Drive Me Wild (Bellamy Creek #1)(70)

“Not yet,” I admitted. “Apparently the guy shipped the parts to the wrong address. But I have some cash saved, and I’m going to try to rent a car.”

“Listen. Let me call Mack at work and see how busy he is today. Maybe he can come get you.”

“No, please,” I begged, sniffing. “You’re so sweet to offer, but your family is doing enough for me already.”

“Nonsense. I’m calling him. If he’s in a meeting, he might not get back to me right away, but don’t worry, Blair. We’ll get you up here as quickly as possible.”

“Thank you so much, Frannie. I really appreciate it.”

We hung up, and I looked over at the closet door, where my debutante dress still hung. The sight of it brought a fresh round of tears as I recalled different moments—regaining consciousness in Griffin’s arms after fainting, his nervous fingers unzipping it later that night, putting it on and pretending to be the princess in the tower.

I had to admit, a lot of our relationship had been about the sex. But all of it?

I thought back to other times, moments that didn’t have anything to do with sex. Sweet, thoughtful things he’d said or done. Helping me out of the truck. Refusing to let me sleep in my car. Teaching me how to jump a dead battery. Doing the dishes after we cooked dinner together. Encouraging me to chase my dreams. Telling me things about his dad. Confiding in me about the sadness he felt after the miscarriage.

Was all that a lie?

Damn it, Griffin, I thought, wiping away tears. Which version of you is real? The tough, temperamental asshole who tore my heart out last night and stomped on it? Or the good guy with the big heart hiding behind protective defenses?

I had to face the fact that I might not ever know.





Around noon, I put on some lipstick, stuck my sunglasses on to cover my red, swollen eyes, and dredged up the courage to go down to the garage and tell Griffin goodbye. I’d heard back from Frannie, and her husband Mack would be in Bellamy Creek around five o’clock to pick me up. Until then, I’d find somewhere to wait that wasn’t full of memories of the two of us.

Carrying a folder under one arm, I entered the lobby. At the desk was a platinum blond woman I didn’t recognize, chewing gum and filing her nails. “Hi there,” she said. “If you’re looking for the baked goods, we don’t have any this morning, not even if you pay me.”

“Uh, I’m Blair,” I said. “You must be Lanette?”

Her eyes went wide. “You’re Blair?”

“Yes.” I set the file folder on the counter. “I just wanted to drop this off. Inside are all the details for the anniversary event. You’ll find—”

“Do you know how many people came in here looking for you this morning?” Lanette shook her head, her bob swinging. “Like, a hundred. You are very popular.”

“That’s nice, but—”

“I thought Mr. Frankel was going to cry when I said you’d quit.”

“Quit?”

“That’s what Griffin told me when he called. He said your car would be ready today so he thought you might be heading out of town sooner than expected. You’ve got another job somewhere or something?”

“Yes,” I said, feeling confused. My car would be ready today?

“He also made me promise I wouldn’t call his mother and say anything about you leaving. Paid me an extra twenty for it too.” She tilted her head. “Are you okay, honey? You look kinda pale.”

“Is Griffin here?” I asked, glancing at the door to the garage.

“I assume so. You want me to go get him?”

“Yes, thank you. If he’s not too busy, I need to speak with him.”

“Sure thing.” She hurried from behind the desk into the service bay.

A moment later, she appeared again. “He says he’ll be right out.”

“Thank you.” I faced the window, looking out at the sidewalk and trying to keep my composure.

A few minutes later, I heard his voice.

“Blair.”

I turned to see Griffin standing there in the doorway, tall and solid as a fortress. His blue eyes were bloodshot, his hands curled into fists, but his expression gave nothing away.

“Lanette, could you give us a minute?” he asked.

Clearly hoping to witness some drama, Lanette’s face fell. She put her purse over her shoulder. “I guess I’ll take lunch now. I’ll be in the break room.”

When we were alone, Griffin cleared his throat and spoke quietly. “Your car is ready. It’s in the lot. Keys are on the front seat.”

“That’s what Lanette said. I don’t understand.”

“The parts came in yesterday.”

It still didn’t make sense. “But when did you do the work?”

“Last night. I couldn’t sleep, so I came down here and got it done.”

“You worked all through the night?” That explained the bloodshot eyes. On closer inspection I saw the dark circles too. The sallow complexion.

He shrugged. “I figured you’d want the option to leave as soon as possible.”

The crazy thing was, I didn’t. I wanted to fly at him, beat on his chest, fight back, force him to admit I’d meant something to him. I wanted to try again to convince him that what we had was worth a shot.