by Jill Sanders
“You never asked if I could play,” she said, a little breathless. He glanced down and noticed her breasts rise and fall with the excitement of the game.
“No, I suppose I didn’t,” he whispered. His hand reached out and brushed against her arm slightly. “A mistake I won’t be making again.”
Her smile faltered as she took a step back. “Your turn.”
He moved to lean in, but straightened when his uncle approached.
“There you two are.” He could tell that his uncle was on his way to being drunk. His round cheeks had a hint of red in them and his arm was slung over Leah’s shoulders. “We were just looking for you guys.”
“Just playing a friendly game of pool,” he said, before striking his first ball.
“Oh! That’s not such a good idea with this one.” Gary pointed with his hand, which was holding an almost empty beer mug. The golden liquid nearly sloshed over the edge. “She’s a real shark.” He chuckled. “Took me for a few hundred dollars last time.”
“Yeah, you were the one that insisted on playing for money,” Amy added.
He laughed. “So true. Learned my lesson, though. Haven’t played her since.”
“We’re not playing for money,” he said, sinking another ball quickly.
“Oh?”
“Gary, I think everyone wants another round,” Leah said, using all her strength to hold the larger man up.
“Oh! Right you are. I’ll make sure to send the waitress back to get your drink order.” His uncle and Leah meandered back toward the front, which had grown much louder than before.
“They make a cute couple,” Amy said, sighing as she leaned against the table.
His eyebrows shot up and he glanced at their backs. “Who? Them?” He turned to her and saw her nod.
“Why do you think he’s kept her around all these years?” She giggled and downed the rest of her beer.
His eyes traveled back to the table with his coworkers. He frowned. He’d never imagined that his uncle had been involved with anyone.
“Are you going to hit that ball or sulk about your uncle’s love life?” She leaned on the table as the waitress delivered two more beers.
He lined up for the shot and smiled as he sank two balls. When he moved around the table to line up for the next shot, Amy was there, her hip resting on the edge of the table as she sipped her beer. Her leg was swaying to the music as her eyes watched him move.
Instantly, he felt heat spread throughout his body from the looks she was giving him. He stopped in front of her, then reached over, lifted his beer mug, and took a drink, letting the cold liquid cool him down.
When his eyes met hers again, he saw her cheeks flush and her eyes heat, matching his own. He leaned closer. Her leg stopped moving and she set her beer down. He was a breath away from her—so close, he could smell the soft scent of her perfume mixed with the aroma of beer. For some reason, the combination was intoxicating.
His eyes moved to her lips as her tongue darted out and licked her full bottom lip. He held back a groan, watching the sexy movement.
“Logan?” she said in a soft whisper. “Shoot.”
He blinked a few times, images of what he wanted to do to her flashing through his mind.
“Shoot the ball.” She pushed him and got him moving.
He’d been clenching the cue stick tightly in his hands, so he relaxed his fingers and slowly made his way around the table to take the next shot, an easy one. Since he was still distracted at the thought of her lips, he missed.
He thought he heard her chuckle as she edged her way around the table and took the next shot. He stood back and, this time, didn’t avoid looking where he wanted as he sipped his beer.
CHAPTER SIX
When Amy sank the eight ball, she felt a wave of excitement rush through her, as it always did. She loved to win.
Looking over and seeing the slight frown on Logan’s face was icing on the cake.
“Looks like I win.” She walked over, picked up her waiting beer, and took a sip of the warm liquid.
Then he moved so quickly, she almost yelped. His hand was on her hip as he pulled her close. Her hand went to his chest, squished between them.
He smiled down at her. “Looks like I owe you drinks . . . some other time.” He whispered the last part.
Her heart jumped in her chest and she thought she felt his matching beat against her hand. Her eyes went to his lips and she found it hard to look away.
“What . . .” She didn’t get any further as a crowd of loud people approached the pool table. Logan dropped his arms and quickly moved away, walking over to pick up his beer.
“See, they’re done playing,” someone said loudly.
She stepped aside, making sure to take her beer with her as the crowd of people took over.
“The place gets a little crowded on game night.” She glanced toward the large-screen television that tonight’s game was playing on.
He took her elbow and steered her across the front room to where the rest of their group had gone to cheer on the game. They had ordered more food and when she sat down, she reached for some chips.
“Want something more?” Logan said, leaning in to her ear.
She glanced at him and he pointed toward a menu.
“No, I’m not really hungry.” She lied. The funny thing was, she was starved. Just not for anything on the menu.
She really needed to get out more often. It had been almost five months since she’d gone out on a date. Even then, it had been a double date with Kristen and Aiden and a friend of his, who, by the end of dinner, she had had zero interest in pursuing.
Maybe Kristen was right. Was she being too picky? She glanced around the table at RMR’s employees. There were two men she’d dated in the past here tonight. She held in a groan of embarrassment as she watched both men now. John had been the first to ask her out when she’d started working for Gary.
