by Lori Foster
CHAPTER TEN
IT WASN’T EASY, putting on a front and keeping Pepper in the dark when every instinct Logan had urged him to protect her from what would happen tonight.
What he would instigate.
Despite her brother’s orders, she seemed genuinely happy to see him. Maybe a little more reserved than usual, but hard to tell when she was always so introverted.
Except during sex.
He had planned to have her again, to seduce her in whatever way necessary. But with it all going down tonight, Logan knew he couldn’t do that. Not to her.
Not again.
To help keep things in check, he’d worn jeans and a T-shirt. Not much in the way of barriers, but at least he wasn’t deliberately trying to draw her in.
“Let’s go inside,” she suggested for the fifth time. “It’s hot out here.”
Normally, Logan would follow her lead. Tonight, he continued to lean against the railing, staring out at the colorful sky. He needed another twenty minutes or so to ensure Reese was in position. Damned if he’d miss this opportunity now that he finally had Rowdy taking the bait.
He hated putting Pepper in this position, caught between following her brother’s orders and having to lie to him, but it couldn’t be helped.
“Look at that sunset.” Only a shimmer of sun remained over the horizon, but it left behind a colorful display that made even warehouses and factories look good. “Amazing, isn’t it?”
She closed her eyes, uncaring about the beauty of nature when duty to her brother weighed so heavily on her delicate shoulders. “Yes, very pretty.”
Logan badly wanted to soothe her, to hold her close and promise her it would be all right. But he’d lied to her enough already. “You feeling all right?”
Her eyes snapped open, and she stared at him, flushed—maybe with guilt.
But…maybe not.
Speculative, Logan surveyed her expression. He’d seen it before, that heat in her beautiful eyes, in her cheeks. “Sue?”
“I’m…I’m fine.”
Turning, he leaned back on the railing, now watching her instead of the sunset. “You know how you look?”
She shook her head.
“A little turned on.” And maybe that’d work to his advantage. Would her physical desire help ease her past her hurt feelings once he took her brother into custody?
She let out a breath, didn’t deny it and smoothed her hand over the soft cotton of his T-shirt.
Logan felt the touch everywhere. Emotions clashed.
She had set the boundaries of no sex, but now she wanted to lure him.
For her goddamned brother.
Covering her hand with his, Logan pulled her around beside him. Much more of that, and he’d forget himself. At least her touch hadn’t been against his bare skin.
But with Pepper, no amount of clothes would be enough deterrent.
He’d thought on it long and hard, and while he still didn’t know what it was about her specifically that pushed his buttons, it was a reality all the same.
He wanted her. All the fucking time. More so every damned day. Hoping he hid it, Logan smiled at her. “Relax, honey.”
She didn’t. If anything, she tensed up more. “Are you…punishing me, Logan?” She kept her head down, her gaze avoiding his.
What was this about? Punishment? “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Yes, you do. I put you off, and now you’re paying me back in kind.”
His determination softened. “That’s what you think?” Yes, it burned his ass that she’d bow to her brother’s instructions, but he couldn’t bear seeing that particular look on her face.
To hell with it. He didn’t give a shit if Reese, Rowdy, or both were watching.
“No.” Logan lifted her chin. “Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t.” He kissed her with pent-up frustration, tilting his head, sinking his tongue in to play with hers, consuming her—and pushing himself dangerously close to the point of no return.
She pulled back, but not far. In a broken whisper, she said, “Now can we go inside? Please?”
He had to remember that this was a game, her brother’s game. She was only a player.
Keeping her close, Logan looped his arms around her. She was tall, but so slender. Soft and warm. “Tell me what you want first.”
“You.”
Damn, but that fired his blood. He stared at her mouth, then down over her body. “That’s a mighty quick turnaround.”
“Quick?” She stared at him. “It’s been days.”
True enough. Knowing she still had to hide from him, Logan whispered, “All right. Tell me how you want me.”
