The brunette blatantly looks me up and down and then resumes gazing at Logan. She stares adoringly at him, all but dismissing me. “What time will you collect me at later?” she purrs.
“No can do, Ria. I’ve already got plans tonight.”
“With who?” She casts a cursory glance my way. “Not with her?” Her tone and look is incredulous, and my insides ignite in a second. But I say nothing, lost in well-known feelings.
“Not with Sadie, no.” He shakes his head, and I feel invisible all over again. “But I am having coffee with her now, and she already thinks I’m rude, so … goodbye.”
A thunderous look crawls across Ria’s face, and I can’t help it, I smirk. She glares at me and then, quick as a flash, swipes one of the cups from Logan’s hands and flings the contents at me.
Burning hot liquid scalds my skin through my clothes and I scream. Logan moves impressively fast. Shoving the other cup at Ria, he grabs my shirt at the hem and rips it off in one fluid motion. Though my skin is red-hot and sweltering, I shriek as every pair of eyes fixate on me, standing at the top of the café in only my coffee-soaked plain white bra. Humiliation of the worst kind attacks me on all sides.
Observing my embarrassment, Logan whips his shirt up over his head and tugs it down over me. I’m in too much physical and mental pain to appreciate all that he’s got going on, so the fact he’s momentarily bare-chested goes mostly unnoticed by me. He unties his sweater and covers himself up. Rumblings of displeasure arise from the largely female crowd.
“That was bitchy, Ria.” Logan drapes an arm protectively around me. She mumbles something, but I ignore her as Logan steers me forward. “Come on. Let’s get you to the nurse’s office.”
Holding my head up with fake bravado, I walk quickly out of the café, more than anxious to put as much space between me and this horrifying incident. The sound of chuckling accosts my ears and I swing around. Dante winks, making a disgusting suggestive gesture with his hands. A large, shiny purplish-black mark rings his left eye, and I wish I knew who’d punched him so I could high five them. “Ignore him,” Logan says tersely.
Once we are around the corner, and out of sight of others, I break down. My whole chest throbs painfully, and that combined with my pounding head, sore limbs, and memory of my humiliating ordeal—that will no doubt be all around the campus like wildfire—snaps the thin thread on my control. Huge wracking sobs escape me and tears stream down my face.
This dream is turning into a nightmare of hellish proportions.
“Please don’t cry.” Logan gently pulls me toward him. Surprisingly, I let him. He wraps one arm around me while his other hand smooths down my hair. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.” My arms hang loosely at my sides as I bury my head in his chest. “I’ll kill him,” he grits out a couple of minutes later, and that effectively distracts me.
“What? Who?” I ease back, tilting my head to look up at him.
“Nothing.” He swipes his thumb across my damp cheeks. “You need to get those burns looked at. Come on.”
Taking my hand, he keeps me close all the way to the nurse’s station; however, I draw the line at letting him come in with me.
He’s seen more than enough of my half-naked flesh in the last twenty-four hours.
I have some minor surface burns to my upper chest and abdomen, and the nurse prescribes strong pain medication and ointment and dismisses me.
Stepping into the corridor, I’m not surprised to see Logan sitting on the ground waiting for me. He climbs to his feet. “What did she say? Are you okay?” Worry lines furrow his brow, and I’m momentarily caught off guard by his obvious concern.
“I’ll live.” Now that I’ve calmed down, I’m mortified at how easily I fell apart in his arms. Scratching the top of my head, I avoid looking at him.
“Sadie.” His finger brushes my chin. Tilting my head to meet his, he looks earnestly into my eyes. “I’m so sorry about that.”
“Forget about it. I know I want to,” I mumble, eyes pinned to the floor.
“I’ll take you home.”
He extends his hand, and I stare at his long, lean fingers, imagining how they’d feel roaming over the curves of my body. I squeeze my eyes shut and try to shake the image from my mind. “I have classes.”
“I’m sure you can be excused. I’ll talk to the dean.” He moves to walk away.
“No!” I reach out and fist my hand in his sweater. “I’ll take my pain pills and put on the cream, and I’ll be fine. I don’t want any special treatment.”
