by SJ McCoy
“Nah. Everyone pitches in together here. Everyone’s welcoming. Like I told you before, you just need to get to know people.”
Colt smiled. “And now you know all of us well enough to come out for a drink. Remind me to give you my number before we leave. If you want a guys’ night, I’ll be one of your regulars, since these three are all pretty much under the thumb.”
Luke shrugged. “I wouldn’t put it that way, but with traveling so much for work. When I am here, I tend to spend most of my time with Angel.”
“Same here,” said Zack.
Logan grinned. “What are you all looking at me for? I’m not going to shrug it off or make some excuse like these two. I am happy to admit that my priority these days is spending time with Roxy. I don’t think I could claim to be under the thumb yet. She’s still too busy trying not to tie me down. But I’m working on it.”
Austin shook his head. “I’ve known you all my life, and I never thought I’d see the day.”
“Me neither,” said Colt. “But I’m happy for you. When you finally decided to fall, you fell for a good ‘un.”
Logan held his gaze for a moment. Colt thought he’d fallen. He sucked in a deep breath. He didn’t mean fallen by the wayside or fallen from grace or any other kind of falling. He meant fallen in love. Logan’s heart buzzed in his chest when he thought about it and had to admit to himself that Colt was right.
Chapter Fifteen
“Are you meeting up with the guys again tonight?” Roxy called.
Logan stuck his head out of the shower door with a grin. “You tell me. Are you out with the girls?”
She made a face. “Why does what you’re doing depend on what I’m doing?”
He shook his head like a big dog, sending drops of water everywhere. “Because you’re what I want to do most.”
“Sweet talker! Well, I am meeting the girls for dinner. It’s a regular thing. Every Thursday.” She couldn’t help smiling at the sight of his naked body with water running down over it. “You can do me when I get home if you want.”
He waggled his eyebrows at her. “I will. And if you’re quick, I’ll do you now, too. Come on in, the water’s wonderful.”
She hesitated. “You’ll make us late for work.”
“Not necessarily.” He reached out and tugged at the belt of her robe. It fell open, and she loved the way his gaze traveled over her body. “Come on, you know you want to.”
She did. She let the robe fall to the floor and stepped into the shower with him.
He put his hands on her shoulders and kissed her deeply, sending currents of desire racing through her. She tangled her fingers in his hair as he massaged her breasts, first with his hands, then his tongue. That turned her on so much. At first, she’d felt self-conscious about her breasts; they were big and had always been something of a nuisance. Logan had told her repeatedly that they were perfect—and the way he liked to worship them backed up his words.
She gasped as he grazed her nipple with his teeth. “You know these babies are perfect, right?”
She chuckled. Sometimes it felt like he read her mind and had just the right words to reassure her. “I know they are to you, and that’s all that matters.”
He lifted his head and trapped her body between his and the wall. “That’s right. Other guys will think they’re perfect, too. But I hope it never matters to you what other guys think.”
She was surprised by the intensity in his eyes as his hand found its way between her legs and started to stroke her. She nodded breathlessly.
“Yes?” he asked. “It does matter to you?”
“No,” she breathed.
“I want you to be all mine, Roxy.”
She closed her fingers around him, loving how hot and hard he was for her. “I am. All yours.” She loved the way that sounded. “I want you to be all mine, too.” It felt good to say it. She’d finally gotten over her hang-up about not wanting him to feel tied down. If he wanted her, then he needed to be all in with her. She wouldn’t settle for less, and she knew now that she didn’t have to.
He lifted her leg and wrapped it around his waist with a smile. “I’m all yours, Rox.” She felt him pushing at her entrance. “You know I give you everything I’ve got.” As he spoke, he thrust his hips, making her bite down on his shoulder as he filled her.
He began to move, slowly at first, then picking up the pace as he drove deeper and deeper with each thrust. She was at his mercy. She couldn’t even keep her own balance, but as she moved with him, their bodies becoming one in a rhythm that had grown so familiar, she realized that she trusted him completely. He wouldn’t let her fall. He would give her everything he had, and he’d given her more pleasure than she’d ever known.
As those thoughts filled her head, she felt her body start to come undone. Water ran down over them. His hard body pressed against hers, and his cock felt like the only rock-solid thing in her world. The ball of pleasure that was building in her belly finally exploded, sending waves of pleasure crashing through her. She felt him tense, and his thrusts became even more frantic. He carried her higher and higher until her climax ignited his, and he gasped. She leaned her head back and let go, riding the waves with him until they slowly came back down to earth.
He let her leg slide back down and held her close to his chest as the now-cooling water ran down over them. “You’re everything I want, Rox.”
Her heart raced. He was everything she wanted, too. For the first time, standing there under the running water, she started to think that maybe he could be her everything. And the thought made her happy.
~ ~ ~
“Come in,” Logan called without looking up from his computer.
“Are you busy? Do you want me to come back?” asked Aaron.
“No.” Logan finally dragged his eyes away from the screen. “What’s up?”
“I need to make a few changes in the schedule. I wanted to run them by you first.”
“What changes?”
“I want to finish out Lot Twelve next.”
