Issued to the Bride One Marine (Brides of Chance Creek Book 4)

by Cora Seton

  His hands dropped to the zipper of her jacket, and he tugged it down, wanting to be closer to her. Wanting to join with her and never let go. When he’d managed it, Lena shrugged out of it, never breaking off their kiss, then shucked off her shoulder holster, too. She seemed as ravenous as he was, desperate to be touching him. He lifted her sweater, wanting to touch her skin.

  Lena struggled with his jacket, and he broke off his exploration of her curves to shrug it off, tossing it to the ground near hers. He yanked off his shirt, uncaring about the frosty breeze playing over his skin. He wanted Lena pressed against him. Nothing between them.

  Lena must have wanted it, too, because when he was done struggling with his clothes, he turned to find her topless, her breasts such a sweet sight in the low light. When he cupped them, she closed her eyes, moaned—and shivered, too.

  “We won’t last long out here,” he told her, wishing they could.

  “Then let’s get going,” she urged him.

  “Here?” He gestured to the center of the maze.

  “Here,” she confirmed and stepped back until she was almost at the stone.

  Good idea, Logan thought. The frozen ground wouldn’t be comfortable. He set to work undoing his belt, and just as before, Lena moved more swiftly than he did. She kicked off her shoes, wriggled out of her jeans, made sure he was watching as she hooked a thumb under the waistband of her panties, slipped them off and almost delicately stepped out of them.

  “Your move,” she said. She was smiling.

  Logan loved her smile.

  In a moment he’d stripped naked, too, standing on their clothes in his sock feet to avoid freezing his toes. Lena had kept her socks on, too, which somehow made her nakedness even more delicious.

  “You’re beautiful,” he said. He moved forward, lifted her up so her legs curled around his waist and leaned her against the stone.

  Lena’s shriek must have woken up the entire county. “Cold! Cold, cold, cold!” She arched her back away from the stone, and Logan quickly pulled back. They heard the back door swing open.

  “Logan?” Brian called. “Everything all right out there?”

  “Everything’s fine,” Logan called back.

  They waited, holding their breath until they heard the door shut again, and then Lena collapsed against him in giggles.

  He’d never heard her laugh like that.

  “Now what?” he growled in mock frustration.

  “I don’t know,” she said, still helpless with laughter.

  He reached down with her still wrapped around him, clumsily snagged his jacket off the ground, maneuvered to place it against the stone and then leaned in again.

  “That better?” he asked when they were back in their original position.

  “Much.” Lena sobered and moved against him experimentally. “Oh, that’s good.”

  “Oh, yeah? How about this?” He lifted her a few inches, got himself in position and pushed inside her slowly.

  Lena moaned.

  Logan smiled. He liked making her moan. Liked making her feel good. Luckily, this was something he knew how to do. But it was cold, a breeze whispering over his bare back even as Lena kept his front warm. This was no time for slow lovemaking. They needed to keep their core temperatures up.

  As he increased his tempo, Lena moved with him, her hips meeting his thrusts, her breath speeding up with his. They fit together so perfectly, and when they were close like this, he fought for control.

  She was going to be his wife, Logan told himself. He would spend a lifetime with her. Suddenly, he couldn’t hold back. He wanted Lena to come, too, and—

  Lena cried out, and the raw pleasure in her voice took him with her into his orgasm. Helpless against the waves of sensation overtaking him, Logan gave in to it, rode out the storm while Lena arched against him, and cried out a final time.

  When it was over and he’d caught his breath again, Logan hugged her to him. “I want it to be like this forever,” he told her. “I want to feel like this—I want to be close to you.”

  She clung to him with equal strength. “I want that, too.”

  She was shivering, and Logan knew he needed to get her inside. “Come on, get dressed. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

  “What is it?” When he pulled out of her and set her down, he looked for a way to clean off and bowed to the inevitable. He scooped up some snow and gave himself a quick wash.

