72
Two Men, Two Missions
Ryder
I wasn't hitting the grocery storeonlyto hassle Griff. Or at least, that's what I told myself after spotting him from my balcony.
Looking way too earnest, he'd been heading straight for the entrance like a man on a mission.
And me?
I had a mission of my own.
Call it recon.
Last night, Griff – chivalrous bastard that he was – had robbed me of the chance to walk Tessa home. Instead, I'd been stuck watching from the shadows as Griff escorted not only Maisie, but the girl I was crazy for, back to their front door.
Griff got a kiss from Maisie.
AndIgot to watch as Tessa slipped quietly inside after giving her surroundings a curious glance, like she knew I was watching.
Of course I was.
I'd promised, hadn't I?
Sure, I trusted Griff to get them home safely, but I had intel that Griff didn't, especially when it came to Evan Carver and Tessa.
Apparently, Griff had been keepingmein the dark too, because the situation with his boss wasn't as simple as he'd implied.
Thus, the recon.I'd been in the store for less than five minutes when I spotted him by the deli case, squinting at lunchmeat like the meaning of life was hidden somewhere between sliced turkey and ham.
I slowed, watching him with open amusement as he continued to stare at the meat. When I sidled closer, he didn't notice, but his basket told me plenty.
In it, I spotted fancy bread, Dijon mustard, chips, and two sodas.
Two.
One for him and one for Maisie.
That wasmyguess. So of course, I couldn't resist tweaking him. "What, did your private chef quit?"
Griff turned, looking irritated by the ambush, even as a ghost of a smirk tugged at his mouth. "What I'm sick of is you showing up to give me a hard time."
I grinned. "Who says I'm here for you?"
He paused. "You're not?"
"Alright. Yeah, I am."Mostly.But I didn't say that last part, because hell if I wanted to be hassled in return.
Griff shook his head. "See?"
Last night, I'd seen plenty and heard a little more from Tessa on the phone. But just as the story was getting interesting, she had stopped short, claiming – inherwords – that she was being "respectful of a friend's privacy."
But me? I wasn't respectful at all.
The wayIsaw it, Griff needed to lighten up, which was half the reason I enjoyed hassling him.Every once in a while, the guy actually laughed.
I leaned closer to say,"But when I stopped by your place last night, you were gone." Actually, I had stopped by twice. Both times I'd been frantic with worry for Tessa.
