Jude walked to the windows and peered out into the velvet darkness. “Oh, Logan. This is so beautiful. Sometimes I forget how talented you are.”
She turned, smiling. Logan had stopped at the top of the stairs, where he stood staring at her, wearing an inscrutable expression.
“God, Jude. You’re gorgeous.”
She felt the heat rising in her face. “You make me blush more than anyone I’ve ever known.”
He crossed to her, took her into his arms. “Why is that, do you think? I only speak the truth.”
“I think it’s because you say things I never expected to hear from you. And it makes me feel ...” She searched for the word. “Desired.”
“You are. Very desired.” He kissed her neck and then her lips. “And loved, too.” He took a deep, steadying breath and squared his shoulders. “I said it before, but Jude, I want to be clear. I love you. I’m in love with you.”
She searched his eyes, falling into the depths of the brown irises. Licking her lips, she laid a hand on his cheek.
“Logan, I have always loved you. Maybe in a different way than what you’re saying, but I have. This is all happening so fast for me, and I need a little time to catch up to you. I don’t want to say anything until I’m sure. Does that make sense?”
“Of course it does.” He brushed hair off her forehead and framed her face. “I hope it doesn’t mean you won’t stay tonight.”
She smiled and fit her body even closer to his. “I asked you to bring me to your house, didn’t I? It wasn’t to play pool.”
He laughed. “I’m glad to hear that. Though I’m thinking a game of strip pool might not be out of the question.”
His mouth swallowed her answer as he finally gave in to the overwhelming need. He opened her lips beneath his and tangled their tongues. Jude shifted to give him better access to her and slipped her hands under his shirt. She ran her nails lightly over his back, humming in pleasure at the feel of his muscles.
“You know all those mornings you’ve come to drink my coffee?”
“Mmm hmmm...” Logan was distracted by her neck, tonguing the erratic pulse there.
“Did you realize I was ogling you every time you left?”
He straightened, smirking. “Really? So every time you were giving me a hard time about mooching off your coffee, you were thinking of this?” He grabbed her hands and moved them lower.
Jude laughed. “You’ve caught me.” She found the hem of his shirt and tugged it upward. Logan stepped away just enough that she could take it off him. She rubbed her hands over his chest, as liquid heat settled lower within her, giving her the courage to let her lips follow her hands. She trailed her tongue over his pectorals and then on the flat discs of his nipples.
Logan growled between a clenched jaw. “Bed.” He scooped her up in one fluid movement and dropped her on the king-sized mattress.
Giggling, Jude scooted toward the pillows. Logan unbuckled his belt, undid his shorts and kicked them off. Keeping his eyes fastened on Jude, he slid off his boxers as well.
Her heart pounded, looking at him standing before her, lustful and unashamed. She swallowed hard, torn between the desire to reach for him and her inclination to dive beneath the covers of the bed.
He crawled onto the bed, smiling as he approached her.
“You look like a lion.” Jude curled up close to the headboard. “Like a predator.”
He laughed. “And you look entirely too dressed.” He reached for the edge of her sundress, but Jude covered his hand.
“Logan...” She bit her lip, trying to decide how to go on. “I’m not...you know, I’m not the same girl I was thirty years ago.” She touched his chest, trailed her hand down his stomach. “I’m not in the same shape you are.”
He brushed her hair back, nuzzled her collarbone. “Jude, I saw you last night. Has something changed since then?”
She shook her head. “Of course not. But you were—you know, we’d both had a lot to drink. And it was pretty dark. Plus, the heat of the moment--”
Logan moved the straps of her dress from her shoulders so that they hung on her arms, making the bodice sag tantalizingly between her breasts. “I hadn’t had that much to drink. Not as much as you. And it might have been dark, but I have excellent night vision. There was plenty of heat, sure, but Jude...” He dipped his head low to plant a kiss on the top of her breast. “Believe me. You’re beautiful.”
