On the Plus Side

by Alison Bliss

  Unfortunately, Logan knew from past experience that things had a way of not always working out…just like with him and Valerie.

  He hated himself for hurting her. When he’d told her they couldn’t be anything more than a one-night stand, the utter devastation on her face had kicked him hard in the left nut. And if her brother had seen the look on her face and had known it was Logan who’d put it there, Brett would’ve taken out the right one.

  And Logan would’ve let him. Because he deserved every bit of it for putting his hands where they didn’t belong. Every time he even thought about how he’d touched her in that storeroom, his dick hardened to the point of pain. But that was exactly the kind of shit that had gotten him into trouble in the first place.

  He was surprised that Valerie hadn’t argued with him more than she did. Maybe she thought it was a lost cause at this point. Or maybe she’d gotten what she’d wanted from him and the excitement of the chase had quickly worn off.

  Logan chuckled to himself. It was usually women who worried that they had been used for sex. Not men. But then again, the idea had merit. When he’d showed up at the bakery, Valerie had seemed way more interested in the door than him. He still didn’t know what the hell to make of that one.

  But none of this really mattered. It wasn’t like Valerie was in love with him or something. And he didn’t love her either. It was just a teenage crush that had carried over into their adult years. A simple, mutual attraction between two people who ended up having sex. Actually, it was more of a half-naked quickie. In the storeroom. Against the ice machine. With him pumping into her tight, hot body over and over and…

  Fuck. Logan reached down and adjusted the swelling in his jeans. When the hell had his pants gotten so tight?

  He needed to stop thinking about her and finish his work though so he shoved her voluptuous image from his mind and picked up the invoice in front of him. He needed to concentrate on her figure. No, wait…not her figure. His figures. Numbers, damn it.

  Shit. With a sigh on his lips, Logan got back to work.

  Logan had barely made it through half the stack of papers when his cell phone rang and Valerie’s name popped up. He shook his head. Sonofabitch. How the hell was he supposed to get his mind off her if she wouldn’t leave him alone? But he hit the button and placed her on speaker-phone anyway. “What do you want, Valerie? I’m busy,” he said, his tone not all that friendly.

  “Um, this isn’t Valerie,” a woman on the line said. “My name is Dawn, and I’m one of the waitresses over at Rusty’s Bucket. Valerie left her phone inside, and I’m calling you because she…uh, well…”

  Panic flashed through him, and he fisted his hand on the desk. God, if anything had happened to her…“What’s wrong? Is she okay?”

  “Oh, sorry. Yes, she’s fine. But she needs someone to come and get her. I tried to call her brother first, but he’s not picking up. Since Valerie mentioned that she works for you and your number was in her phone, I thought you could help.”

  Help? Confusion filled him. “Where’s her car?”

  “It’s outside in the parking lot. Valerie’s just not in any condition to drive it right now. I’ve already taken her keys from her, but she’s sitting in her vehicle right now with no place to go since I can’t get a hold of Brett. But I know you said you’re busy. I could try to call her brother again, if you want.”

  Logan groaned inwardly. It’s not like he could just leave Valerie there. “No, that’s okay. I’ll come get her. Should take me ten minutes tops. Just don’t let her go anywhere until I arrive.”

  “Um, I can assure you that she’s not going anywhere,” the waitress said with a giggle, “but I’ll keep my eye on her just in case.”

  Logan ended the call and headed straight for the door. Because no matter how many times he tried to convince himself that he didn’t have feelings for Valerie, he wasn’t about to stop himself from running to her rescue when she needed him.

  After giving James a heads-up that he was leaving, it took Logan only eight minutes to get down to Rusty’s Bucket. Since there weren’t many cars parked out front, he immediately spotted Valerie’s red Mercedes.

  It was a late-model sedan, but it had a kick-ass engine and was flashy as hell. Brett had bought it at an auction for a great price, overhauled the engine, and had given it to her as a graduation present. Man, Logan loved that car. Brett did most of the engine work, but Logan had been there helping every step of the way.