John was a year older than she and a few inches shorter, but she didn’t allow that to matter, much. It was where he’d taken her on their first date that had turned her off. He’d actually thought she would enjoy going to a strip club.
She held back a chuckle as she watched him try to flirt with their waitress. Shaking her head, she sipped on her beer and glanced at Ron, the second man from RMR who had asked her out. Ron had been nice enough, and in all honesty, she couldn’t really remember why she hadn’t clicked with him.
He was a lot shyer than John, and Logan for that matter. Tilting her head, she thought about it. Ron was actually shyer than anyone she’d ever met before. He was good-looking enough, with his rich chestnut hair, green eyes, and those dimples on either side of his mouth. Who could deny a man with those dimples?
Currently Ron was sitting along the back wall alone, eating a Reuben sandwich. Just a glance at the sandwich caused her stomach to growl loudly. She doubted if Ron had ever spoken to anyone at their table for any amount of time and wondered why he even came along to these events. Maybe it was the free food? She watched him pick up his sandwich and take a large bite.
“I’m sure the rest of us can leave you two alone?” Logan whispered in her ear.
“Hmm?” She turned toward him.
He nodded to where Ron sat by himself, eating the rest of his sandwich. She looked back at Logan and laughed.
“I guess I’m a little hungry.” She waved to the waitress, who looked relieved to leave John’s advances to make her way over to Amy.
She ordered the Reuben sandwich and wasn’t surprised when Logan requested the same thing.
“So, is there something between you two?” He glanced again at Ron.
“Ron’s okay, but we just never really hit it off.”
Logan was silent for a while, so she glanced his way and saw him frowning in Ron’s direction. Turning her body, she leaned her elbow on the table and smiled at Logan. She could swear he was looking at the other man with jealousy.
“What about you?” She waited until his eyes
returned to her. “I’m sure there’re a lot of broken hearts in your past.” She tilted her head and waited for his answer.
“A few, but nothing serious.” She could see the lie in his eyes and remembered the conversation they’d had while driving to the house showing with the Lufts. Her eyebrows lifted in doubt as she stared at him. “Well, maybe one or two,” he admitted.
She waited and when he didn’t continue, she asked, “Why is it that men never think it’s serious?”
It was his turn to look at her with doubt. “Who says we don’t?”
“You just did.”
“Well, in most cases, that’s true. These two”—he took another sip of his beer—“I was the one broken in the end.”
“Oh?” She watched him and waited.
“You really want to hear about them?” he asked.
“Why not?” She was hoping he’d slip up and admit he knew who she was. Or maybe she just wanted to hear more about him.
He leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “Fine, but you asked for it,” he said as the waitress set their sandwiches in front of them.
When he started to eat in silence, she nudged his leg with hers. “Go on.”
He glanced at her. “I was hoping to eat this in peace.”
She ate a few bites, then nudged his leg again until he started talking.
“Fine, Bella was in some of the same classes in CSU. We hit it off and a few months later, got engaged.”
She almost choked on the sip of beer she was swallowing. He dropped his sandwich and patted her back a few times.
“Sorry.” She took another sip of beer. “Go on.” She picked up her sandwich and took another bite.
“About three weeks into our engagement, I walked into the apartment to find her in bed with one of our professors.”
She swallowed the bite of sandwich wrong, and he ended up having to smack her on the back once again.
“Maybe I should wait until we’re done eating before I tell you about Tiffany.”
She shook her head and felt her eyes water. “I’m okay,” she managed to say, but pushed her almost empty plate aside. “Go on.” She moved her beer aside as well, then took a large sip of cool water instead.
He shoved the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth then took a drink of his beer.
“I met Tiffany when I worked at CCR. She was the boss’s daughter and naturally had her pick of men at the agency.” He sighed, and she could tell he was struggling with getting the story out.
“What happened?” she asked. She could see the hurt in his eyes and felt a little guilty for pushing him to talk. But she wanted to know more.
He glanced at her, the frown still on his lips. “We started seeing one another and then we didn’t.”
“Something must have happened?”
“Apparently I wasn’t edgy enough to piss off her old man, so she started seeing the women in the agency instead.”
She felt her mouth drop open, then she couldn’t stop the laughter that followed.
“Oh, that’s great. I tell you about my heartbreak, and you laugh.” He crossed his arms over his chest defensively.
She bit her lip as a few faces around the table turned to look at them. Then she was wiping her eyes with her napkin as the laughter took over.
Logan, for his part, continued to stare at her like she’d lost it.
“You . . .” She swallowed the laughter. “You’re the one with a broken heart, not them?”
“That’s what you asked, right?” His voice was low.
“Not necessarily. Were you madly in love with them?” She leaned on the table and watched him closely.
He looked at her, then slowly shook his head. “I have never been in love.”
She made a whooshing noise and tapped him on the shoulder. “I doubt that.”
Just then she realized she’d had too much to drink. She never made noises like that, not unless she was toasted. Sitting up, she couldn’t tear her eyes away from Logan’s smile. Taking stock of herself, she realized her hair was falling in front of her eyes, and she reached up to push it away.
