Page 11 of Property of Grifter
I gape.“I thought you said you don’t do dates.”
“I don’t,” he admits with a sexy grin.“But I’m willin’ to make an exception for you.”
“I haven’t even agreed to go,” I remind him.
“I know,” he tosses back, “but Nana has already promised she’d have you ready.”
“I did, boy!”Nana calls from the kitchen.Until this moment, I didn’t even realize he was leading me out of the room.What is he doing to me?“Don’t you worry, she’ll be gorgeous!”
I look to the heavens and press my hands together.“Dear Lord, please let all of this just be a horrible nightmare.”
Sadly, The Man Upstairs doesn’t answer.All I hear is Griffin laughing.“Walk me out, Georgie,” he all but orders.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Live dangerously,” he says, smirking.
“I’m in pajamas,” I protest.
“If anyone looks at you,” he says gently, “I’ll kill them.”
“Will you stop being insane.”
He grins that dangerous, teasing grin.“I was serious.You’re mine to hold, touch, kiss, and cherish.You’re my old lady, Georgie.No one else gets to look at you and they definitely don’t get to touch you.”
I stare at him like he’s grown three heads.“Old lady?”
He laughs.“In my world, ‘old lady’ means you’re my woman.It’s not something that is taken lightly.Think of it as a marriage without paperwork.
“You are freaking insane.I’m not your old lady.I barely know you, Griffin.”
“You will.All of that will come in time.”His voice dips lower.“Now kiss me, Georgie, so I can leave.”
My brain screams it’s a bad idea.What is even scarier, though, is that for some reason I really want to kiss him.I should be freaked the hell out and part of me is, but I’m starting to feel like there’s a bigger part that wants this.That wants him.
Before I can continue to question myself, I feel Griffin’s hand cupping my cheek.I force my complete attention back to him.His hand is rough, warm, and somehow grounding.It also makes me forget how to breathe.
His face gets closer, eliminating the distance between us, making my heart pound inside my chest.As his lips brush against mine, I whimper.The kiss is soft at first, testing the waters.When I eagerly return his kiss, he deepens it—robbing me of air, thought, and logic.His scent of leather and cigarettes, permeates the area around me.I enjoy the hypnotic pull of him, letting the world fade away.Now, there’s only me and him and that’s exactly what I want right now.
Just when I start to think maybe—maybe—this morning isn’t a total disaster, a sharp popping noise splits the air around us.
Then another.
“What the?—”
Before I can finish my question, several more pops explode around us.Griffin’s entire body tenses.In one motion, he shoves me down, covering me with his weight.Pain explodes in my body as I hit the ground hard.
“What are you—Get off me!”I gasp, starting to get scared.I feel lost and so confused.
“Hush, Georgie,” he whispers fiercely, over me as he presses me tight between his body and the hard, uncompromising ground beneath me.“Don’t move.Someone’s shooting at us.”
My body goes rigid.For a second, I don’t process the words.Then I hear it again—the sharp, awful popping—and the panic hits.My heart races, as my breath starts coming too fast and very ragged.I’m drowning in fear when Griffin adjusts his position, still keeping me covered but pulling a gun out and shooting in the direction of the road.
“Oh God, oh God, oh God.”I say those words over and over.It becomes a panicked mantra—or prayer.I squeeze my eyes shut, desperately trying to hold onto hope that we survive.
7GEORGIA
Eventually,the world goes completely silent except for the pounding of my heartbeat.Griffin’s body is pressed tight against mine, heavy and protective.His breath is ragged in my ear.I can still smell the gunpowder in the air but thankfully, the gunfire has stopped.For a long, terrible moment, neither of us moves.Then, Griffin slowly lifts his head.I watch as he scans the yard.His eyes are hard now, sharp in a way that makes my stomach twist.It’s almost as if he is a different person.
