“What’s happening with the fire?” she asked him, looking down at her body. She was wearing one of his t-shirts and a thick pair of leggings.
“It’s out. Lucas called about a half an hour ago.”
She let out a sigh of relief. “Did he say what the damage is?”
“The restaurant and the office are gone, but the front part of the pier is unharmed. They’ll inspect it later this morning. We should know more then.”
Autumn nodded, feeling her eyes well with tears. “And your boat?”
“It’s damaged. I don’t know how badly.”
“Oh god. I’m so sorry.” The tears spilled over as she reached out to touch his arm.
He covered her hand with his own. “It’s okay. Nobody was hurt, and that’s all I care about right now. Insurance can sort out the rest.”
“I’ll need to call mine first thing. I should probably make a list.” She looked around. Why had Griff brought her here instead of taking her home? “Oh damn, I left my purse at home.” Another thought occurred to her, and her mouth dropped open. “Lydia,” she whispered. “I left the door open. She’s still there.” She tried to scramble to her knees. “I need to get back.”
“Lydia’s here.” Griff inclined his head to the bedroom door. “She’s sleeping on the sofa. And… uh, somebody else is here to check on you, too.”
Autumn frowned. “Who?”
He cleared his throat. “Your dad. He came as soon as Lydia called him.”
“Dad’s here?” She glanced at the door, not sure how to feel about that.
“He’s worried about you,” Griff said. “We all are.”
“Don’t tell me Josh is here, too.”
He gave a little laugh. “I think he knew better. Or your dad did. Whatever. He’s leaving first thing for New York.”
Autumn felt the tears welling again. Where the hell were they all coming from? She didn’t cry. She hadn’t even shed a single tear when her divorce came through. Yet here she was, a snivelling mess.
If she wasn’t so exhausted, she’d be embarrassed.
“You probably think this is payback for me buying the pier when I was drunk.”
“I don’t,” he murmured. “I think it’s crap and it never should’ve happened to you. You’ve been through enough.” He looked at his hands. “There’s so much I want to tell you, but it’s about an hour until dawn and you should get some sleep. We have a hell of a lot to do once the sun is up.”
She raised her eyebrow at his use of ‘we’, but didn’t comment. Now wasn’t the time. There was one thing she wanted to know, though. “These clothes. How did I get into them?”
“You want to know if I stripped you and took advantage?” Griff raised an eyebrow. He sat back on the chair and she missed the warmth of his hand against her hip.
“I’m sorry. I was just wondering…”
He smiled. “It’s okay. Lydia helped you get into the shower. Those leggings are hers. I gave her the t-shirt so you’d have some modesty when you were in bed. I figured you wouldn’t want to wake up in here naked.”
She remembered the way she’d woken up naked yesterday morning, his lips dragging against her skin. Before any of this happened. The thought made her heart ache a little more. She wrapped her arms around her abdomen, but it wasn’t enough to stop another shiver wrack down her spine.
“You’re cold. Get back under the covers and get some sleep.” He nodded at the door. “I’ll let your family know you’re okay.”
“But you’re coming back, right?”
“I got nowhere else to go.” He shrugged as he headed out. “Lydia called the sofa, and your dad’s made his home on the love seat.
She could have pointed out that he had a spare room, one that still had Lydia’s things lined up neatly next to the bed. But she didn’t want to, because the thought of being alone made her breath catch in her throat.
He was back within a minute. “They’re both half asleep. I told them you’re okay, but going to try to get some more rest.”
“Thank you.”
He flashed her a half-smile. “No worries.” He sat back down on the dining chair. His body made it look like a piece of dollhouse furniture.
“That looks uncomfortable.”
“I’ve slept in worse.”
She licked her dry lips, trying to find the right words. “You could sleep in here if you like? The bed’s big enough.”
His wary eyes met hers. “It’s okay.”
No, it wasn’t. It felt far from okay. “I want you to sleep here,” she admitted. “Please.”
His brows lifted. “You sure?”
She nodded. “I want you for your body warmth.”
This time his smile was full on. “Why didn’t you say so?” he asked, climbing into bed beside her. She felt the mattress dip under his weight, then his arms slid around her as his chest pressed against her back.
“This okay?” he asked softly.
“Yeah,” she breathed. It was more than okay. She opened her mouth to say more, but a combination of his warmth and his protection made her feel tired again, and she felt exhaustion over take her.
They’d talk later in the morning. Hopefully things would be clearer then.
For now, she’d just escape into the blackness.
29
The next time Autumn awoke it was Lydia she saw next to her. Her sister was in the dent Griff had left behind, her arm flung over her head as she lay on her back, unashamedly snoring. Autumn’s lips twitched at the sight, at the same time her stomach dipped at the realization that Griff wasn’t next to her. The urge to curl up in his arms felt stronger than ever.
She rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed, circling her shoulders to loosen the knots there. The unbearable shivers had gone, and the constant icy feeling of her skin had disappeared with it, but her muscles still told the story of last night.
“What time is it?” Lydia croaked, groaning as she sat up. “Oh hey, are you okay? No headache or shivers or anything?”
“Nope.” Autumn turned to her sister. “How about you?”
“I’m exhausted.” She yawned as though to demonstrate the truth of it. “One minute we were curled up in bed together, the next I’m being woken up by Ally and getting dragged outside. Now I know how my first boyfriend felt when Dad found us in bed together.”
Autumn would have laughed, but she remembered that night so well. The poor boy hadn’t stood a chance.
“Talking of Dad, is he still here?”
“Yeah. He’s in the living room. Griff left to meet his friend Lucas at the pier. They’re inspecting the damage.”
Autumn scrambled to her feet. “He should have woken me up. I need to be there.”
“He only left half an hour ago. I promised to tell you as soon as you woke up. We can head over there now.” Lydia swung her feet to the floor. “Just as soon as you put some clothes on.”
Autumn blinked and looked down at her tatty leggings. “I don’t have anything to wear.”