“That’s right. How did it go?”
“She and her friends had a blast. My mom made sure to show me lots of pictures. You and Carly did real good picking out that dress.”
“Yeah? She looked good?”
“She looked gorgeous,” he said with a shake of his head. “And way too mature to be my innocent baby sister.”
“So, where is she? I haven’t seen her here anywhere.”
“She left just as Carly and Darren were heading out. She’s got some plans with her friends. Figures, she makes me come and then ditches me. And then Cowboy and Harper left me.”
“Cowboy and who?”
“You know Harper. Quiet blonde, glasses, valedictorian of our class.”
“Wait, seriously? Cowboy is on a date with Harper Maddox?” She could not have come up with two people more completely opposite if she tried. “When did this happen?”
“He ran into her the day after the fire at Wade’s, and apparently they’ve been hanging out. But he swears tonight wasn’t a date and that they’re just friends. Anyway, they left maybe ten minutes ago. Something about a dare, maybe? I don’t know.”
He shrugged. “I was about to head out, too, but then I saw you floundering over there.” He looked her up and down, a grin spreading across his face. “And seeing you in this dress, I’m very glad I didn’t.”
“Shut up,” she muttered.
He laughed. “No really, you look incredible. Our friends should get married more often if this is how you dress.”
Logan ignored his comment, but she was incapable of ignoring the way his words made her heart race. She felt herself relax into Cole as they continued to step with the music.
“Carly did a great job with this thing. I think the whole town will be talking about it for a while. And don’t even get me started on the cake Byrdie made. I’m half tempted to steal what’s left and take it home with me.”
“I’ve been so busy I never even got to try it,” she mused.
“You really missed out then. But I guess you’ll have your own cake soon enough.”
She blinked. “Huh?”
“Have you and Jacob set a date yet?”
In all the chaos of fixing up the gallery and last-minute wedding preparations, Logan had completely forgotten that, as far as Cole and the rest of the town knew, she was still engaged.
“Oh, um…actually, the wedding’s not happening. Jacob and I aren’t together anymore.”
Cole stopped midstep. “What? When?”
Logan’s face grew warm under the sudden intensity of his gaze. “The morning after the fire.”
“I had no idea. Cowboy and Tater didn’t say anything.”
“Up until now the only people who knew were my parents and Carly. I didn’t think it was fair for everyone to find out before you got back into town. I wanted you to hear it from me.”
He nodded silently while he seemed to process it all. Logan didn’t know when they’d started dancing again, but sure enough, they were swaying to the music.
“Can I…do you mind if I ask who ended it?”
“It was a mutual decision. I realized you were right. I wasn’t going to be happy pretending to be someone I wasn’t. And, honestly, I didn’t want to pretend anymore. It’s exhausting, and neither of us would have lasted long in that relationship if I wasn’t honest. I told Jacob it wasn’t fair to him.” Just like it wasn’t fair to marry him when she had feelings for someone else.
“Sounds more like your decision than a mutual one.”
“Yeah, well, he didn’t try very hard to stop me, so I figure he knew I was right and that there was no point in fighting it.”
“Then he’s an even bigger dumbass than I thought. What’s next for you then? Some fancy gallery job in New York? LA?”
“Actually, I was thinking about staying around town for a while. I told Louise I’d help her with the gallery, and I plan on sticking to that promise. Besides, my parents are here, and Carly. I’m not quite ready to leave yet.”
“Well, that’s good to hear. Willow Creek just isn’t the same without the infamous Logan Kase.”
The song they’d been dancing to ended, soon replaced by an even slower one. Logan watched as the few couples still on the dance floor leaned into each other intimately.
Cole stopped. “Well, I believe I told Leon it was one dance. I should probably let you get back to whatever you were doing.”
He started to pull his hands away, but Logan held on. “Cole, wait. Can we just…?” It was too much to ask of him, but she didn’t want it to end yet. After weeks without seeing or talking to him, one song just wasn’t enough.
“Just one more song, please?”
Cole looked uncertain at first. But something in her face seemed to decide it for him. Instead of turning away, he slowly pulled her closer, until any space between them disappeared. Cole’s hand was low on her back again.
She felt his cheek brush hers as his deep voice whispered in her ear, “This okay?”
Threads of electric energy spread through her body. “Mm-hmm.” Eyes closed, she rested her head on his shoulder and allowed herself to forget everything that had happened between them in the last couple weeks. They moved together with the soft music.
Logan took a deep breath, filling her lungs with the familiar scent of Cole. She didn’t think she’d ever smelled anything so warm and comforting in all her life.
She took another deep breath and sighed, the pressure in her chest easing. No matter how long they held each other dancing, it just wouldn’t be enough. His hold on her tightened, and Logan tried not to think about how much less vibrant her world would be if, at the end of this song, he walked away for good.
Instead, she started thinking about all the wonderful and beautiful things that were waiting for Cole. The Sunday lunches with family at his parents’ house. Acres of land with the big house and horses and the white picket fence he always wanted. Even the nights out at the bar with Cowboy and the guys from the station.
