and yanked her off the stairs and into the living area.

  A handsome, polished-looking man with black hair and smooth skin stood there, grinning at her. “My Scarlett Lily,” he said. “Finally, I find you.”