Page 69 of No Going Back
She smiled against his lips as they brushed hers. “You’re just tired of fighting with my shower curtain.”
Griffin laughed, the deep sound of it making her heart skip a little beat. “I’m not going to argue that.” He caught her lips again in a consuming kiss that left her head spinning and her lungs fighting for air. “I wish I could stay longer, but you’ve got to get to work and I need to pick up that tile before they try to unload it themselves and break half of what I ordered.” He kissed her again, his teeth gently raking across her lower lip as he pulled away. “I’ll see you later?”
Dianna nodded, easily smiling as he traced her lips with his thumb. “You know where to find me.”
Griffin’s eyes followed the path of his thumb, lingering on her mouth. “I’ll miss you.”
A little more of the upset she’d been struggling to make sense of eased at his hushed confession. “Good.”
Griffin’s hand slid from her face and he backed toward the door, giving her a wink as he slipped out.
Maybe everything was fine. Maybe he was still just struggling with all that happened.
She needed to relax. Give him a break. Stop being so demand—
The thought stopped her in her tracks. Sent her back to the moment those words were first put on her. But they weren’t true then.
And they probably weren’t true now.
Her bad mood returned in a flash, bringing along a healthy dose of self-loathing that followed her all the way to work.
By the time she walked in through the back door of The Baking Rack she was sick to her stomach and filled with disappointment.
“Hey.” Janie’s greeting sent Dianna stumbling back as she walked through the door, one hand pressed to her chest as her heart raced.
“What are you doing here?” She sucked in a breath, leaning against the wall for balance. “You scared the shit out of me.”
Janie winced. “Sorry. I wasn’t trying to scare you.”
Dianna blew out a breath as she hooked her purse into place and wiggled out of the jacket she pulled on over her sweatshirt, lining it onto the same hook. “I think I’m just wound up today.”
Maybe wound up wasn’t the right word. Maybe she was too many things to list and wound up was just an easy way to summarize.
“That’s part of the reason I’m here.” Janie picked up the plate sitting on the counter in front of her, holding it out between them. “I knew today would be tough for you so I figured I would bring you a present and come in and help.” She shook her head. “No charge. Not as an employee, just as your friend.”
Dianna turned, her eyes landing on the item balanced in Janie’s grip. She pressed one hand to her mouth, fighting the sudden flood of tears trying to leak free. “You made me an angel food cake.”
Janie tipped her head to one side. “Technically, Mariah made you an angel food cake since I had no clue how in the hell to do it.” She smiled a little bit. “And also because I wanted it to actually be good enough to commemorate your grandma’s memory.”
Dianna rushed at her, wrapping Janie in a tight hug as her friend struggled to get the plate back to the safety of the counter. “I think this is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.” A sob escaped, one only half due to Janie’s kind gesture.
“Oh, honey.” Janie squeezed her tight. “I know it’s hard when you lose someone you love.” She rubbed a circle along Dianna’s back. “And it doesn’t get any better, which fucking sucks a bag of dicks.”
A twisted combination of a laugh and a cry sent a little snot leaking out of her nose, forcing Dianna to use the sleeve of her sweatshirt to wipe it away. “It’s not just that.” She leaned back, dabbing at the corners of her eyes as she took a jumpy breath. “I’m also a little worried you might have been right.”
Janie’s brows pinched together. “That doesn’t sound right. I’m pretty sure no one has ever said that about me before, so you’re probably wrong.”
“I think I might be a little blinded by good dick.” Dianna managed another watery smile. “Maybe my expectations are just too high.”
Janie’s expression immediately sharpened and she pointed one finger at Dianna’s face. “You are not the problem. You are never the problem.” She lifted her brows. “You’re a fucking goddess, remember?”
Dianna sniffed again, doing her best to rein in the onslaught of emotion. It wasn’t like her. She normally kept everything under control. She had years of practice keeping her reactions as tame as possible after being called dramatic and crazy more times than she could count. “Then you were definitely right and I was just blinded by good dick.”
She’d almost been willing to overlook everything when Griffin pulled her close this morning. Kissed her and reminded her of how good they were together. And she might have managed it if Janie hadn’t been standing here with an angel food cake and an offer of emotional and physical support, making Griffin’s forehead kiss and ‘I’m sorry’ seem lame in comparison.
“I don’t expect him to make me a cake, but he could at least ask me if I’m okay.” The sadness she’d been struggling with started to turn, souring into something slightly easier to manage. “I told him today was the anniversary of my grandma’s death and he just said he was sorry and kissed me on the head and then basically left to go on about his day.” Her summary left out the part where Griffin had done her dishes and made out with her a little, but both of those things seemed completely insignificant now.
Janie leaned in, reaching up to wipe at the tears still sliding down Dianna’s cheeks. “That’s because he’s a fucking piece of shit with no emotional capacity.” She rested both hands on Dianna’s shoulders. “And you deserve better. You’ve been through so much. Don’t settle again.”