  Well, until he wasn’t anymore. He’d left town two days after her graduation so he never actually got to see her driving it. The day he packed his things into his truck, he considered going by to see her one last time. But he hadn’t been able to do it. Something had told him that she would ask him to stay. And the last thing he’d wanted to do was disappoint her by leaving anyway.

  And he would have. Because staying hadn’t been an option.

  As he approached Valerie’s car, he heard a sniffle and gazed through the open window to see tears in her eyes. “Are you all right?”

  She glanced up at him, and her mouth fell open. Then she snapped it shut. “Um, yes,” she said, her voice cracking slightly.

  “Are you sure? What happened?”

  “I…lost my keys.”

  He shook his head. “No, you didn’t. The waitress said she took them from you so that you wouldn’t drive anywhere. Your keys are still in the bar with her.”

  One solitary tear rolled down her cheek, and Valerie quickly wiped it away with the back of her hand. “Yeah, but they’re in there, and I’m out here.”

  He didn’t really understand why that was a problem. “Okay, so I’ll take you inside to get them.”

  Valerie gazed at him with glassy eyes, her face completely serious. “And just how are you going to do that, Logan? I’m locked in.”

  Amusement tugged strongly at the corner of his mouth, but he didn’t dare smile. Instead, he reached through the open window of the car, lifted the lock with his fingers, and opened the door, catching her arm before she fell out.

  Her eyes went wide in amazement. “You’re like a magician or something,” she slurred.

  Logan shook his head and helped her out of the car. “Sweetheart, exactly how much have you had to drink tonight?”

  “I don’t really know. I lost count. Some man inside told me I drank enough to fill a fish tank. But I told him I don’t even have any fish.”

  Huh? But before Logan could wrap his brain around what she said, Valerie staggered in the direction of the bar.

  He caught up with her easily and grasped her arm to keep her from falling on the steps. Once they’d grabbed Valerie’s keys and cell phone from the waitress, they stopped by her car long enough to close the windows and lock the doors. Then he ushered her into the passenger seat of his blue Z71.

  “I don’t like hanging out at Rusty’s anymore,” she said, hiccupping a little as he started the engine. “Nothing but old drunks and desperate perverts in there.”

  He pulled out of the parking lot. “Well, since we were both just in there, what the hell does that make us?”

  She grinned. “An old drunk and a desperate pervert, I guess.” She paused for a moment and then said, “But which one am I?”

  “I’ve got dibs on the drunk since I’m older than you.”

  A slow grin cradled her cheeks. “Yeah, but I’m drunker than you. Besides, I’m not desperate. And I’m definitely not a pervert.”

  “You’re going to have a hard time convincing me of that last one, princess.” He glanced over at her with a smirk on his face. “I saw your naughty list, remember?”

  She glanced out the passenger window. “Um, yeah. About that…”

  “Sorry. I shouldn’t have brought that up. It’s really none of my business.” Though he’d make it his business if he found out she was doing any of that other shit on her list with some stranger who wouldn’t protect her and take care of her like he would.

  Then he remembered the forgotten cond
om. Okay, like he should have.

  She licked her lips. “So you didn’t, um…like what we did the other night?”

  Was she fucking kidding? “I liked it just fine.”

  “Then why can’t we do it again?” A soft hand fell onto his thigh.

  The truck swerved, and Logan jerked the wheel to get back into his lane. He swallowed hard and quickly brushed her hand away. “We just…can’t, that’s why.” Jesus. Way to explain things to her, idiot.

  Her lip poked out. “So I’m right then. You didn’t like it after all?”

  Frustration surged through him, and his hands clenched the steering wheel to keep from reaching for her and showing her just how much he wanted to do it again. “I already told you I liked it, Valerie. It’s not that.”

  She ignored what he said though, and her glazed eyes filled with curiosity. “No, seriously. Tell me the truth. I’m a big girl. I can take it.” When he didn’t answer right away, she continued. “I mean, did I come too early or something? Maybe too late? What was it?”

