On the Plus Side

by Alison Bliss

  Without a doubt, she knew things would be weird between her and Logan after her brother had come close to catching them in the storeroom, half-naked and in each other’s arms. Had Brett actually walked through that door though, things would’ve been much worse.

  To say her older brother was overprotective was putting it mildly. He was out of control and had been for years. She imagined that, if she had been fathered by the president of the United States, Brett would have been the secret service agent assigned to the task of keeping her virtue intact. But she wasn’t the first daughter, nor was he an agent…and she lost her virtue a long time ago.

  Valerie was twenty-six, for goodness’ sakes. And now that Logan was finally seeing her as a woman instead of a child, the last thing she needed was her brother screwing it up. Besides, if last night had been any indication, she could apparently do that all on her own.

  She breathed out a frustrated sigh.

  If only she hadn’t left the storeroom so abruptly last night. At the time, it had seemed like the smart thing to do to make sure Brett didn’t find her and Logan together. But by the time she’d finally shaken her brother loose and made it back to the storeroom, Logan had completely disappeared, along with the broken glass.

  It had been James who told her that Logan took the rest of the night off, citing a pounding headache that the loud music only made worse. But if you asked her, it was the dumbest fucking lie he could have come up with because, moments before, the only thing that had been pounding was his body into hers.

  Irritation bubbled up inside her. Damn it, she needed to know why he had left like that…and if he’d seen the stupid list she’d written up with Leah. She didn’t know how he would’ve possibly gotten a hold of it, but it was too much of a coincidence that he’d mentioned public sex and dirty talk mere minutes after she’d written them down.

  Then she remembered something else he’d said. This is what you wanted, right? A strange realization dawned on her, and Valerie froze…then she laughed. Logan apparently thought it was a list of things she wanted to do rather than a list of things she would never do. How the hell had he screwed that one up?

  Valerie giggled again as she glanced up at the clock on the wall and fistpumped the air. Two minutes until closing. Close enough, if you asked her.

  She was just about to round the counter to lock up when, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a figure pass by the front window, moving fast in the direction of the bakery door.

  Shit. No, no, no. The last thing she wanted to do was miss out on talking to Logan, all because she had to stand around after closing time and wait fifteen minutes for a customer to decide what kind of damn pastry they wanted.

  If I can get to the door first and lock it though…

  Not willing to let anything hold her back from talking to Logan, she hurried around the counter and bustled for the door. The other person must have seen her coming through the frosted glass because they also picked up in speed. Each of them covered ground fast, both gaining on the door. Definitely a close one. But at the last second, Valerie launched herself forward and snicked the lock in place.

  But the door opened anyway.

  What the hell?

  Mrs. Howard poked her head inside, breathing heavy. “Valerie Carmichael, were you trying to beat me to the door so you could lock me out?”

  Valerie shook her head. “No, of course not. I wouldn’t do that, Mrs. Howard. I was just, uh…coming to open it for you.”

  The old woman glared at her as if she didn’t believe a word of it. “Well, I won’t take but a minute of your time.” She stepped inside and tapped at her wrist. “Though technically I still have two available by my watch.”

  Valerie wanted to smile but didn’t dare. “What can I do for you?”

  “I don’t need anything. I just wondered if you would deliver a message to your mom for me. Can you tell her that we’re playing poker again next week? Same time, same place.”

  “Sure, that’s no problem. I’ll text her the info before I leave for my other job.”

  “Okay, good. And be sure to let her know I can spot a bluff from a mile away,” Mrs. Howard said, eyeing the turned lock on the doorknob.

  “Um, I’ll be sure to do that.”

  “Thanks again,” Mrs. Howard said, then turned and walked out, shutting the door behind her.

  The giggle bubbling up in Valerie’s throat broke free, and she shook her head. She had no doubt that her mom was going to get an earful on poker night about how her daughter tried to lock poor Mrs. Howard out of the bakery. She probably needed to give her mother a heads-up about that one.

