‘He usually wanders over for a chat if he’s out getting the mail and sees me working in the yard, but seems to be avoiding us. Do you think we’ve done something to upset him?’
It’d been tricky to walk a tightrope between reassuring her new friends they weren’t at fault without admitting her part in Griff becoming a hermit, or mentioning his brother. Lyndsey hadn’t missed Miss Grey’s perceptive look. Very little escaped the sharp-eyed octogenarian.
She’d better hurry up, or she wouldn’t have time to get herself cleaned up before the rest of her family returned. Becca had dropped Theo off at his tech camp in Nashville before taking Nora to baby swimming classes at a local pool.
Raised voices drifted in through the shrubbery, and she lifted her finger off the hose fitting to stop the water spraying out. The deep gravelly voice was definitely Griff, but she guessed the other man speaking could be his brother. She edged closer and, although they were too far away for her to catch all that was being said, Lyndsey picked up enough to realize it wasn’t a friendly conversation.
‘Go to hell, Griff. I knew you’d never accept my apology in a million years, and that’s why I didn’t bother tryin’ before. Give me a few days to make plans and I’ll clear off out of your hair.’
There was no response from her one-time lover, and then somewhere in the distance, a door slammed. She let out a shriek as a blast of cold water gushed down her leg and tried fruitlessly to turn it off. When that failed, she struggled to redirect it, but a jet of water shot through the bushes.
‘What the hell!’
Lyndsey switched the hose off properly this time before walking back over to push some greenery away to peer through. ‘Oh gosh, I’m terribly sorry. I didn’t mean to—’
‘Half-drown me?’ Griff swiped at the water dripping down his face. ‘Tryin’ to combine eavesdropping and watering, were you? That’s a novel pastime.’
‘Sorry. Dare I say hello and ask how you’re doing?’
‘Depends how brave you are.’
If she wasn’t so attuned to his quirky sense of humor, she would’ve missed the thin strand of amusement running through Griff’s attempt to sound angry.
‘I made a jug of fresh lemonade earlier, and I’m happy to share it. Will that tempt you to forgive me?’
‘Does it come with a sprig of mint and plenty of ice?’
Lyndsey blushed at his teasing reference to the day when she’d blatantly flirted with him.
‘I’ll be lousy company,’ he continued.
‘What’s new? Come on over, if you want to risk it.’ She spun around and strode off, heart racing. By the time she reached the porch steps, Griff was plodding up the drive, shoulders drooping as though the weight of the world was on them. ‘Sit down and take the weight off your temper. I won’t be long.’
‘I’m surprised your sharp tongue doesn’t cut you sometimes,’ he muttered.
In the hall, she made the mistake of glancing in the mirror and cringed at her bedraggled reflection. Griff certainly wouldn’t make any cracks about her immaculate appearance today. Six weeks without a haircut combined with Tennessee’s humid weather meant she sported a shaggy mass of corkscrew curls. Instead of the make-up she started the day with, there were streaks of dirt and dried sweat. Her outfit didn’t fall into her usual white/black/gray fashion palette, either. She didn’t own any digging-in-the-dirt clothes, so she’d appropriated a colorful combination of old things belonging to her sister. Faded red shorts barely covering her thighs, a garish orange plastic belt and a skimpy, bright purple sleeveless tank.
Before she could be tempted to run upstairs for a quick shower and clean clothes, Lyndsey hurried off to the kitchen and scrubbed her face and hands at the sink. Spying the white plastic cake box on the counter, she gave thanks to the baking gods, or in this case, Becca. Yesterday her sister had baked four trays of millionaire’s shortbread, keeping one for themselves and delivering the other three this morning to their grateful neighbors. She cut two pieces — one significantly larger than the other — and mixed their drinks to her guest’s detailed specifications. Lyndsey carried the tray back out to the porch and stood for a second watching Griff hunched in the chair, frowning, deep in thought.
‘Penny for them.’
He jerked his head up, then looked confused. ‘Does that mean, “penny for your thoughts?”’
Lyndsey nodded.
Dark shadows lurked in his eyes before he covered them with a fleeting smile. ‘Not sure they’re worth that much.’
‘Maybe not.’ She set the tray down. ‘You timed it well. These are courtesy of Becca, of course. I’m no baker.’
‘They sure are a weakness of mine.’
Their fingers brushed when Lyndsey passed him a plate, releasing memories she’d struggled to repress of his strong hands stroking and exploring every inch of her in bed. Griff’s color rose and it didn’t take a psychic to realize the same X-rated video reel was replaying in his own head. To salvage a scrap of self-control, she tugged her hand back and sat down next to him.
‘You went away,’ she said accusingly.
‘Yeah. I’m sure Theo told you my brother’s here.’
‘The one you didn’t want to talk about?’
