by Claire Adams
“Wow,” I heard Chloe whisper as we stepped into the room. Most people have the same response. The architect had built the home out of beams that looked like driftwood, and he’d made the walls of this main room out of reinforced glass. The house sat up on a plateau, and from there you could see my sister and brother’s houses and the ocean out in the horizon. It was especially gorgeous at sunset.
“Logan!” My mother descended upon us and it was on.
“Hi, Mom.” I let go of Chloe’s hand and gave her a hug and a kiss. Then she turned to Chloe and said,
“And, who is this beautiful creature?”
Chloe’s face colored at the compliment. “This is Chloe Dupree, Mom. Chloe, this is my mother, Charlotte Moreau.”
Chloe held out her hand, but my mother ignored her. She grabbed Chloe up in a warm hug, instead. I watched as poor Chloe tensed and then relaxed in her arms. My mother refused to believe that everyone wouldn’t rather be greeted with a hug than a handshake.
When she finally let Chloe go, Chloe managed to say, “I’m so pleased to meet you, Mrs. Moreau. Thank you for having me.”
“Charlotte,” Mom said. “And, thank you for coming. Frank and Caroline had so many nice things to say about you. We’re all happy to see my son making wiser choices.” She winked at me and I rolled my eyes. Taking Chloe’s hand again I said,
“Oh, look, there’s Whitney. I’m going to introduce Chloe to her.”
I guided Chloe across the room to where my sister was issuing orders to her youngest. As soon as Noah saw me, he stopped listening to whatever she was saying and threw himself at me, wrapping his skinny little arms and legs around me.
“Uncle Logan!” I swung him up in my arms and gave him a hug. I know that good uncles shouldn’t have a favorite, but even so, Noah was secretly mine. I loved them all, but personality wise, Noah was the most like me.
“Hey, buddy! What’s up?”
“He’s in trouble,” my sister said. She glanced at Chloe and gave her a small smile and then turned her attention back on me and her son. She was looking at me like I was in trouble now.
“What did he do?”
I looked at Noah, and he shrugged. His blue eyes were wide, though. My sister can be fierce when she wanted to be. “Tell your uncle what you did.”
“I used my mom’s tablet.”
“You’re mad at him for using your tablet?”
“No… Noah, tell your Uncle Logan what you used it for.”
“I ordered some stuff.”
“Stuff?”
“I ordered a present for Kimber.”
My sister rolled her eyes. Noah was going for any sympathy vote he could get, but my sister wasn’t falling for it. “Well, that doesn’t sound all bad,” I tried.
“How did you pay for it, Noah?”
“I used my own money.”
“Noah!”
“I used money out of my college fund.”
I couldn’t help it: I laughed. I glanced at Chloe, and she looked like she was trying to suppress her own. My sister glared at me. “Noah, go outside and play with your cousins. We’ll talk about this later.” When he was gone she turned on me. “Are you kidding? You’re laughing?”
“Well, he did use his own money, and he bought something for his sister, which was thoughtful.”
“He bought a horse, Logan.” I was dying by that time. Tears were rolling down my face. “He spent three thousand dollars on an Arabian horse!”
When I finished laughing, I finally asked, “How? How does a seven-year-old even know how to begin to do that?”
“He’s too much like his uncle, that’s how. He simply pulled the account up on my tablet and wire transferred the funds. The horse should be arriving shortly. I got an email about it a few minutes before you walked in.”
“I’m sorry, sis, but that’s funny.” She continued to glare at me until I remembered poor Chloe. “This is my friend Chloe. Chloe, this is my sister, Whitney.”
Whitney still looked mad, but she smiled politely at Chloe and held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Chloe. I apologize for all that.”
“It’s nice to meet you, too, and please don’t apologize. He’s adorable and obviously very smart.”
Whitney cracked a real smile. “True on both accounts,” she said. “Thank you. God, what are we going to do with a horse?”
“I’ll have a stable built,” I told her. She shook her head at me and walked away, mumbling something about checking on Kimber. I looked at Chloe and we both busted up laughing.
“What’s so funny?” I looked up to see my brother-in-law Max. I held out my hand to him and as we shook I said,
“Your son – he might be the death of my sister, but I find him hilarious.”
Max laughed, too. “Whitney told you about the horse?”
“I’m dying.”
Max was six foot five he possessed a lean and muscular runner’s body. He was a renowned cardiac surgeon. My sister was five foot five a hundred and ten pounds soaking wet. She was a pediatrician. Max was terrified of her. He leaned in close to whisper, “So am I. I’m actually kind of proud of him.”
We both laughed, and I introduced him to Chloe. He greeted her warmly before my Dad and Frank came in from the backyard. She got another hug from my dad and Frank both and that was followed by one from Caroline.
I took her out back then. My mother’s gardens were gorgeous, and a tent set up in the center of it all was decorated with something that looked like deformed Disney babies to me. That’s where we found Kimber.
“Uncle Logan! Noah ordered me a horse!” I had a feeling Noah’s present would outshine everyone else’s.
“I heard. How does it feel to be ten?” I bent down and gave her a hug and a kiss.
