Chapter Twenty-seven
Logan heard a car door slam, but she didn’t pay any attention to it. She’d looked the first few times it had happened, wondering if Jack had figured out where she’d gone, but it was always someone she didn’t know. Christmas was only a week away, and it was freezing outside. Why the hell were there so many people out here? She glanced at the bottle of wine sitting on the pier next to her. She’d only taken a few sips out of it before she felt it sour in her stomach.
Footsteps behind her caused a shiver to run up her spine, and she shoved her hands in her pockets in an attempt to warm herself.
“It’s freezing out here.”
Logan’s breath caught in her throat at the sound of Brooke’s voice. Her first thought was she was going to kill Jack for giving away the one place she felt safe. She sat up straighter but didn’t turn around—didn’t say anything in response.
“I brought a blanket.”
Logan closed her eyes tightly in the hopes it would stop her tears from falling. Frozen tears couldn’t be good. She knew pretending Brooke wasn’t really there couldn’t be good either, but she continued her silence anyway. When Brooke sighed audibly behind her, she almost turned around. Almost.
“Logan, please, I’ve been calling you almost nonstop since the second I started driving here.”
“I know. I ignored your calls, and Jack’s too.”
Logan refused to look, even when Brooke sat next to her so close they were almost touching. She fought the urge to wrap her arm around Brooke’s shoulder and pull her closer so they could both be warmer.
“I thought maybe it would be a good indicator to both of you I’m not in the mood to talk,” Logan said, her eyes on the Bicentennial Tower across the bay.
“I kind of figured as much.”
“And yet here you are.”
“Logan, I need to explain something to you. I didn’t leave this morning because I wanted to. I left because I didn’t know when you were going to be back, or even where you went. You didn’t leave a note. The thought crossed my mind you might have woken up and regretted what happened between us.”
Logan did finally turn her head then, but Brooke was looking at something in the opposite direction. Her stomach fluttered at the realization Brooke could possibly think she was still that person. The kind of person who would run away in the dead of night to avoid waking up next to a woman. The kind of person she’d stopped being the moment Brooke had come into her life.
“Are you fucking serious? After everything I said to you last night—everything we did—you really thought I didn’t want to face you this morning? I let you touch me, which is a small miracle in itself. We were in my apartment. I told you before I’d never taken a woman there. It makes it pretty much impossible to accomplish the whole avoidance thing.”
“Then I don’t understand why you even took me there in the first place.”
“Really? You don’t get it?” Logan waited until Brooke looked at her and she smiled sadly. “You’re different than any woman I’ve ever met. You’re beautiful, you’re feisty as hell when it comes to defending your family, and you make me want things I never wanted before. Damn it, you make me feel. I woke up this morning and had the undeniable urge to make breakfast for you. That’s not something I do even for myself.”
“Gee, and I thought it was just because I asked you to take me there.” Brooke shoved a hand into Logan’s pocket and held her hand.
“There’s that too.”
“Look, I woke up and you were gone. Wendy called and wanted to see me, and because she was in the diner across the street, I decided to go and see what she wanted. I saw it as a way to get rid of her. To close that chapter in my life. I wanted there to be absolutely nothing between us, Logan. I wanted to have a fresh start.”
Logan wanted to believe her. After a slight hesitation, she pulled her hand away so she could put her arm around Brooke and pulled Brooke’s body against hers, Brooke’s head resting on her shoulder. She breathed in her scent, expecting to smell her citrus shampoo, but the scent she caught instead caused flashbacks of the night before. Her thighs tightened at the memory. “You smell like sex.”
“So do you.” Brooke giggled and buried her face in Logan’s neck, breathing deeply. “But you know what? I love this scent on you.”
Logan’s heart soared, but then plummeted just as quickly when she remembered why she was out here in the freezing cold in the first place. Brooke said the right things before, but she’d never said she wasn’t still in love with her ex.
“What about Wendy?”
“No, not so much on her.”
Logan stiffened, not appreciating the humor at the moment. “I’m serious. Where is she?”
“I’m serious too.” Brooke pulled away from her and looked her in the eye. “As far as I know, she’s on her way back to Philadelphia. Honestly? I don’t care where she is as long as I don’t ever have to deal with her again.”
“I thought you were still in love with her.”
“I never told you that. I let you assume it because at the time we talked about her, I had no idea what was going to happen between you and me. Logan, I stopped loving her a long time ago. Probably before she even left me. I just didn’t know it at the time, and I let my pride get in the way.” Brooke snuggled closer to her. “I have to admit I am in love with someone else though.”
“Oh, really?” Logan asked with a grin. She picked up the bottle and took another sip before offering it to Brooke. “What’s her name?”
“Logan,” Brooke answered with a grin of her own. “Just don’t ask me when it happened, because in the beginning, you exasperated me something awful.”
“You love me? Really?” Even though she knew Brooke had been referring to her, it still felt surreal to hear her say it out loud. Until that moment, Logan hadn’t dared to even hope Brooke felt so much for her, but she felt a little light-headed at the declaration. Logan got to her feet and held a hand out to help Brooke stand.
“Yes, I do.”
“How can you not know when it happened? I know exactly when it happened for me.”
“Is this your way of saying you love me too?”
“It absolutely is. I love you, Brooke Collier.” She placed a hand on Brooke’s cheek.
“Maybe it was when you were so caring and tender with my grandmother at the hospital when my grandfather died,” Brooke said. She took Logan’s hand and rubbed it vigorously in a blatant attempt to warm it up. “Or maybe it was the way you were the voice of reason for Ray and Missy the night Billy came out to them. It might have been the day you helped my grandfather when he was having an Alzheimer episode.”
