by Reus, Katie
Taylor’s bright blue eyes narrowed. “Really? That’s all I get? I was so bummed that Logan had to work because I was looking forward to seeing the awkward interaction between the two of you.” She lifted her glass to her lips.
“Hey! That’s so messed up.”
Taylor simply grinned. “I know. Roman and I have a messed-up sense of humor, what can I say?”
Grace snorted because it was true. Roman was so dry she couldn’t tell if he was joking or being serious most of the time. “Look, we had fun, but we decided we just wanted to be friends.” Thankfully he’d been texting her today and things seemed like normal between them.
Taylor gave her a strange look.
“What?”
“You both decided you wanted to just be friends?” Taylor asked hesitantly.
“Yes. Why are you being weird?” She took another sip of water, not liking being scrutinized.
“I’m just surprised, that’s all.” Again with the weird look.
“Whatever. I’m sure we have better things to talk about than Logan.” Grace might not be able to stop thinking about him—and his very talented mouth and fingers—but she didn’t want to obsess about him to her friends. No, thank you.
“Picture time!” Sierra said as she practically steamrolled everybody outside onto the patio. Hayden, Sierra’s huge husband, was right behind her, and helping her shuffle people into place by the pool.
It was a miracle so many of their friends were there at the same time, though some of them had to work later in the evening.
Picture time saved her from having to talk more about Logan—at least for now, because her friends could be relentless. Still, she was trying to get grounded after the other night and wanted to focus on going back to the way things had been before.
Hours later after she’d finally gotten home, she found herself smiling when Logan texted her silly pictures of llamas and asked her how Thanksgiving had been.
For the next fifteen minutes they texted back and forth and she couldn’t wipe what she knew must be a goofy grin off her face. Because apparently she really was messed up in the head.
She couldn’t get enough of this man, even if she knew she was going to get her heart broken. Because after she’d experienced Logan in the bedroom? It was like he’d released something wild inside her that she’d been trying to keep locked up. Hell, something she wasn’t sure had even existed before him.
When she was with him, all her insecurities seemed to fade away and she could be herself. It was incredibly freeing.
Now she wondered how the heck she was going to get over him.
Chapter 4
Logan scanned the surroundings of the quiet property and neighboring ranch as he slowly walked around the perimeter of the huge home. As far as jobs went, this one had been uneventful.
Though he hated being away from Grace and was bummed that he’d missed Thanksgiving with his friends, he’d been on much worse assignments when he’d been in the Marines and even while working for Wyatt. In comparison, this job was simple, and after being here a week, quiet. And quiet was always good for security.
Wyatt was working out some business logistics with Austin Brister, a wealthy rancher, and Brister had wanted to meet over the holidays to have everything ironed out by the time the new year rolled in.
Logan knew some of the details because he’d been on the periphery of a few of the actual meetings, but didn’t really care about them. He was here to do a job—to make sure that Wyatt stayed safe. The man had made billions and was ruthless when it came to business. Fair, but still, a man with that much money had enemies. No surprise his boss had brought his wife Iris on this trip. And even though Iris was head of security at the Serafina, she still traveled with her husband whenever possible. In the last few years they’d become an incredible power couple in Vegas, both feared and respected. More than that, they plain loved each other. It was so damn clear every time they looked at one another.
Logan shoved his hands deeper in his thick down jacket as he rounded the corner of the house. They’d set up temporary electronic security in the vein of cameras around the property, but Wyatt was old-school and wanted a small crew patrolling physically, so Logan and a former Air Force pilot named Mia were outside in different areas right now. While Logan understood having feet on the ground, it was still cold.
Vegas got cold in the winter, but Montana was a different kind of icy and bitter. No, thank you. The ranch spread out for thousands of acres, but this man’s house was fairly isolated and a solid twenty minutes from the nearest town.
He felt his phone buzz in his pocket but it was his personal phone so he didn’t bother looking at it. Even though he wanted to see if it was a message from Grace, he rarely looked at or used his personal phone while he was on the clock. This job might be a cakewalk, but he never wanted to get complacent. Not when Wyatt’s safety—which meant all of theirs as well—was on the line.
As he neared the back door of the huge ranch house, Julian, one of his coworkers, stepped out. In standard gear for a job on location like this, Julian had on dark cargo pants, a thick down jacket and a black beanie. “Too damn cold out here,” he murmured, a half-smile on his face. At least a decade older than Logan, Julian would be retiring soon enough.
“How’s it going in there?” They’d been in meetings all morning and Logan had opted to take the outside shift, even if it was cold. The fresh air made it easier to think, and right now his mind was on the future. One he wanted with Grace. If he could just figure her out.
“Good, I think. Nothing on the cameras and they’re taking a break now. Brister has some calls to make or something. Why don’t you head inside and grab a coffee?”
“You sure?”
Julian nodded and tugged his cap down. “Of course, man. You’ve been out here all damn morning. I’ll take over the exterior for now. Then one of us can switch out with Benjamin.” Who was currently manning the security feeds.
“All right. I’ve got my radio on me.”
“I know. I’m good though. Take your time warming up.”
