“Yes, I know a lot of gang members who want pink spinning rims,” I interjected, even though I knew it was a terrible idea to insert myself in their argument. “That would really up their street cred.”
“Thank you, Bug,” Jerry said, shaking his head. “I love those rims, but Aidan is trying to talk me out of getting them.”
“That’s because he’s trying to dampen your flair,” I said. I was used to the best friend drill with Jerry when it came to the men he dated, and knew the appropriate responses to his meltdowns. Of course, Jerry had never dated my brother before.
“I am not trying to dampen his flair,” Aidan snapped. “I’m trying to make sure his heart doesn’t get broken if those things get stolen. Those rims are expensive and make an enticing target.”
“I think you’re jealous because Jerry is so fabulous,” I said.
Jerry puffed out his chest. “Thank you, Bug.”
I waited until Jerry was distracted to stick out my tongue in Aidan’s direction. He scowled, and I could see the gears in his mind working as he measured various paybacks.
“You know what? You’re right, Aisling,” Aidan said, taking me by surprise. “I think Jerry should get those rims. And, when they’re stolen, he’ll need a sympathetic shoulder to cry on. Since that’s obviously not me – because I’m trying to steal his flair or whatever nonsense that was you spouted – I guess you’re up for the job, right?”
As paybacks go, it wasn’t half bad. “Oh, fine,” I muttered. “Jerry, maybe you should rethink the rims.”
“You’re both breaking my heart,” Jerry said, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Speaking of that,” Aidan said, moving to pat Jerry’s arm and frowning when his boyfriend opted to settle on the couch next to Barbara instead. “Um … what was I saying?”
“Something about broken hearts,” Braden prompted, still flipping through his magazine. “By the way, I know you’re gay, bro, but Aisling gifted us with porn, and there are some really good articles in here.”
“Maybe later,” Aidan said, knitting his eyebrows. I thought he was going to ask about the porn. Instead he opted to blow this party right out of the water. “I saw Mom today.”
Everyone in the room fell silent.
“What?” Dad asked, leaning forward. “How?”
Aidan glanced at me. “I thought for sure Aisling would’ve told you.”
“I hadn’t gotten to it yet,” I muttered.
“You saw your mother?” Dad asked, his voice booming. “How could you forget that?”
Crap! “Well, planning the Santa porn gig took up most of my afternoon,” I hedged, hoping there was some way I could make this his fault, too.
“Sit there and shut up, Aisling,” Dad muttered, turning to Aidan. “What did she say to you?”
“Only that she wanted to see us and planned to talk to you about when we could all get together,” Aidan answered, hopping from one foot to the other. “She was very … pleasant.”
“She was,” Jerry said, solemnly nodding. No matter how annoyed he was with Aidan, Jerry was loyal. I liked that about him, even when the loyalty wasn’t directed at me.
“I see,” Dad said, glancing at Barbara. “Well, I guess I should expect a visit from your mother then, eh? I’m so glad someone had the sense to tell me.”
“I was going to tell you,” I protested. “I got distracted with the porn … and telling you about my fight with Angelina … and, well, there was the porn.”
“You tire me, Aisling,” Dad said, pinching the bridge of his nose.
I shifted my eyes to Griffin. “You should probably ask what’s for dinner again,” I said. “That will put you back in the hot seat.”
“You tire me, too,” Griffin said. “You, really, really tire me.”
7
Seven
“Well, that was another fun-filled evening with your family,” Griffin intoned several hours later as we walked from the parking lot toward my townhouse.
“Your family was there, too,” I reminded him.
“My family was good, though,” Griffin argued. “Your family looked at porn and then fought about whether your mother is eating people. My family wins in that scenario.”
I snorted. “You’ve got me there.”
Griffin sighed as he linked his fingers with mine and glanced up at the sky. “The nights won’t be warm enough to walk much longer. We’ll probably get another month if we’re lucky. Then it’s going to be a cold five months.”
“I’ll keep you warm.”
“Oh, you’re definitely going to keep me warm,” Griffin agreed. “Just don’t tell your father. He’s back to referring to me as the ‘handsy cop.’”
“Don’t worry about that,” I chided. “He likes you. He treats you better than he treats us most of the time. He was just … thrown … because of my mother. He needed to take it out on someone.”
Griffin stilled under the streetlight and tugged me toward him for a hug. I rested my head against his chest as he rubbed the back of my neck.
“I know this is hard for you, Aisling,” Griffin said, choosing his words carefully. “I think you’re handling it the right way, though. You guys are in a really tough position. You thought your mother died and now she’s back from the dead.”
“Thanks for the recap.”
Griffin squeezed my hip to squelch the snark. “I don’t know what I would do if I were in your position,” he said. “Every child dreams about a dead parent coming back at some point in their life. They rationalize it … come up with elaborate fantasies for how it could happen … but most of those dreams don’t come true.
“It came true for you,” he continued. “It would’ve been human nature to run into her arms and forget about that pesky possible wraith business because that’s what your heart wants. You didn’t do that, though. You kept your head. That means you’re working hard to keep yourself safe. That means a lot to me because I need you to stay safe.”
