He looked rather stern when he wanted to.
Rubbing the palms of my suddenly clammy hands on my pants, I said, “Oh, uhm, right. I’ve kissed four guys. They were nice. We dated.”
His mouth opened, then he shut it.
“Fuck,” he muttered, and turned his attention to the pasta.
He scooped out lasagna onto two plates and started heating one in the microwave.
I cleared my throat and tried to think of a question I wanted to know that wouldn’t involve him and other women at all. I’m not sure I wanted to know.
“So, why did you tell me to go home the other night?”
He frowned, thinking. “Which night? Oh, the bar. You were drinking and there were too many guys standing around. Women get drunk and people take advantage. I just didn’t want you to get in trouble.”
“Oh.”
“And that fucking dress,” he muttered, while shaking his head. “I mean, not that I didn’t like it but you can’t wear that shit. Ever.”
My eyes narrowed at him.
Besides the dress comment, which was bizarre enough, it seemed like he really had to think about the bar that night. Maybe it was like Brock said and he had been messed up. It wouldn’t be the first time that I hadn’t picked up the vibe that someone was drunk. I just hadn’t smelled it on him.
He poured two glasses of wine while he waited on the second plate and got out the bread.
“Okay, my turn. Have you ever gotten close to having sex with them?”
“Uhm, what?” I coughed, shocked by his boldness.
He arched his eyebrow at me.
“No. They were nice, but no. Why are you asking?”
“Just curious,” he smiled innocently. “Just getting to know you. You’re always kind of shy.”
I narrowed my eyes at him.
He looked around the kitchen for something after placing the sourdough on the island.
“What were they like?” he asked nonchalantly.
“Who?”
He looked back over at me and then the counter. “The four idiot guys.”
I shrugged as he came to stand in front of me. Once again, he put his hands on my knees and spread them wide.
My breath hitched at the forcefulness of it. It seemed bolder and a lot more insistent than the last time.
“Sorry, need in the drawer again,” he smirked.
My core was about to melt from lust as he dug around again in the drawer and came up with a spatula. He shrugged, closed the drawer and moved away.
“Well?” he asked.
“Uhm,” was all I could manage. “Oh, the four. Right.”
He was smiling like a lunatic while he spread butter and garlic over two pieces of the sourdough. I was beginning to wonder if he was doing this on purpose.
“They were nice. The kissing was nice.”
He put the bread in his toaster oven, then grabbed the glasses of wine and brought one over to me.
I took it from him as he resumed his position between my legs.
He took a drink of the wine. “They were nice. Hmm. Drink a little Kate, I think you’ll like it. It’s sweet.”
I took a sip and swallowed. It was very good and sweet like he had said. I took a larger drink as he watched me. I nodded that I liked it.
His eyes were mischievous as he leaned into me and came close to my face. I could smell the wine on his breath and I froze, trying not to start panting.
“As a friend, I would like to give you a not-so-nice kiss Kaitlyn.”
I nearly dropped my glass, but it made it to the counter before I embarrassed myself. I licked my lips. His face was so close to mine I could see the flecks of some darker shades of blue in his eyes.
“I think that would be a bad idea Logan.”
He nodded slowly. “The worst idea ever.”
I opened my mouth to tell him to move back when his lips found mine. They softly began running back and forth, barely grazing the skin. It was like he wanted to kiss me, but he was waiting on something. I leaned forward a little and pressed my lips to his.
He took over with an energy I had never experienced before. His mouth slanted over mine and I slid my hands to his chest. He pulled my hips forward into him roughly so that my legs were spread around his waist. His tongue dove into my mouth deeply and dipped in and out. I felt one of his large hands slide up my back and tangle into my hair.
I whimpered and clutched at him. My body was completely on fire as he plundered.
He pulled back suddenly, placing one last kiss on my bottom lip. His hand slid up to cup my jaw and he growled.
I blinked up at him, completely dazed.