“For me, it was the first day we met. You looked so scared when I mentioned Henry had a shotgun, I wanted to hold you and assure you I would never let anything bad happen to you.” Logan placed her hands on Brooke’s cheeks and moved so they were only a couple inches apart. “I do love you, Brooke. I just hope you’ll give me the opportunity to prove I’m worthy of your love.”
When Logan tried to close the remaining gap between them, Brooke placed a hand on her chest and pushed her back. When she tried to step back farther, Brooke held tightly to the lapels of her jacket.
“As much as I really want to kiss you right now, the cold is making my nose run, and I can only imagine how devastatingly sexy that probably is. Let’s go home.”
“Which home?” Logan asked. “Yours, mine, or my apartment?”
“Your apartment alone with you is where I want to be right now, but I think we should let Jack and everyone else know we’re okay first. Then we can go back to your apartment. I think we should take advantage of the fact Marlene will be here through the end of the year to keep an eye on Gram.”
“About that,” Logan said, cursing the fact her insecurities were making themselves known. “With Henry gone, there’s no reason for you to stay in Oakville. Are you going to leave?”
“Do you honestly think that? After what we ju
st talked about? You’re a very real reason for me to stay, and even if this hadn’t happened between us, I don’t think I could leave Gram anytime soon. After almost sixty years together, it isn’t going to be easy for her.”
“I think I just wanted to hear you say I was your reason for staying here,” Logan said with a grin she was sure was just as goofy as the one Jack had the day Logan met Cynthia.
“Okay, that’s settled. Can we go home now?”
“Yes. Let’s hurry.” Logan took off toward the parking lot at a dead run. Brooke passed her just before they got there. Logan bent over at the waist, her hands on her knees. “Damn, I better get in shape if I’m going to be hanging out with you.”
“I have a very strict workout regimen planned for you. You’ll be in shape in no time.”
“I can’t wait to start.”
“Oh, before we get involved with other things, Gram wanted me to invite you, Jack, and Cynthia over for Christmas.”
“I can’t speak for Jack and Cynthia, but I would love to be there. I can’t imagine spending the day—and all of my days—anywhere but with you.”
Chapter Twenty-eight
Logan stood in the doorway of the kitchen watching Brooke and Peggy put the finishing touches on their Christmas dinner. They’d invited Billy to join them, but Logan was surprised when he told her Ray had insisted he and his boyfriend have dinner with them. She hoped everything was going well in the Best household. Logan tried to convince Peggy they should all go out to dinner, but Peggy was adamant Henry would have wanted them all together under his roof.
A quick glance over her shoulder into the dining room was bittersweet. Henry’s place at the head of the table was empty. Shane had done as his grandmother asked and not put a plate and silverware for that seat. When Logan turned back to the kitchen, Brooke was standing in front of her, her head cocked to one side and a lopsided smile on her face.
“Are you all right?”
“Yeah. Just wishing my father and Henry were here to join in the festivities.”
Brooke placed a hand on the center of Logan’s chest. Jack and Shane entered through the front door laughing. They’d been outside engaged in a snowball fight. Logan ignored them and held Brooke’s gaze.
“So do I,” Brooke said softly. “But on some level, I think they are here. I think they will always be here with us.”
Logan lifted Brooke’s hand and placed a lingering kiss on her palm before grabbing her around the waist and pulling her close. She pointed up to the mistletoe hanging above them.
“That thought makes me happy, but I hope they won’t always be with us, if you know what I mean.”
“I think they’ll be courteous enough to give us some privacy.” Brooke stood on her tiptoes and met Logan’s lips in one of the sweetest kisses Logan had ever experienced.
“Geez, you two, get a room or something,” Jack said from behind Logan.
“Can’t let the mistletoe go to waste, little bro.”
“Everyone, sit down. Dinner’s ready.” Peggy pushed past them and carried the turkey to the table. She handed the carving knife to Jack, but once everyone was seated, he placed it on the table in front of him and glanced at Cynthia.
“I’d like to say something before we get started.”
“Is something wrong, dear?” Peggy asked, the concern evident in her tone.
Logan watched her brother, pretty sure what it was he was about to announce if the flush on Cynthia’s cheeks were any indication. She was happy for them, but a part of her was saddened by the thought they were all moving on with their lives. It hurt so much to know their father was missing this.
“No, Peggy, nothing’s wrong. This morning I asked Cynthia to marry me.”
“Was she smart enough to turn you down?” Logan asked.
“Funny. You’ll forgive me if I forget to laugh at your little joke. She said yes, and we’ve started construction on a new house about ten miles south of here.” He directed his attention to Logan. “We’ll be able to move into the house in about six months, so I’ll need to stay next door until then, if it’s all right with you.”
“You don’t even have to ask.” Logan hugged him before giving Cynthia a quick kiss on the cheek. She took Brooke’s hand under the table when she resumed her seat. Jack started carving the turkey and everyone began talking at once, congratulating the happy couple on their engagement.
Logan watched in silence, the stark realization she was entering a new chapter in her life striking quickly. Brooke gave her hand a squeeze and she knew she’d have good company going down that road.
About the Author
PJ Trebelhorn was born and raised in the greater metropolitan area of Portland, Oregon. Her love of sports—mainly baseball and ice hockey—was fueled in part by her father’s interests. She likes to brag about the fact her uncle managed the Milwaukee Brewers for five years, and the Chicago Cubs for one year.
PJ now resides in western New York with Cheryl, her partner of many years, and their menagerie of pets—four cats and one very neurotic dog. When not writing or reading, PJ spends way too much time on the Internet and watching television and movies.
Books Available from Bold Strokes Books
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