Page 127 of Dating Goals
“You wouldn’t be in danger if it weren’t for me.”
“I chose to help, remember?” I tilt my head back to meet his eyes. “Nobody forced me.”
“Still.” His voice is rough with emotion. “Those men could have hurt you. If I hadn’t circled back…”
“But you did.” I place my palm against his chest, feeling his heart thump steadily beneath my fingers. “You were there when I needed you.”
Griffin’s hand covers mine, pressing it more firmly against his heart. “That’s what scares me. What if next time I’m not? What if you get hurt because of me?”
The firelight casts his face in warm shadows, highlighting the worry lines around his eyes. He looks different without his usual carefree smile. More vulnerable, more real.
I rest my head against his chest again, exhausted from the night’s excitement. Griffin smells like expensive cologne and mint toothpaste, with a hint of something uniquely him beneath it all. His heart thunders steadily against my ear. Or maybe that’s my own pulse I’m hearing.
“Should we call those FIS agents? Let them know Chase is sending people after us?”
Griffin sighs. “I never had their contact information. They always reached out to me, never the other way around. I’ve tried looking up their department, but it’s all classified. No public contact information.”
“That’s convenient.”
My body feels more fatigued with each passing minute, the adrenaline finally draining away.
“We’ll figure it out tomorrow,” Griffin says. “Right now, you’re safe here.”
I nod against his chest, feeling oddly at peace despite everything. His heartbeat provides a steady rhythm beneath my ear. We continue swaying long after the song ends. I feel my eyelids growing heavy, and I can’t suppress a massive yawn.
Griffin chuckles. “Am I boring you? Should I talk more about landscaping and classical music?”
I swat his arm. “Stop it. I’m just crashing from a long day. Blind dates, car chases, and kung fu fights take a lot out of a girl.”
“You were amazing, by the way,” he says, admiration clear in his voice. “The way you fought those guys off…I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“My father believed every woman should know how to defend herself,” I explain through another yawn. “He started teaching me when I was six.”
Griffin’s hands move to my shoulders, gently steadying me as I sway slightly. “Come on, sleepyhead. You need rest.”
He leads me down a short hallway to the bedroom, a small, cozy space with wooden beams and a sloped ceiling. It’s simple but clean, with a wooden dresser and a small bookshelf. Even though this is Walter’s cabin, I can tell Griffin put his own mark on it. A large bed covered in a thick handmade quilt dominates most of the room. One bed. Of course. One very inviting bed that suddenly seems both enormous and tiny at the same time.
The realization hits us both.
“I’ll take the sofa,” Griffin offers immediately.
“Don’t be ridiculous.” I counter, too exhausted to feel awkward. “The sofa is too small for you. We’re adults. We can share a bed without things getting complicated.”
His eyebrows shoot up. “You sure?”
“Unless you snore. Then all bets are off.”
Griffin laughs, the tension broken. “No snoring, I promise.”
I collapse onto the bed, not bothering to pull back the covers. “Get in bed,” I mumble, my eyes already closing. “I’m not kicking you out of your own bedroom.”
After a moment’s hesitation, Griffin stretches out beside me, careful to maintain a respectful distance. The bed dips under his weight, inevitably rolling me slightly toward him. Neither of usmoves to correct it. The silence stretches, punctuated only by the occasional pop from the dying fire in the living room.
Eventually we slide under the covers, leaving a gap between us. But as the clock inches toward morning, that distance disappears. Almost unconsciously, I reach for Griffin in the dark, curling against his side. He hesitates for just a moment before wrapping his arm protectively around me, my head resting on his chest.
“This okay?” he whispers.
“More than okay,” I sigh.