His eyes wandered to my mouth. “Hmm. That was a lovely not-so-nice kiss.”
I shivered and nodded as he stepped away to fix our plates.
Ahh gawd. What was I doing?
Chapter Six
I woke up the next morning to darkness. My internal clock must have gone off because I hadn’t set my cell alarm the night before. It was Friday and I had the day off to clean Logan’s spotless house.
The covers on the bed had been kicked to the bottom in the middle of the night. I had tossed and turned, feeling hot even in just a pair of panties. The bottom sheets felt good against my stomach as I stretched.
I lay there thinking about what had happened before dinner with Logan and couldn’t come up with a solid reason why it had happened. Were we friends? Did friends do that?
After dinner, he had wandered down to the basement with me, carrying the bottle of wine we had started. He had asked me a few very innocent questions and nothing to do with my dating life or kissing. I had finished unpacking as he watched and was on my third glass of wine as he talked to me about his Corvette some more.
Overall it had been a relaxing evening. Then he had wandered back upstairs looking a little dazed and had gone to bed.
It was strange living with someone to begin with, but living with him was even stranger.
I rolled over and grabbed my cell off the side table. I needed to text Andi.
Kate: Hey girl.
Andi: Hey where are you? Someone said they saw your car being towed yesterday.
Kate: Well…that’s a long story, can you talk?
My phone started ringing. Andi Calling.
“Hey,” I answered.
She launched in before I could explain. “What’s going on Kate? Julia said your house was being sold or something? Where are you?”
I sighed. “Everything is okay. My uncle decided to sell the house so I packed up what I could in the crap car and went to the clinic to drop off Bells to you. I’m sorry I lied about it. I just wasn’t ready to talk and I’m still figuring it out. My car got towed to the mechanic. It should be done today sometime according to Logan.”
“What do you mean according to Logan?”
I hesitated. “Uhm, I advertised to be a live-in housekeeping on one of the breakroom boards and he found it. He hired me.”
She laughed. “So you’re living with Dr. Matthews?”
I sat up a little more in bed and pulled a sheet up around my waist. “Well no, I’m not living with him. I’m going to clean his house for room and board until I can find an apartment. He said I could stay for a while, but I need to get everything straightened out then I’ll be out of here.”
I could hear Andi laughing some more.
“Andi! Seriously, you cow, I’m just here temporarily and it’s not exactly funny.”
She seemed to get a hold of herself and calmed down. “You’re totally right, it’s not funny at all about the house or the car. But living there? What made you decide to do that?”
I grumbled. “I wasn’t given much choice, he sort of demanded that I do it and had my stuff hauled here. The place is spotless. I’m not even sure why I’m here. And he’s acting weird.”
“Weird how?” she asked.
“Well, he says we’re friends, but then he threw me over his shoulder and carried me to the kitchen last nig
ht. Then he asked me a bunch of questions and he kissed me. That’s not normal.”
“He did WHAT? Wow. So he’s finally fucking making a move. I’m totally going to call the girls. We should go drinking!”
“What? No. We’re just friends. I guess. This is just temporary. He’s just being friendly.”
She chuckled. “Kate, was the kiss on the cheek or on the mouth?”
I frowned. “On the mouth.”
“Okay, was there some feeling up going on?”
“No, I was on the counter and—”
“Whaaat? Oh, my gawd. That’s kinky. Is he big?”
I ran a hand down my face. Maybe I shouldn’t have called Andi. She could make a mountain out of a grain of sand in some situations.
“Andi, calm your underwear. I’m not going to explain it. It was just a kiss, nothing more, nothing less. We talked and had some wine while I got unpacked.”
“Kate, sweetie, it isn’t normal for a grown, hot man to kiss you, or carry you, or help you unpack your things and just be your friend.”
I sighed. “Yeah, but he said we weren’t dating and he was just being friendly. It’s really confusing if it’s anything else. Uhg, I don’t know Andi. He has some issues.”
