On the Plus Side

by Alison Bliss

  Chapter Twelve

  As they headed inside the movie theater the next day, Valerie gave Logan a strange look. “I don’t know why you’re bringing in a jacket. It’s like ninety degrees outside today.”

  “Yeah, but everyone knows it gets cold in the movie theater. Besides, you’re wearing a skirt. You can drape it over your legs to keep them warm.” Then he gave her a sexy little smirk and lifted one eyebrow. “Don’t you think?”

  She gave him a yeah, right look. “I know where you’re going with this, but I already told you that we’re not doing that in here,” she said, crossing her arms. “I mean it, Logan.”

  But he continued to grin as he walked up to the counter and stood in line to buy their movie tickets. Valerie watched a young girl stuff popcorn into a big bucket for one guy and then hand another woman a couple of drinks. The theater wasn’t packed or anything, but there were several people milling about the oversized room and a couple of kids playing in the small arcade located by the restrooms.

  The moment Logan got the tickets, he motioned for Valerie to follow him down the dimly lit corridor to find the theater they were in. And he was still smiling like crazy. Damn, she had a bad feeling about this. But that didn’t stop her from following him anyway. Part of her was fascinated by the idea of what he wanted to do while the other part of her cringed at the possibility of getting caught.

  The darkened theater wasn’t at all crowded, but there were several groups of people all sitting near each other in the center of the room, separated by a couple of rows or even a few chairs. Valerie breathed a sigh of relief when Logan found them seats at the edge of the far aisle, probably figuring no one would sit anywhere near them.

  But she still wasn’t doing what he’d planned. Nope. Not going to happen.

  As they sat down, Logan slid his arm around her shoulders and whispered, “You nervous?”

  She smiled. “Not at all, I’m sure you chose a great movie.” Then she stared ahead at the screen. “Which one is it?”

  “I have no idea. I just picked one out randomly,” he said quietly with a soft chuckle. “You know damn well that we’re not here to watch a movie.”

  “Really, Logan? Here?”

  He nodded. “Oh yeah. Definitely here.”

  “We shouldn’t. Somebody might see us.”

  “Yeah, that’s what makes this all the more exciting.” He lifted the armrest and laid the jacket over her legs, sliding his hand on her bare thigh beneath it.

  He wasn’t touching her in a sexual manner…yet, but she had a feeling that would be changing very soon. She could feel the sexual tension vibrating off of him, and it only had her heart beating faster.

  Logan looked like a tiger lying in wait, which made her the defenseless, unsuspecting prey about to get eaten. Um, no. Definitely not eaten. We sure as hell aren’t doing that in here. God, she really needed to calm down. Her nerves were firing warning shots to her brain while her stomach twisted in anticipation.

  Finally, the lights dimmed, the room went mostly dark, and the previews began playing. But Logan sat there staring straight ahead. Had he been messing with her the whole time? She almost hoped the answer to that question was a resounding yes, but the moment the featured movie began to play, a slow grin lit up his face.

  Logan leaned toward her, his eyes still focused on the screen in front of them. “Open those beautiful legs for me, baby.”

  The moment he spoke, Valerie lost all muscle function throughout her entire body. “I…uh, can’t.”

  He sat up straighter. “The hell you can’t. We’re doing this. Right here, right now. It’s on your list. That means it’s happening.”

  “That’s not what I meant. But Logan, about that list—” His hand moved higher on her thigh, and she about fainted.

  “Shhh! No talking. We’re in a movie theater.” His fingertips slipped under her satin panties and began making circular motions around her clit. Her breath caught in her throat. “Just sit back and enjoy the show,” he murmured, his tone rough as gravel and sexy as all get-out.

  A soft gasping sound left her throat, but she tried to stifle it.

  His fingers pressed a little harder, moving a little faster over the slick bud. “You like?”

  The man was touching her between her legs. What the hell was there not to like? “Mmm-hmm.”