Hell, maybe he would. The cold had gone bone-deep by now and the chance of anyone targeting Wyatt here was minimal. Logan pushed open the heavy wooden door and immediately savored the blast of warm air that met him.
He could already feel it seeping into him as he rolled his shoulders and shut the door behind him. Tugging off his gloves, he moved around the huge granite-top island toward the coffee pot. As he started to pour a mug, he froze.
“Stop!” A muffled female voice cried out from…somewhere.
He straightened, setting his mug down on the countertop. On quiet feet, he stepped out of the kitchen and headed in the direction he’d heard the voice. He knew the layout of the house—they’d all studied it before arrival as standard protocol. Wyatt had refused to meet with Brister until the rancher had sent over his architectural plans. Because yes, Wyatt was that paranoid, but he also had a hell of a lot of enemies.
Logan paused, waiting and listening. He knew he hadn’t imagined the woman’s voice but all was silent now. Everybody was supposed to be meeting on the opposite side of the huge house in an oversized living room with a roaring fire and a bank of windows overlooking a frozen pond. Brister’s office was connected to it so no one had any business on this side of the house. And the man’s wife had left to go grocery shopping a while ago, so she shouldn’t even be here. But he’d been out by the barn and storage facility for a while so maybe he’d missed her coming back.
“You’re hurting me.”
The laundry room. Moving quickly and quietly, he hurried down the rest of the short hallway that led to a laundry room and four-car garage.
Pausing outside the door, he leaned in then quietly twisted the handle. Easing it open, he tensed, unsure what he would find.
As it swung fully open, he froze for only a second as Austin Brister swiftly punched his wife in the ribs.
Logan reacted on pure instinct and training. He
didn’t remember crossing the few steps of the laundry room, but suddenly he was in Brister’s space, grabbing him by the shoulders and hauling him off his petite wife. The woman who’d only hours ago smiled so nicely at all of them and given them a quick tour before she’d left to buy food.
Rage popped hard inside him as Logan yanked Brister back and slung him across the room. Brister bounced off the front-loading washing machine.
“What the fuck are you doing!” Logan shouted even though it was pretty damn obvious the asshole was beating his wife. He had no tolerance for violence against women. Ever.
The man jumped to his feet, snarling like a raging bull. He was in his fifties, but strong and in good shape from ranching.
Logan somehow remained calm, though he kept his fighter’s stance and Heidi Brister behind him. She reminded him of his own mother, but petite.
She had on loose jeans, a turtleneck and a cardigan with little Christmas elves on them. She was sniffling and crying quietly, and though he wanted to check on her, he needed to make sure the threat was neutralized. Because he knew if he turned his back on this guy, Brister would attack him from behind. No doubt. The kind of man who hit a woman—his own wife—would have no problem fighting dirty.
“Get the hell out of here,” Brister ordered as he stepped forward menacingly. From the way he spoke, his swagger and tone, it was very damn clear he expected Logan to fall in line and follow his orders.
Which told him all he needed to know. This man wasn’t going down without a fight. Still, he tried to keep a calm head.
Logan held up one hand as he pulled out his cell phone. “I’m not going anywhere. And if you take one more step, I will lay you flat on your back.” He kept his voice as quiet as possible though it shook slightly from the pure, scorching lava of rage pumping through his veins. The way that man had just hauled off and nailed his wife like that.
He’d seen violence many times before. Too much of it. But this had stunned him, maybe because of the domestic setting. Hell if he knew, but he was barely holding on to his control, barely holding back from bashing this man’s face in.
“This is all just a misunderstanding.” Brister held his palms up as if he was surrendering. “I was just having a private conversation with my wife.”
“Yes, it really looked like a conversation when you punched her in the ribs.” Logan gritted his teeth as he held his phone up to his ear. “Julian—”
Brister rushed at him, moving like a bull.
Though Logan’s instinct was to slide to the left and swivel so he could slam his elbow down on the man’s back, he didn’t want to give the guy any sort of opening to go after his wife again. Dropping his phone, he rushed straight at Brister.
They rammed into each other like two bulls.
Logan grunted under the impact of the other man’s tackle even as he landed a punch to the gut. Brister hit back just as hard. Logan grunted against the pain of a shot to his ribs, but moving quickly and efficiently he decked the man across the face before slamming Brister onto his stomach. Wasting no time, he dug his knee into Brister’s spine as he yanked the man’s arms back.
“You’re going to regret this,” Brister snarled, struggling underneath Logan. “You’re going to jail for assaulting me in my own home!”
Ignoring him, Logan secured the man’s hands. On the job they always carried flex cuffs because they never knew when they would need them. He’d used them exactly twice before, and until two minutes ago he would have bet good money he wouldn’t have needed them on this job.
“Ma’am, step around me and quickly exit the room,” he said without looking over at Heidi. Sometime during the scuffle, she’d plastered herself against the washing machine, as if she was trying to make herself smaller.
God, Logan wanted to grab this guy’s head and smash it against the tile floor. He could hear footsteps in the distance and quiet murmurs of alarm. Everything had happened so quickly but the backup team was on the way. Julian might not know what was going on, but he would have heard enough, thankfully.
