Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run

Griffin walked in, sharp in a black suit. Before he stepped inside, he'd called Norman, who answered like he had all the time in the world.

"Bro, I might be late. Ran into a bit of trouble," Norman said, sounding way too casual.

Griffin's jaw tightened. "Didn't I tell you not to mess around while you're here?"

Norman just laughed, leaning against his sports car, hair wild from the wind. "I'm not causing trouble. Trouble found me. I'll take care of it and head over soon."

Griffin hung up, his mood a little sour. When he looked up, he spotted Dylan across the busy room. This wasn't their first time running into each other.

Two years ago, when Dylan was recovering overseas, they'd met.

Griffin gave him a small nod and walked straight over. "Mitch giving you a hard time again?"

He sounded like they were old friends.

Dylan nodded back. "Long time no see."

Griffin picked up a glass from a nearby tray and motioned toward a sofa in the corner. "Want to talk for a bit?"

Someone gently nudged Dylan in that direction.

There were others hoping to catch Griffin's attention, but seeing how focused he was, they quickly backed off.

Sitting down, Griffin glanced at Dylan's leg, pausing for just a second before looking away. "You holding up alright?"

"I'm fine."

No fake warmth, no showing off-just the easy talk of people who'd known each other for a while.

Griffin nodded, a faint smile on his lips. "I met with some folks from the Ferguson family overseas. Everyone speaks highly of you. Any plans to move?"

"Not sure yet."

"You said that two years ago. Is there someone here you can't let go of?"

If Dylan moved, most of his future would be overseas.

Dylan fell quiet.

Griffin, wearing nothing but a watch on his wrist, folded his hands. "Heard from Mitch you got married?"

Dylan's gaze dropped. "Yeah."

Just saying it out loud was enough. Smart people didn't need to spell things out— too many words only made things awkward.

"Congrats. I brought Walter a gift tonight; had it delivered ahead of time. Hope we can work well together here."

He raised his glass, his smile just a faint curve-Griffin never smiled much, but when it came to business, he knew how to play the part.

Dylan, on the other hand, always looked like he struggled to even fake a smile.

Their glasses touched. Whatever passed between them, no one else could hear. Just as Griffin was about to say something else, his phone buzzed. He nodded to Dylan. "Sorry, I need to take this."

He answered. "Mitch, what's going on?"

Charles and Clara had already made it to the village, and Charles felt the need to check in.

"Hey, I'm here with my sis... what's

the name

of this place again? Anyway, I probably won't be

. Just letting you k

Griffin chuckled. "You're not coming back, and your sister isn't either? Don't drag her into your trouble."

Dylan, who'd been quiet, froze for a second and looked up at Griffin.

Griffin noticed but kept talking. "If anything comes up, call me."

Before he could hang up, Dylan spoke quietly. "Can you ask about her for me?"noveldrama

Griffin turned, pretending not to get it. "Ask what?"

Dylan stared at his glass. "Is she okay?"

Griffin was silent for a moment, then asked over the phone, "Is your sister with you? Is she alright? Someone wanted me to check."

Charles sounded a little surprised his big brother never usually cared much about Clara.

"She's great. Still has plenty of keep up with me.

energy doing

something wild toet

wesome, really my kind

Griffin's lips quirked. “Alright, stay safe.”

"Bro, who wanted you to ask?"

But Griffin had already hung up.

The call had been on speaker, so Dylan heard everything. When the phone went silent, he tried to piece together what he could from those few words, but ended up giving up.

He slumped back, sinking into that same old hopelessness. Why wouldn't she come?

Even if she came just to hurt him, it'd be better than nothing.

If she didn't love him, couldn't she at least hate him?

At least then he'd know he still mattered.

Being forgotten and ignored-that was worse than love or hate. That was what

really cut deep.