He pulled the dress down the rest of the way to her waist, ran his lips over the soft skin that rose above her strapless bra. Jude closed her eyes and leaned back, sighing in pleasure.
Logan reached behind her and unclasped the bra, smiling in her eyes at the sight of her breasts in his hands. He took advantage of her pose—arms behind her, chest thrust into prominence—to pull a nipple into his mouth. He suckled, bit gently and then covered her other breast with his hand. When he moved to the other nipple, Jude moaned.
He kissed down the middle, to her stomach, pausing only long enough to tongue her naval before he eased the dress the rest of the way off her, groaning when he saw the tiny purple lace of her underwear.
“Are you trying to give me a heart attack?” He slipped a finger under the top and ran it back and forth, grinning up at Jude. “If I had known you were wearing these all night, no way we would have made it through dinner.”
“Glad you like them.” Jude fell back into the pillows and arched as Logan rubbed lower, covering the heat at her center with two fingers. He kept up steady pressure through the lace even as his mouth followed along. He used his teeth to drag the underwear down just enough above her knees. Hovering above, his fingers still moving within her folds, he looked up at her.
“Is this okay?” Without waiting for a definite answer, but going slow enough that she could stop if she wanted, he lowered his mouth to replace his fingers. Jude writhed and amped up her moan to a near-shriek as the sensation broke over her in a crashing wave. Her breath came in small pants, her hands moving restlessly over his hair, until his tongue plunged within her.
“Logan!” She dug her nails into his shoulders, his name both a prayer and praise. He slowed his pace, kissing her down her legs to her feet while she lay liquid, boneless, arms next to her head on the pillows.
When he joined her, one finger making circles up her torso to her breasts again, Jude turned her head and smiled. She raised one hand to snag his neck, drag him closer for a kiss that made him desperate.
When she pulled back a little, she kept her eyes open, on his, and moved her hand to touch him. Logan sucked in a breath.
Jude had never touched a man other than Daniel; they’d been together for so many years that their only experience was each other. Closing her hand around Logan’s smooth hardness, a part of her still marveled at the fact that Logan wanted her, that she had elicited this response in him.
She held him tightly, moving up and down, her eyes never leaving his face. Pleasure was etched there; his eyes were closed, his mouth slightly open as he groaned. She rolled up onto her knees for an easier angle, but he caught her arm.
“I can’t take much more. “ His voice was rough. “I need you, Jude. I need to be in you.”
She slid onto him and kissed his chest. “I want you.” She held his face between her hands and opened her mouth over his lips as he rolled her to her back. Without breaking the kiss, he raised himself over her and slid within.
They stopped, for just a moment, their eyes locked. Logan smoothed her hair from her face.
“I love you, Jude.”
She reached up, touched his cheek, raised her head for the most tender kiss she had ever known. She fell back again as he began to move, slowly at first and then faster, with more aggression.
Her fingernails raked his back, and she arched up to meet every thrust. The pleasure built again to the point where Jude felt she had to let it go or she might shatter into a million pieces.
She half-screamed his name, tightening around Logan in pulsing spasms that u
ndid him. He plunged into her one last time as every muscle in his body tensed and he roared her name.
He fell onto the bed next to her, rolling her with him so that their connection never broke.
They were quiet, not sleeping but content. Logan stroked her hair, ran his fingers through the strands.
“Logan?” Jude’s voice was muffled against his shoulder.
“Hmm?”
“Do we have to go back tonight and get all that stuff at the pavilion?”
He shook, and she knew he was laughing.
“No. I texted Karl on the way here, asked him to clean everything up and leave it on my deck.”
She pulled back, eyes widening. “So he knew we were here? The whole time?”
Logan rubbed her back and pulled her closer. “No, of course not. Don’t you trust me? I told him I was taking you home. My car is in the garage, so there’s no way he could know that I meant I was taking you to my home, not yours.”
“Ah.” She relaxed again, looped her arm around his neck, shifted only slightly to let him kiss the pulse in her throat.