  Valerie turned to walk back to the counter when the door behind her opened again. She spun on her heels to see Logan’s mother stepping inside. What the hell? Had the door not shut all the way or something?

  “Hello, Valerie. I hope I’m not keeping you from closing up.”

  “Um, no. Of course not,” Valerie said, eyeballing the open door and shaking her head. “What can I do for you, Mrs. Mathis?”

  “Nothing much, dear. I just stopped by to pick up the dozen glazed doughnuts for our Bible study group tonight. Edna said she ordered them yesterday, but she came down with some sort of stomach bug this morning and asked me to help. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to get here any earlier than now.”

  Valerie smiled warmly. “That’s okay. Let me run to the back and grab them for you. Give me just a second.”

  She headed into the kitchen and grabbed the box of glazed doughnuts she’d seen sitting on the order cart. She’d noticed them a few hours ago, but Leah had apparently forgotten to tell her what or who they were for. Now it all made sense. She strolled back out through the swinging doors and set the box on the counter. “Here they are, Mrs. Mathis.”

  “Oh, good.”

  Valerie hit a few buttons on the cash register and glanced back at Logan’s mom. “With the normal discount the Bible study group receives, the total comes to four dollars and forty-eight cents.”

  “Oh. I…um, didn’t realize that Edna hadn’t paid for them yet.”

  “We normally only take deposits on wedding cakes or on large orders for an event. Most everything else is paid for during pickup.”

  Mrs. Mathis blinked, and then her cheeks reddened. “I see. I…um, don’t really have any cash with me at the moment.” Her hands shook slightly, and her eyes misted over. “I’m sorry, Valerie. I guess I won’t be able to pick them up after all.”

  The woman looked so embarrassed that Valerie couldn’t help but feel bad for her. “That’s okay, Mrs. Mathis. Tell you what, the doughnuts are on me tonight.” She pushed the white box toward her.

  “Oh, no, dear. I wouldn’t dream of letting you pay for them.”

  Valerie smiled at her again. “I don’t mind at all. Besides, if you don’t take them, I would just have to throw them out. You would really be doing me a favor. I hate wasting perfectly good doughnuts.”

  Judging by the look Mrs. Mathis gave her, the woman clearly didn’t believe a word of it. Everyone in town knew that the bakery made fresh products every day and anything that didn’t sell that same day would be marked down to half price the following morning. And that included day-old doughnuts. It wasn’t as if there would be anything wrong with them.

  Although Mrs. Mathis clearly knew Valerie was fibbing, she said, “Are you sure, Valerie?”

  “Absolutely.” Valerie lifted the box and placed it into her hands. “You ladies enjoy them.”

  Mrs. Mathis hung her head. She looked weepy, as if the sweet woman was trying not to burst into tears. Then she sighed with resignation and lifted her head. “Thank you. That’s very kind of you.”

  “You’re welcome. Have a great evening.”

  “You too, dear.” She turned and headed out the door, closing it firmly behind her.

  Valerie glanced at the knob, noting that the button was twisted into the locked position. Thank God. Now she could stop worrying about anyone else coming in. She sli
d her hand deep into her pocket and fished around until she pulled out a five-dollar bill and then used it to pay for the dozen doughnuts.

  She didn’t know why Mrs. Mathis had gotten so upset about forgetting her cash. Hell, most people have done something like that before. Sure, it was a little embarrassing, but it was definitely nothing to cry over. Either way, Valerie didn’t mind helping her out. Logan’s mother was such a sweet lady and had always been so nice to her.

  Now that she was gone and the bakery was officially closed, Valerie could hurry and get to the bar. After what happened last night, she really needed to talk to—

  The front door of the bakery swung open again, and Logan stepped inside wearing blue jeans and a beige flannel shirt with his sleeves shoved up to his elbows.

  She blinked at the still-locked door. “Seriously?”