  Logan swirled a finger in her wetness then drove it inside of her. First one, then another. He pumped them in and out of her with a quick pace while grinding his palm against her mound, letting the friction drive her slowly insane. Her erratic breath panted out faster, and a frenzy of sensations welled up inside of her. Hot desire coiled inside her as frantic need spiked low in her abdomen.

  Within minutes, she was on the edge of insanity, moaning so loud that she had to turn her face into his shoulder. It only made him grin more. Exquisite pleasure raced through her veins, and she quietly begged for him to let her come.

  Her body convulsed twice in her chair before she managed to brace herself against the other armrest, holding herself still. God, she hoped no one saw that. Otherwise, they might think she was having a seizure and come over to offer their assistance or call an ambulance. The last thing Logan needed was help in getting her off. He was doing a fine job of that all on his own.

  Unable to hold back any longer, she bit into his arm to keep from screaming out his name. His fingers slowed, but he held them deep inside her. Her heart pounded in her ears as she rode out the long, drawn-out wave until the tremors subsided. Then Logan slid his fingers from her.

  “I have to taste you. I can’t wait,” he said, bringing them to his mouth and licking the wetness from them.

  Holy hell. She practically came again right then and there.

  “Feeling a bit more relaxed?” Logan asked, grinning from ear to ear.

  “Yes,” she breathed out, and then ran her hand over the hard ridge in the front of his jeans, pushing her fingers against the head of his swollen cock. “So now it’s my turn, right?”

  He grasped her wrist and stilled her hand. “Uh-uh. No way. Don’t start something in here that you can’t or won’t be able to finish.”

  She tilted her head at the challenge. “Oh, I can finish it. Let go of my hand and see for yourself.”

  Apparently, he had less scruples than she did because he immediately released her and linked both of his hands behind his head with a grin. “Go for it.”

  So she did.

  Valerie unbuttoned his pants and started to pull the zipper down slowly to minimize the sound. But it didn’t work. Actually, that never worked in a movie theater. For some strange reason, the smallest sounds were always amplified by a billion. Like when you’re watching a movie while trying to get the last few M&M’s out of the bottom of the bag, but it sounded more like you were playing Chinese checkers and accidentally bumped the entire board.

  So Valerie did the only thing she could do in a situation like this. She fake-coughed to cover the sound and quickly unzipped his jeans the rest of the way at the same time.

  Logan chuckled under his breath. “Nice move, slick.”

  “You haven’t seen anything yet,” she said, wrapping her fingers tightly around him.

  He tensed and hissed out a slow breath. Leaning toward her, he whispered, “You’re driving me insane already. Just the thought of you giving me a hand job in here has me so close to coming. Consider that the only warning you’re going to get.”

  Valerie smiled, and her tongue darted out, wetting her lips. “Who said anything about a hand job?”

  She ducked her head under the jacket and dropped her lips over him, sliding them all the way to the base of his hard cock. His thigh muscles tightened beneath her as he kicked his long legs out and locked them underneath the seat in front of him. He took a deep breath, his stomach muscles hardening against her shoulder, as she dragged her lips over him again.

  After a few minutes, one big hand snaked under the jacket and fisted in her hair, stilling her lips on him.
She thought for sure he was about to come in her mouth. But then he said, “Oh, don’t worry. She’s okay. My girlfriend felt a little sick, that’s all, so I told her to take a nap in my lap while I finished the movie. Didn’t want to miss it.”

  Oh my God! He’s talking to someone?

  A sweet-sounding woman’s voice filtered through the jacket. “I don’t blame you, dear. I get the senior discount, but I don’t like to waste money like that either. I don’t normally even step out to grab a drink during the movie, but my granddaughter isn’t here today, and my ulcer is acting up.”

  A grandma? He’s talking to a fucking grandma? Seriously? While I’m sucking his…

  Valerie scraped her teeth lightly against him, hoping it would hurry him along. But he just gripped her hair tighter and kept on talking. “I just love Bruce Willis, don’t you?”

  “Oh yes. He’s one of my favorite actors. And you know who else I really like?” the lady asked him, yammering on. “Oh, what’s his name? He played in that movie as a bank robber. Or was he the policeman? Maybe he was the teller. My memory isn’t what it used to be.”

