Won't Go Home Without You

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Won't Go Home Without You Page 8

by Cheris Hodges


  When he found her spot, Robin let him know as she bounced harder and screamed louder. Her pleasure made him inch closer and closer to a climax of his own.

  “Robin, Robin, Robin,” he repeated like a prayer, then exploded. She fell against his chest and quivered.

  “Wow,” she moaned as she rolled over onto her side. Logan wrapped his arms around her, keeping her close.

  “Merry Christmas, baby.”

  “Merry Christmas, indeed.” She kissed his sweaty shoulder.

  “I’m glad you decided to spend the holiday with me. Never thought that we were going to be like this.”

  “Then you didn’t notice my dress when I walked in?”

  “Your smile distracted me. Made me stop breathing for a minute.”

  Robin laughed. “So, what are we going to do for an encore?”

  Logan slipped his hand between her thighs. “Well, I know what I’d like to do.”

  “What about all that food that you cooked? Shouldn’t we eat it?” she quipped.

  “You know I have a microwave.”

  She placed her hand on top of his. “Good. Because I’m really not hungry.”

  Logan smiled at the memory, realizing that he missed being with his wife more than anything today. Christmas was their time. A holiday he looked forward to. After the family time was over, he and Robin would spend the next three days in bed.

  She used to say that she wanted a Christmas baby. Then the unthinkable happened and they knew having their own Christmas baby wouldn’t happen. Before Kamrie’s lie, Logan had been willing to look into adoption. Robin was adamant about being a mother and he understood why. She grew up around a lot of love and she wanted to give that to a child or children of her own. After the cancer, Logan told her that there were many other ways to have a family.

  In May, they had started the process of choosing the right agency to handle the adoption. Robin wanted an infant, but Logan had been open to an older child. Then she had the bright idea of adopting three kids at once. Maybe a group of siblings. Logan needed a little more convincing on that idea.

  Glancing at his watch, he wondered how Nina’s wedding had been. Robin was probably the most beautiful matron of honor ever—especially if she wore her hair up. She always looked regal in a gown with an updo.

  Some of their best times as adults had been going to hospital galas and watching Robin charm the crowd with her beauty. Then when no one was watching, he’d kiss her on her royal neck.

  Damn it, he missed his wife. He missed his life and . . . Was somebody at the door? How long had he been vegging out on the sofa? Figuring that it was Liam, he crossed over to the door and opened it.

  “Robin?”

  Chapter 8

  Robin didn’t understand why she expected the house to look different. It did not. But she didn’t get a warm feeling standing in the doorway. She wasn’t happy to be home, she just felt that she had to be there. The fact that she’d considered being with Terell gave her pause.

  “I-I needed to be here,” she said. “My sister and her husband should celebrate their day without my tears.”

  “I never wanted to make you cry.”

  She pushed past him and walked inside. It was still hard to think that this was her house. When she left six months ago, she had no plans to return. Her husband was a cheater with a baby and she wasn’t about to stay there and be his fool.

  But she was back. Still unsure if she was a fool or not. “No decorations?” she asked as the uncomfortable silence seemed to suffocate them.

  “What do I have to celebrate? How long have you been on the road? Are you hungry?”

  She shook her head, but then her stomach rumbled, exposing her lie. Logan laughed. “Okay, fine, I could eat.”

  “Got some leftover chicken from last night. If you want something quick.”

  “I haven’t changed my mind about being vegan, well, vegetarian. I’ve fallen down the cheese hole.”

  Logan clasped his hands together. “I can make you a sandwich, salad, and a cup of soup.”

  “Tomato?”

  He nodded as he walked into the kitchen. Robin couldn’t help but stare at her husband in those gray sweatpants. They hugged his hips, highlighted his tight ass, which he’d developed playing ball and kept tight with daily workouts.

  How many times had she playfully smacked his booty while they cooked together in the kitchen?

  I wonder if Kamrie grabbed his ass when they made their son? She closed her eyes tightly, willing herself not to think about that.

  “Robin? You all right?”

  She opened her eyes. “Huh?”

  “I was having a whole conversation with myself. But the main takeaway was, do you want cheddar or Pepper Jack cheese on your sandwich?”

  “Ooh, both.” She walked into the kitchen and took her standard seat at the breakfast bar. Logan grabbed the ingredients for her salad and sandwich out of the refrigerator, then set them on the marble bar.

  “I didn’t expect you today,” he said. “Figured you and the rest of the family would be having a big party for Nina and Clinton.”

  “My plan wasn’t to dip out on my family and drive here, but . . .” She stopped short of mentioning Terell.

  “I’m glad you’re here and safe. H-how was the wedding?”

  Robin smiled sardonically. “Beautiful. Nina is so happy and Clinton is over the moon. I hope they keep that feeling forever.” She stroked her arms and dropped her head.

