by J. Woods
Climbing out of her car, she wondered how Logan was already at the elevator waiting for her. He always made sure he was a bit ahead of her. Even standing in the elevator, a small metal box that held only her and him and the tension that was growing between them, he made sure he was standing just a foot in front of her, protecting her... or avoiding her, she thought.
Zoe walked behind him, refraining from rolling her eyes at his silent and domineering insistence of following her home and then to her door even after her protests. She clenched her teeth against the urge to keep her eyes on his broad back while she ignored his muscles move and shift beneath his shirt. Why did she suddenly have a vision of her hands tearing it off followed by her nails scoring down his bare skin? She ran a hand over her hair; the sound of her heels clicking against the hardwood of the hallway was the only noise cutting through the tension that seemed to be growing between them as they approached her front door. Did he feel it too or was the tension purely one sided? Stupid question, she thought. Of course it was one sided. She was letting her mind create and over think something that wasn’t real. He obviously held no attraction for her. She was a job and when it was over he would be done with her. Not that she cared; she wouldn’t be able to touch him with a ten foot pole through the shield he kept solidly around him. Zoe could tell Logan wasn’t the type of guy to bend the rules, and she could tell before he even opened his mouth that clients were one of those rules. She couldn’t help but think Rachel was right; Logan Savage definitely was not a suit. Not like that asshole who she met with this afternoon. He walked right into her office like it was his name on her door, grabbed her hand and pressed his lips to it and it took all Zoe had in her to resist pulling her fingers from his. She looked at him in his well tailored suit and his hungry eyes and she felt nothing stirring in her nether region when normally she would have considered his offer for drinks. But this afternoon she couldn’t get rid of him fast enough. She forced a smile to her face and listened to his pitch and his endless compliments before she let him down easy. What was wrong with her? She should have gone out with him, she thought frustrated. He was gorgeous and had a nice smile, she could tell he wanted nothing more than a hot night and that was all she ever needed. But she didn’t want him, felt nothing when his eyes met hers and promised a night of sweaty twisted limbs. She rolled her eyes at her internal monologue. “Are you alright?” Logan turned to ask her as he approached her door. She held back the blush on her cheeks not realizing she let out an annoyed sound.
“Fine.” She threw him a charming grin that always landed her one in return but receiving only a stone set face in response - yep, definitely not interested.
“I’m going to check out the apartment, I need you to stay just inside the front door.”
“I’m sure that’s not necessary.” Zoe absolutely did not want Logan searching around her home. It was the same reason why she never brought a guy to her place. She always ended up at theirs or a hotel but her place was off limits. It was her sanctuary, her solace away from everything. Zoe made sure her house was a complete blueprint of who she was, it was where she was most vulnerable and she wasn’t ready or willing to share that with anybody. The idea of Logan stomping around her place sent a nervous flutter inside her stomach; he was too big, too solemn, just too… much.
“It is.” He took the keys from her hand without asking and unlocked the door turning his back to her. Again. At a loss for words Zoe glared at him and followed silently inside. “Stay here.” She frowned before raising an eyebrow at his retreating back as he started searching around her home. She was speechless, how dare he issue commands like that to her, and in her own house! Used to being the one in charge, Zoe couldn’t quite put her finger on what she was feeling now that the tables seemed to be turned - outrage maybe, frustrated, absolutely. But there was something else that she didn’t know or recognize what it was - she damn sure wasn’t going to admit that it was anticipated excitement. At least that’s what she told herself. She waited rather impatiently, doing as she was told, standing in the same place she hadn’t yet moved from. Blowing out a rough breath into the silence, she quietly slipped off her heels suppressing the moan that wanted to escape as she wiggled her toes against the cool floor. She opened her eyes to find Logan staring at her from across the room. His eyes travelled from her bare feet back up to her face. “Everything is secure.”
“Great! Well thanks for checking it out.” He nodded his head once before moving his feet toward the door and where she was standing. He stopped in front of her looking into her eyes as if he was searching for something. Feeling off balance Zoe broke the moment the only way she knew how, by kicking him out of her apartment. “Thanks again, Mr. Savage. I appreciate you ensuring my safety. Have a great night.”
He cleared his throat reaching for the doorknob as she stepped out of the way. He was too close, his masculine scent wrapped around her making her want things she shouldn’t, things she knew she couldn’t have. “You have my number, call me for anything.”
“I’m sure that won’t be necessary.”
“Zoe.”
She swallowed over the growing lump in her throat; his deep voice caressed over her like a physical touch and she couldn’t help the breath that escaped her lips. “Yes?”
“Lock the door behind me.” She blinked herself out of the trance she had been pulled under before grasping at her composure, “Of course.”
She started closing the door after him before he turned around and said, “Goodnight, Zoe.”