  “Hmm. I’m not sure I know which actor you’re talking about,” Logan said. “Can you describe him for me?”

  Valerie could almost hear the smile in his voice. He was obviously doing this on purpose, the jerk. But he wasn’t the only one who could toy with someone. With the tight grip he had on her hair, she couldn’t move her head. But she didn’t need to move her head in order to torture him.

  Squeezing her lips tighter around him, she rolled her tongue over his length. His cock jerked in her mouth and became even harder, thicker, longer. He grunted softly, his body stiffening as he told the woman, “Well, it was nice talking to you. Enjoy the rest of the movie.”

  “You do the same, dear.”

  Valerie increased the firm suction, and he released a small groan that he covered with a fake cough. “Oh, trust me, I’m enjoying the hell out of it,” he said, his gravelly voice deepening.

  “And I hope your girlfriend feels better soon.”

  “Thanks, I’m sure…she…will.”

  She knew the moment the old woman walked away because Logan released his death grip on her hair. “Okay, that’s it. I’m changing my mind about the spanking stuff,” he whispered. “You obviously still need one.”

  Valerie giggled beneath the jacket. “Shhh! We’re in a movie theater. Sit back and enjoy the show,” she said, then took him into her mouth once more.

  * * *

  The next day, Logan waltzed into the garage and knocked on the hood of the shiny silver Mustang. “Anyone home?”

  “Is that you, Logan?” a voice echoed from underneath the car.

  “Yeah, it’s me.”

  “Good,” Brett said. “Hand me that ratchet in the top drawer of my black rolling toolbox.”

  Logan stepped over to the giant toolbox on wheels and riffled through the top drawer. “Is it the one with the blue grip handle?”

  “Yep, that’s the one. Pass it down here to me.” Brett’s grimy hand slid out from beneath the car. Black grease coated the underside of his nails and a fresh, bloody scrape decorated his knuckles.

  Logan handed the tool over, which quickly disappeared under the car before a ratcheting sound drifted to his ears. “What happened to your hand?”

  “It slipped off this fucking wrench I was using to crank on this bolt and hit the fucking exhaust pipe, the cocksucker.”

  Logan grinned. Guess Brett was still a little pissed about the whole thing.

  Logan glanced back down at the two limbs sticking out from beneath the car, noting the oil stains covering the dirty overalls. “By the way, nice legs.” The greasy hand appeared again, this time with only one middle finger sticking straight up, which made Logan chuckle.

  Seconds later, Brett wheeled out from under the low-profile car, his back cushioned by a red vinyl-covered creeper. Dirt and filth smudged his face, and rusty metal flakes littered his hair. He held out a hand, as if he wanted help up.

  Logan glanced at the grungy palm. “Um, you’re kidding, right?”

  “You pansy,” Brett said with a chuckle as he lifted himself off the ground. “Afraid of getting a little dirty?”

  “Not usually, but I have to be at the bar soon, and I don’t want to go home and take another shower.” Especially since there wasn’t any hot water left. Not after he’d spent two hours in there with Valerie before dropping her off at home and heading to the garage where Brett worked.

  He wasn’t even sure why he’d come. Just felt like hanging out with his buddy without feeling guilty about sleeping with the guy’s sister.

  Brett walked toward the dirty shop sink and pumped some pink cleanser on his hands from a nearby container. He rubbed them together, forming a dark lather, and scrubbed his grungy fingers with a small bristle brush to help remove the grease embedded under his nails. Then he rinsed his hands off and dried them on a red shop towel hanging from a screw sticking out of the wall. “What are you doing here anyway?”

  Hell if Logan knew. “Just stopped by to see how you were doing. We haven’t talked much lately.”

  “I’ve been working a lot of overtime lately. My boss has me rebuilding a transmission in his cousin’s race car. What have you been doing all week?”

  Your sister. Logan sighed, feeling the guilt creeping back in. “Not much. Just working.”