Brister snarled at his wife. “Don’t you go anywh—”
Logan gave in to the impulse and grabbed Brister by the back of the neck, cutting him off. “Unlike your wife, I punch back,” he growled low in his throat even as Heidi hurried around him, her feet making soft shuffling sounds as she raced out.
Once she was out of the room, a sense of relief slid through Logan. No matter what shitstorm had just been unleashed, at least she was safe.
* * *
“You showed more restraint than I would have.” There was more than a touch of savagery in Iris’s tone.
Logan’s mouth curved up ever so slightly. He wasn’t sure how he’d showed so much restraint with that piece of garbage. The only thing Logan remembered thinking was that poor woman did not need to see even more violence. Because as far as he knew, this couple had been married for at least twenty-five years.
This definitely wasn’t the first time that asshole had hit her. And Brister had gone for her ribs, somewhere no one would see. Logan gritted his teeth, thinking of the woman, about how she’d likely gotten used to the abuse.
“We’re good to go,” Wyatt said as he stepped back into the living room. He did a quick sweep of the room, his sharp blue eyes only softening once they landed on Iris. Unlike his normal suits, since he’d been here he’d been more casual in jeans, boots and flannel shirts. The look did nothing to take away from the authority of the man.
The police had already hauled Brister off even though he’d tried to claim it was a misunderstanding and that his wife would tell them “the truth.” Logan had worried that since this was a small town and Brister was a very wealthy individual, they might look the other way. And maybe they would once Logan and the rest of them left. It made him feel ill.
He stood, unable to remain immobile anymore. “We can’t just leave her here.” Because no doubt the guy would be out on bail soon and then she’d be an easy target.
Wyatt’s expression turned just as savage as his wife’s tone had been. “We’re not leaving her. She has a sister and brother-in-law she’s going to go stay with. Her adult daughter lives close to them as well—and they’re all across the country. I’m going to fly her on my plane. She’s packing a bag as well as grabbing all of their financial records. I told her to take her time, to take anything she’ll need when she divorces him. And I’ll do a sweep of his records to make sure she gets everything she’ll need. She’s got a son who works in finance but he’s in London, so trust me, she’ll have the tools at her disposal to handle this.”
Logan lifted an eyebrow. “She’s leaving him for good?”
“Yes. She said her kids are out of the house. She said she’s tired of being a punching bag. She was also adamant that he’d never hit the kids.”
“Doesn’t mean they didn’t see or hear things,” Iris murmured.
Yeah, no shit. Maybe there was a reason neither of his kids lived here anymore. Logan knew it was hard for women to leave their abusers, so he hoped this stuck. God, did he hope so. That man was a bull and she was so damn petite. Who the hell could live with themselves and actually hurt the one they loved on a continuous basis? “I don’t think he’ll make it easy on her.”
Wyatt took his wife’s hand in his, his smile a bit sharklike. “My attorney is going to represent her. She’ll get everything she deserves.”
Logan blinked, but he probably shouldn’t be surprised. Wyatt was a tough bastard, but he had a soft heart where women were concerned. “Good.”
“Well since it’s clear this deal is not happening,” Iris said dryly, looking away from the huge bay of windows, “are we going to head home after we drop Heidi off? I’m done with all this snow.”
“Actually, I was hoping you wouldn’t mind if we stopped over in New York. I have another meeting I should really do in person. I’d pushed it back, but…” Wyatt shrugged.
Iris lifted a shoulder. “Fine with me. The casino is a well-oiled machine
at this point, and with Hayden and Vadim in charge I’m not worried about staying away.”
Wyatt looked at Logan, eyebrows raised.
Surprised again, Logan shrugged. “I go wherever you say.” Wyatt was the boss.
Wyatt gave him a hard look. “If you want to head home, we can trade out security. Mia’s headed home, but Julian is coming. It’s okay if you want to trade out with someone.”
Logan shook his head. Even though he wanted to get home to Grace, he figured that some distance between them probably wasn’t a bad thing right now. He’d obviously spooked her with that marathon of wild sex—and wasn’t that a hit to his ego.
No, he would give her the distance she needed. They’d been texting nonstop and he was trying like hell to keep things normal between them. He was pretty sure he was succeeding but he figured the distance would help them both.
Hell, he needed to keep his own head on straight if he was going to figure out how to approach her, how to fix what had happened between them. Because he couldn’t lose her. She was too damn special, too damn everything for him.
Chapter 5
I’m back. Are you free?
Grace nearly jolted as the text from Logan came through. Was she free? Yes, she was.
And nervous about seeing him.
It had been four weeks since he’d been gone on business and she missed him like crazy. They’d texted every day, but everything had stayed fairly surface-level. Which was good, but she had a feeling that tension they were both trying to avoid was still lingering right below the surface. They’d had a ton of hot sex and hadn’t talked about it. It had to come up eventually, right? Or maybe he was fine never talking about it.
She texted back. Yep. School is officially out for two weeks and I just got home.
Up for some company?
Oh…he meant right now. She was still wearing her pajamas she’d worn to school since the last day had been pajama day. Feel free to stop by.
I’ll be there in five minutes.