by Kat Mizera
“Besides souffle, what’s your favorite food?” he asked her.
“Italian. Always. I could eat pasta every day. I don’t, but I could.”
He nodded. “Yeah, I’m down with that. I don’t either, obviously, but I’m a carb whore.”
She chuckled. “In the summer, I’m all about ice cream. In the winter, I want pasta.”
“I don’t think I have seasonal favorites,” he said. “I don’t really love sweets. I have to be in the mood for something specific, like brownies right out of the oven, something like that.”
She cut a glance at him. “I don’t think we can be together if you don’t like sweets.”
“I like you and you’re pretty sweet.”
She grinned. “Good comeback.”
“I try.”
“Oh, did I tell you I accidentally overheard Ryder on the phone with Cindy?”
“No. Good gossip?”
She made a face. “Well, I don’t know. Apparently, she apologized for freaking out about Coco. From what I gathered on my end, she was bitten as a child and has always been terrified of dogs but is willing to give it another chance in a more controlled environment. Or something like that.”
Logan groaned. “Great. First impressions are rarely wrong, and hers was spectacularly bad. I guess he’s lonely if he’s willing to go there with her.”
“Not our circus, not our monkeys.”
“Well, it might not be our circus, but he and Coco are definitely our monkeys.”
“When you put it that way… I guess we have to do our best to be polite. Maybe she really did get bit and is a nice woman?”
“I hope so. ’Cause Ryder’s a great guy and he deserves better.”
“You think he’d pick her over Coco?”
Logan’s eyes widened when he glanced at her. “Fuck, I hope not. But are you cool with us taking Coco if he does?”
“Absolutely.”
They grinned and he reached across the center console to take her hand.
25
“If you let Coco out and grab a couple of bottles of water for us, I think that’ll give me enough time to do what I need to do to prepare for your surprise,” Cassie said as they got into the house.
He frowned. “I’m down for anything but I might be a little scared.”
She shook her head. “Don’t be a dork. Go take care of Coco. Oh, and bring this up with you when you come.” She patted one of the kitchen chairs.
“You want a chair?” he called after her, but she was already heading up the stairs.
The idea to do a lap dance for him had been growing for a week or two now, but the circumstances needed to be right. Ryder definitely had to be out. It had to be a time when they were at least a little dressed up, because going from yoga pants to pasties wasn’t that sexy. Not that she owned any pasties, but she wanted to be in full makeup like she was now, and she dug through her things to find a sequined bra and matching thong. Along with the highest heels she owned.
This wasn’t about stripping—he could see her naked any time he wanted to—but about the lap dance itself. He’d told her he didn’t like them because if a woman offered herself to him that way, he wanted to take what she was offering, and of course that wasn’t allowed at strip clubs. So she wanted to give him the experience since he was getting everything she had to offer, regardless.
The truth was that she actually enjoyed the dancing part of stripping. She’d had fun with it until the attention got to be too much, when guys got pushy and/or scarily aggressive. That wouldn’t be the case with Logan, of course, so she was excited to make this a prelude to tonight’s lovemaking.
“Can I come in?” he called out.
She put her phone where she could easily press the button to start the song she had in mind and then stood behind the closet door.
“Yes. Put the chair in the middle of the room, between your bed and dresser, and sit in it so you’re facing the closet.”
A few seconds later, he called out that he was ready.
The music wouldn’t be loud since her phone only afforded her a certain volume, but it didn’t have to be. She hit the button for Joe Cocker’s “You Can Leave Your Hat On” and sauntered into the room.
Logan’s eyes met hers in surprise, and then he grinned, leaning back in his chair and sliding down a little as he watched. She danced her way across the room, arms over her head, gazing at him but keeping her expression neutral. She had a fedora she wore when she used to dance to this song, and she tossed it to him before dancing off in the other direction. He caught it with one hand, his eyes never leaving hers until she turned away.
She moved back toward him slowly, eventually straddling his legs and letting her hair fall forward so it draped over his face and shoulders.
“Can I touch you?” he whispered. “Or do standard rules apply?”
“Of course, you can touch. I’m yours. But you can’t undress me. That’s for me to do, in my own time.”
He nodded, hands drifting to her hips as she slowly moved them back and forth. She pushed her chest forward, so his nose was a fraction of an inch from her cleavage, and she watched his eyes close. He breathed deeply, as if anticipating what was to come, and she reached behind her to unsnap the bra. She held it in place for another few seconds before letting it fall away. His eyes snapped open and he lifted his hands, gently cupping her breasts. She inhaled sharply when he leaned forward and captured her nipple between his teeth, though he didn’t bite down.
God, his touch always did this to her. She’d never felt a correlation between stripping and her own personal arousal, but that wasn’t the case with Logan. Hell, everything Logan did aroused her, especially now. She wasn’t finished yet, though, and she moved away, turning her back to him so she could wiggle her bottom. She reached back and ran her hands over the curve of her ass, lowering her chest until she was almost completely bent over. The thong didn’t cover much, but it did cover her most private parts, and she glanced over her shoulder as she stood up straight again. The look in his eyes made her clench in anticipation of what was to come.
