Page 36 of On The Rocks

It would be interesting getting him into the… “Wow.”

His place came into view. It was a squared-off brick building, but I didn’t realize it was so big. Two softly-lit iron lanterns flanked a massive carved door that looked as if it should be a part of a grand estate, not this nondescript building.

But the fact that it didn’t exactly match was thewowfactor.

Kain’s handiwork, I’d bet.

The front yard wasn’t exactly anything to write home about but it was neatly framed by a gravel drive. Winter grass was struggling into Spring mode all across the orchard, but it was still a flattened sad gray in my headlights.

Griffin’s beefy green truck peeked out from the side of the building.

I could probably dump him in the flatbed of his truck—if he didn’t wake up to unlock his door.

Sure, you can lift two-hundred pounds of dead-weight male.

“Okay, let’s do this,” I whispered to myself as I parked. Twisting in my seat, I nudged his shoulder. “Wakey, wakey.”

He groaned.

Well, at least he was taking verbal cues. Kind of.

I hopped out of my Jeep and jogged around to the passenger side. The brisk March air cut through my denim jacket. It had been a lot warmer when I’d gone into work, and I’d been too distracted to get my sweatshirt from my locker.

I flung open the door and poked him again.

He woke enough to rattle the lollipop along his teeth but ended in a sigh. “Pretty Lenny.”

“Who cares if I’m pretty,” I muttered.

Now I’d see if all the resistance training I’d been doing made any difference. Flair bartending actually required a bit more muscle strength than one would think. Especially for the amount of training I had to do.

I gave his cheek a light slap. “Wake up, Griffin.”

He made an annoyed huff. “Tired,” he mumbled.

“I know. So, let’s get you inside to sleep off your moonshine, big guy.”

He turned his head toward me and opened his eyes. Even in the dim beam of my overhead safety light, those green eyes gave me a jolt. Heavy lids blinked a few times before he zeroed in on me, then his full lips slid into a smile. “Hi.”

The urge to be snarky nearly overwhelmed me. It was my default way to deflect attention from men, but I had a feeling it would be sugar that would help me get him moving, not the vinegar.

“Hi.” It wasn’t hard to smile back at him. In fact, I often had to remind myself not to encourage him. Instead, I dropped my defenses, adding a friendly cajoling tone to my voice. “Want to help me out here?”

“Of course. Anything for you, Lenny.”

My gut tightened. I would not be charmed by this man. “Good, then let’s get your legs out here on the ground.”

“M’kay.” He rolled the lollipop then frowned and reached for the stick. He missed twice before finally pulling it free. “Mmm.Raspberries.” Then he tucked it back into his cheek. “Do you like raspberries?”

“Fresh ones with my Greek yogurt.”

Why the hell did I tell him that?

“Mmm. With honey.” He slid his arm around my shoulder and his spicy aftershave filled my head as he slid forward, resting one boot on the ground.

“Shit!” I braced for him to take us both out, but he reached up and caught the Oh, Shit handle.

He grinned down at me. “I was a Navy boy. I don’t fall.”

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