“So...does that mean dessert is downstairs on your deck?”
He propped up on his elbow to look down at her. “Do I take it you’re hungry?”
She smiled. “I could use a little something sweet. I kind of worked up an appetite.”
Logan chuckled and rolled over, breaking from her. He stretched once, reaching up as his body became one large quiver. He jumped from the bed, unabashedly nude, and reached over to give her rump a light smack.
“If it’s food you want, it’s food you’ll get. Besides, you need to hydrate and fuel up for round two.”
“Round two?” Jude’s eyes were round as she watched him disappear into the bathroom. She flopped back onto the pillow and laughed. Life was so strange. Here she was, a grandmother of all things, having mad sex with the hottest man she knew. In her wildest dreams, she never would have imagined herself here, doing...this.
She hopped up from the bed and followed Logan, eyes dancing.
“Logan!” she called. “Could round two include ice cream?”
***
Jude made to The Tide it in time for opening the next morning, but she wasn’t alone.
“Driving here with you is so much better than running down on the beach,” Logan observed. “Not that you’re not worth it.”
Jude slid him a sideways glance. “Aha. So this sudden passion for running in the early mornings wasn’t about my coffee, was it?”
He moved his hand off the steering wheel to squeeze hers. “I love your coffee, but it was more about seeing you.”
She laughed and then had to stifle a yawn. “You know, I’m going to be totally worthless today. And what am I going to say when Sadie and Mack ask where my car is?”
“Here’s a thought. Tell them the truth.”
“Oh, okay. I can hear it now. ‘Sadie, my car is still at home in my garage because I spent last night with Logan, at his house, having the most mind-blowing sex of my life. Over and over again. And then he insisted on driving me to my house so I could get clothes for today, and while we were there, he jumped my bones again.’ Yeah, that’s going to go over well.”
They rolled to a stop sign, and Logan turned toward her, eyebrows raised. “The most mind-blowing sex of your life? Really?” The grin on his face couldn’t have been any smugger.
Jude rolled her eyes. “That would be the one part you heard.”
“You could just say I gave you a ride this morning. Let her draw her own conclusions.”
“Her own conclusions wouldn’t be much different than what I just said.” Jude leaned her head back on the seat as Logan pulled into the parking lot. When he took the keys from the ignition, she swiveled her eyes toward him.
“You know it’s not that I’m ashamed of anything we did, right? I’m not trying to hide it. It’s just going to take some time for me to get used to the idea.”
Logan leaned across and brushed his lips over her mouth. “I know. It’s going to be weird at first, but we’ll get through it.”
“Part of me wants to keep it quiet because...it feels good to have something that’s just ours. But I know realistically that doesn’t work in the Cove, let alone with...oh, my God, Logan! The posse. What are they going to say?”
Logan glanced away. “They’ll be fine. They want you to be happy, Jude. They’re our friends.”
“I know you’re right, but still. Don’t you think they’ll be a little surprised? A little shocked?”
Shrugging, Logan climbed out of the car. “We’ll cross that bridge. Too early to think about it this morning.”
It was oddly comfortable to have Logan with her as she unlocked the door. She was used to meeting him at the restaurant each morning, but walking in together, having spent the night in his arms, offered a different level of intimacy.
“This is nice.” Jude went through her normal routine while Logan made coffee. “If I had known how good you were at opening a restaurant, I might have hired you years ago to take over for me.”
“About that.” Logan turned and leaned against the counter. “I was thinking. Have you considered hiring someone to open for you a few mornings a week?”
Jude frowned. “No. Why would I?”
He tugged her flush to his body and kissed her. “Because I’m not as young as I used to be, and after a night of mind-blowing sex, to quote you, I might not always want to get up at the crack of dawn. And I’m damned sure not staying in bed while you come in and do it, so get that thought right out of your head.”
Jude pulled away and stuck her tongue at him over her shoulder. “But this is my thing. I always open the Tide.”
