31. Griffin

Chapter Thirty-One

Griffin

I slipped my key fob out of my pocket, twirling it on my finger as I walked out to the parking lot. Graham was ahead of me, holding the door. "Thanks, man," I said.

"Of course." He released the door and it swung shut with a thump.

With it being autumn, the days were getting shorter. Even then, the last rays of the sunset were shimmering on the lake behind Wildlands Lodge.

Graham stopped beside the back of my truck. He waited just long enough that I assumed he had something to say.

"What's up?" I asked.

His lips twisted to the side. "You better be good to Tish."

"Of course," I said quickly.

He leaned his head back with a sigh before leveling his gaze with mine again. "I care about Tish, and I know a bit about being a single parent." I knew he'd raised his daughter mostly on his own until she was a teenager and Madison came along, so I nodded. "Allie asked me to warn you to be good to her."

I felt my eyes widen. "So, she'll kick my ass if I screw this up?" A laugh sputtered out.

Graham cocked his head to the side with a slight smile. "She will."

I studied him for a beat. "Well, you don't need to worry."

His gaze sobered. "I didn't think so. Buckle up: love isn't for the faint of heart."

I didn't even know what to think of his choice of that four-letter word.

My heart spun and kicked, while my mind stumbled.

Later that night, Tish shifted a little closer, curling her hand into mine. I traced my thumb along the inside of her wrist.

She dipped her head to dust a kiss in the little dip just below my collarbone. We fell asleep, and I woke at some point to discover the TV was still on with some cooking show playing. Tish was sound asleep, her leg thrown over mine. I carefully shifted to reach for the remote and turn the TV off.

The next time I woke, I was spooning around her. I was deeply aroused, my hard length nestled against the curve of her bottom. Her T-shirt had ridden up, and my palm was splayed on her belly. I sucked in a slow breath, willing my arousal to ease.

It surprised me when I heard her voice, raspy from sleep. "Griffin."

I smoothed my hand down her belly. "Yeah?"

She turned over and boldly stroked a palm over my length. Just the night before, we'd had the birth control conversation and she'd told me she had an IUD. I was deeply relieved not to worry about scrambling to find a condom right about now.

My entire system felt piercingly alive at her touch. I let out a strangled sound. She stroked again. "I need you," she whispered.

In a fiery second, I was so close to the edge that my breath hissed through my gritted teeth. "Sweetness, you don't have to—" I felt the hot shock of her lips against mine before she moved swiftly, rolling me back and shimmying up to straddle me.

"I know I don't have to do anything. What if I want to?" she teased.

"Well, in that case…" My words were broken with a ragged groan when she rolled her hips over me. Nothing but my cotton boxers and her panties separated us. "You can have me."

Then, she was kissing me, and seconds later I was rocking deeply into her. She trembled and came all over my cock in the sleepy darkness.

With my feelings for Tish sharp in my mind and heart, it didn't surprise me when Wyatt called. I wouldn't say we communicated by telepathy as twins, but it did seem that we often knew when the other had something important to share.

"Hey, what's up?" I asked, answering the call when I saw my twin brother's name flash on the screen.

"I understand you have some news," he said, his voice teasing.

"Maybe," I finally said after a beat.

I had told Wyatt about my feelings for Tish back when she had been trying to push me away, but I hadn't mentioned her since I'd moved to Willow Brook. As my twin, Wyatt knew me well and he knew I really liked her. But he'd said he understood her concerns back in Fireweed Harbor. "Tish works directly for Rhys. It would be awkward here in town for her," he'd said.

"I was planning to call you," I explained.

He chuckled. "Figured."

He and I texted a few times a week, but we saved the big conversations for phone calls or when we actually saw each other.

"So what did you hear?" I asked.

"Chase happened to call me about something to do with the equipment for the brewery there. He mentioned he thought you and Tish were official."

My lips tugged into a smile. "It's official. Does Rhys know?"

"I thought I would save that for you," Wyatt teased.

"I'll call him."

"Tell me something, are you in love with her?"

I took a quick breath. I pondered his question for a few seconds, even though I actually knew the answer. It was a gut check for myself as much for him.

"Yeah. I am."

"Well, that's good. I thought when she moved away, that might be the end of it."

"I did too. Who knew?"

He chuckled. "All right. Get that call over with because you know word will reach Rhys soon enough."

"I'll call him right after this. You and Rosie doing okay?"

"Amazing."

My cynical brother still sounded downright besotted with his wife. "You be good to her."

"As if I'd be anything but," he returned.

I was good to my word, and as soon as I finished my call with Wyatt, I called Rhys and filled him in.

"I thought you had a crush on Tish," Rhys replied immediately.

"You did?"

His dry chuckle filtered through the line. "It was hard to miss the way you looked at her. Figured it could've gotten awkward if she was still working for me directly, but she moved."

He paused, long enough that I prompted, "Rhys?"

"Be good to her."

My throat felt tight. "I will."

The following morning, Tish smiled at me over a cup of coffee. "After months of just me and a baby in the morning, it's really nice to have a grown-up here. That's not the only reason I'm happy you're here," she added in a rush.

Just then, my phone vibrated with a distinct tone. Her brows hitched up. "What's that?"

"Work. That means we have a call out to a fire."

Standing quickly, I gave Teddy a hug and Tish a lingering kiss before I hurried out to my truck and headed into town.

Our crew was called out to an unexpected late-season fire in a hunting area started by someone leaving a smoker unattended. Once I knew I'd be headed out of the area, I texted Tish, filling her in on the basics.

My thumbs hovered over the screen as the plane was readying for takeoff. I wanted to tell her I loved her, but I didn't.

My thoughts spun to Graham's observation about love. I thought maybe he understood more than I did about this.

Me: I'll miss you.