Page 77 of Find You Again (Nashville Star 2)

The way she’s looking at him—he damn near got her killed and all she can do is make eyes at him.

Goddamn.

Her I love you wrecked him. He’s wanted those words for so long, and now that he has them, he’s scared shitless. Not because of what they mean, but because of what he’s done to her.

She’s hurt and it’s his fault. Again.

“You nervous?” she asks, startling him from his thoughts. “To go back home?”

He grins. “I went back to get you, didn’t I?”

“For more than twenty-four hours, Griff. You know, you actually have to see people now.” She tucks a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “Daddy knows you’re comin’ home. He wanted me to stay with him, but I told him I’m stayin’ with you.” Her gray eyes search out his as if reading him for regret. “If that’s still okay.”

“More than,” he says, forcing the words out from the knot in his throat.

“I’m twenty-nine years old,” Alabama says hotly. The apples of her cheeks turn an adorable shade of pink, and Griff fights the urge to pull over, take her in his arms and kiss her senseless. “I should be able to not regress to a child the minute I set foot in my hometown.”

He chuckles, returning his gaze to the road.

“I told him I didn’t want there to be problems—”

He cuts her a look. “And there won’t be.”

He means it. Though seeing Alabama’s father isn’t high on his list of priorities, telling her about the past isn’t either. Especially not now. He knows she needs it to move on with him, but all he wants her to do is recover her strength. Though it’s just stitches and a sling, Griff knows the emotional wounds will go much deeper. He’s gonna be there for her. To give her anything she asks.

And if there’s one thing he’s damn certain of, he ain’t running again. So he’s gonna take whatever shit Newton is gonna throw down, take it for Alabama, and only this time he ain’t leaving with his tail tucked between his legs. He’s leaving with Alabama. With the woman he loves held tight by his side.

The way it should have been in the first place.

Alabama gives a wistful little sigh. He glances over at her in time to see the sign for Austin fly by.

“Don’t be doin’ that,” he warns.

He’s already got a call scheduled with Freddie for later today to figure out the rest of the tour schedule. Not like he’d tell Alabama that. Not yet.

Her glance is exasperated. “I can still sing, Griff.”

“I know you can, and we’re gonna do that, just after you rest.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She rolls her eyes but smiles at him. “You’re a pain in my ass, Greyson.” She shifts in her seat, too fast, and winces at the pain spearing through her shoulder.

“Feeling’s mutual,” he says, trying to keep his voice cool, but his gaze lingers, worried. Watchful.

After a second, Alabama curls back in the seat and closes her eyes.

Griff exhales a breath and steers the truck toward Clover. His knuckles, white on the wheel, tell him what he needs to do. Face everything he’s been running from. Face the past so he can have a future with the woman he loves.

Alabama wakes to the slowing of the truck, the feel of movement that tells her they’re off the freeway and on a small-town dusty dirt road. Blinking away sleep, she turns her face to the window, to the familiar scenery. They’re half an hour from Clover. She can gauge the distance by the corn silos sitting tall on the horizon. She always used them to count down the time. At the bounce of the railroad tracks, the sharp jostle of her arm, she lets out a pained moan.

“Hey.” Alabama turns her head to find Griff staring at her. His lionlike eyes are soft, clouded with concern. “How you feelin’?”

She stretches in the seat the best she can. “Sore. Stiff.” She flashes Griff a smile. “I’ll survive.”

He looks back at the road, his face focused and granite-tough.

Alabama eyes Griff’s handsome profile and wonders.

He’s been so strong for her, so kind, so damn beautiful—helping her with anything she needs, giving her whatever she’s asked for. Sunlight catches the scar on his cheek, glossy and ragged, but she smiles. She loves that scar. Loves everything about him, including his reckless streak, his roving hands, his fierce and loyal protection of her.

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