She sashayed over to him, snapped her hips from side to side in time to the music, and then put her hands on his shoulders.
“Slide the sides down my hips but just a few inches, not all the way.” She was still moving, which made it harder for him, but he did as she’d requested.
“What do you want to do to me while I’m still dancing?”
“Tits,” he murmured in a gritty whisper.
She lifted her breasts with her hands, holding them level with his mouth. “No hands, just your mouth.”
“Fuuuuck.” He sucked her nipple between his lips, and she had to close her eyes because she was getting wetter and wetter with each passing second. She wanted him so badly it was hard to concentrate on the music.
“Use your hands to slide off my thong,” she whispered. “But you can’t look.”
She didn’t need to tell him twice and as the music came to an end, she wasn’t wearing anything but heels. She sank onto his lap and his eyes met hers.
“I think you, uh, lied to me,” he said in a shaky voice.
“Lied?” Cassie looked at him in confusion. “About what?”
“You, um, said you weren’t much of a dancer…but I don’t think that’s true. In fact, I know it’s not.”
“You might be biased.”
“It was really sensual. Beautiful, actually. Like you.”
Their eyes were still locked, and she leaned in, her mouth finding his.
“I need to be inside of you,” he said against her mouth.
“That’s the plan.”
“Rough or romantic?”
“Rough.” She was too worked up for sweet. Any tenderness at all and she would fall head over heels, irrevocably and without reservation. And that was dangerous for both of them.
He lifted to his feet, grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder, giving her ass a hard slap. He tossed her on the bed and stood t
here looking at her as he unbuttoned his shirt.
“Legs open, hands on the headboard. I’ll be right back.” He disappeared into the walk-in closet and came out naked, a necktie dangling from his hands. “You okay with being tied up?”
“With you I am.”
He grinned. “Oh, this is going to be fun.”
Cassie thought about that night’s sexcapades for days. Logan loved the lap dance, telling her over and over how much he’d enjoyed it. After they’d had sex twice, they’d cuddled, lying in bed talking until almost four in the morning. It had been sweet, intimate, and probably the most romantic post-coital conversation she’d ever had. They didn’t talk about anything in particular, which was what made it so romantic. He’d stroked her hair, her back, her arms, whispering about how sexy she was and then talking about how much he’d miss her while he was on his road trip.
He’d left this morning and she already missed him. There was so much more to him than just a sexy hockey player and she wondered what it was about her that made him want to give a relationship a try. The only answer she came up with was friendship. That was probably the biggest thing missing from both of her marriages because she hadn’t been friends with either of them. It had been attraction, sex, and marriage, without much time getting to know each other.
With Logan, it was the opposite. They’d had a solid friendship before they ever got involved and it was refreshing to be with someone she genuinely liked, understood, and who put her needs first. She wouldn’t even get started on the sex. It was so damn good and when he’d tied her wrists to the headboard, everything amped up a notch. His touch was magical and they never ran out of new positions, new ways to make each other feel good.
She was so lost in thought she missed two calls from her mother and was surprised to hear frantic messages from her on her voice mail. She hurriedly called her back.
“Where have you been?” Maya demanded.
“I was working. What’s wrong?”
“Frank and I broke up! He’s married, Cass!”
“Oh, shit. No way.”
“I don’t know what to do or where to go. Can I come over?”
She’d known this could happen but it annoyed her to no end now that it had. “Mom, you can’t live here.”
“Just a few days until I figure out what to do and where to go.”
“The guys are out of town, so you can come over now, but you have to figure this out before they get back.”
“Promise. I’m coming over.”
Cassie hung up, shaking her head. They’d all really liked Frank and she hadn’t expected him to be married. Geez, what a jerk. She and her mom really had the worst taste in men.
Not anymore.
The words filtered through her subconscious, but she wasn’t sure what to do about them. She felt good about where she and Logan were in their relationship, but old habits died hard, and she had a lot of bad habits when it came to men. She’d been hoping both she and her mother had turned a corner of some kind, but apparently not.
Maya was a mess when she got there, her eyes red from crying and makeup all over her face. She had two massive suitcases and Cassie carried them inside for her.
“You can sleep in my room while you’re here,” she told her. “I’ll sleep in Logan’s room.”
“I knew you were doing the horizontal mambo with him.” She sniffled. “He’s hot, but he’s just like the others, baby. You and me, we have some kind of man curse.”
Cassie pursed her lips. “Oh, stop it. We do not.”
“Trust me, we do.” She accepted the glass of wine Cassie brought her.
“Tell me what happened.”
“His wife showed up at the house and she had all the proof… The pictures of them, recent texts asking if she’s doing okay.”
“So they’re separated, then?”
“It was a trial separation and they’re meeting for breakfast tomorrow to discuss working things out.”
“That doesn’t make sense, Mom. What was he going to do with her while you’re living in his house?”