“No. Eleven’s next. That’s the one they want to use on these site tours for prospective buyers.”
“I know. That’s what I want to talk to you about. There were some issues with Eleven. It’d make life easier if we can use Twelve.” Aaron grinned. “And I figured that since you have some pull with the lady who’s arranging the tours ...”
Logan scowled at him. “You want me to use my influence with Roxy to change her schedule?”
“Yeah. I imagine it’d be pretty easy for you to persuade her.”
Logan shook his head. “Nope. Not going to happen.”
“Why?”
“Because if it were anyone other than Roxy in charge, you’d either talk to them yourself or find a way to make it happen.”
“Yeah, but since you have an in, I thought it’d be crazy not to use it.”
“Like I said. Not going to happen. What’s crazy is you thinking that I’d see scheduling as more important than Roxy. You know what it’s taken for me to show her that I’m for real. I’m not going to start manipulating her to get what I want on the work front. She’s more important to me than anything that could happen here.”
Instead of arguing like Logan had expected, Aaron grinned at him. “That’s awesome! Sorry. I thought I was still talking to the old Logan. I know you’ve hinted at it, but I didn’t understand how serious you are about her. Is this it then? Is it the real thing? Are you thinking long-term?”
Logan nodded. His heart raced at the thought, but it was racing with excitement—not fear, which was the effect that the thought of a long-term relationship had always had on him in the past.
Aaron’s eyes were wide. “Long, long-term?”
Logan nodded again.
“Like tying the knot and wedding bells and all that shit?”
Logan drew in a deep breath before he nodded this time. “Yeah. Down the line.”
Aaron laughed. “Giving yourself a long lead time, so you hav
e a chance to change your mind?”
“No. More like giving myself time to show her that I’m all in. That I’m serious so that when I ask her, she’ll say yes.”
“Wow! I’ve never seen a man turn around as fast as you have.”
Logan shrugged. “There’s no denying that I’ve sewn enough wild oats for one lifetime. I went hard on being a single guy. Now I’m ready to go hard on being …” He didn’t want to say a married guy. Up until this moment, he hadn’t even known that that was what he wanted. It was too soon, he knew that. Roxy wouldn’t go for it yet. So, saying it out loud felt like tempting fate. “In a real relationship,” he finished.
Aaron nodded. “I’m happy for you. I kind of assume that it will happen to all of us at some point, but I didn’t expect you to go this willingly—or this fast.”
Logan shrugged. “I guess you can never tell. Now, is there anything else you wanted, or can I get back to it?”
“No, that was it. Now I know where you stand, I’ll get to work on how we can have Lot Twelve finished up in time.”
Logan smirked. “So, you were just looking for an easy way out?”
Aaron shrugged. “That, and I was curious to see how you’d react.”
~ ~ ~
“Sorry, I’m late, girls.” Maria smiled around at them as she took her seat at the table.
“No worries,” said Roxy. “What’s the news on this weekend?”
Maria blew out a sigh. “It’s off.” She shot a look at Angel. “Have you talked to Luke yet?”
“Not yet, no.” Angel pulled her phone out of her purse. “Oh, I missed a voicemail from him. I take it they have to fly this weekend.”
“Yeah. Clay decided he does need to go to Nashville after all.”
“Can’t you two still go?” asked Amber.
Maria smiled. “Zack said that we could go with them to Nashville if we want. Clay felt bad about messing up our plans and offered for us to come along for the weekend.” She looked at Angel. “That’s probably what Luke’s message is about. I know I was the one eager to see the snow, but I’m not going to turn down a weekend in Nashville.”
Angel smiled. “Me neither. That’ll be fun.”
Roxy felt a ball of disappointment settle in her stomach. She’d been looking forward to this trip to the mountains. “Do you still want to go?” she asked Amber.
“I can’t. I already knew that.”
Roxy looked at Kenzie, but she shook her head. “It was never an option for me. It’s a busy weekend at the resort.”
Roxy blew out a sigh and looked at Maria. “Will you lose the deposit? Do you want us to all chip in and share the cost?”
“No. It’s okay. We could have canceled earlier and got the money back; it was me who wanted to wait until the last minute to see if we could make it happen.”
Angel looked at Roxy. “You and Logan could still go. It’d be a romantic weekend for just the two of you since it looks like everyone else is dropping out.”
Roxy grinned. She liked that idea even more than all of them going together.
“You should go,” said Maria. “But talk to him about it tonight and let me know. I want to go ahead and cancel if you’re not. They might be able to get a last-minute booking from someone else if I tell them early enough.”
“Okay. I’ll talk to him as soon as I get home and call you to let you know.”
Kenzie raised an eyebrow at her. “And when you say get home, you mean to his place? Are you two living together now?”
Roxy shrugged.
“Yes,” said Angel firmly. “To all intents and purposes, they are. And if madam here would just wrap her head around it, then I’m sure they could make it official, and she could stop forking out rent money for her place where she hasn’t spent a night in weeks.”
Roxy looked at her. “I’ll admit that I’ve been dragging my feet about admitting that we’re living together. But you really think I’d give up my place?”
“Why wouldn’t you?” asked Maria.
Roxy thought about it.