“Goodnight, Logan.” She closed the door listening to the click of the deadbolt as she dropped her forehead against the heavy wooden pane. “God, Alcott, what is wrong with you? You need to get laid,” she murmured to herself before pushing away and toward her bedroom where she wanted to fall into a dreamless slumber and forget the humiliating moment where she found herself almost panting in front of Logan Savage. It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen a hot guy before. She went out with them all the time, she knew how to handle hot guys. She flopped down on her bed and threw her arm over her face. She was just tired, it had been an exhausting couple of days. She reached over to grab her purse spilling everything out of it on the way. “Of course,” she groaned in frustration. She sat up starting to throw her wallet and keys back into the leather bag when she frowned at the small white envelope that sat within the pile as if it had a spotlight on it. Her stomach plummeted knowing what it was before she even opened it. With trepidation she picked it up; pulling out the small piece of paper her stomach roiled at the words printed in black ink. Dropping it on the mattress she grabbed for her phone and held it up to her ear, the ring echoing against of the manic beat of her heart.
Logan pulled into his driveway, his house dark apart from the porch light. He couldn’t stop the small chuckle that escaped him at remembering her outburst, her words still echoing in his ears. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had truly called him out on his shit. Instinctively he knew he was being a dick, and he didn’t really have a solid reason for it. Maybe it was because he couldn’t seem to control his body’s reaction to her, whenever he was around her she seemed to infuse his senses - and he didn’t want any of it. Damn, she was sexy when she was mad. The sparks in her eyes as she grilled him were almost palpable - he needed to stop. Shaking his head, he climbed up the front steps and knew Axel would be waiting for him wanting to be let out. Opening the door, the dog ran outside in a bound forcing a small smile on his lips. “Come on boy!” he called. They started their walk around the property ensuring everything was secure, the fence around his land, the cameras, and every other security measure Logan had in place. His mother thought it was over the top but he and his brothers knew; with Logan’s past as special ops and even now with Savage Security, he and his family weren’t untouchable to enemies. His phone buzzed in his pocket. Reluctantly pulling it out he saw it was his brother. “Max.”
“You know you could answer with a hello like every normal person.” His brothe
r always tried to goad him and push his buttons; it was the one thing he was always good at. Even though Max was David’s son, he almost swore they were blood brothers. They both had the dark hair and eerily similar features, the same build - tall, heavier on the muscles. It was never questioned the relation between the two that sometimes they were asked if they were twins. The only real physical difference between the two was their eyes. While Logan’s were almost black, Max’s were an almost eerie blue. And even though they were similar in looks, their personalities couldn’t have been more different. Max was always the outgoing one; Logan never had a problem talking to people or making friends but he knew he was darker. He had been through too much not to be. Instead of entering the military like he and some of his brothers chose to do, Max chose to be a police officer before retiring from the force when Logan asked him about Savage Security. He dropped everything, told him it was exactly what he wanted to do without any questions. Logan sometimes felt envy toward his brother’s easy going ways. He knew he was hard on them at times but it was how the military raised him to be - a leader who accepted nothing but the best. And that included his family. He could almost hear Max grinning on the other side of the phone.
“What do you want?”
“Having a tough time over there?” Yes, Logan thought, he was, as he listened to his brother’s warm chuckle. He could not, for the life of him, get a stubborn, raven haired beauty out of his mind. Suddenly a blast of music came over the line.
“Are you at a bar?” he asked Max.
“Yeah, that’s why I was calling. Seeing if you wanted to come for a drink.”
“No thanks.” He ignored his brother’s disappointed sigh.
“How’s the Alcott case going?”
“Alright.” Logan knew he shouldn’t elaborate, if he kept talking his brother would ask more questions and eventually ask about his beautiful client. He could just picture Max at the bar telling the woman beside him to watch his beer while he stepped outside to make a phone call, and she would of course agree because he was Max and threw her a charm her out of her panties grin. Logan never had troubles getting a woman into his bed but that’s where he and Max differed. Max did it because he loved the company, he would hold onto a woman because he enjoyed her sharing his space where Logan sought out woman to satisfy his needs. He didn’t want a woman sharing his space, he didn’t want the warmth they almost always offered and usually one night was enough.
“Just alright? I must admit I was surprised when you volunteered for the job. I could have done it. It’s a little low key for you.” The thought of Max taking on Zoe as a client, spending all his time with her, making her laugh with his shit eating grin made Logan cringe.
“Yeah, but you needed to rest coming off the last job and Nate, Luke and Aiden are preparing for the West job.” Logan knew Max had a difficult time with the last job he sent him on. He was responsible for a little girl who was kidnapped, taking her back to her parents and everything that could have went wrong, did. It was a job even Logan knew would have had him taking a moment to breathe. Max adored kids and when this one almost didn’t make it… Even though his brother was always tossing it away as just another job, he knew it had changed something inside of him. “I didn’t need to rest Logan, but I appreciate the sentiment.”
“Yes, you did. Now go and have a beer for me.”
“Oh I plan on it. I also plan on getting to know the drop dead gorgeous woman who just walked past me. Gotta go!” Logan chuckled to himself as he listened to his brother hang up on him. That poor girl didn’t stand a chance.