Beneath the cotton material of her blouse, her chest expanded with a deep breath. A pulse raced in her pale throat. Her eyelashes fluttered.
So turned on and so damned appealing.
She glanced around the area, at his empty balcony, the sparse traffic, the few disinterested pedestrians across the street. Sounding scandalized, she whispered, “Out here?”
“No one’s listening to us.” At least, he didn’t think anyone could hear them. But it was feasible her brother had set up an audio device, same as Logan had done. There were gadgets that amplified sound across space; Rowdy could be in a building across the street and still hear them.
That possibility disturbed him. “There’s only you and me, Sue.” Logan watched her. “Right?”
“Yes, but…” Stepping away from him, she smoothed a nervous hand over the material of her skirt. “You know I like…the dark.”
“So that I can’t see you, I know.” And sooner or later, he’d find out why. He leaned on the railing, pretending an ease he didn’t feel. “But you can still talk to me. You can still give me that.”
The way she lifted her chin surprised him. “Okay.” She licked her bottom lip. “I want to pull your jeans down to your knees, then sit on your lap.”
The visual nearly leveled Logan. He could so easily picture how it’d be. Straightening from the railing, he said, “Facing me?”
“Yes.”
He fingered a fold in her skirt. “With this bunched up around your hips?”
Her breathing deepened. “Yes.”
“Your thighs wide open around me. No panties.” He’d finally be able to see her legs, maybe stroke her thighs, her hips. He felt the start of wood and didn’t care. Stepping closer, he whispered, “And me deep inside you?”
A soft sound of excitement parted her lips, and she nodded. “Yes.”
He kissed her again. Gentler this time, with apology—although she wouldn’t know that.
Hugging her close, her head to his shoulder, he wrapped his arms around her. “I would never want to punish you for doing what you thought best, Sue.”
“Okay, well then, we could—”
He cut her off. “It’s for that reason, your insistence that we cool things, that I’d rather we hold off for a while.” At least until after your brother is arrested so I can get answers out of him. “I want you to be sure—”
“I am,” she rushed to say.
“Shh. I don’t want you to have regrets.” More regrets…because he knew she’d be racked with shame after tonight.
Stillness settled over her. Did she fear he’d caught on to her? He didn’t want her distressed. He didn’t want her hurt ever again.
“I care about you.” Believe it, please, even after I crush you. Surely enough time had passed for Reese to get everything in place. “Let’s go in. We’ll watch a movie, talk, and afterward, if you feel the same, then believe me, I’m game.”
He saw that she wanted to argue, but mostly she wanted him off the balcony.
Conflicting emotions passed over her features—worry, shame, need…and finally an expression of iron will. “Okay.”
So often she took him by surprise. That particular look was a new one for her. He imagined it took a lot of strength to have survived the harsh life she’d led with Rowdy Yates, to do the things her brother coerced her
into doing.
Like deceiving him.
Logan’s reasons for going after Rowdy added up by the second.
“I won’t change my mind,” Pepper assured him.
Forcing a smile, Logan said, “I’m glad.” He hoped she felt the same in the morning, but he didn’t kid himself. It was going to take a lot of finesse on his part to appease her after all his deceptions.
No matter how long it took, he wouldn’t give up on her.
*
WATCHING LOGAN LEAD his sister into the apartment left Rowdy incandescent with fury. That was no friendly peck he’d just witnessed. For a heart-stopping moment, he feared Logan would take Pepper right there on the goddamned balcony.
Son-of-a-bitch.
Rowdy almost threw the binoculars, but instead, he tossed them through the driver’s side window and into the front seat of his car.
On the one hand, he wanted to take Logan apart for daring to get so familiar.
On the other…he had grudging optimism that maybe his sister had found something real. He hoped he wouldn’t discover anything incriminating in Logan’s apartment. He hoped his sister wasn’t being used.
But he didn’t trust hope and never had. Long ago he’d learned that was a fool’s game.