The sentiment warmed me against the chilly night air. “I don’t trust her.” My words were barely a whisper.
Griffin tightened his arms around me. “I know you don’t,” he said. “I don’t blame you for not trusting her. I also know your heart hurts when you see her. I saw the look on your face today. You were … upset.”
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine,” Griffin countered. “You’re dealing, though, and that’s all I can ask given the current set of circumstances.”
I mutely nodded as he pressed a kiss to my forehead and we resumed our walk to the townhouse. The air hung heavy with the shifting fall weather and the seriousness of Lily Grimlock’s miraculous return from the dead. Finally, I couldn’t take the silence a moment longer.
“I’ll bet you wish you’d never met me that day in the alley, huh?” Griffin and I met over a dead body. I was collecting a soul and he was investigating a murder, and our paths collided. After inadvertently witnessing me kill a wraith, Griffin balked and took a step back. When he got caught up in my life anyway, he gave in and embraced the relationship. As far as I could tell, he’d never looked back. I wouldn’t have blamed him if he did, though.
“I never wish that,” Griffin replied. “Meeting you was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
I couldn’t help but be dubious. “Since you’ve met me your life has been in danger at least five times, my father has yelled and threatened you, my brothers have yelled and threatened you, and now my mother is back from the dead and might be eating people.”
“Well, when you put it like that … .”
I slapped his arm, causing him to chuckle.
“You’re worth every second of all of it,” Griffin said. “I … .” He looked as if he was searching for the right word and for a moment I couldn’t help but wonder whether he was searching for the same word I was. I didn’t get a chance to find out because the expression on his face fell the closer we got to the front door of the townhouse. “Are you expecting flowers fr
om someone?”
“What?” I shifted my eyes to the porch and frowned when I saw the vase of roses sitting there. They were long-stemmed and red, which meant they were expensive, and a card leaned against them.
I moved forward to gather the card and shot Griffin a sidelong look. “Am I going to open this and find out they’re from you? If so, you’re going to get really lucky tonight.”
Griffin frowned. “I … .”
I scanned the card, expecting some schmaltzy poem or funny saying with Griffin’s name scrawled beneath the message. I found something else. “Huh.”
“Huh what?” Griffin asked, reaching for the card.
I let him take it. “That’s kind of weird, right?”
“I had a pleasure meeting you today,” Griffin read aloud. “I would love to hook up and talk about that pimp you told me about. Give me a call. John Anderson.”
“I was joking about the pimp,” I offered.
Griffin’s expression was dark when it landed on me. “Is there something you want to tell me?”
I narrowed my eyes as I took a step back, flustered. “I … it was nothing. John Anderson is the guy Angelina showed the house to this afternoon. I talked to him for like … two minutes.”
“Well, you obviously made an impression,” Griffin said, handing the card back to me and watching as I shoved it in my pocket. “When’s your first date?” His faux brightness was a cover for the hurt wafting over him. I knew that. Still, his words chafed.
“Really? Do you honestly think I’m going to bed with you every night and making dates with other guys during the day? When would I have time? We’re together every night. Why would I want to even consider something like that?”
Griffin balked. “That’s not what I asked.”
“We had this discussion months ago,” I reminded him. “You said we were together, and that’s what I wanted. That’s what I still want. I didn’t flirt with this guy. I wasn’t even nice to him.
“You’ve heard the way I talk to Angelina,” I continued. “I called this guy stupid at one point because it took him forever to figure out Angelina and I had been rivals since high school. I did nothing to encourage this.”
“I … .” Griffin didn’t get a chance to apologize – and I was sure that’s what he wanted to do – because I had a full head of steam and I needed to spout off.
“I can’t believe you don’t trust me,” I snapped. “I mean … I’ve been killing myself over the past few months trying to figure out a way to tell you how much I love you. Every time I tried I couldn’t find the right words because I wanted them to be special. You, though, you don’t trust me and think I’m out picking up guys with my big bag of porn. It’s just … ridiculous.” I lashed out with my foot and kicked the roses to the side of the porch. I didn’t want them any more than I wanted John Anderson’s stupid innuendo. I rummaged in my purse for my keys and stopped only when Griffin grabbed my arm and turned me around. “What?”
“What did you just say to me?” Griffin asked.
I frowned. “I said that I would never cheat on you,” I seethed. “If you think I would, I guess we’ve got bigger problems than stupid John Anderson and his smarmy attitude.”
“Not that,” Griffin said, shaking his head. He refused to let go of my arm as I tried to pull away from him. “Repeat the part about loving me.”
My heart fell as realization washed over me. I didn’t say that, did I? “W-what are you talking about?” My teeth chattered, but not from the cold.
“You said you’d been trying to find a way to tell me you love me for months.” Griffin refused to be deterred. “Is that true?”
“Ugh!” I made a disgusted sound in the back of my throat. I was caught. I couldn’t take it back. I dreamed of eighty different scenarios to tell him – each one better than this – and now I was stuck with the fight admission. “No. I’m lying about that, too. I guess I just lie about everything these days.”
I reached into my purse again but Griffin grabbed it from my hands and dropped it in front of the door, his dark eyes intense.
