Taming McGruff(43)
She giggled. “Maybe you are. My dessert menu.”
His soft, low moan made her knees weak.
“You wouldn’t happen to have any whipped cream and cherries at your house, would you?”
He stilled, sucking in a sharp breath. “No, but I’m stopping at the store on the way home.”
A shiver went through her.
Griff’s cell phone rang. He cursed under his breath. Fishing it out of his top pocket, he looked at the number. “Gotta take this.”
“Work?”
Shaking his head, he already answered and moved away from her. She watched his face change to tight and stony.
Drawing near, she overheard the last of what he said. “Get on this right away. We’ve got the leverage. Come Monday morning, all hell could break loose. Call me back.” He hung up, and then turned to find her at his elbow.
“Important?”
“My lawyer.”
“Sounds serious.” There was a shadow in his eyes now.
“It is.” He blew out a hot breath. “Part of this is about us.” He must have seen her confusion. “Our marriage announcement will be a shock to most people. The employees. The press.”
“My mother,” she added, her middle clenching.
He avoided her stare. “King’s must release a statement first. Eventually we’ll have to answer some questions.”
“Why do you sound so evasive?”
Griffin jerked his gaze to hers. He hesitated for a moment before saying, “I’m signing documents to the effect that if, at any time, you would benefit from an inheritance, I do not want, nor will I take, any part of it.”
She gulped hard. “There’s nothing there, nothing to take.”
“Someday there might be. In the meantime, I want it known I’m not after any part of King’s or any financial gain by marrying you.”
Dawning sunk in. “Oh, I get it. Even though you’re a gazillionaire, this stops my mother from trying to twist this into some cheap, underhanded way to get at King’s and the King family. Good offense.”
Why didn’t he look pleased by her assumption?
***
Priscilla curled up in her new pink chair, hugging a blanket to her as the fire blazed in the hearth. Her to-do lists and sketches for his home’s remodel lay in a heap on the ottoman. After Griff’s less than helpful or non-answers to her questions, she’d pressed on with her own ideas for his home, keeping in mind his main request of nothing too girly. She glanced over at Griff, his Harley coffee mug she’d gotten him within reach as he read some paperwork at his desk. His scowl increased.
“McGruff,” she whispered, smiling to herself as she fought to keep her eyes open.
Half asleep, she felt herself being picked up and carried. “I’m floating,” she murmured, snuggling into his warm, hard chest.
“That’s what pixies do,” Griff said softly.
She giggled.
He sucked in a sharp breath.
“Wait. Tabby.”
“I already fed her.”
“You’re so sweet. Thank you.”
“For feeding her?” he asked with a smile in his voice as he headed up the stairs. “Or the whipped cream and cherries?”
“That was fun and incredibly sexy.” Her middle tugged at the memory of their intimate playtime when they’d gotten home earlier and afterward when they took a shower together. “But I’m thanking you for today, for putting up with my family. The noise, the people. I know it’s hard for you.”
His gentle kiss on her forehead brought a rush of love to her heart. “Sleep.”
Sighing, Priscilla melted into him. “You make me feel safe and cared for.”
“Because you are.”
She must have drifted off; the next thing she sensed was him lowering her to the bed. The cool sheets made her shiver. “Stay?” she asked as he was pulling away.
When he joined her, she curled into him, resting her head on his shoulder. He tucked her in close to him, pulling the blankets over them.
His strong, steady heartbeat sounded like music to her ears. His scent filled her senses. The shelter of his arms felt like heaven. I love you, Griffin James.
***
Her murmured declaration of love shocked him. Griff waited a half hour before he slipped out from under her, gently eased her onto his pillow, and pulled up the covers to her shoulders.
He stared down at her, soundly sleeping. In the back of his mind, he wondered how the hell he’d gotten so lucky when he’d found this little strawberry blonde pixie.
But his gut churned with the knowledge that what he was about to do would change everything between them. Love would turn to hate. He knew that from experience.
Why couldn’t life be simple? Why would clearing his father’s name be the very thing that would destroy her trust in him? Destroy them?