Page 59 of Fighting the Forbidden

I smile up at Griff. “I had it under control.”

“I know you did.” He hands me a tin of mints to ring up. “I’m an impatient customer when it comes to my favorite cashier.” He lifts his chin and purses his lips like he’s about to blow me a kiss.

A flutter of heat fans over my skin. I mumble a total and he hands over a few dollars.

“Seems you forgot to tell me a few things about your party the other night.” Griff accepts the change I hand him without taking his eyes off my face.

I swallow hard. “Did you bring your bike?”

He frowns. “Yeah, why?”

Because I want to avoid this conversation for as long as possible.

Griff

My preference would be to wait inside the store for Molly to finish her shift. Watching that smug asshole talk to Molly like he somehow owns her but doesn’t respect her set off all my protective instincts. I couldn’t hear their exact conversation but the parts I did get spiked my temper into the hot zone.

Am I being a jealous asshole because he’s the dude Hayden was trying to set Molly up with? Did I read more into the situation? No, something wasn’t right. Molly was so tense, her shoulders were practically hugging her ears when she was talking to him. Jealousy might have played a part in amping up my annoyance but my desire to protect Molly overrode everything else.

I’m leaning on my bike by the front employee exit, waiting for her to walk outside. I scan the parking lot every few seconds. Should I have followed Wesley out to his car and kicked his ass?

“Hey.” Molly steps outside. Her sparkling eyes and half-smile erase my thoughts of tracking Wesley down and beating the smugness out of him.

I push myself off my bike and step toward her. “How was your night?”

The corners of her mouth tip up. “It got a whole lot better five seconds ago.”

I slip my arms around her waist. She leans up on her tiptoes, pressing her hands against my chest. Staring up at me, she tilts her head. Expectation sparkles in her eyes.

“Happy to hear it.” I lean down and brush my lips against hers.

I meant for it to be a quick, greeting kiss. We’re standing in the parking lot under bright yellow safety lights—not exactly private. Every few seconds, the automatic door whirs open and closed for other employees leaving for the night. But Molly’s fingertips dig into my back, urging me to keep kissing her. I groan and squeeze her tighter. Our noses bump together and she smiles against my mouth.

I touch my forehead to hers. “Let’s get out of here.”

“Okay.” She rubs her hands over my back a few more times before releasing me.

Cold night air rushes in to replace the warmth of her touch. Now I wish I hadn’t told her to stop.

“No one else bothered you after I left, right?” I ask as I take her backpack so she can strap her helmet on.

“No, Griff,” she answers in a teasingly annoyed tone. “You didn’t have to do that, you know.” She turns so I can help her slip the straps of her backpack over her shoulders.

I curl my hands around the tops of her arms. “Do what?”

“Scare Wesley away.”

The corners of my mouth turn up. “Not my fault he spooks easily.”

She turns to face me, obvious disbelief twisting her lips into a sarcastic smile. “For real?”

“You’re my girl and he was clearly making you uncomfortable?—”

“I’m not your girl.” Her smile fades. “You won’t even tell my brother about us.” She flips the visor down, obscuring her face.

“Molly.” Whatever protest I was about to make dies in my throat. I flick the visor up and lean down so we’re eye to eye. “You’re mine to protect. Always.”

“Why?”

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