Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 78696 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78696 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 315(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
That ‘sir’ was said with such heavy sarcasm that I wanted to punch the young punk’s face in, but I didn’t.
See, I exercised self-control every once in a while.
Narrowing my eyes at the man as I walked, I turned my back on them both and started walking to where Casten, Ridley, my mother, and Lenore were huddled at the bottom of the stairs that lead up to my mother’s place.
Lenore broke off from the group when she saw me coming toward her, and I caught her up in my arms, hugging her to me fiercely.
“Are you okay?” She asked, pulling back from me a bit.
I nodded. “Fine. Just pissed.”
She pressed both of her hands against my face. “Let’s go get you dry.”
I nodded. “Our stuff’s still on my bike.”
“I got it,” Casten said, breaking off from our group and cutting underneath the house.
I started up the steps with Lenore, went through the kitchen and into the living room without saying a word.
My mother’s place was on stilts, allowing Casen to get to my bike, up the steps, and up to my room about as quickly as Lenore and I did since we’d had to cut through the house.
“Thanks man,” I said, taking my bag from Casten and shutting the door softly behind us.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” I heard her ask once again.
I shrugged, leaning my head against the closed door.
I took huge, deep pulls of air as I filled my lungs with one of life’s precious gift.
“My son never had a chance like theirs did,” I told her softly.
My eyes squeezed even tighter when Lenore placed her hand in between my shoulder blades.
“You did everything right,” she told me. “Forgive yourself.”
I shook my head. “It’s not that easy.”
I couldn’t forgive myself because I was supposed to be Tanner’s protector, and I’d failed.
I didn’t think that I’d ever be able to forgive myself.
I should’ve seen the potential complications with Noreen marrying Justin.
He was a senator for Christ’s sake.
Why wouldn’t that have been the first thing to cross my mind?
Blackmail happened all the time.
Usually, it was due to someone wanting money when they kidnapped a child.
But not in Tanner’s case.
He never got a chance.
Chapter 18
Moving in with a woman is much like saying that her vagina is good enough that you won’t consider other vaginas anymore.
-Man Fact
Lenore
After getting Griffin into the shower and laying down with him, he fell asleep almost instantly.
He was exhausted, I could tell.
I looked over at him, surrounded by the white sheets that his mother had decorated the bed with.
It was about two hours after he’d fallen asleep, and he hadn’t moved a single inch since his eyes had fallen shut, when I realized I couldn’t lay there any longer.
His mouth was slightly open, and he was snoring very lightly.
Both of his hands rested on his bare chest, right under each pectoral.
I studied his defined chest.
The tapered muscles that formed a ‘V’ leading down to his pubic area that was only covered by a thin sheet.
The security light from outside highlighted the shadows under his eyes, as well as the sharpness of his cheekbones.
With a start, I realized that he’d lost weight over the last week.
Enough for me to realize that his face was slimmer…noticeably slimmer.
His hand twitched, causing me to look down, and I saw that he was covering the tattoo on his ribs with his hand.
The one that said one simple word: Tanner.
My heart ached for him.
If I could give him anything, it would be his son.
But I wasn’t a miracle worker, and all I had to give him was me.
My support. My heart. My shoulder to lean on.
I could hear muted voices coming from somewhere beyond the closed door, and I eased out of bed as carefully as I could as not to wake him.
He needed his sleep more than he needed to eat right now.
I, on the other hand, was hungry.
Almost from the moment I’d walked into the house and smelled the delicious aroma of bread. We’d made the five hour trip all the way there without stopping, and now it was nearly bed time and I hadn’t eaten since brunch that morning.
Which was why I slipped out of the room and raided the fridge, heating up leftovers and gobbling them down while standing. I’d waved to the men in the living room on my way past, and gotten nods in return.
After arriving back to the room fully satisfied, I glanced at Griffin.
He hadn’t moved so much as an inch since he’d laid down.
I took a step toward the bed and leaned over it, placing a soft kiss on his forehead before standing once again.
My sore body made itself known then.
Riding five hours on the back of a motorcycle hadn’t been as fun as I’d thought it would be.
My ass had fallen to sleep within an hour, and my legs had been close to follow.
My lower back hurt, and my stomach muscles were sore from clenching them tightly when a car would get too close to us.
I turned to the small bathroom off of the room and closed the door silently once I’d crossed the threshold.
Hitting the lights, I went through a quick routine of brushing my teeth, moisturizing, and brushing my hair.
Once I was finished, I stripped down to my nightshirt I’d hung on the back of the door earlier, sans bra and panties, and walked out
The moonlight shining in through the open blinds startled me, and I went to the blinds and shut them tightly so the sun shining in wouldn’t wake us up in the morning.
The moment my body slid into bed, Griffin reacted.
He turned and pulled me into him, curling his large arm around my body and pulling me in close.
I smiled as I snuggled into his arms, hiking my leg up, allowing it to rest curled around his ass.
I fell asleep moments later with the calming sound of the sea in my left ear, and Griffin’s steady breathing in my right.
But sometime later, groggy from sleep, I woke up confused…and extremely turned on.