He hadn’t survived by being a fool.
Leaving his locked car in the designated spot down the street from the apartment building, he put on his hat and started walking. Tension crawled into every muscle until he couldn’t ignore it.
Something felt off. Wrong, in a big way.
If it wasn’t for Pepper, he’d go with his gut and put off this little search for another night. But even as he scanned the area, studying every shadow and leaving his senses open to all threats, Rowdy had to face the fact that Pepper was in her apartment—with Logan Stark—because that’s what he’d asked her to do.
He owed her closure on this. Asking her to go through it all again at a later date would be grossly unfair.
Pausing in the building across from the apartment, he watched the facade, the light coming from Pepper’s sliding doors, the dark beyond Logan’s. The fine hairs on the nape of his neck stood on end. Two young ladies came down the walkway, talking quietly, laughing. They paused when they saw him. One smiled, the other gave him a blatant once-over.
In no mood for feminine attention, Rowdy nodded. “Ladies.” They strode on but not without a few glances back at him.
Several cars drove past, then a bus. He continued to wait, every few seconds checking the lights and shadows, looking for anything that didn’t belong. The sun sank completely and streetlamps flickered on.
It was almost too still.
But if he delayed any longer, he ran the risk of Logan returning to his apartment.
Mind made up, Rowdy crossed the street. Not in a rush, but not with any real caution, either. He needed to blend in. Just a passerby. Nothing more, and nothing less.
Both Pepper and Logan had apartments on the second floor, side by side. He’d placed Pepper in that particular apartment because a large tree that grew too close to the building made it possible to sneak out the small bathroom window if it became necessary.
It also made it possible for Rowdy to sneak in undetected.
Sure, he had a key…but going in the front door would leave him too exposed. If anyone saw him, he could be recognized—as Pepper’s brother. Never would he risk that.
Reaching Logan’s window could get dicey, but he’d figure it out.
By design, the security lights didn’t reach the side yard, and the tree helped to conceal his movements as he climbed. Years ago, when he and Pepper had been river rats, they’d climb trees all the time. Sometimes, in summer weather, he’d tie a rope up high and they’d swing out to drop into the cold river water.
Other times, they’d sit up in a tree for hours, and he’d talk with her, keeping her out of the trailer when their mom or dad had drunk too much. Usually his folks just got stupid with drink.
But occasionally they had gotten mean.
Shaking off those disturbing memories, Rowdy ventured out onto a sturdy branch. Like riding a bike, it was a learned trait, once ingrained, never forgotten. It took some maneuvering, but he jimmied open the window. Even more difficult was fitting his frame through the opening. Pepper with her narrower shoulders and hips wouldn’t have the same difficulty.
After dropping into the dark room, he paused to listen. He heard nothing, so he left his hat on the bathroom counter and pulled out the penlight to start his inspection. He checked the medicine cabinet. Any prescribed meds would have a name on the label—but he found none, just the usual OTC stuff, enough to look as though Logan truly lived there. A razor, a toothbrush…okay, so the guy had settled in long-term. That proved nothing.
Rowdy crept through the apartment. Because he’d lived on the edge, he knew how to cover his tracks. Without a trace of his presence, he went through the bedroom and back out again. No drawers were left askew, not even a shift in the blankets on the unmade bed.
He didn’t find anything.
Both relieved and frustrated, he saved the living room for last. Standing in the middle of the floor, he looked around, orienting himself to the shadows, the placement of furniture and lamps. He could hear noise from Pepper’s apartment next door—the sound of the television, occasional conversation.
The closet held nothing out of the ordinary. That in itself was a little strange. Most people stored stuff in the closets. There was no box of photos, no unused sports equipment. Nothing much at all, other than a lightweight jacket and a spare pair of sneakers.
Disturbed by that, Rowdy opened up the desk. Typical bills, checkbook, mail. All the props necessary to pull off a cover—or to actually occupy a place.
Still unconvinced, he searched beneath the drawers—and found wires.
