Page 19 of Holding Out

She felt a huge smile threaten to break out all over her face, but her gut told her to play it cool.She shrugged.“CJ wants to take me out for dinner.He was actually quite the gentleman about asking me on a date.”

His expression darkened further.“No.No dates with CJ.That’s the deal.If I’m going to do this—”

She raised her eyebrows at his grim tone.God, he was making it sound like a household chore.“It’s not like youhaveto.I told you, I’ll find someone else—”

“God.No.I’ll do it.I said I’d do it.I don’t want you to pick some random guy.Then Nate wouldreallykill me.”

“It’s sex with a virgin—a friend, even—not adeathmarch,” she snapped.

She was aware of an ache in the center of her chest.For a minute there, she’d thought—

But he was just doing her a favor, of course.

He shook his head.Closed his eyes.Then opened them again.“You’re right.I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for it to sound like that.It’s not a hardship,” he said, then gave a short dark laugh.He took a step forward, touched his hand to her cheek, his thumb moving over her mouth without touching it.An unfamiliar stab of heat shot through her.She wanted to lean forward and take his thumb between her teeth.

That wasn’t her, either.

He took a step back, dropping his hand.“I know you don’t want to make a big deal of it.So I’ll just say this.It’s an honor, okay?”

For some stupid reason, that made her eyes fill up with tears.She blinked, and luckily none of them fell, though he blurred in her vision.

“I guess we have to figure out when?”she said.“And, um,where?”

“Does this Saturday work for you?I can come to Seattle.”

She nodded.

“In the meantime, until then,no dates.Especially with CJ.”

“What do you have against him, anyway?”

“I just don’t think—he’s not the right guy for this job.”

That made her smile.“And you are?”

“You obviously thought so when you asked me.”

His eyes were dark, his gaze intense.She felt that same deep pulling sensation, like something opening and flowering low in her belly.If he thought he was Jondalar material, she sure as hell wasn’t going to argue the point.“If you must know, I was trying to figure out how to get out of the CJ thing anyway.He seemed nice but—he asks too many questions.”

One corner of Griff’s mouth lifted, which dug a dimple in his cheek and made her own mouth go dry.

“What are you going to tell him?”

She hid her own smile.“I was thinking of the truth.That I have a date to lose my virginity and the guy who’s in charge of that wants an exclusive till the deed’s done.”

Griff hooted with laughter.“That should go over well.”

“Truth is stranger than fiction.No, seriously, I’ll just say I’m not interested.”

“Okay, then.”He shifted from one foot to the other.“So, um—We should have some ground rules.”

“Okay.”

“The first rule of Operation V-Card is, there is no Operation V-Card.”

“My lips are sealed.”That didn’t bother her.She already knew Nate wouldn’t like the idea of her messing around with Griff—or vice versa—and telling Alia would be as good as telling Nate.She could mention the situation to her roommate, though, without getting into details.Jenina didn’t know her family or Griff and wouldn’t mention it to anyone else who mattered.

“And it’s one and done.Just to keep things simple.And clean.”

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