My eyes scanned the room now that some light had started to filter down the basement stairs. There was a tray with a flower sitting at the bottom of the staircase. It hadn’t been there the night before.
Andi was talking. “Look all I’m saying is that, men don’t act like that if you’re just friends. If he’s fucking around with you I’ll murder him though. You probably need to ask him what the hell is up very bluntly. You’re too nice sometimes.”
“Hey Andi, do friends give each other flowers?”
She laughed again. “Oh gawd, this is almost painful. Call me later!”
She hung up.
I texted Brock next and gave him Andi’s phone number.
Deal with that Andi.
I got out of bed and walked toward the tray. It had a plate on it with some cream cheese, pastries and strawberries. The single flower was a fresh pink rose.
There was a note, so I picked it up. It was written in black marker. Hope you slept well. I was going to wake you up but you looked too peaceful. I stole a not so nice kiss though. “X” marks the spot. Logan
I dropped the note and frowned. What X?
Walking over to the bathroom, I flipped on the light to the room. I looked again. Nothing. I checked my face in the mirror for any sign of what he was talking about. Nothing. I checked my belly and arms. Nothing. Fishing a hand mirror out of my bag I started checking my back. Nothing.
Then I went lower. There was a black X on the underside of one of my butt cheeks and at the edge of my lace panties.
Holy mother!
I nearly dropped the mirror but caught it at the last second. Broken mirror and seven years of bad luck avoided.
There was a beep on my phone and I checked it.
Text from Logan. I didn’t remember programming his number in. In fact, I had never had his number.
Logan: Hope you enjoy breakfast.
Kate: I found your X Logan. No more kisses!
Logan: You just found one?
I stared at the phone then looked back in the mirror. I started looking around again, then lifted my arm. There was a small X on the side of my right breast.
I gasped. What was wrong with him?!
Kate: OMG! Do you frequently molest your houseguests while they’re sleeping?!!!
Logan: I’ve never had a houseguest. So, the answer is no. This is my first offense. I have cuffs if you want to arrest me…
I gasped. What the hell was wrong with him suddenly? Cuffs?
Kate: I don’t think this is what friends do Logan. Have you lost your mind??
Logan: This friend does.
Kate: Are you at work? I need to choke you!
Logan: That wouldn’t be very friendly Kaitlyn. I’m upstairs about to shower. Do you want to join me?
I nearly dropped the phone. THAT was definitely not within our agreement.
Kate: I hope you drown!
Logan: Did you find the third kiss yet? See you in a few. We’re going out today.
I heard some movement upstairs in what I assumed was the bathroom. My imagination got carried away wondering if he was naked.
My phone beeped again. Incoming picture from Logan.
I put my hand to my mouth when I saw what he had sent me. It was a picture of him making a kissy face. His black hair was messed up and he was leaning down over the counter. I could see his pecks and his arm muscles bulging because he had his elbows on the counter.
I couldn’t see anything else but that answered my question. He was at least partially naked. And gorgeous.
Logan: Want to show me yours?
Kate: NO!
I heard laughter upstairs and I growled.
Where was that stupid third kiss at?
I checked every inch of my body and couldn’t find it. He was out of his mind. He probably just said it to tease me. I glanced over the counter to find my face wash and saw my clit stimulator sitting on its end. There was a tiny black X on the tip.
I shut the bathroom door quickly and locked it.
The man was a menace. What happened to the indifferent doctor that acted like I was a pariah? This was a whole different type of man upstairs, with a side I didn’t even know he had.
I showered with the door firmly locked and did my thing. The marker was hard to get off even after scrubbing at the spots for twenty minutes. I could still see the faint outlines.
Not knowing where we were going today I didn’t know what to wear. I looked over my clothes still on the couch, then opened the closet. Hung in front of all the clothes was a pretty blue sweater I had bought last year but had never worn. A pair of old jeans that I hadn’t worn in a while was hanging beside it.