“Not much different than nine so far,” she said with a smile. Kimber was a beautiful combination of both my sister and Max. I was going to have to learn how to shoot a rifle before she became a teenager, I was sure.
“It’ll grow on you. Kimber, this is my friend Chloe.” Kimber looked Chloe over with her blue-green eyes and then she said,
“Hi, Chloe. Are you Uncle Logan’s girlfriend?” Poor Chloe blushed and before she could decide what to say to my precocious niece, I said,
“Uncle Logan is working on it.” That got me an even deeper blush and a shy smile. I couldn’t help but hope it might also get me back into her panties after the party. I almost couldn’t wait.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHLOE
I tried to get my mind off the fact that Logan said he was trying to be my boyfriend. The idea of it both thrilled me and scared me to death.
The night we slept together and the time we’ve spent together in between was special to me, but I wasn’t naïve enough to believe it meant the same thing to him that it did to me. I was confused as to why he would want me at all with all the options I knew he had. But I’d tucked those questions away simply because I wanted to be with him so badly.
I didn’t have much to compare him to, but I was sure I’d never experienced pleasure like I did when I was with him. I was content to let things ride while mentally preparing myself for the day when a new intern or assistant came into his life and I was simply a girl he used to know.
But the more I tried to convince myself that would happen, the more he did things like stare down the women in the park, kiss my hand when I was feeling anxious, or tell his niece he wanted me to be his girlfriend. None of that sounded like he planned on dumping me right away, and my head and heart were suddenly at war.
If he was only playing me to get what he wanted, he was very good. Intellectually, I knew from everything I’d learned about him that was exactly what he was: very good. But, he also seemed like such a good person. I didn’t know him all that well yet, but the way he treated his employees had impressed me, and now watching him with his family only cemented the idea in my head that he had a genuinely good heart.
I’d been sitting next to Whitney for a while now
while Logan was playing a board game with his niece and nephews. She had asked me about myself, and I was surprised at how comfortable I felt talking to her. I told her about moving to New York and how much I missed my family. We talked about her time in medical school when she was separated from hers for the better part of four years.
It was obvious that this family loved each other and as much as I missed mine, it made me feel better just to be around like-minded people. I glanced over at Logan to see he was looking at me. My heart fluttered at the smile he sent my way.
Yes, I was more attached than I should be. But in my defense, he was making it hard not to be.
“So, how long have you and my brother been seeing each other?” Whitney asked.
“Only about a week,” I admitted.
“Oh,” she sounded surprised. She had been so nice, but I still had to wonder if she, too, wondered what her gorgeous, successful brother saw in the likes of me.
“I would have guessed a lot longer,” she said. “He seems so comfortable with you. He’s not usually like that with women.”
“Comfortable?” I knew that wasn’t true. He was famous for his exploits with women. A man who wasn’t comfortable with them could never have achieved his reputation.
She laughed. “It’s hard to explain. I guess you’re aware of my brother’s reputation, right?”
“Yes, I’ve heard the rumors.”
“Unfortunately, there is a lot of truth to them. He loves women, and he knows how to play them. He knows how to use those baby blues to draw them in and keep them there as long as he wants them.
“But what I mean by being comfortable with you is that I don’t see him playing with you. I see him smiling when he looks at you and you don’t know he’s looking. I see him playing with the kids and not feeling like he must be this suave, sophisticated playboy. He’s just being himself and acting the way he would act if it was just family here.
“I’ve never seen him like that when he was with a woman. Well, not for a long time anyways. Of course, he hasn’t brought a woman home for a long time. The only time I really see him with women are when we go to the same social events and his Billionaire Playboy persona is turned up full blast. I don’t like that guy.”
I giggled. “I must not have met that guy yet because so far this guy,” I looked back over at Logan, “He’s the only one I’ve seen. He’s kind and generous to his employees, and he’s sweet and attentive toward me. I can’t figure out why, but it’s nice.”
“You’re gorgeous, Chloe, and my brother loves beautiful women. But, I think there is more than that with you. At least, I hope so. Logan is happier today than I’ve seen him in a very long time. It does my heart good to see it.”
I was overwhelmed with emotion and wasn’t sure how to even respond to that. Finally, I said, “I’m glad that I’m getting to know the real man. Sometimes dating is hard because you never know if someone is putting on an act or not.”
“That’s very true. What I’m telling you is true, as well. This is the most relaxed and happy I’ve seen my brother in a very long time.”
“I second that.” Frank had walked up behind us. We both jumped slightly at the sound of his deep voice. “Caroline and I talked about it that night after dinner. He seems genuinely happy with you. For the past couple of months, he’s seemed distant, like something heavy was weighing on him. That weight seems to be gone now.”
I felt my face heating up. “I’m sure I can’t take all of the credit for that. He may have had something going on at work or-”
“Mom!” Charlotte was walking by and Whitney waved her over.
They were all so sweet, but being the center of their attention made me want to crawl under the table. I glanced over at Logan, and he was looking at me again. This time he mouthed,
“You okay?” I nodded, and he winked just as Whitney asked her mother,
“Isn’t Logan happier than he’s been in a long time?”