  Lena cocked her head. “That’s taking the whole he-man thing a little far, isn’t it?” But she followed suit, yelped again and shook herself and hurried into her clothes. Logan dressed as quickly as he could, and in under a minute they were loping through the maze and crossing Sadie’s frozen garden toward the back door.

  Inside, they rushed upstairs, split up to go to their separate rooms and met back up in the bathroom. As much as he’d have liked to fool around more under the shower, Logan wanted to show her his surprise even more.

  Fifteen minutes later, finally warm and wrapped in robes and slippers, he led the way down the hall to the door that led to the attic.

  “Why are we going here? It’ll be freezing. Is there a leak?” Suddenly animated, she grabbed for the handle.

  Logan let her go, chuckling as she flung open the door. Flicking on the light switch, she took the stairs two at a time and then halted at the top.

  “What… happened?” she called back down in surprise.

  “It’s for you.” Logan came up behind her. “A place of your own—where you can escape to now and then—even when it’s cold outside.”

  “But—why isn’t it cold in here?”

  “Because I insulated it—and there’s a radiator.” He pointed to the unit. “You can set it to any temperature you want. And here’s where you can store your books.” He led her to the bookshelves he’d built. “And if you want a view while you read, you can sit here.” He pointed to the window seat topped with comfortable cushions. “Or if you want to take it easy, you can always sit on the couch.” He patted it with pride. Far nicer than a horse blanket on a bale of hay.

  Lena surveyed the room, shaking her head. “How did you do all this without me knowing?”

  “Not very easily.” Logan made himself sound stern. “Do you know how nosy you are?”

  Lena laughed, then sobered. “I’m not nosy—I’m inquisitive when people start sneaking around!”

  “Did you figure out what we were up to?” he demanded.

  “Not one bit. I thought there was some threat to the ranch you weren’t telling me. I was getting pissed,” she admitted. “Thought I’d have to swing a crowbar at you again.”

  “I wouldn’t keep anything like that from you.” He drew her down to sit next to him on the couch. “Lena, this ranch is your pride and joy. I understand that. I’m not going to get in your way. I wish you could believe that.”

  She took a deep breath and let it out. “I think I’m starting to.” But she hopped back up and strode to the bookshelf. “Wait a minute. These aren’t mine. Where’d they come from?” she demanded.

  Pride swelled Logan’s chest. He’d ordered those books himself, and he was rewarded when Lena pulled first one and then another off the shelf where he’d placed them. She turned them over and read the back covers. “These sound fantastic!”

  “Glad you like them. They’re all for you. This whole room is. I installed a lock on the door, and you’ll be the only one with the key.”

  She looked up. Put the books back slowly. “You did this all for me?”

  “That’s right.” Logan patted the cushion beside him, and Lena crossed the room and sat down again, but she kept a distance between them.

  “Why?” she asked, but she was smiling at him. She knew why; she just wanted him to say it again.

  “Because I love you, Lena Reed, and I’d do just about anything to make you happy.”

  Lena couldn’t remember the last time she’d ridden in the passenger seat in any vehicle. She wasn’t a passenger seat kind of woman, but sh
e’d decided she’d give it a try today. She still couldn’t believe the transformation her life had undergone in the past twelve hours. She and Logan had made love again in the attic, then a third time when they’d finally gone to bed together. She’d woken with the feeling something wonderful was going to happen, had opened her eyes, seen Logan sleeping beside her and decided it already had.

  She liked Logan in her bed, liked his strength and solidity. He was like the standing stone, she realized. Something she could depend on. A rock to ground herself on.

  Logan drove expertly, and after a few minutes she relaxed and watched the scenery go by.

  Marriage.

  She hadn’t ever expected to face it.

  But then she’d never expected a man like Logan to walk into her life.

  When they arrived at Thayer’s Jewelers, she even allowed Logan to walk around and open the door for her before she got out of the truck. Why not be a lady for a day?

  Her mother would be proud. And she’d get the joke, too.