As Logan threw his phone onto his bed and stripped off his shirt he couldn’t help but remember the sight of Zoe’s bare toes. He had never been turned on by toes before but the fire engine red nail polish that adorned her feet had his jeans tightening faster than ever before. They were feet for God’s sake! But all he wanted to do was pick her up and lay her on the couch before he massaged her skin that he knew would feel like silk. The image of her standing there with her eyes closed as she took off her shoes was one of the most sensual things he had ever seen. It was moments like those that he caught her in when she had no idea she how sexy she was; she wasn’t using it to get what she wanted or staking her power, she was just being… Zoe. Even the thought of her had him adjusting himself. He needed a cold shower. He needed to get thoughts of Zoe out of his head and a cold shower would hopefully tame his raging and seemingly permanent rush of awakened testosterone. Bare feet, really? He shook his head, disgusted at his own lack of control over his body’s reaction. As he turned on the water and stripped his jeans, his erection still vying for attention, his phone rang with the special ringtone he programmed for the woman taking up too much space in his mind. “Zoe?”
“Logan?” He could hear her voice shake as if she were trying to hold back tears.
“What’s wrong? Are you alright?” As he asked her, he pulled his jeans back on, tossing on the first t-shirt he could grab before he was out the door bringing Axel with him. His shower forgotten.
“I got another letter.”
“Damn it! Call the car downstairs and have them wait with you. I’m on my way.”
“I did. They’re here with me now.”
“Good girl. I’ll be there soon.” He climbed into his truck after the dog and they tore off into the darkness. The urgency within him when there was a break in the case was familiar, but this, this felt different. The thought of either of the officers she had called comforting her, wrapping their arms around her softness, telling her everything was going to be okay had Logan gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles were white. Axel noticed his strange behavior and moved closer to nuzzle his arm. “Its okay, boy,” he told him, patting his head.
Fifteen long minutes later they pulled up out front of her apartment and Logan grabbed his gun placing it at the small of his back. As he and Axel walked down the hallway toward her door he made a quick call to Jones telling him he was coming into the apartment - and not to shoot him. As he stepped inside Zoe’s cozy home, she was the first thing he zeroed in on. Her head jerked at the sound of the door and when she saw it was him the relief that washed through her eyes tugged at his heart.
“Logan!” He watched, almost in slow motion as she ran over to him and flung her arms around his waist. He didn’t know how to react at first, wasn’t sure how to handle the unknown emotions he was feeling. Snapping back to reality, he hesitantly wrapped his arms around her pulling her in close. It wasn’t lost on him the distance she had put between herself and the two officers who were now standing and watching her with confusion as she clung tightly to him. He couldn’t help closing his eyes and breathing in the scent of her hair. The feeling of her in his arms was one he never thought he would feel - right. Instinctively he held her tighter as he felt her body trembling.
“Shh, it’s okay. I’m not going to let anything happen to you,” he whispered to her. She yelped when she felt Axel rub against her leg, his cold, wet nose butting against the skin of her wrist and he knew she had been pulled from the spell that seemed to have fallen over him. Reluctantly he let her go.
“Oh, I’m sorry.” He couldn’t help but smile at the faint blush that grew on her cheeks realizing what she had just done. He guessed Zoe didn’t normally fling herself at strangers, but he could understand her reaction because her world in a matter of a few words became turned upside down and as much as he knew she wanted to pretend she wasn’t affected, she was. Knowing she was vulnerable and in a place where she didn’t want to be emotionally, he immediately phased back into security mode.
“Don’t apologize. Are you alright?” He looked her up and down carefully keeping his mask of professional concern in place.
“Yes, I’m fine. Thank you. And thanks for coming over.”
“Of course.” Logan frowned when he noticed Axel nudging Zoe’s hand.
“Oh hello there.” She crouched down cupping Axel’s face in her hands as he closed his eyes while her fingers w
orked their magic behind his ears. “What’s your name handsome?”
“This is Axel.”
“Axel,” she repeated. Logan couldn’t help but wonder how Zoe managed to keep getting past his safeguards, and seeing how she responded to his dog, who at times could be a little scary, with such kind compassion was disarming.
“He doesn’t usually take well, so quickly anyways, to other people.”
“Well you obviously haven’t been introducing him to the right people.” She looked up at him with a smile that managed to diminish the fear in her eyes before she quickly looked away giving all her attention to his dog. He’d never been jealous of his dog before.
“Can I see the note?” He watched her take a deep breath while he ignored the pang of guilt he felt for bringing back her rigidity of her reality.
“Of course.” She stood up giving Axel one last pat before grabbing it off the coffee table to hand to him. He opened it and scanned the short threat feeling a quick rage swamp him -
I hope you’re ready. I know I am. Our time has finally come.
He wanted to find this guy and kill him for sending Zoe these letters and scaring her the way he was. Logan could tell that Zoe fell back on her pride and the situation she found herself in, she was finding it hard to keep it in tact. “Ashbrook is on his way,” one of the officers announced.