Charlotte looked right at me and smiled. “Yes, thank you, Chloe.”
I smiled at the pretty older lady. “Oh, I’m sure it’s not all me.”
“You’re too humble.” Caroline had joined us at some point. All we needed now was Max and Logan’s father. Thankfully, they’d taken the older boys out back to throw the football around. “He’s himself when he’s with you,” she said.
“Well, thank you all. It’s nice to know that I can have that kind of effect on someone, especially someone like Logan. He makes me happy, too.”
“Good, because we’ve decided to keep you,” Whitney announced. “Even if we have to let him go to do it.” I laughed along with them. It was both reassuring and a lot of pressure to know that his family thought highly of me.
I turned my attention back to Logan. He was laughing at something his niece had said and his blue eyes sparkled. I thought at that moment he was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen and for the first time, I really started thinking about keeping him.
*****
The party went on for hours and by the time the kids were falling asleep sitting straight up, I was so stuffed full of barbeque and cake myself that a nap sounded pretty damned good.
“Hey, beautiful, how are you doing?” Logan walked up next to me and put his arm around me. It was strange to me how natural that already felt.
“I’m good. Your family is amazing.”
He looked around at them. His parents were cleaning up the tables and his brother-in-law had one sleeping child on his shoulder and his sister was trying to coax the other into believing she was ready to go home. His sister-in-law and brother sat next to each other with a sleeping child across their lap. She ran her fingers through the little boy’s hair while he pressed his lips to hers. Logan looked sad for a minute and I wondered if he was thinking about his other brother, the one who was no longer there.
“Yeah, they are pretty amazing. I’ve about had my fill of them for one day, though; how about you?”
I smiled. “If you’re asking if I’m tired, the answer is yes. Your nephews had me in that bounce house out back for over an hour. I’m not as young as I used to be.”
He pulled me in closer, put his lips to my ear, and said, “I’d love to get you in that bounce house.”
I giggled. “That might be interesting.”
“Oh, I guarantee it would be interesting,” he said. He pressed his lips to my ear and kissed me. “But I’d hate for Mom to catch us. I do have another idea, though, if you’re up for it.”
“What’s that?”
“I want to show you something. Let’s say goodnight.”
We made the rounds and I got hugs from everyone, even the kids who were still awake. Before we walked out, Charlotte said, “Chloe, are you coming to Thanksgiving dinner?”
Logan winked at me. “Of course, she is,” he said with a grin. “Night, Mom. I love you.”
She stood up on her toes and kissed the side of his face. “I love you, too, my boy.” We walked out to the car with his arm draped over me. When we got there, I heard him tell the driver,
“Take us to the cottage, Ben, please.” I wondered what cottage he was talking about, but I didn’t ask. I got into the car and he slid in next to me. Before Ben even had the door closed, Logan had his arms around me and my lips covered with his.
God, I loved kissing him. He used his lips to caress mine, and his tongue was so skilled it sent goosebumps racing from one end of my body to the other. While he kissed me, he ran his hands up my sides and used his fingers to knead the flesh on my back through my sweater. I vaguely registered the car moving, but was surprised to feel it stop less than five minutes later. Logan broke the kiss and we both sucked in a deep breath.
He grinned at me and said, “I like kissing you.”
I nodded and breathlessly. “I like kissing you, too.” Ben pulled open the door and I asked, “Where are we?”
Logan stepped out and held out his hand for me. “Thank you, Ben. You can go home.”
“Thank y
ou, sir.”
We were in front of a small, white, wrought iron gate that led from the lane along a cobblestone path to the front door of what looked like a little fairytale cottage. Logan nodded and opened the gate.
We walked down the path through a little garden lined with beach hedges. There was a small lawn with a little table and white wooden garden chairs set up on it. We stepped up on a small porch with a white, tiled floor and reclining garden chairs and a small bistro table between them. Logan unlocked the door and flipped on a light.
I sucked in a breath. “Oh, Logan, it’s beautiful.”
There was a fireplace with a wood-burning stove with seating around it and a three-piece loveseat and two easy chairs. A map of the area hung on one wall and on the other side of the room was a television with a DVD set up. “You like it?”
“Oh my God, I love it.”
He took my hand and said, “Come on, I’ll give you the tour.” He led me over to an old-fashioned latch door and we went through to a long, narrow dining room. It had a farmhouse-style table with four chairs and a small maple buffet against the wall. Fresh flowers filled the vase on the table and a seaside painting adorned the wall.
He led me through another door into the kitchen. I sucked in another breath. There was a large larder like the one my mother had as long as I could remember, stocked with china and glass wear. Two big worktops surround a stainless-steel sink and an electric cooker. The fridge and microwave matched the sink and all the small appliances were stainless steel, as well.
“This is…. Wow, I love this.” He smiled and led me over to a steep staircase. We walked up to the landing and down a short hallway to a small bedroom that was decorated with seashells and fairytale creatures on the walls and two sets of bunk beds with brightly-colored blankets, pillows, and lots of stuffed animals.
“For when the kids stay over,” he said with a grin.
“I bet they love it.”