  “No, Goldilocks, you came just right. Now can we drop this, please?”

  Valerie crossed her arms and huffed. “Fine.”

  “Look, if you really want to talk about this, we will. But not while you’re drunk. You’re going to have so many regrets tomorrow as it is. Trust me, you don’t want to add any more to your list.”

  Thankfully, she stayed quiet until minutes later when he pulled up in front of her brother’s small two-bedroom house and shut off the engine.

  “Why are we here?”

  “I don’t think you should be alone tonight, and it’s not like I can stay with you. If you drank as much as I think you did, you’re probably going to be throwing up at some point. Brett will keep an eye on you.”

  Valerie peered at the dark house. “I don’t think he’s even home.”

  “Doesn’t matter. There’s a key hidden under the mailbox next to the door.” He slid out of the truck, walked around to the passenger side, and opened her door.

  “How do you know that? Brett never told me about a hidden key.”

  Logan grinned. “That’s because he was afraid you would let yourself in when he had company…of the female variety.” When she started to climb out of the truck, he said, “Here, give me your hand.”

  “I can do it.” But her heel caught on the curb and she tripped, landing in the grass. She rolled over onto her back and laughed. “Oops. Maybe I can’t.”

  He reached for her and helped her back to her feet and then kicked the truck door closed. “You okay to walk or do you want me to carry you?”

  Her eyes were trained on the long sidewalk leading up to Brett’s front door. “Well, I am pretty drunk. Maybe you should carry me.”

  He had a feeling she would say that. When she was younger, Brett used to carry her around in his arms like a doll. But he wasn’t Brett. “Okay,” Logan said, grinning. He leaned forward and tossed her over his right shoulder, hanging her upside down over his back.

  She squealed. “That’s not how I thought you were going to carry me.”

  “I know.” Logan started for the house.

  Her hand slapped him on the ass. “Jerk.”

  “You might want to think twice before doing that again,” he warned, rubbing his free hand over her lovely rear and giving it a light tap. “You’re vulnerable at the moment, princess.”

  She slapped him again, a little harder this time. “That’s for calling me princess.”

  Though he couldn’t see her face, he glanced over his left shoulder. “Okay, now you’re asking for it. When we get inside, it’s going to be my turn.” After using the secret key to let them in, Logan flipped on the lights, kicked the front door closed, and carried her straight to the guest room. He set her down by the bed, sank onto the edge, and pulled her across his lap.

  Valerie squirmed under him. “What the hell are you doing?”

  “I’m bending you over my knee, which is something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time.”

  She laughed and glanced back at him. “You’re not going to hit me.”

  “No, I’m going to spank you. There’s a difference.”

  Her eyelashes lowered, and her breath quickened. Apparently she liked the idea of him smacking her on the ass as much as he did. Then again, it was on her to-do list.

  “Okay, but if you’re going to do it, then you’re going to have to do it the right way.” She reached back and fumbled with her dress. Within seconds, she had her skirt up over her back, baring the smooth roundness of her ass cheeks and the lacy white thong between them.

  Christ. Logan closed his eyes and sucked in a large breath.

  He was taking this whole thing way too far, and although he knew it, he couldn’t seem to stop himself from doing so. Valerie had such a vibrant, sexy personality that it made him want to throw caution to the wind and play with her. Literally.

  But she was also drunk. “We shouldn’t be doing this.”

  “Who’s stopping us?”

  His eyes met hers. “I am.”

  “Exactly. So just shut up and spank me already.” She giggled. “You know you want to.”

  No, what he wanted to do was sink his teeth into that tight flesh while his fingers slipped between those glorious thighs. But he’d settle for spanking her because, with her beautiful, bare ass right in front of him, the temptation was just too much to resist. “Tell me the truth. Do you want me to spank you?”

