Pieces of Us - Carrie Elks Page 0,22

to press his lips against hers.

Her breath was hot against his mouth as he pulled her against him, feeling the softness of her body press into his hard abdomen, the need pulsing inside him as he deepened the kiss. Their tongues slid together, and her arms hooked around his neck to steady herself.

But then she stepped away, her eyes wide with horror as she looked up at him. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me.”

Griff blinked, the abrupt end to their kiss taking him by surprise. His skin felt cool at the loss of her body against his. “It’s okay…”

“No, it’s not. I’m an idiot. Blame the heat or something.” She fanned herself as though it wasn’t cool on the hilltop. “It was so inappropriate. You’re my tenant, I’m new in town, and I’m newly divorced.” Autumn attempted a smile. “Believe me when I tell you I’m a walking disaster right now.”

He raised an eyebrow. “You don’t look like a disaster.” So she was divorced. He’d store that little gem away to think about later.

“You don’t know the half of it. I’m making bad decisions left, right, and center at the moment.”

Bad decisions? He swallowed down his reaction. “We should be heading back anyway. The sun’s slipping away.”

“Sure.” She nodded. “That makes sense.”

“And I’m sorry to hear about your divorce.”

Her expression softened. “Another bad decision. Or a series of them.”

“Let’s head down that path,” he suggested, pointing at a graveled trail winding down the other side of the hill. “I know a shortcut back to the parking lot from there. Should only take us half an hour or so.”

She nodded, pulling her lips between her teeth. “Sounds good.”

This time, they kept a distance between them as they walked, and Griff kept his hands firmly fisted at his sides. And if he was still feeling a little bit crazy about the way the afternoon had turned out? He could live with that. They’d stopped before things got serious. That was something to be glad about.

He and women didn’t mix. He should have learned that by now.

8

Pouring herself a large glass of wine, Autumn swallowed a mouthful before draining the water from the pan and adding the creamy sauce. What the hell had she been thinking, kissing Griff Lambert?

She hadn’t been thinking, that was the problem.

Laying her plate and glass in front of her on the small kitchen table, she twirled a forkful of spaghetti and lifted it to her mouth. She was under no illusion that Griff was devastated at her pulling away from him. Yeah, he’d looked surprised, and more than a little confused, but he’d been back to his easy-going self by the time they were halfway down the hill.

It was Autumn who could barely bring herself to look at him.

She took another large sip of wine, letting the cool Sauvignon slip down her throat. She’d bought it from an amazing little wine shop she’d discovered along the boardwalk, a few hundred yards from the pier. Was it only this morning when she’d walked in there and talked about the different grapes with the owner? It felt like a lifetime ago.

Her life was a disaster. That’s all there was to it. She hadn’t lied when she told Griff she’d been making one terrible decision after another.

First getting married to the wrong guy.

Then getting divorced.

Not to mention buying a damn pier on the other side of the country while drunk. And now she was throwing herself at tenants.

Her phone began to vibrate on the table in front of her and she sighed as she looked at the screen.

What was this, the tenth call? The eleventh? She couldn’t avoid her dad forever.

Taking a quick glug of wine she swiped her finger to accept the call. She’d always been the kind of person to rip off a Band-Aid, rather than gingerly tug at it. She might as well find out what he had to say.

“Hey, Daddy.”

He paused, as though surprised she’d answered. “I’ve been calling you for days,” he said after a few seconds. “Where have you been?”

“I’ve been busy working.”

He sighed. “I was on the verge of calling the local police department to ask them to do a wellness check.”

“There’s no need for that. I’m absolutely fine. Did Lydia not tell you we spoke?”

“She did. And I have to say I’m surprised that she’s being the reliable one right now. I never thought I’d see the day.” He huffed. “So how are things going with the pier? Do you