“Yep, I know. But things can change, Jude. You and I are living examples. I’m not asking you to turn your life upside for me, but wouldn’t it be nice to travel a little? Spend a week in Napa? Or go to Italy?”
She took out the eggs and tilted her head, considering. “I’ve wanted to do that. I always thought eventually I would. Daniel and I--” She broke off and turned her back to Logan.
“Hey.” He rubbed her shoulder. “Don’t do that. You never worried about bringing up Daniel in front of me before. Don’t do it now.”
“I feel...I don’t know. Kind of funny. Not like I’m cheating on him, though I thought I might feel that way. But like it would be easier for you if we pretended I didn’t have a past.”
“Jude, if it weren’t for Daniel, you and I wouldn’t have each other. I’m grateful to him. He’s still my best friend, and he’s still your first love. Nothing is going to take him away, and it shouldn’t.”
Tears filled Jude’s eyes, and she smiled through them. “Thanks. I needed to hear that.”
“I want us to talk about him. Hell, if I know Daniel, he’s grinning now. At the very least, I think given everything else, he’d give us his blessing.”
“I hope so. I know he wanted me to be happy. He told me that. But I told him there wasn’t ever going to be another love for me.” She twisted to look up at Logan again. “Do you think that makes me a liar?”
He kissed the tip of her nose. “No, I think that makes you human. What else would you say? And when your husband is dying, I would think the last thing you want to think about is starting over.”
“True.” Jude wiped off the counter next to the range. “You know what I said a little bit ago? About the most mind-blowing sex of my life? That wasn’t just to inflate your ego, you know.” She bit her lip and leaned a hip against the fridge.
“Daniel and I had a wonderful life. And things in that area were really terrific.” She met Logan’s eyes. “We’d been together for so long, so many years. There were rough times, sure, but in the last few years, with the kids grown and so many pressures off, it was really good.”
He nodded.
“But last night was incredible, Logan. Feeling wanted again was amazing. Feeling desirable. And feeling that way with someone who has been like a best friend to me for so
long, too—it was icing on the cake.”
Logan grinned. “Don’t you mean whipped cream on my--”
“Stop!” She swatted his arm as the blush crept up her face. He caught her hand and pulled her close again, pausing for just a moment to look into her eyes before he kissed her thoroughly.
They were lost in the kiss, in each other, when Jude heard a loud throat clearing, and Sadie’s voice rang out from across the room.
“What’s that you’re doing in my kitchen?”
They jerked apart, more out of surprise than anything else. Mack stood back, his face pink and embarrassed humor in his eyes. Sadie, on the other hand, looked from Jude to Logan expectantly.
“Well? Which of you is going to tell me what’s happening here?”
Logan leaned down to drop one more kiss on Jude’s lips. “As much as I’d love to stay and fill you in, I need to get to work. I missed a lot of time yesterday.” He rounded the bar and kissed Sadie’s cheek as he passed her, and then clapped Mack on the shoulder.
“Good luck, man.”
Jude busied herself whipping eggs in the large bowl. “Everything is ready. I think the coffee’s done. You want me to make you up a cup?” She couldn’t quite meet Sadie’s eyes.
“Mack, take this rag and go wipe down the deck tables.” The older woman snagged a towel from the hook.
“But I thought I’d have some coffee.”
“Get going. I’ll make it up and bring some out to you.”
Grumbling all the way, Mack took the rag and went outside.
“Now you.” Sadie came into the kitchen and crossed her arms over her chest. “You have something you need to tell me?”
“Hmm?” Jude wondered if playing dumb would buy her any time at all. Good God, where were her normal early bird diners? Anyone who might distract this old woman, who had been a second mother to her and had fixed her with beady eyes.
“How long has it been going on?”
Jude gave up. “Not long. Just—the night before last. He came in right after Joseph left, to make sure I was okay. And I had a little limoncello, and then. . well, you know what they say. One thing led to another...”
The Posse Page 11