He looks like he’s about to protest again.
“I don’t want to go home. Please.” My eyes beseech him to drop it.
“Okay, if that’s what you want. Here,” he says, lifting up my book bag. “I went back for this.”
“Thanks.” I sling the bag over my shoulder and wince involuntarily.
“Give it here. I’ll walk you to your class.”
Flattered by his concern, I let him lead the way. When we reach the lecture hall, he hands me my bag and leaves without uttering a word.
Tiptoeing into the auditorium, I spot the back of Fern’s head and drop into the seat beside her. She gives me the once over. “What the hell happened to you?”
“This bitch threw coffee all over me,” I whisper.
“Oh my God, are you okay?”
I sniff. “Depends on your definition of ‘okay.’ Logan ripped my shirt off in front of the whole damn café and now half the campus has seen me in my bra.”
“Hell, no!”
“Hell, yes. It was beyond mortifying. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, then I blubbed all over him like a baby. Ugh.” I slump in my seat. “I want to die.”
“Is that his shirt?”
I’d forgotten that I was wearing it. “Yeah. He whipped it right off to cover me.”
“That was sweet.”
It was. And hot. And it smells delicious, like him. But I’m not admitting any of that.
“But he’s still a cheating jackass,” she hisses. “And you’d do well to remember that.”
“Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten. Nothing has changed between us.” Though that’s not exactly the whole truth. While he is a cheating jackass and rude, and bossy, and weird to boot at times, he is also protective and charming in his own bizarre way, and I can’t deny I’m comfortable around him. Except that fleeting moment last night, when I felt something akin to fear, I’m too comfortable around Logan. And that worries me to no end.
Plus, I still have no answers. No explanation for what went down last night. But I’m too ill, and too humiliated, to do anything about that right now.
Logan is outside each of my afternoon classes, and he silently carries my bag to and from each lecture hall. I stop objecting after the first hour.
Did I mention he is stubborn as well as bossy?
When the final bell sounds, I inwardly rejoice, glad this day is drawing to a close. My pain meds are wearing off, and I need to sort that out before Jarod and Neve arrive. Fern helps me apply the salve to my skin in the bathroom, and I knock back a couple of pills. When we emerge, Logan is hanging around outside.
“Stalking the girl’s bathroom?” Fern quips. “Waiting for your next victim?” She pins him with a glacial look.
“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” Reaching out, he slips my bag off my shoulder. “I was only waiting for Sadie.”
My hand reaches out and my fingers brush against his. Fiery tingles jolt through me, and Logan jumps at the contact. We stare at each other, and my cheeks grow warm. I look away first. “Thanks for your help but I’m okay. Jarod is meeting me outside.” I take my bag and wrap it around my torso, swallowing my moan.
“What? Why?” He steps forward, crowding me.
“Whoa, back up there, buddy.” Fern pulls me back. “You have no concept of personal space.”
“We need to talk.” He eyeballs me, totally blanking Fern.
“You’re being rude again.” I chastise him as th
ough it’s second nature.
“Yay, I’m rude. Shoot me.”
I can’t decide if he’s serious or messing about. Sighing, I face Fern. “Give me a minute.”
“You sure?” She eyes him as if he’s a ten-headed monster shooting fire from his nostrils and oozing green gunk from his mouth.
“Yep. This won’t take long.”
Fern hooks her fingers through the straps of her bag and retreats. “I’ll wait for you outside.”
“Over there.” I nudge Logan with my hip, pointing toward a small alcove. He curls his hand around my wrist as he walks me over to the space. “Can you please stop with the grabby hands, I don’t like it.” Extracting my hand, I rub my wrist in a feeble attempt to ward off the delectable tremors emanating from the spot where his fingers caressed my skin.
“That’s the second lie you’ve told today.” He smirks.
“Enough already!” I shove a hand through my hair. “How did I black out last night?”
“I don’t know.”
“Now who’s lying?” I cross my arms.
“I’m not lying.” Drawing me in closer, he presses his mouth to my ear. “Your eyes were flickering in and out, and your head started bobbing, and I only barely caught you before you hit the ground. You were instantly unconscious, and I couldn’t wake you. Your skin was inflamed, and I honestly didn’t know what was going on. Has anything like that ever happened to you before?”