  Inside the store, however, some of her confidence drained away. She didn’t wear a lot of jewelry; studs in her ears were about the extent of it. Necklaces and bracelets could get caught when she was working—could even put her in danger.

  She’d never worn rings.

  Logan did most of the talking to Rose Johnson, who owned the store, even though Lena and Rose had known each other for years.

  “Take your time,” Rose said gently when she’d pulled out several trays of rings and placed them on the counter for Lena and Logan to look through. “But take a look at this one; it’s a little like your mother’s, isn’t it, Lena?”

  “How do you know that?” Lena was surprised. Had Rose known her mother?

  “I saw it in a photograph at your house. It’s on the mantel over the fireplace. Photographers used to take pictures like that all the time when a woman got engaged—posing women with their hand in view so you could see the ring. I notice things like that,” she added. “Part of the job, I guess.”

  “Got it.” Lena took the ring Rose indicated and immediately felt an affinity for it. A silver band, a large diamond flanked by two smaller ones. Beautiful, yet hinting at strength.

  She recalled her mother’s hands, so beautiful. So tender and loving when it came to her daughters. So strong when it came to tending her land.

  “You have to try on a bunch of them,” Logan said, and she did, but she kept coming back to that first one. She’d never felt her mother’s presence so strongly since Amelia passed away.

  Lena knew—somehow—she approved of this union.

  “I like this one,” she said, choosing the first ring.

  “I like it, too.” But Logan was looking at her, not the ring, and as he bent to kiss her, she had the feeling he wouldn’t even notice if she substituted an entirely different one.

  Men.

  When he slid it on her finger, it fit as if it had been made for her.

  Maybe it had.

  She took it off again and handed it to Rose to complete the sale. Rose held it a moment, got a distant look for a beat, then her eyes filled with tears. “It’s perfect,” she said.

  Lena’s heart squeezed. She lived with a sister who caught glimpses of the future, and she knew Rose had a similar talent, although more limited. How much could she see, though? Would her future with Logan be what she hoped it could be?

  Rose seemed to sense her concerns and reached out a hand to touch Lena’s wrist. “I mean it, Lena. It’s perfect.”

  Lena swallowed in a raw throat and made a show of looking at the other jewelry while Logan paid for the ring. How could things be going so right when they’d gone wrong for so long? Suddenly she had a premonition of her own—that this was the calm before the storm. She had to stay vigilant, even if she was getting married.

  But it was hard when Logan was near.

  When Rose handed it back to him, he slipped the ring on Lena’s finger again, kissed her full on the mouth and said, “There. Now you can’t change your mind.”

  “I guess not,” she said shyly as they left the store. She felt different with the ring on, and she held up her hand to see how it looked.

  “Morning!”

  Lena stumbled when she realized it was Harley who’d called out. He was walking with Ray and their uncle, Beau.

  “Morning,” she said, trying to skirt around them.

  “Hey, Lena. You thought any more about the job my uncle offered you?” Harley asked.

  She could feel Logan’s gaze sharpen on her, and she answered forcefully. “I’ve thought about it. Decided to give it a pass. I’m sure you’ll find someone else.”

  “You’re making a mistake, you know.” Harley followed her.

  “Why’s that?” Logan took a step forward that placed him square between her and the other men. Normally such a move would irritate her thoroughly.

  But not today.

  She was going soft.

  Lena touched the ring again. If Harley was smart, he’d back down, she thought as Logan moved even closer, but Harley had never struck her as the sharpest tool in the shed.

  “Because it’s a hell of an offer. That’s why. She should be proud to work for us,” Ray put in.

  Lena noticed Beau hadn’t joined the conversation. His gaze was resting on her hand.

  On her ring.

  “I see congratulations are in order.” He cut right over Logan’s answer to Ray’s assertion. He reached right out and lifted her hand for the twins to see. “Looks like someone beat you two to the punch, boys. Didn’t I hear you two fighting over this little filly? Guess I got fooled, too. Thought you were interested in running a ranch.”