It had another note on it. Wear this. X
He had been in my closet. Great.
I wondered if I would stumble across a note in my panties so I dug into that box. I didn’t find one which was a relief.
My eyes drifted to the pants and sweater. I thought it was a little high-handed that he was telling me what to wear, but he would probably just give me some excuse as to why it was “friendly” and not overbearing.
I got dressed, did my makeup, then sat down on one of the chairs to eat my breakfast. I heard him moving around the house and thought I had heard him at the top of the basement stairs at least twice. He hadn’t come down though. It was a small miracle.
Gathering the items from breakfast, I carried my tray up to the kitchen. There were no dishes from the previous night’s dinner and none from his breakfast, if he had any. I washed my plate off, dried it and put it in the cabinet.
Turning around in the kitchen, spying a small TV on the counter with a remote sitting on top. I wasn’t sure if he was done with his sexy, naked, hot shower yet.
I wasn’t even thinking about it. Not one bit.
Flipping on the TV, I scrolled through the channels until I got to the news. There wasn’t much going on in the sensational world of reporting today. Stocks, politics, people yelling at each other.
There was a news feed blurb about a suspected serial killer operating in the northern states. I would have to remember to text Liv about it. She was constantly giving us all nightmarish tales of true crime drama from the books she read. Life according to Liv, was one gigantic possibility of becoming someone’s next murder victim.
Or a cat named Bell’s trying to kill everyone. Serial killer. Cat. It was really all the same to Liv.
When I turned around Logan was leaning on the island watching me. He had a baseball cap on, jeans and some kind of jersey.
“Oh!” I yelped.
“Hey, sorry to sneak up on you. Anything interesting?”
“Uhm, not really. Stocks are down, politics still suck and there’s a serial killer on the loose.”
He laughed. “Be
tter not tell Olivia. She’ll be nailing the windows shut at their house.”
I smiled and turned off the TV.
He produced a matching baseball cap to his. “We’re going to see some arena football today. They’re having an exhibition game around one. I have a couple of errands to do, they may take a while. Then I thought we might grab some lunch before we go to the game. Do you like sports?”
I nodded my head. “Yeah, football. That’s about it.”
He smiled wide. “Excellent. I love it. This is a local team, so it’s kind of small but I like to watch them occasionally.”
“Uhm, don’t you have to go to work?”
He scratched his chin. “Nope, I’m on vacation this entire week. Nearly forgot about it to be honest. I haven’t taken one in two years. I was planning on going in today, but since you’re here we’ll hang out. Like friends.”
I huffed. “Right. Friends only.”
He chuckled and took a pill bottle off the counter, popping one in his mouth.
“Correct, friendly company. I have this gala thing tomorrow night for a medical association I belong to. Would you be interested in going? As a friend?”
I shook my head. “No, but thank you. I don’t think it would be my thing.”
“Never know until you try. Then again, those things tend to make me miserable as well. It’s incredibly boring without company.”
He gave me a pouty face and I rolled my eyes.
“Do you always act like this at home?”
He thought for a minute. “No actually, you’re a terrible influence. I slept really well last night though and just feel better I guess.”
“So, you’re usually acting like your grumpy old self even at home?”
He grimaced. “Old. Ugh. Don’t remind me.”
I giggled. “You’re only eleven years older than I am. It’s a stretch but thirty-six is not old. Ask me again when you’re forty.”
He frowned at me. “Wait. When did you turn twenty-five?”
I bit the inside of my lip. Crap. I didn’t mean for that to come out. I should have kept my mouth shut.
“Tomorrow,” I mumbled. “It’s just a date on a calendar.”
He tilted his head to the side and looked at me. “It’s not just a date. It’s the day you were given life in the world. It’s a spectacular date. Now you have to go with me to the gala.”
Break (Lakefield Book 3) Page 6