“Someone could steal that,” I muttered.
“Shut up.”
I was taken aback. “You shut up.”
“Shut up, Aisling,” Griffin repeated. “I’m not joking. You’ve said a mouthful tonight. Now it’s my turn to talk.”
“Is this the part where you break up with me and run?” I couldn’t stop myself from saying the words. I always had to make things worse, no matter the argument.
“No,” Griffin said, shaking his head. “I have told you twenty times that I’m not going to do that. Why do you think I will?”
“Because no one could put up with what’s been going on over the past five months and not consider running.” I opted for honesty. I didn’t know how else to explain my worry.
“Do you want to know what I think?”
“Not really,” I sniffed, crossing my arms over my chest and averting my gaze.
“I think you love me and it scares the crap out of you,” Griffin charged. “I think no one ever bothered to stick around before because you picked guys you knew you wouldn’t want to keep close over the long haul, and then you let your father and brothers do the dirty work when it was time to get rid of them.”
How could he possibly know that?
“I think the last thing you wanted was to fall for me,” Griffin continued. “I felt the exact same way about you. I certainly wasn’t looking for a relationship when we met. I couldn’t get you out of my head, though. Your eyes … that weird purple color … they haunted me.
“I couldn’t stay away from you,” he said. “Even when I found out the truth – and let me tell you something, honey, that was a lot of truth to absorb – I still couldn’t get you out of my head. Not only that, but you were in my heart already, too.
“Since then, other than that mistake when you thought I was dating my sister, I think we’ve been doing pretty well considering all of the crap we deal with daily,” Griffin said. “You’re not the only one who has been struggling to find a way to tell someone you love them.”
My heart flopped at his words and I jerked my eyes to his. He looked pained. “What?”
“I’ve been wanting to say the words for months, too,” Griffin answered. “I keep getting close, but then something happens and I tell myself it’s okay because we have forever and I can tell you later. The longer I waited, though, the harder it was to find the right words.”
I wet my lips as I took in his declaration. “I thought it would be something special.”
“Oh, it was something special,” Griffin intoned. “You made my night. Heck, baby, you made my life.”
I didn’t want to be a stickler, but I’d been wondering about his feelings for what felt like a long time now. I wanted my moment. “You know you technically haven’t told me that you love me yet, right?”
Griffin chuckled, shaking his head as he moved his hands from my shoulders so he could cup my head. When he locked gazes with me, his eyes bored in. “I love you.”
I exhaled heavily, relief and happiness warring for top billing in my chest. “I love you, too.”
Griffin tugged me forward and slammed his mouth against mine, taking my breath with his fervent kiss. I returned it, happy to let his warmth replace the encroaching chill. I sank into the kiss, and it was about to go from PG-13 to R-rated when the sound of someone clearing his throat behind us caused Griffin to reluctantly remove his mouth from mine.
Jerry and Aidan stood on the sidewalk staring at us. Jerry looked thrilled with the discovery, his eyes twinkling. Aidan? Yeah, not so much.
“If you’re going to do it, at least go inside and close your bedroom door,” Aidan complained. “I can’t see this. It will give me nightmares.”
Griffin let loose with a shaky laugh as he wrapped his arms around me and offered me an emotional hug. “We’re going.”
“We’re definitely going,” I agreed.
“What’s with the
roses?” Jerry asked, glancing around. “Were you guys acting out a scene from a book or something? If so, I’ve done that, too. I usually don’t get so into it I knock roses over, though.”
“Don’t tell them that, Jerry,” Aidan admonished. “They’ll think I’m weird.”
“We found the roses on the porch when we came home,” I replied. “If you want them, you can have them.”
“Who are they from?” Jerry asked, gathering the roses. He is never one to turn down free flowers.
“Nobody,” I answered. “It doesn’t matter. They’re all yours.”
“And you’re all mine,” Griffin whispered, brushing his lips against my ear.
“Seriously, go inside,” Aidan ordered. “You two are about to strip down right here. I can feel it.”
Griffin didn’t have to be told twice, and after fumbling for my keys as I tried to open the door – my heart hammering so fast I worried I’d pass out – I finally managed to get everyone inside.
I squealed as I scampered toward my bedroom, Griffin close at my heels. He stopped in the open archway long enough to fix Aidan and Jerry with a pointed look.
“Do not think about waking us up tomorrow morning,” Griffin instructed. “I’m not kidding. I will shoot whichever one of you tries opening this door. When we want to get up … we’ll get up.”
“I guess that means you’re going to be loud tonight, huh?” Aidan’s face was unreadable.
“Turn the television up,” Griffin shot back. “You’ll live.”
8
Eight
I was still on top of Griffin when I woke the next morning, the blankets tucked in tightly around us as he kept one arm wrapped around my waist and the other buried in my hair. I took the opportunity to study him in the morning light. He was handsome. He had a strong jaw, and the morning stubble only enhanced his looks. Love was about more than beauty, though, and I loved his heart more than his face. His body was another story altogether. Nothing is better than his body. What? I’m shallow. Sue me.
Grim Reunion (Aisling Grimlock Book 4) Page 6