His focus narrowed, his thoughts centered.
Pulling them free, he held the penlight in his teeth and examined the device…and it hit him.
Fuck.
He no sooner realized that Logan had been listening in on Pepper than he heard running footsteps in the hallway outside.
More than one person.
Hell, it sounded like a fucking battalion charging forth.
He shut off the light and hurried back to the bathroom where he’d come in, but at the open window he heard men outside. Damn it.
They’d cornered him.
On silent feet, intent on trying Logan’s bedroom window, he got as far as the hall just as men entered the apartment. He detected the hush of their movements and the clinking of their weapons.
Thoughts of his sister pounded on his brain. Was she in danger? Had this whole thing been a setup?
Rage coalesced. If anyone touched her, hurt her in any way, he’d pay. Breathing steadily, Rowdy slid his knife free—
The overhead light in the narrow hall came on, momentarily blinding him. Three men faced him, all armed, their aim steady. His hand tightened on the knife hilt.
From behind him, a voice said, “I wouldn’t.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
With few choices left to him, Rowdy dropped the knife. His hands in the air and his heart in his throat, he slowly turned to face the voice. Rowdy was tall, but this dude stood inches over him, with wide shoulders.
Despite the jeans and T-shirt, Rowdy sensed that the blond behemoth standing there was a cop. To verify the truth, he said, “Officer…?”
“Detective Bareden.” To the other men, Bareden said, “Shoot him if he moves.” He holstered the gun and produced handcuffs.
Laughing, Rowdy lowered his arms and only half listened as Bareden read him his rights.
So someone had seen him go in the window and had called the law? He’d be busted for breaking and entering? Big deal. Piece of cake.
Far fucking better than having a real threat on his ass.
But as Bareden led him back out the front door of the apartment, he paused to knock on Pepper’s door.
Going on t
he alert, Rowdy tensed all over again. “What’s this? What are you doing?”
“Be quiet,” Bareden said.
“You don’t need her.” Rowdy would not overreact. He’d schooled Pepper on just such a situation. Surely, she’d follow protocol. “She has nothing to do with anything.”
It was Logan who answered the knock. His gaze landed on Rowdy, and the smug prick had satisfaction written all over him.
Behind him, face white and expression haunted, Pepper stared at him. Her lips trembled. She put a hand to her mouth.
“Say nothing,” Rowdy told her. “Get inside and don’t say a goddamned word!”
*
VISION NARROWING, blackness closing in, Pepper took in the sight of her brother in handcuffs. Logan was tall, her brother taller. But the brawny blond looming over Rowdy topped them all.
She reached out to steady herself—and grabbed hold of Logan.
Through his teeth, Logan told the ironman, “Get him out of here.”
Confusion left her knees like noodles. “Logan—” She didn’t understand. A strange sickness expanded, making her stomach pitch, her heart thump heavily.
Logan drew her close to his side.
“Get your fucking hands off her.” Her brother resisted, lunging for Logan.
“Wait…” She made to move toward him.
Logan pulled her back.
Rowdy’s handsome face twisted as he stared at her with dogged insistence. “This has nothing to do with you. Stay the hell out of it, do you understand me?”
He couldn’t be serious. She tried to reach out to him.
Putting an arm around her, Logan locked her to his side. “Drag him if you have to, but I want him out of here. Now.”
“Yes, sir,” one of the uniformed officers said.
Sir? The awful, undeniable truth of the situation sank in and Pepper eased away from Logan. An invisible fist clamped around her throat. Her eyes burned, with anger and with hurt. “Who are you?”
Implacable will sharpened his gaze. “Detective Logan Riske.”
Detective? Fear kept her thoughts in a jumble. “You’re a…a cop?”
Rowdy caused a ruckus, struggling on the stairs, making one cop stumble, another fall. “Stop talking to him!”
The big blond crossed his arms and stared at Logan. “You want to give some orders here, or am I taking over?”