  “Uh, I’m not bothering you, am I? I waited to come until closing time so you wouldn’t be busy.”

  She walked over to the door and leaned down, examining the doorknob thoroughly. “No, it’s fine,” she said, peering closely at the lock. “I was just closing up.” She tried to turn the knob, but it wouldn’t budge. It was still locked, yet it wasn’t keeping anyone out. What the heck is wrong with this thing?

  “Are you sure? I could come back another time…maybe when you’re not distracted.”

  “I’m not distracted.” Valerie shut the door and pulled it right back open. Ah, there’s the problem. The door isn’t catching. She would have to call Sam to come over and fix it before she left for the day.

  “You sure?” Logan asked again.

  She closed the broken door once more and turned to face him. “Yes, I’m sure. Did you see your mother on your way in? You just missed her.”

  “My mom was here?”

  “Yep. And is everything okay with her?”

  He stiffened. “Um, yeah. Sure. Why do you ask?”

  “I don’t know. She just seemed…off. Like something was bothering her. She was picking up the doughnuts for her Bible study group, and she got really upset that she didn’t have any cash on her. So I paid for them, but I got the feeling that bothered her even more than—”

  “How much?” Logan said, whipping his wallet from his back pocket.

  “It’s okay. I already took care of it.”

  “No, I’ll pay for them. How much do I owe you?”

  Valerie shook her head. “Logan, I didn’t tell you any of this so you would pay me back. I was only concerned about your mom’s welfare. She wasn’t acting like herself.”

  “She’s going through something right now.” Logan pulled a ten-dollar bill from his wallet. “Will this cover it?”

  “Are you listening to me? I don’t want your money. Put it away.”

  “All right then,” Logan said, putting his money and his wallet away. He looked very uncomfortable as he shifted his weight from one leg to the other. “I came by to talk to you about something else anyway. You have a few minutes?”

  Her heart beat faster. “Sure,” she said, leaning her hip against the counter.

  “I…I wanted to apologize to you for being a selfish bastard last night.”

  She gazed curiously at him but didn’t say anything. Was he referring to the sex they’d had? Because if so, she didn’t think anything he’d done to her would be considered selfish by anyone. Ever.

  “Look, I’ve never had sex without protection before. But with you…well, I was so hell-bent on getting inside you, I didn’t use a condom. I never even considered it. I screwed up, and I’m sorry. I should’ve taken better care of both of us in that regard.”

  Oh, that. “It’s okay,” she said calmly.

  His eyes narrowed. “The fuck it is. Look, Valerie, I know I messed up. But if you end up pregnant, I want to know about it. I mean, you won’t have to go through it alone. I’ll be there for you and the ba—”

  “Logan, I’m on the pill.”

  He paused for a moment and then nodded. “Okay. Well, then the least I can do is go get tested and give you a copy of the results. I don’t want you to worry about anything.”

  “I’m not worried, but that’s fine. In fact, I’ll do the same if you want.” Then she grinned. “But honestly, if I was worried that you had something or weren’t a responsible person, then I wouldn’t have had sex with you to begin with. I am careful about who I sleep with, you know.”

  He shook his head. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to insinuate anything. And I know I should never have touched you last night. I can assure you that it won’t happen again.”

  Her heart stuttered in her chest, but she managed to step toward him with her hands on her hips. “The hell it won’t!”

  Logan reeled back, seemingly surprised by the outburst, but he recovered quickly. “No, I mean it, Val. It can’t happen again. It shouldn’t have happened this time.” Before she could open her mouth to argue with him, he raised his hand to stop her. “I know what you’re going to say. But you know as well as I do that we shouldn’t be doing this. It’s wrong.”

  She paused. “Are you kidding me? We’re two single adults who are apparently attracted to one another. There’s not a damn thing wrong with that.” She shook her head. “If you’re worried about my brother—”

  “Damn it, Valerie. You know Brett’s going to be pissed when he finds out.”

  “He’s not going to find out.”