“Because for all she goes on about Logan not being the kind to make a commitment, she’s the one who’s living with one foot out the door!” said Angel.
“Wow! Say it like you see it, why don’t you?” said Roxy.
Angel shrugged. “It’s not like I haven’t already told you what I think. And I’m sorry I’m being a nag. I know what I think doesn’t matter. It’s just that I can see what you’re putting yourself through—and what you’re putting Logan through. He doesn’t deserve it.”
Roxy was shocked. “What am I putting him through?”
“The poor guy’s all in, and you’re still only half-hearted about it.”
“You really see it that way?”
Maria nodded. “I do. I’m shocked by how much he’s changed, but I know he’s genuine about it.”
“Sorry, Rox, but I’m with them,” said Kenzie. “At first, I was ready to rip his balls off if he messed you around. But now I’m feeling more like I want to give you a shake than him. He’s for real. Go for it.”
Roxy sucked in a big breath and then blew it out again. “So, you’re all telling me that I’m screwing this up?”
“Not exactly.” Angel gave her a reassuring smile. “Just that you might end up happier if you let yourself trust him.”
“And trust yourself,” added Kenzie. “Sure, there’s a risk you get your heart broken, but even if you do, you’ll get over it. You have to put your heart on the line; no risk, no reward.”
Roxy thought about it for a long moment. Then she pulled her phone out of her purse and dialed Logan’s number.
The others watched her in silence.
“Hey, babe. What’s up? Are you finished already?”
“No. We’re still having dinner. It’s just that I want to ask you something.”
“What?”
“Zack and Luke have to fly this weekend, and everyone else is dropping out on the weekend at the cabin. I wondered …” Her heart was hammering in her chest, but she didn’t know what she was afraid of. That he’d say no? That he wouldn’t like the idea? He was always telling her that he wanted to spend time with her. She gripped the phone a little tighter. “Do you want to go, anyway? Just you and me.”
She held her breath in the few moments before he answered. Was he thinking up an excuse?
“Seriously? I’d love to! That’s even better. We’ll have a great time. I can’t wait.”
She laughed. A mixture of relief and happiness that he was so thrilled at the idea. “Great. I’ll tell Maria not to cancel the reservation.”
“And tell her I’ll settle up with Zack later.”
She almost argued, wanting to tell him that she’d pay, or that they should at least go halves. But she bit her tongue. They could talk about it later, and she knew the girls would only give her a hard time if she brought it up now. “Okay. I will.”
“I’ll see you at home.”
She smiled that he called it home, too. She liked the idea that he thought she belonged there.
She hung up and looked around at the others.
“Way to go,” said Kenzie. “I’ll bet he was stoked.”
She nodded happily. “He was. Thanks, girls.”
~ ~ ~
Logan couldn’t stop smiling on his drive home. He’d enjoyed his evening with the guys, but he couldn’t wait for Roxy to get home, and he wanted to be there when she did. She’d taken him by surprise when she’d called to ask if he still wanted to go to the cabin this weekend.
He’d pulled Zack to one side to tell him that he’d pay for the reservation. Zack had been pleased and suggested that some of the others might still go, too, but Logan had set him straight. If they’d all dropped out, then he wanted them to stay that way. He enjoyed everyone’s company, but he’d much rather spend the weekend alone with Roxy. He had to admit that the few weekends they’d spent together so far had been low key. Going to the mall, taking walks in the cold and watching foot
ball on TV were great. It had shown them both that they did well together in everyday life. But he wanted their life together to hold more fun and adventure, too.
He let himself into the house and turned on the lights. Looking around the living room, he loved all the little signs that a woman lived here. He liked to keep his house clean and tidy, but he wasn’t big on knick-knacks or artwork.
She’d bought him a couple of pictures to put on the walls since she claimed it looked like he’d just moved in, even though he’d lived here for years. The flowers he’d bought her stood in a vase on the dining table. They were looking tired. He’d have to get her some more tomorrow. He grinned as he realized it’d be better to wait until Monday—since they’d be away for the weekend.
He went to the door when he heard her car pull into the driveway. His heart raced when she got out and smiled at him.
“Hey.” She trotted up the steps to him, and he wrapped her in his arms and dropped a kiss on her lips.
“Hey. Come on in. It’s freezing out here.”
When they were inside, he followed her to the kitchen, where she opened the fridge and peered inside.
“Are you still hungry? I thought you guys had dinner.”
She laughed. “We did. I’m looking for beer.”
He laughed. “You didn’t get enough to drink?”
“I only had soda because I was driving. Do you want one?”
“Sure. I only had one myself.”
She straightened up and handed him a bottle. He popped the top and handed it to her before opening the other. He wanted to talk about going away to the cabin, but he was hoping that she’d bring it up first. He was thrilled that she’d called and asked him but curious what had made her do it.
Once they were settled on the sofa, she put her legs up, and he pulled them across his.
She raised her bottle to him and smiled. “Do you like the idea of us going away together?”
“I love it! It’ll be so much better than going with everyone else—and I was looking forward to that.”
“That’s how I feel, too. I was disappointed when Maria said it was off.”
“And you decided that we should go anyway?”