Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 70303 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70303 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 281(@250wpm)___ 234(@300wpm)
I’d always wanted my father to love him, and hearing him speak so highly of Griffin was a dream come true.
“I know you’re seeing Antonio…”
The second Griffin was mentioned, it was like Antonio never existed. “I only love Griffin. It’s always been Griffin. It’ll always be Griffin.”
My father lowered his hands. “That’s what he said you would say.”
I wiped my tears away with my fingertips, trying to fix my makeup so I wouldn’t look like a mess when I finally laid eyes on him. “I want to see him.”
“Of course.” Father led me down the hallway and to the right, and then he stopped next to the open door. “In there.”
Instead of walking inside, I stayed by the wall, feeling my heart pound in my chest. My entire body was shaking because the emotions were breaking the foundation of my spirit. This man was all I’d ever wanted…and now I was finally getting him. He was the love of my life, and I would never have to live without him again. My sheets would always smell like him. His lips would always taste like me. Those eyes would always be on me. It was almost too good to be true.
Father watched me, waiting for me to go inside.
I wasn’t ready. This was all I’d ever wanted, but I wasn’t ready.
My father placed his hand on my shoulder, gave me a gentle squeeze, and then walked away.
I did my best not to cry, but I couldn’t help it. My hand covered my mouth to stifle my sobs, but there was no use. My heart was crying, and my eyes were just draining the endless tears. My heart was beating so hard I actually felt dizzy. I was weak in the knees, weak everywhere.
I kept fixing my makeup, but it didn’t make a difference.
Then I heard his masculine voice, deep, powerful, and full of the love he used to show me every single day. “Baby.”
I stiffened at the word, crying even more because I missed hearing him call me that every day. He used to say it when he made love to me. He used to say it when he was angry with me. It was a simple nickname every couple used, but that gentle word meant so much to me, to us.
“Baby,” he repeated. “Get your ass in here.”
I finally moved into the doorway, unashamed of the tears streaming down my face. The second his face came into my sight, I stared at the man of my dreams. I stared at the man I could never forget. I moved closer to him, my fingers twitching to feel his skin. My lips ached to feel his crush mine.
When my eyes locked on to his, I saw the same emotion mirror my own. Just like the day we said goodbye, tears were in his eyes. He must have heard me crying outside the room, and since my pain was his pain, he felt everything I felt. “Griffin…” I pushed the rail down and climbed onto his chest despite how reckless it was. My arms circled his neck and I kissed him, kissed him like we’d never been apart.
His fingers moved through my hair just the way they used to, soft to the touch but aggressive at the same time. His other arm wrapped around my waist, and he squeezed me against him, pulling me so tight that his monitor started to beep in warning. His IV was yanked out, but that didn’t stop him. He kept kissing me, never stopping. “You’re mine…finally mine.”
The hospital bed was small for a man his size, and there wasn’t much room for me. Most of my body was on his, but I stayed clear of the wound in his left shoulder, hiding the right side of his body instead.
I propped my elbow against the mattress and held myself up so I could look at him, look into the face of the man who haunted my dreams every night. My hand glided over his chest, feeling muscles that were even harder than they used to be. Smooth and soft skin brushed against my fingertips, the exact skin I used to claw late into the night. My palm moved over his heart so I could feel it beat, deep and strong.
It was hard to believe he was right in front of me, directly under my touch. Since my mother had told me what was going on with Conway, I hadn’t thought about Bones once. I’d been panicked about my family, about my brother and sister-in-law. It was one of the rare times when Bones was squeezed from my thoughts.
I examined the hard line of his jaw, his chiseled features that made him so manly. His fair skin looked the same, and his bright blue eyes were as beautiful as I remembered. It was the only soft feature about him, that gentle blue color. It reminded me of a shallow sea that could cleanse me of my past.