He eases back a little, looking me straight in the eye. Temporarily rendered speechless, I have to remind myself to breathe.
“Sadie?”
“No. Nothing like that has happened before, and I’ve never felt this weak and ill.”
“What?” He frowns.
“All day, I’ve been feeling nauseous, achy, and tired, and I don’t understand it because I don’t usually get sick.”
“What do you mean?” His hand gently brushes my elbow, like a whisper on my skin. I sway in his embrace. “I told you, you should’ve stayed home today. You’re not going anywhere. I’ll bring you back to your apartment so you can rest.”
“Not happening, buddy.” I plant my hands on his chest in a shabby attempt to get him to back up.
His mouth twitches. “I’m about to lay the smack down on your candy-ass!”
“What? You are so odd.” I shake my head.
He winks suggestively.
“And that’s not sleazy at all.”
“You like me.” He grins manically.
“I do not!” My answer is automatic. And a blatant lie.
He pulls me flush to him. “Admit it.”
A scorching heat licks every inch of my skin and black spots mar my vision. “Stop it.” I shove at his chest again. “You’re … crowding me. I can’t breathe.” Bending over, I put my head between my knees until the dizzy spell fades. “I think I’m allergic to you.” Logan’s face turns ashen. “Hey. I was only joking.” I think.
He smiles weakly. “How did you feel before you fainted? Did you notice anything unusual?”
“I was light-headed and then there was this blinding heat that took hold of me from nowhere and—” I stop mid-sentence as I notice the change in his face. “What?”
His hand tightens around my waist, and we’re pressed as close as two people can fit together. My heart pummels my chest and his scent clouds me, disturbing all logic, all sense of reason. “You undo me, Sadie. You have no idea.” He runs the tip of one finger across my face, leaving a sizzling trail of fiery shivers on my skin. I’m seconds away from losing my self-control when he speaks again. “I’m trying hard not to be selfish but I need you. I want you. So badly.”
Remembering Neve’s explanation, I snap out of it. “Ugh.” I attempt to pull out of his embrace, but his arms are like vice grips around my waist. “You are so egotistical and your lack of respect for girls is hateful. Let me—”
“What’s going on here?” Neve says, materializing by my side. Her gaze flips between us and she does nothing to hide her anger and disgust.
“It’s not how it looks.” I rush to assure her.
“It’s exactly as it looks.” Logan tweaks my nose and winks. “And that’s the third time you’ve lied today.”
“Let her go, Logan. Amy is waiting outside.”
“Amy?” I look from Neve to Logan. “Who is Amy?”
“His date,” Neve says pointedly.
“You!” I thump my fists into his chest in fury. “Get off me, and this time I mean it—I’m off limits to you. And that goes for my bedroom too.”
Holding up his hands in defeat, he backs away. I stomp toward the entrance, totally mad at myself.
When I reach the front steps, I realize Neve isn’t behind me. Glancing back, I can tell they’re really getting into it, and I’m sorry I didn’t hang back to catch the gist of their argument.
A small girl with long, sleek blonde hair and sapphire blue eyes stands off to the side. Amy, I’d hazard a guess.
God, I hate guys.
Bouncing down the steps toward Jarod and Fern, I curse my damned stupid hormones for reducing me to such a pathetic mess.
***
We are back in the funky diner, tucking into calorie-laden burgers and fries when I find a gap to quiz Jarod about last night. Neve and Fern are getting on like a house on fire—both of them engrossed in conversation on the other side of the booth.
“So, about last night,” I say, leaning into him. “You said you were going to wait outside for me. I’m one hundred percent on that.” I ram a ketchup-laden fry into my mouth.
“Nuh-uh. You must have misunderstood. You stayed behind to talk to the douchebag and I went home. Did you hit your head or something?” Jarod swirls his hand around his empty plate and licks his fingers, one at a time. I fight a smile.
Hmm. Or something. Did my black out affect my memory? Or is Jarod mistaken? Either way, in the grand scheme of things, it’s not something I need to stress about. I decide to be magnanimous. “Guess I was mistaken. No biggie.” I smile at him and brush my concern away.