  “Thought I told you I already have a ranch to run.” Lena snatched her hand back. “Come on, Logan. I’m done with this.”

  “Well, I’m not done. What the hell are you thinking, Lena?” Harley asked. “You and me were just getting started.”

  “We weren’t starting anything.”

  His expression darkened, and Lena realized too late she had started something. A feud with this family of misfits.

  “Like hell we weren’t.” Harley leaned closer. Gone was the “aw shucks” manner that had made her relax around him. Now she saw something else.

  Something dark.

  “You wanted what I had to offer. You know you did,” he went on. “And I went out on a limb for you.”

  “Shut your trap, Harley. No one likes a sore loser. Told you she wasn’t interested in you,” Ray said.

  Lena followed her instincts and strode toward Logan’s truck. Logan followed only a moment later.

  “What did you say to them?” she demanded as they settled into their seats.

  “That if they come looking for a fight, we’ll be ready for them.”

  Chapter Twelve

  ‡

  When Logan asked that their wedding might be sooner rather than later, he expected Lena to protest, but she agreed far more readily than he expected.

  “Why buck the pattern?” she said lightly when he asked her about it.

  Logan knew what she meant; all her sisters had married less than a month or two after meeting their husbands. Why should she be different? Thank God for tradition.

  He couldn’t exactly put his finger on it, but something was pushing him to speed up the process. For one thing, it would get Jack here quickly. He hadn’t seen Alice display interest in any other man—except the one who had offered her the movie job. He wouldn’t call that interest, either, except he’d seen her on her phone texting more and more often these past few weeks. When she signed off, her cheeks were flushed and her eyes sparkled. A quiet question or two revealed it was all job-related. Whether her excitement was for the work—or her contact on the movie—Logan couldn’t say, but his gut told him it was a bit of both. Regardless, she was a woman going places, and if this movie guy didn’t make a play for her, sooner or later some local cowboy would. The General had made it clear that all five of the men in his task forc
e needed to bring this mission to fruition; all five of them needed to marry—or lose the ranch.

  Still, it wasn’t the thought of losing the ranch that motivated him. With four of his daughters married, he doubted the General would follow through on his threat. On the other hand, the General wasn’t exactly known for being a reasonable man. If he got angry, he might lash out, and Logan didn’t want to take any chances.

  What really propelled him to move forward, however, was a sense of foreboding. The sense that their enemies were gathering strength, getting ready to hit the ranch again. He’d had the St. Michael dream three nights in a row, waking up in a cold sweat beside Lena each time. It still felt like a miracle to lie down to sleep with her each night; what made his dreams so off the wall when his reality was so great?

  He could only blame the Ellises for their resurgence. He didn’t like the way Lena had “accidents” when they were around. He hadn’t liked the look of old Beau Ellis one bit, either, but when he’d poked around in town, no one could tell him much about any of them, and he didn’t have time for a more thorough investigation.

  With his wedding date set for three weeks hence, Logan had little bandwidth for much else than his usual chores, and finishing up the stable, although he was involved—somewhat—in planning the ceremony and reception. To be honest, it was Cass, Sadie and Alice who were spearheading the initiative to get this wedding off the ground. Lena had definite opinions, and she made them known, but her sisters continually had to remind her of elements she had forgotten to even consider.

  Logan tried to stay out of it, except when directly questioned. He wanted Lena to have the day of her dreams, but it soon became clear Lena hadn’t been the type of woman to dream about a wedding. He loved her all the more for that. And he thought the celebration she and her sisters were ironing out sounded like it would be a lot of fun, with a minimum of fuss.

  Just the way he liked things.

  Now it was time to let his family in on the news. First things first; he’d call Anthony and get the lay of the land.

  “It’s me,” Logan said when Anthony picked up the phone, “and before you ask, I’m going to call Mom right after I hang up with you—and tell her about my fiancée.”