I sighed. “You’re not listening to me, Josie. He’s really not interested. Let’s just say that he and I have a difference of opinion on something fairly important.”

She leaned forward in her chair and that serious look returned. “Michael used to visit me twice a week at the most. These days he’s at my house every day. He asks me if I’ve seen you and whether you’re okay. He doesn’t ask me outright but he finds a way to get it into the conversation. I saw him change your tyre this morning, and I know he tried to give you those boxing gloves.” She paused. “He cares about you, my girl, and I’ve only ever seen him care about a few people. You can’t tell me that man is not interested in you.”

I stilled and my heart skipped a beat. She’d surprised me and I was stunned into silence.

It’s just sex he wants.

And yet, I knew that men didn’t go to such extremes for sex, especially not for sex they weren’t getting and knew they had no hope of getting. Griff could score whoever he wanted, whenever he wanted. He didn’t need me for sex.

“Well, that may all be true, but I don’t know what to do with it because, like I said, he’s been very clear about what he wants.”

She tsk’d. “You need to show a man like Michael what he’s missing. And I’m not talking about sex here, Sophia. You’re going to have to figure out why he’s being so stubborn, and show him that he’s wrong.”

I had no idea on this, but I’d put some thought into it. “Okay,” I said with a nod.

Standing, she said, “He’s a good man. Just a little bit lost, but I know a woman like you can help guide him back.”

And then she was gone, but as she left, she placed a piece of paper in my hand.

A piece of paper with an address on it.

* * *

I sat outside Griff’s house for a good fifteen minutes, psyching myself up to go in. After Josie had left my house earlier, I’d tried to put this out of my mind, but when I was still thinking about it an hour later, I knew I had to come to his house tonight. I knew I wouldn’t sleep if I didn’t.

It was nearly ten pm but his lights were on, so I figured he was awake. After going back and forth in my mind, I finally said ‘screw it’ and headed for his front door. God knew how he would react to me being here, but Josie had given me the confidence to try.

He took his time answering the door, and the vision that greeted me when he did caused me to suck in my breath. Griff stood in front of me, dressed only in shorts, his body slick with sweat, his hair rumpled, and a ravaged look on his face.

“Sophia. What are you doing here?” he asked, and the pain in his voice blared like it had come out of a loudspeaker. Something was not right with him tonight.

“Can I come in?” I took one step forward to signal my intention of not leaving here without talking.

He glanced down at my foot. “It’s not a good idea. Not tonight.”

I wasn’t taking no for an answer. I pushed past him and entered his home. “There’s never a right time for things, Griff. Tonight’s as good as any.”

His home – if you could call it that because it seemed more like a place where he just crashed at night – was sparsely furnished. The only pieces of furniture in the lounge room were a couch, a television, and a TV cabinet. Cream paint coloured the walls, and not a painting or frame was in sight.

I turned to face him and found him watching me with an intense stare. My gaze travelled over his body, and I took in how rigid he held himself tonight. “Are you okay?” I asked, my eyes meeting his.

“I will be when you leave,” he bit out, but I didn’t buy it.

“No, I don’t believe that. You look like something is deeply troubling you.”

He forced his fingers through his hair, and muttered, “Fuck. Do we really have to do whatever this is tonight?”

I reconsidered. Perhaps he was right. Perhaps tonight was not a good time for him. It certainly didn’t seem like it was. “No, we don’t have to, but we do have to do it at some point, Griff.”

His eyes narrowed on me. “You sure about that? I think we’ve both made our positions clear to the other.”

I stepped closer, beginning to get frustrated as hell with him. “I’ve been thinking about it, and something isn’t adding up with you.”

“What?”

“You say you’re not interested in a relationship with me, but I feel something between us, Griff. And you can deny it all you want, but I know it’s there.”

His eyes didn’t leave mine, but he did close them for a moment while he drew a long, deep breath. When he opened them again, he spoke in a low tone that felt like a warning. “Sophia, I’m not the man for you. There are parts to me that aren’t good, and if you got to know the real me, you would walk away. Starting something would only cause you more heartache in your life. So please believe me when I say that you need to forget about anything happening between you and me, and you need to go and find yourself a nice man who will be able to give you what you need. I will never be that man.” He took a step away from me as if he expected me to leave. He didn’t know me very well.

I closed the distance between us and got in his face. “You think I’m a good girl who couldn’t handle being with you, don’t you?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“You didn’t have to say the words, I can tell what you’re thinking. I’m not asking you to marry me. All I’m asking for is for us to see what this could be. Why won’t you take a chance on me?” I said, my voice rising as my frustration worked itself out.