“No.” He stopped her, his hand encasing her own smaller one. “I like seeing it down.” He leaned closer and tugged until the clip that held her hair up came loose. Her long hair flowed around her face and shoulders. “There, much better.” Her eyes locked onto his lips and she wished, for just a moment, that she was the kind of girl that could let herself enjoy the moment.
After spilling his heart to Amy in their private conversation, it seemed the entire group disbanded. First the skinny guy who’d sat alone in the corner left, then Logan’s uncle and Leah. Then more. He continued to talk with Amy as the tables around them emptied.
Finally, she looked around and noticed that they were the last of their group still there.
“I’d better . . .” She glanced down at her watch. “Oh, how did it get to be so late?”
“Time flies.” He stood up and helped her pull her blazer on. He was sad to see those sexy shoulders of hers get covered up with the heavy material.
“Thanks,” she murmured.
“Here, I’ll walk you back to the office parking lot.” He held out his arm for her. She hesitated for just a moment, then took his arm.
When he opened the pub door for her, she glided through and he followed her out into the balmy night. There was a cool breeze that sent her hair blowing into her eyes. She tucked the loose strands behind her ears.
“I didn’t mean to laugh at your heartache,” she said as they made their way back up the hill.
“I know. I guess I’ve never really thought of my story as funny before. But, it’s been two years now, so I’m totally over it.”
“I had a boyfriend cheat on me in high school once.”
He glanced at her. “Did you cut out his heart?”
She chuckled. “No, he works at the local tire shop and has been in and out of jail for drunk driving. I guess you can say it was for the best.”
“Yeah, Tiffany finally settled down last year and is currently engaged to a man her father approves of.”
“And Bella?” she asked.
“Married the professor and has two kids.”
“I guess when it’s right . . .” She broke off.
“You ever come close?” They stopped walking when they reached the empty parking lot. Only her Jeep and his new SUV were parked in the dimly lit lot.
Then he leaned against the side of her Jeep, relaxed and waiting for her answer, proving to her that he wasn’t ready for the night to end just yet.
She sighed and shook her head. “No close calls for me.”
“Oh?” He smiled. “For some reason I can’t imagine someone hasn’t tried to tie you down yet.”
“They would have to get close to me first.” Then her smile fell away. “I mean . . .”
He reached out to take her hips in his hands, then he pulled her closer. He felt her breath hitch as her hands rose to his chest. “Like this?” he asked softly.
She nodded just before he dipped his head and brushed his lips across hers. He’d been fantasizing about kissing those lips for weeks. Ever since he’d seen her nibble on them nervously as she made her presentation that first day.
He felt her body melt against his and deepened the kiss until he felt his own catch fire. Then, he stepped back and dropped his arms.
“Are you okay to drive?” He watched her eyes focus as she nodded. “Good night.” He turned toward his car before he did anything stupid like follow her home.
“Logan?” she called out to him. He stopped and looked over his shoulder at her. “Good night.” She climbed into her Jeep and drove away slowly.
CHAPTER SEVEN
By the end of the month, she was a little disappointed that the Lufts hadn’t made an offer on the house in Clear Creek yet. She had even called and left them a couple of messages, just in case. She couldn’t deny any longer that there was a big possibility she’d been wrong about the young
couple. Which only upset her even more, since she had to look at the back of Logan occupying her space every day.
She was finding it more and more difficult to work with Logan sitting in her office, especially after that kiss. Not to mention, she suspected he was listening in on her phone conversations and purposely going out of his way to accompany her on every showing she had.
Not only was he a big distraction, but she couldn’t stop her mind from replaying every moment of torture he’d caused her in her youth, and now he was pouring on the charm like he was actually interested in her. The strange part was that her body was starting to respond to him. Which only made her even madder that her mind could be betrayed so easily. Maybe it was the kiss that had damned her? She could feel his warm lips on hers if she thought about that night. And she found herself thinking about it all too often.
When that Friday evening finally rolled around, she was relieved that she would be free of him for a couple of days. At least until he glanced over his shoulder and smiled at her.
“Looks like I win the bet.” He leaned back in his chair, looking very comfortable in the small space. He’d removed his jacket and had rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt.
“We still have an hour to go.” She glanced down at her watch and noticed that it was closer to forty-five minutes left in the wager. “Are you going to tell me what led you to believe the Lufts wouldn’t make an offer?”
He laced his fingers behind his head. The motion caused his shirt to stretch tight over his chest and she found her eyes roaming over every inch of him. “They’re expecting.”
Her eyes flew to his and she nodded slowly. “Yes, I know. What does that have to do with them buying this house?”
“Can you imagine raising a child, who in eight months to a year will likely be crawling and walking, in a house built on a cliff?”
She blinked a few times and felt her spirits fall. She’d never thought of it that way. She started playing with her bracelets. The jingle sounds filled the office.
“I see by your look that you hadn’t.” His smile grew.
She felt the anger from deep within her. “Why didn’t you mention this earlier? I could have shown them another house.”