  A red truck pulled into the lot and parked in front of the open garage door, grabbing both of their attention. Two men were inside the cab, but only Sam climbed out. “Hey, guys. How’s it going?” He stepped around the front fender and shook each of their hands.

  “Hey, Sam,” Brett said. “That fuel pump still giving you problems? If I remember right, it should still be under warranty.”

  “Nope. Ever since you changed out the filter, the truck’s been running fine. If it starts acting up again, I’ll let you know.”

  “Sounds good. So what brings you out here then?”

  “Leah asked me to stop by on my way home and let you know that the wedding has been moved up to this Saturday. Same place, same time. She tried to call, but she said the shop phone rings and rings and no one ever answers it.”

  Brett leaned his hip against a nearby counter and grinned. “I was under a car all afternoon, and my hands were dirty.”

  Sam nodded. “Well, we hope you can still make it to the wedding on such short notice.” Then he glanced in Logan’s direction. “And I know we don’t know each other well, Logan, but you’re welcome to join us. It’s a two-hour drive down to the coast, but I know it would mean a lot to Leah if you could both come.”

  “I’m not sure that I can,” Logan said. “Since Valerie is the maid of honor, she’ll need to be off from the bar that night, which only leaves me with two bartenders to cover the shift. They might need a hand.”

  “Well, the beach wedding starts at four o’clock, and the reception will follow directly after. Even if you stayed for only a few hours, you could make it back here by ten o’clock at the latest.”

  “This coming Saturday?”

  “Yep. I’ll have Leah send an invitation over to the bar with Valerie so that you have the address. We’d love to have you, but we’ll understand if you can’t make it.”

  “Sounds good,” Logan told him. “Thanks for the invite.”

  “No problem,” Sam replied, shaking hands with both of them again. “I’ve got to run, but I hope to see you guys on Saturday.” He slid back into his truck, but as he pulled away, the other man in the passenger seat grinned at them out the passenger window. Then he gave them a little wave.

  Brett glared after the truck. “I hate that bastard.”

  “Sam?”

  “No, not him. Sam’s one of the good guys. Besides you, he’s the only other guy who doesn’t look at my sister like he wants to rip her clothes off like some kind of pervert.”

  No, Logan didn’t look at her like that. He just did it.

  Logan shook his head
to clear the image from his mind. “Who were you talking about then?”

  “Did you see that other guy in Sam’s truck?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, that’s Max. He apparently works for Sam as an electrician or something. But the night of your grand opening, I came close to punching the guy out.”

  Logan’s body went rigid. “Why?”

  “Because my sister was letting him put his hands on her.”

  First Paul, then Max? Jesus. How many guys did Valerie flirt with that night?

  Brett shook his head. “Since I’ve been working so much overtime, I considered not going to the wedding at all. But then I found out that Max is the best man. Now I’m just going to make sure that dumbass keeps his damn hands to himself.”

  “Yeah, no kidding.” That makes two of us.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Valerie stuck her finger in her mouth and sucked off the chocolate as a pair of emerald eyes narrowed at her. “What?” she asked.

  Leah shook her head and went back to smoothing buttercream around the sides of her cake. “Please tell me you don’t lick your fingers when you’re making desserts for my customers.”

  “Depends on what I’m making,” Valerie said, grinning as Leah clutched at her heart. “Oh, calm down. I’m just kidding.”

  “God, you better be. That’s gross.” Then she grinned and glanced back over at the square groom’s cake sitting in front of Valerie. “Not that Sam would care. It’s chocolate. He would eat it off the floor if I let him.”

  Valerie set aside the bowl of ganache she’d just warmed and then pulled out a wire rack and set it on top of a deep, silver baking pan. “Are you sure you don’t want me to work on your wedding cake instead of his groom’s cake? I know you’re way better at the decorating than I am, but I feel bad that you’re having to make your own cake. Maybe we should have ordered one from another bakery or something.”

  “Hush your mouth, you traitor,” Leah said, outraged at the very suggestion of getting a cake from someone else’s bakery. “Besides, I don’t mind making my own cake. Since my mom took over most of the wedding planning, it’s the only thing I have control over at the moment.”