  “Yeah, he will.” Logan released a heavy breath. “I’m going to tell him.”

  Her stomach dropped. “What? No! You can’t.”

  “I have to. I’m not going to lose my best friend over this shit. I need to be up front with him about it. It’s the right thing to do…even if he ends up hating me for it.”

  She shook her head. “If he had some time to get used to the idea of us, then he’d—”

  “There’s no us, Valerie. There can’t be. Your brother isn’t the only issue here, and you know it.”

  Damn. Did he find out that she’d lied about the certification? “I…uh, don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  He rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I’m your boss, remember?”

  “Okay,” she said, hesitating. She couldn’t blame him for having the same thoughts that she’d had last night. But there was an easy solution to that problem. “Fine, then I quit.”

  Logan’s head snapped to her. “You can’t quit on me like that. You know I’m in a bind right now. I need you.”

  His words sent a shiver through her though she knew he hadn’t meant them the way she took them. She stepped toward him and placed a hand on his chest, running it up toward his shoulder. “Logan…”

  He stilled her hand with his much larger one, and a muscle ticked in his jaw. “We can’t. I’m sorry, but there’s just too much at stake to give this a go. If things were different, then maybe it would work. But they’re not.”

  The look he gave her was heartrending and forced her to take a deep breath. He was serious about the two of them not taking this any further. Dead serious.

  Then he added, “There’s one more thing too. I want you to take tonight off from the bar.”

  She blinked. “What? Why? You just said you needed—”

  “I know what I said. And I do need you. But after what happened last night, I think it would do both of us some good to steer clear of each other for one night. You know, in order to gain some perspective. It’s only Thursday, and I don’t think we’ll be all that busy. I can help James if we get a run on customers. Besides, you’re working two full-time jobs, and I don’t want you to get burned out.”

  Damn it. He was treating her like a child again. “Logan…”

  “I’m not going to argue with you about this, Val. Just take tonight off, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “So that’s it then?”

  He nodded firmly. “It has to be. Let’s just chalk last night up to a weak moment and forget about it.”

  There wasn’t a damn thing weak or forgettable about last night. No matter what
he said. But thank God she hadn’t done something stupid like profess her undying love for him or tell him how she’d been in love with him for years. She would have felt stupid as hell spilling her heart out to him only to be turned down in the end.

  “Fine,” she said.

  His eyebrow lifted, clearly not expecting her to agree with him.

  And really, she didn’t want to. But she deserved a man who would drag himself through fire to be with her. Not one who was dragging his feet after sleeping with her.

  “You’re not going to argue with me about this?” he asked.

  “Nope.”

  If Logan didn’t see what he was giving up, then that was his problem. There was nothing she could do about it. Yes, she wanted him. But he was the one damn thing she was apparently never going to have.

  * * *

  Logan thunked his head on his desk.

  He’d been sitting in the same spot for five straight hours and hadn’t gotten a damn thing accomplished. There was inventory to order, sales reports to check, invoices to go over, and employee checks to write, but he just couldn’t seem to get his head into the game.

  Thankfully, James had a good handle on the bar, which was fairly quiet though there were several groups hanging out around the pool tables and a few couples sitting at the counter. A few of their regular customers had come in as well, but it was getting late and most of them had already headed home for the night…unlike Logan.

  If he didn’t get this paperwork finished soon, he wouldn’t be getting any sleep at all. The bank manager wanted to meet with him early so they could go over the documents on the foreclosure of his mom’s house, but while Logan was there, he planned to convince the bank to give them an extension on the deadline.

  He needed it. Badly.

  Open for less than a week, the bar was actually making money. But as with any new business, Logan was also paying out a hell of a lot to the vendors in order to keep it going. All he needed though was enough to cure the default and reinstate the mortgage. Then he would make all future monthly mortgage payments until the house was paid off and the title was free and clear. If everything went the right way, by this time next week, his mom’s home would be safe from foreclosure.