***
An hour later, we are in the movie theater, bickering over which movie to watch when Neve takes control and marches decisively to the counter. She purchases four tickets for Only Ever Yours, a soppy chick-flick that she wanted to watch. The rest of us groan.
Leaving us with strict instructions on which candy to buy, she flounces to the bathroom, thoroughly pleased with herself.
I’m standing in line with Jarod and Fern when a gust of warm air skates along my neck and I shiver. “Hey, beautiful,” Logan says, approaching from the rear, in that hypnotic, seductive voice of his.
His use of that word galls me. Twirling around, I glare at him. “You really are stalking me, aren’t you?”
Amusement lights up his eyes. “Nope. I’m on a date. With Amy.” He flicks his head blatantly at the back wall, and I lock eyes with the stunning blonde-haired girl from earlier. She doesn’t look too pleased, and I feel a pang of sympathy for her.
“I … words fail me.”
He smirks.
“Do you have a split personality? Never mind.” I shake my head. Seriously, I cannot figure this guy out. One minute he’s sweet, the next he’s an overbearing ass, then he’s spouting odd crap, and other times he’s all touchy-feely, yet most of the time, he demonstrates hands-off indifference. I wish I’d more experience with boys to know if this hot-and-cold attitude is the norm or if he’s some special brand of hot weirdness.
“Goodbye, Logan. Enjoy your date.” Removing myself from the line, I give Jarod my order and wait by the wall.
Jarod and Logan enter into a mutual death stare, each boy trying to outdo the other. When he’s not glaring at Jarod, Logan stares wantonly at me, making no attempt to mask his obviousness. His poor date doesn’t even warrant a casual look, and I’m tempted to share what I know with her. But I’ve had about enough of Logan for one day, and I’m loath to interfere.
Neve walks out of the bathroom, and her eyes narrow s
uspiciously, as she notices Logan fixating on me. In the blink of an eye, Logan strides over to Amy and pulls her into his arms, brushing his lips atop her head. A piercing pain guts me and I look away.
“Come on, Sadie,” Neve says, looping her arm through mine. “Time for some gushy romance.”
“Oh, yay,” I deadpan, “‘Cuz that’s just what I need to cheer me up right now.”
***
I can’t concentrate on the movie, and my dour mood is worsening with each passing sappy minute. As if that isn’t bad enough, Logan and Amy are seated two rows in front of us, and I’m forced to watch as he snuggles into her. I’m tempted to dump my bucket of popcorn all over his slime-ball cheating ass, but that would be a waste of good popcorn.
After an hour, I give up, and on the pretense of a bathroom break, I sneak out of the theater.
I’m standing in front of the large wall-mounted screen in the lobby, watching other movie trailers, when a strong arm latches around my waist. “Whatcha doing?” Logan buries his head in my hair.
“Let go of me, right now, or God help me, but I’ll—”
“I love it when you go all native on me, Sadie.”
His lips brush the side of my cheek and I’m tingly all over. I hate it. I’d rather my skin shriveled at his touch.
“I’ve had enough of this.” I wriggle out of his embrace. “I’m going in there to tell that poor girl how you’re stringing her along. And then I’m going to have a nice cozy chat with your girlfriend, explaining how you’re flirting with anything in a skirt! You think because you’re hot that you can get away with treating girls with such little respect? You are the worst form of asshole, and I wouldn’t spit on you if you were on fire.”
I stomp off in the direction of the theater, so riled up I’m more than prepared to carry out my threat. Logan appears in front of me super-fast. As he backs me into the wall, his arms land either side of my head, effectively caging me in. A vibrant thrumming sensation throbs at my pulse. “Back up there a second.” His eyes spear me. “Where did you get the notion that I’ve a girlfriend?”
“What?” I’m embarrassed that the word comes out all weak and shaky. But the way he’s pressed against me is jamming all my internal wires. His tongue slips out of his mouth, sliding over his pouty lips, and it sends a volley of pure liquid fire shooting through me. Oh, God. I want to kiss him. So badly.
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