  Logan reached for a knife from the knife block and started chopping the cucumber. “Robin, I hate that we’re here. In this situation where you are . . .”

  “Can you just make my food? I’m too tired to get into this right now.” She closed her eyes and thought about the kiss she and Terell almost had. She almost wished she hadn’t tuned out the temptation to get Terell back. But what would that have accomplished if she wanted to work on her marriage? She opened her eyes and saw her husband staring back at her with a pained look on his face.

  “When are we going to have a serious conversation about saving our marriage? Do you know how hard this day has been for me?”

  She slammed her hands on the counter. “And you think it was a cake walk for me? Just explain why.”

  “Explain what?”

  “If this is a lie, why you?”

  Logan dropped the knife. “I wish I knew. I’ve been going over all of this in my head for the last six months. Maybe this is a plot that’s bigger than breaking up our marriage.”

  Robin rolled her eyes. “Here you go again. I’m supposed to believe a DNA test that says you are the father is a big scheme by big pharma because you don’t want to allow patients to be used as test subjects? This isn’t a James Bond movie.” Robin remembered reading that statement in the divorce papers. She had laughed then and she still thought it was a lie.

  “That’s the only thing that makes sense, because I never slept with that woman. Robin, you’re all I need. All I’ve ever needed. Why is that so hard for you to believe?”

  Tears welled up in her eyes and she finally said the one thing she’d never admitted out loud. “Because I can’t give you a baby, Logan. And I know we . . . Family is important and if she can give you . . .”

  Logan rounded the bar and pulled Robin off her stool and into his arms. “Do you think I’m that guy? That I would do the one thing to you that I know would tear you apart? You want honesty? Here it is: I wanted kids because you did. My family is in my arms right now. I don’t know what I have to do to prove to you that you’re enough, but I’ll spend the rest of my life doing it.”

  Robin pounded her fist against his chest and burst into tears. She couldn’t find the words to say to him. Her pain echoed in each sob. Logan held her against his chest and let her cry.

  Logan had never felt so helpless in his life. Not even when he lost his first patient. Robin’s pain broke his heart on levels he’d never thought humanly possible to understand. He had no words to comfort her. He couldn’t unde
rstand what he needed to tell her to soothe the pain that a lie had caused.

  She took a deep breath and pushed back from him. The tearstains on her face made him want to cry, want to fight all of the people trying to break them apart. But more than anything, he wanted his wife to know that she was the only thing that mattered to him. To hell with his position at the hospital, with the enemies he’d made trying to do the right thing. They could have whatever they wanted if he could stop Robin’s tears.

  “Baby,” he murmured.

  “Did you call her that, too?” she sniped.

  “Damn it, Robin! I didn’t call her shit, but nurse. I didn’t sleep with that woman and Liam is going to get the proof that I need.”

  She tilted her head to the side. “Is he? You guys are working together to prove . . . what? How many times do we hear that DNA doesn’t lie?”

  “It did this time. Robin, why would I do this to you? You are and have always been the love of my life.” He felt her heartbeat slow down and he wasn’t sure if she was going to faint, or if she was sharing the same memory that he was thinking about.

  Logan knew he’d messed up at the Alpha party. He’d been upset that Robin wanted to stay in and study while he was ready to turn up over the basketball team’s bid to the Division II Sweet Sixteen. But he didn’t kiss Kelsey. She kissed him. Just happened to be at the exact same time that Robin walked into the frat house.

  Sure, he’d pushed Kelsey away and chased after Robin, but when he caught up with her, she punched him in the jaw. And that shit hurt.

  “Robin, let me explain.”

  “You kissing another woman was explanation enough. I told you that I wasn’t doing this with you, player. But you want to make a fool of me?”

  “That’s the last thing I’m trying to do. Robin, I love you.”

  “And you show it by kissing another woman? That isn’t love, that’s you being an asshole.”

  He took a step closer to her. “Robin, I’m not trying to . . . Woman, I love you and whatever I have to do to prove it, I’ll do it.”

  “Leave me the hell alone.”

  “That’s not an option for me.”

  She pushed against his chest. “It’s the only option you have.”

  He watched her as she stormed away from him and Logan knew he had to fight to get her back.

  Then came the pep rally before the tournament. Logan listened to the band play, ignored the coach’s speech, and searched the crowd for Robin. She wasn’t there. His heart lurched at the thought that he’d blown his chance with the woman he loved. Robin changed him, made him believe that he could be a better man. She was his future. And he needed her to know that. Crossing over to the coach, he reached for the coach’s arm.

  “I want to say something,” he said as he took the microphone from the coach’s hand. “Aye! Listen up!”

