Page 61 of Crash
Rolling over, she looked around the empty bedroom for any sign of him. It was quiet throughout the rest of the house. She reached over to grab her cell phone charging on the nightstand table.
One new message from Griffin.
At the shop early this morning. Breakfast in the microwave. Your feral furball looks hungry. Hope he doesn’t eat your face.
Well, that explained how Pickles showed up at Griffin’s house. He must have gone over to the apartment and brought him backfor her.
Her throat grew thick with emotion. She clasped a hand around her throat and tried to take calming breaths.
She was reading too much into Griffin’s intentions. He was very clear he was not and would not be interested in a relationship. Griffin was just a misunderstood grump who really was just a teddy bear on the inside.
Quynh tried to ignore the giddy feeling in her chest. The kind that made her want to kick her feet with happiness and grin like a lovesick teenager.
Her phone pinged with a new message. This time, it was from Ruth.
A single sentence.
What she saw effectively wiped the smile off her face, a cold dread rolling in and making her stomach drop.
twenty-seven
QUYNH
Four little words that can make anyone’s heart drop.
Ruth
We need to talk.
Words nobody should be allowed to say unless it was an emergency.
Oh, god, is my father okay?
Quynh
Everything okay?”
Her shaking fingers typed out the response. Quynh chewed on her lip as she stared at the three bouncing dots showing Ruth was typing a response.
Ruth
Can you meet me in an hour at the cafe?
Quynh gulped as she read the message. This couldn’t possibly be good news.
Quynh
See you soon.
Quynh jumped out of bed. The movement disrupted Pickles from his perch. She shot him an apologetic expression as she made a mental note to pick up some of his favorite treats on her way back. She hurriedly got dressed in the clothes she’d brought over last night. Rushing down the stairs, she forgot completely about the breakfast waiting for her.
She crossed the street and walked into the open garage bay doors. Griffin was working on Shelly when she walked in. He didn’t notice her at first, face frowning as he worked under the hood, muscles flexing with the movement.
Griffin rarely worked on Sundays, but because he was so behind recently, it became a new routine.
Noticing her in the doorway, his face lit up as her heart pounded. His usual frown softened into a slight smile. Her stomach churned with nervous excitement as she noticed how he acted differently around her.
“Morning, sunshine.” He took a step toward her, taking in her appearance. “Everything okay?”