And then it happened.
She had no idea when, but at some point in her mental wandering, Logan became part of the vision.
Sitting with Cole and Tater in one of the front pews at church. Laughing and joking with the Tucker family while they exchanged stories from Cole’s childhood. Clinging to Cole and grinning wildly as he took her for a middle-of-the-night horseback ride.
It was all there, and as she watched each scene play out before her as if through her own eyes she felt happier than she could ever remember.
Walking hand-in-hand with a beaming Cole Tucker. Dancing in an elegant, slim, white dress with Cole just like this, while all of Willow Creek stood back and watched. Standing in front of the house he’d just bought her, crying happy tears as Cole lovingly stroked the small bump of her growing belly and kissed her over and over.
For the first time in her life, she saw her future. The details shifted and changed each time she pictured it, but the one constant in each of them was him.
Logan’s eyes snapped open, and she tore her head from his shoulder. His eyebrows drew together, but they softened as moisture crept into her eyes.
“You okay?”
She wanted to tell him so badly, needed to tell him that her future, the one she’d never been able to see with Jacob in all the time they were together, was now looking directly at her. Logan opened her mouth to let the words spill out, but one sobering thought stopped her.
What if it didn’t last? What if she finally got everything she didn’t know she wanted until now, the kind of happiness she didn’t even know existed, and she lost it all? She couldn’t bear even the thought of it.
“I have to go.” Her voice broke on the words, and her hand flew to wipe away the single tear that had slipped out. She gently placed the other on his smooth jaw, memorizing the feel of him one last time.
Logan brought her lips to his cheek. “Thanks again for saving my dad.”
“Lo?”
“Goodnight, Cole.�
�� Before she could stop herself, she pulled out of Cole’s arms and nearly ran to the door.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Logan stood at the kitchen counter in a pair of sweatpants and the oversized camo shirt she’d worn playing paintball that was more comfortable than anything she owned—and still kind of smelled like him—scooping out mint chocolate chip ice cream when her parents finally came downstairs, ready to leave for the movies.
The chief’s arm was around Momma’s waist, and the two were beaming at each other, laughing while they debated which candy-popcorn collaboration was best.
They’d been together for almost twenty-five years now and they still looked just as happy and in love as they had in all the wedding pictures Logan used to look at when she was a kid.
“You guys look great.” Logan felt a small pang in her chest.
Mom’s smile turned into a soft frown. “You okay, wild girl?”
Logan stood taller. “I’m fine, Momma. You two have fun at your movie tonight.”
Momma watched her for a moment, glancing to the frozen carton on the island counter. “Marshall, why don’t you go warm up the truck. I’ll be out in just a second.”
“Sure thing, baby.” He kissed her gently on the cheek before exiting.
Her mom reached for Logan’s hand across the counter. “What’s going on, honey?”
“Nothing, I just like seeing you and Daddy so happy together. I hope I get to find that someday.”
“You will. I wouldn’t doubt that for a second.” Momma squeezed her hand once before letting go. “So, what are your big plans for tonight? Nothing too dangerous, I hope.”
“Don’t worry. Your wild girl is taking the night off.” She laughed, indicating the bowl in front of her. “I won’t be disgracing the family name tonight.”
The room was quiet while Logan scooped out another spoonful.
“I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”
Logan froze. Her momma’s eyes were glistening. “What? Why should you be sorry?”
“For trying to make you someone you’re not. You’ve always been so brave, so independent, and so alive. You learned to run practically before you could walk. You jumped without knowing where you’d land.
“I thought that if you could just grow out of that reckless phase and finally settle down…but it wasn’t a phase. It’s who you are, and I’ve been lying to myself all these years. I’m so, so sorry.”
Logan wrapped her arms around her. “It’s okay, Momma.”
“No, it’s not. If I hadn’t been pushing you so hard then you wouldn’t have felt like you needed to be with Jacob in order to be someone else. And now you’ve been walking around like a zombie the last couple weeks—”
“It’s not about Jacob.”
“It’s not?” Logan shook her head. “Then what’s wrong?”
Logan took a deep breath and swallowed, readying herself for that look of disapproval in her mom’s eyes. “The night before Jacob and I called off the wedding, Cole told me he had feelings for me.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” her momma cried.
“Well, you’ve made it abundantly clear that you hate Cole Tucker.”
“It’s true, he’s never been one of my favorite people. You’re reckless when you’re around him. But after what he did for your daddy…I think you’d be hard-pressed to find a better man in this town. Even if he is wilder than you are.”
Seriously? Years of hating Cole, and suddenly Logan would be lucky to get a guy like him? “So you’re not disappointed?”
“Of course not. You’re old enough to know what you want, and I just want you to be happy. But, Lo, what I think shouldn’t matter if you really care about him. Go tell him how you feel.”
She stared down at her fingers. “It’s not that simple.”
“Why not?”