  “Yes, how many times do you want me to say—”

  His hand came down on her backside with a quick slap, and she jumped a little. “Too hard?” he asked, though he knew he’d barely touched her.

  “Hmm, actually I’m thinking you can do better than that. Try again.”

  He pulled his hand back and slapped it down with a bit more force than the last time. Her breath hitched a little and then she hummed appreciatively. “Again,” she murmured, her tone sultry.

  A smile lifted his cheeks, and his hand made a couple of slow circles over the round curve of her cheek, as if winding up for the pitch. Then he smacked her on the ass even harder this time, leaving behind a subtle sting in his palm from the effort. A sharp gasp flew from her lips, and a red hand print appeared almost instantly.

  He rubbed his fingers over the marred skin and frowned. “Okay, that’s enough. I don’t like leaving marks on you. It takes all the fun out of it for me.”

  She rolled and lifted herself up, curling into his lap. “Mmm, but it felt so good on my end,” she purred.

  Logan grinned at the unintended pun. Yeah, maybe, but he noticed she wasn’t asking him to do it again. “I guess I can see the lure of it and get why people do it. But your ass is too damn cute to blemish it with such an ugly handprint. I can think of better things to do to your flesh that would be much more pleasurable for the both of us.”

  Her eyes lifted to his, challenging him. “Show me.”

  God, he wanted to. Especially since he already knew how good she felt in his arms. This time the urge was definitely harder to tamp down. But there were so many reasons they shouldn’t—no, couldn’t—do this. One being that she was drunk and probably didn’t even know what the hell she was saying.

  Damn it. Someone had to be the responsible one here. “I already told you we can’t, Valerie.”

  In a huff, she crawled off his lap, pushed her skirt down over her rear, and faced him with her hands on her hips. “Was that before or after you played with my ass?”

  He swallowed. “Look, I wasn’t trying to lead you on, if that’s what you’re thinking. We took it too far. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. It just…did.”

  “Whatever.” Without any warning, Valerie slid her arms out of her dress and shoved it down her body.

  Logan blinked rapidly.

  Beautiful, full breasts stared him in the face as she shimmied out of her tight dress by rocking those magnificently round hips back and forth. Hips that begged for his hands to grab a hold of them and pull her to
him. When the thin material fell to the floor, it left her standing there in front of him wearing only her white G-string.

  Logan’s mouth watered. Just one. One fucking tug. That was all it would take for him to have those off of her too. His balls tightened. “W-what the hell are you doing?”

  “I’m getting ready for bed.” She turned and opened a drawer on the dresser and pulled out a supersized T-shirt that look like one of Brett’s old football shirts, then dropped it over her head.

  Thank God.

  Valerie crawled onto the bed, slid under the tan-colored sheets and blanket, and turned her head away from him. “You can go now. I’ll be fine without you.”

  Logan had a feeling she wasn’t just talking about tonight. “No. I’m not leaving you yet. You’re stuck with me at least until your brother gets home.” He moved to sit on the edge of the bed next to her, and she began to shift away from him. Logan stilled her with his hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry, okay? I’m not trying to hurt your feelings, piss you off, make you feel bad, or whatever else it is that I’m doing.”

  “It’s fine. I just…Never mind.” She glanced away.

  Her long, wavy blond hair cascaded softly around her face. He tucked a lock behind her ear. “No, tell me. I’d rather we talk about it than for you to have hard feelings toward me.”

  She sighed and laid her head back on the pillow. “That’s the thing, Logan. I’ve never had hard feelings for you…just feelings.”

  Crap. Logan sighed. “I’m sorry, okay?”

  “For what?” she asked softly, her voice trembling.

  “Everything. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen.” He placed his hand on hers and gave it a little squeeze.

  She shook her head adamantly and moved her hand. “God. I don’t need your pity, Logan. Nor do I want it.”

  “Good. Because that’s not what I’m offering.”

  Valerie tilted her head toward him, her tongue darting out to lick her bottom lip. “Then what exactly are you offering me?”