“Well, you deserve it. You work so hard. How was the event?”
“It was amazing. And it sucked.”
I gasped. “It sucked? Why?”
“Because you weren’t there. And you’d done so much to make it the success that it was. I kept looking around all day, hoping to see your face in the crowd.”
“I made myself stay away,” I told him quietly. “I was scared I’d break down if I saw you.”
“What made you come to the game?”
“Are you kidding? I couldn’t miss the old man baseball league championship!” I slapped at his shoulder. “I lied and told your mom and sister I was going right back to Traverse City so they wouldn’t look for me. But the truth was, Frannie had given me the whole day off in case . . . just in case.” I sighed. “So I hid out at Charlie Frankel’s house all day. He was the only one who knew I was there.”
“He adores you.”
“He’s sweet.”
“I adore you.” He ran a hand over my hip, and his cock stirred between us. “And I can’t wait to show you how much. Are we done with questions yet?”
“Nope. I get two more. Is it true that you hid the parts for my car for over a week because you didn’t want me to leave?”
He sighed. “It’s true.”
“You big lug, why didn’t you just say you wanted me to stay?” I shouted, although it made me happy to hear him admit what he’d done.
“Because saying that out loud would mean owning up to feelings I did not want to have,” he said.
“So what was the plan, you were just going to keep me stranded here until your feelings for me went away?”
“I really didn’t think it through, Blair. All I knew was that I couldn’t let you go.”
“But you did,” I reminded him, poking his chest.
“I did. Because I freaked out. I thought I might have gotten you pregnant, and that triggered a real shit show in my head.”
“I know. That was a scary moment, I agree.”
“Then I freaked out because I’d never told anyone about the miscarriage, and there I was spilling my guts to you.”
“I was glad you did,” I said softly, looking up at him. “It helped me understand you better. I don’t think you’re any less of a man for being sad over the loss, Griffin. I don’t think anyone would think that.”
He was silent a moment, then he rolled onto his back. “You’re probably right. But it never felt like something I could talk about. Until you.”
I threw an arm and leg over him and pressed my cheek to his warm, bare chest. “I know you’ll never be a talker like me. But no more hiding the big stuff, okay? That’s the only promise I’ll ask you to make.”
“No hiding things? And I get my second chance?”
“No hiding things. And you get your second chance.”
“Then there’s something I need to show you.” He sat up, bringing me with him.
“What is it?”
He switched on the bedside lamp, got out of bed, and went over to his closet door. “I swear, this is the last thing I was hiding.”
I gave him a strange look. “Okaaaay.” Then he opened the closet door, and I gasped. “My dress!”
“I rescued it from the dumpster.”
Scrambling out of bed, I went over and looked at it, all wrapped in dry cleaner plastic, looking as fresh as the day I’d bought it. “I don’t believe it!”
“I remembered how you were wearing it the night we met. And how you said to me that you couldn’t let it go because it made you feel beautiful and hopeful. Like your life was just beginning.”
My throat closed up, and my eyes filled. “That’s right.”
He drew me into his arms. “I want you to feel that way again.”
“I do.” I laughed, even as tears leaked from my eyes. “I honestly do.”
“Good.” He lifted me off my feet and carried me back to the bed, turning off the lamp before stretching out above me. “Because I’ve gone and gotten my heart set on you, Blair Peacock Beaufort. And I come from a long line of men who are awfully stubborn once they get their hearts set on something.”
I wrapped my arms and legs around him. “I’m so glad you were there that night, to catch me when I fell.”
“I’ll always be there to catch you,” he whispered as his body began to move above mine in the dark. “In my arms is where