“I’ve said no to him so many times. And every time things got real between us I ran away. What if I go to him and he’s the one who says no now?”
“I love you, baby, but sometimes you can be really slow.” Momma grabbed her phone from its dock, her voice rising. “Now it’s time for some tough love. You can sit here eating your half-melted ice cream, feeling sorry for yourself, and give him time to get over you for real”—she took Logan’s hand and placed the phone in it—“or you can give him a call right now, giving yourself the chance to be the happiest you’ve ever been. It’s entirely up to you.”
*
Logan watched from the window as her parents pulled out of the driveway, the phone still gripped tightly in her hand.
Her mom was right. What good had running from Cole Tucker done her so far? She needed to face this head-on or else she’d end up losing the one man who’d loved her exactly as she was. The one person who’d made her proud to be that girl.
Before she could change her mind, Logan pulled up the too-long sleeves of her shirt and started dialing the number she knew by heart. She held it up to her ear, her heart racing.
Ring.
She couldn’t tell him all she needed to say over the phone. Maybe she’d ask to meet him at his place.
Ring.
Then again, Cowboy might be there with Harper right now, so that probably wasn’t the best idea.
Ring.
She could invite Cole to her place. But it seemed wrong to ask him to come all the way out here, especially after the way she’d treated him.
Ring.
Maybe somewhere neutral would be best. But where?
Ring.
She’d figure it out as soon as he picked up the phone.
Ring.
If he ever picked up the damn phone.
This is Cole Tucker. Leave a message.
Logan hung up. Was Cole so busy that he missed her call, or was he avoiding her on purpose? The way she’d stormed out of the wedding reception without an explanation, she wouldn’t blame him.
She hit redial, waiting out the rings anxiously until she was sent to voice mail again. Instead of hanging up, she took a breath.
“Hey, it’s Lo. I, uh…sorry for running out like I did. It was kinda spazzy of me.” Oh God, what was she saying? “Listen, I need to talk to you about something important. Um, the sooner the better. So just call me back whenever you get this…unless you’re just ignoring my calls. But please don’t. So, yeah. Bye.”
She’d done what she could. Now all that was left was to wait until he called her back. The ice cream in her bowl now resembled more of a green soup than anything. Didn’t matter. Her craving was gone. She placed the bowl in the sink and put the carton back in the freezer.
She was walking to the living room when someone knocked at the door. Cole! It didn’t seem likely since she’d only just left him a message, but who else would be knocking on her door this late at night? She felt her stomach start to go all fluttery as she raced for the door.
She wrenched it open, and sure enough, Cole stood there in the same suit and light blue shirt he’d been wearing earlier, only now the jacket and tie were gone and his sleeves were rolled up a few inches. Impossibly, he looked even better than before.
“That was fast.”
“What was fast?”
“I left you a voice mail not even five minutes ago.”
“You did?” He reached into his pocket with his right hand, his left holding something covered in aluminum foil. “Oh yeah. I forgot it was still on silent.”
He hadn’t been avoiding her call after all. That alone was enough to make what she had to say easier. “Do you want to come in and sit down?”
“Yeah.” Yet despite two brown leather sofas and her dad’s favorite recliner, they both remained standing.
“Here,” Cole said, setting the foil-wrapped thing in his hand down on the coffee table beside them. “I grabbed a piece of cake for you since you said you didn’t get one.”
“Oh, thanks. That’s really sweet, but you didn’t have to come all this way just for that.” Logan started fidgeting with the hem of her shirt—his shirt�
��that fell to her midthigh. If she’d known he was coming over, she would have put on something much less frumpy.
“Actually, I didn’t.” Cole slowly walked around the room, scanning various pictures of Logan and her parents. As long as they’d known each other, and as many times as he’d come by the house, she didn’t think he’d ever actually been anywhere other than the porch or her bedroom. “I also wanted to ask you a question. Something I didn’t get to ask before.”
“Oh, okay.”
He stopped by the fireplace and turned to her. “You said you broke it off with Jacob because it wasn’t fair to him. Was that the only reason?”
This was it. The chance to tell him everything that was staring her right in the face. All she had to do was be honest with him and hope for the best.
“No.”
Cole’s tense shoulders fell.
“I also broke it off because, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t picture my future with him. But then tonight…”
“Tonight what?”
Her voice shook. “While we were dancing, I saw it all. The life I’d never been able to picture when I was with Jacob. I saw a wedding and a house and kids. But it wasn’t Jacob standing there with me through all of it. It was you.”
Her lips twitched, her stomach fluttering at the possibility of the life and future those images represented. Of love and joy and laughter and excitement.
The corners of Cole’s mouth started to curve upward, but the smile fell short. “Then why did you run away tonight?”
“The same reason I ran away four years ago. The same reason I told you I was still going to marry Jacob even after everything. I was scared. Just like I was scared when I woke up that morning after the bonfire. Because I realized that you, being with you, makes me happier than anything else ever has.”
Cole took several steps toward her. “Why the hell would that scare you?”
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