“They’re building a new one and this one is going on the market! She showed me the listing!”
“Seriously?” Cassie didn’t always believe her mom about her breakups, but this time it sounded like Frank really was a jerk. It sucked, too, because they’d all liked him, even Logan and Ryder.
Logan. Shit. She was going to have to tell him her mom was staying here while they were out of town. She didn’t think they’d mind but she felt strongly about honesty. Neither of her husbands had ever been honest with her, so she’d go out of her way to be honest with Logan.
Later, when her mom was calmer and settled in for the night, she’d call him.
26
Logan woke up with the hangover from hell. After a huge win last night, he and the guys had gone out and tied one on. They’d just gone to a sports bar and watched baseball and drank beer, but things had gotten crazy when the shots started. Then the women started coming around and his teammates had given him a ration of shit about not partaking. Then he’d had to ‘fess up about him and Cassie and that had been both hilarious and awkward. Luckily, they were good guys and the teasing had all been in fun, but they’d made him do a shot for every day he’d been keeping it a secret and, well, that was such a bad idea.
A fun idea, but bad nonetheless. His head was pounding, his stomach was a little upset, and he was starving. He rarely got wasted like that on road trips anymore, but since he wasn’t getting laid, he’d gotten into the spirit of drinking instead.
He took a quick shower and packed up his things before heading down to meet the team for breakfast. He picked up his phone for the first time and grimaced when he saw both a missed call and a text from Cassie. The text worried him a little.
CASSIE: Hey, I really need to talk to you about something. Call me when you get in?
Of course, Anchorage was three hours earlier than here, so it was way too early to call her now and then he had practice. It would probably be midafternoon before they could talk, and that was only if she didn’t have to work, so he sent her a quick text.
LOGAN: Sorry I missed you, a bunch of us went out last night (I’ll tell you all about that later!) and I’ve got practice now. I don’t know your work schedule, but if we miss each other, I’ll definitely be around tonight. If it’s an emergency, call me as soon as you get up and unless I’m on the ice, I’ll see it.
He stuffed his phone in his pocket and headed downstairs.
“There he is! Man of the hour!” Ryder called out, laughing.
Logan rolled his eyes. “Yeah, whatever. Fuck you too.”
“Someone have a headache?” Jude asked, his eyes wide and innocent.
“Not at all. Why?” Logan sank down next to Sergei and Dani since they were less likely to tease him.
“Don’t listen to them,” Dani whispered, grinning. “They’re happy to see you finally settling down.”
“I’m not settling down,” he muttered. “I’m just sleeping with the same woman for now.”
Dani arched her brows. “Does she know that?”
“Yeah, of course.”
“Someone’s in loooovvvve,” one of the guys on the other side of the room called out.
Great. This was never going to end.
Normally, he didn’t mind a little ribbing, but they’d been going at him since last night and it felt weird. It was mostly lighthearted fun, but this was literally his first adult relationship and it made him uncomfortable. Cassie was still pretty gun-shy too, so all this attention was unnerving. He wanted to tell them to stop, but if he was honest, he’d been one of the guys teasing the others who’d fallen in love and gotten into relationships, so now he had to suck it up.
“Don’t worry about them,” Sergei said, chuckling. “You know what I went through dragging half the team to the gold medal game at the Olympics so I could propose on the ice?”
Logan grimaced. “Dude, that was insane. I wasn’t there, but I d
on’t know that any of us will ever beat that for a romantic proposal.”
“No, he fucked it up for all of us.” Kane threw his napkin at Sergei, who laughingly caught it and gave him the middle finger.
Luckily, that distracted everyone and Logan was off the hook for a while.
“I, for one, am happy for you,” Dani whispered to him. “Cassie’s a great person and you guys are so compatible. You made a great choice.”
“It just sort of happened,” he said. “I don’t know that I chose her so much as… I don’t know, maybe friendship that led to more?”
“Exactly how it should be.” She patted his shoulder before getting up to go back to the buffet.
It was late before Logan and Cassie caught up to each other. Between the three-hour time difference and their schedules, it was after midnight before she could call him. He was tired but felt bad about missing her the night before, so he waited for her to get off work. Luckily, she’d been cut early since it was a week night, and she called while she was driving home.
“Hey.” She sounded tired too.
“Everything okay?”
“Ugh. My mom and Frank broke up. He’s married.”
“What? Seriously?” He was surprised because Frank hadn’t come off like a douchebag at all.
“So she’s here, sleeping in my room while I sleep in yours until I can find her a place to live that she can afford. She quit her job, so she has no money. It’s a clusterfuck, just like I told you it would be.”
“I’m surprised,” he admitted. “I didn’t get that vibe from him, but it’s fine for her to crash in your room until she figures out what she’s going to do.”
“Okay, but let’s not tell her that. If we let her think she can stay for a while, she’ll never leave.”
He chuckled. “Okay. You can throw Ryder under the bus.”
She laughed. “The good news, though, is that she was with Coco all day, so I didn’t have to rush around to let her out. That was nice.”