  The cheering crowd quieted. Logan looked around at the crowd again, trying to see if Robin had been there hiding behind someone else. He still didn’t see her. Sighing, he brought the microphone to his lips. “We’re going to win this game, because that’s what we do. But every point I score is for one reason—I’m playing for Robin Richardson’s heart. She’s the woman I love. No one will ever be as important to me as Double R. So, Robin, if you are here, know that I love you more than ball. More than life. More than anything.”

  The crowd roared and Robin seemed to appear out of nowhere. Logan dropped the mic and crossed over to her. Pulling his woman into his arms, he kissed her and spun her around.

  Robin sighed as she walked away from him. “How did we get here?”

  “Because someone lied. Robin, ask yourself one thing, why would I do this when I made all the mistakes in the world when we were dating? I told you I wasn’t going to hurt you and I meant it.” He placed a pan on the stove and turned the eye on.

  “Maybe you haven’t changed. Maybe I’ve changed too much.”

  Logan turned back to the stove and checked the heat on the pan for the grilled cheese. “We’re going to get to the bottom of all of this. But I have to wonder when you lost all of your faith in me.”

  Robin furrowed her eyebrows. He buttered four slices of bread and dropped them on the pan. “Are you going to answer the question?” he asked as he turned the heat down.

  “I hate to beat a dead horse, but the DNA test. All the time you and this woman and how she disrespected me in my house.”

  “And I checked her on that. I don’t play those work wife and husband games.”

  “What kind of games were you playing for that bitch to come in here and feel that comfortable?”

  Logan shook his head. “Not because something was going on with us,” he said. “Believe me, I’m just as confused about this as you are.”

  Robin sucked her teeth. She found that hard to believe. “Why you, Logan?”

  He dropped his head, then turned back to the pan on the stove. “Robin, I don’t know any more than I knew when you walked out the door six months ago.”

  “Then how are we supposed to fix this?” She folded her arms across her chest. “All you’re saying is you don’t know. There has to be something.”

  “Liam is looking into this for me, because I’m not going to lose you over this lie.”

  Robin blinked, then pointed to the smoke coming from the pan. “But you’re going to lose me over those burnt sandwiches.”

  “Oh shit.” Logan grabbed the pan and removed it from the stove.

  She shook her head and laughed. “I guess we’re going to add grilled cheese to the list of foods you have burned for me.”

  “You distracted me, as you always do.” Logan dropped the pan in the sink, then walked over to the freezer. “But look what I’ve got.” He pulled out a frozen cheese pizza. “Technically, it is a grilled cheese sandwich.”

  “Only going to accept that because I’m hungry and I’m pretty sure everything is closed. And that salad is going to go great with pizza.”

  Logan crossed over to her and stroked her cheek. “I miss this.”

  She wanted to turn her head away, didn’t want to feel her heartbeat speed up as his fingers danced across her skin. And she really didn’t want to kiss him. She really didn’t want to lean in to him and brush her lips against his. But she did. And she liked it. She missed it. Needed to have this kiss, fall into his touch and lose herself in her husband’s arms. Her man. The man she loved and needed as much as she needed to breathe. Logan lifted her into his arms and sat her on the edge of the counter.

  “Are you sure this is what you want?” he asked as he pulled his mouth away from hers.

  “More than anything,” she moaned as he stroked her back. “I need you.”

  “Not as much as I need you.” Logan captured her mouth again, this time his kiss hotter, deeper and filled with need. She matched his intensity, because she really needed to be in his arms and know that he wanted her and no one else.

  He slipped his hand between her thighs, stroking her until she was wet. Robin wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d been dripping through her leggings. Obviously, Logan wanted to find out as he pulled them down to her ankles and buried his face between her legs. She quivered as his tongue danced across her inner thigh. His kisses and licks were soft, light, and smooth. But when he buried his tongue inside her, Robin screamed in delight. He knew all of her spots, knew how to make her moan, and knew what she needed. Robin needed every orgasm that his tongue brought her. And Logan continued to suck, to lick her as if she were a lollipop with a creamy center. And she was wet and creamy as she pressed her hips into his lips. Suck. Lick. Suck. Swallow. Robin screamed as he flicked his tongue across her throbbing bud. She grabbed his shoulders and tried to pull away from him. Logan held her closer, letting his tongue make her come again and again.

  Robin closed her eyes and just allowed the peace of pleasure to wash over her. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so good. Logan tore his mouth away from her body and smiled.

  “That was a
mazing,” he moaned. “You taste even better than I remember.”

  “I can’t even,” she replied.

  Logan grinned. “But we’re just taking a dinner break right now. You’re going to need your strength.”

  She dropped to her feet, feeling unsteady and satisfied. “I’m going into the den so you don’t burn the pizza.”

  “That’s what oven timers are for. I’ll bring you a glass of wine.”

  Robin sauntered into the den and Logan couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. Yeah, she needed to take all of that out of the kitchen if he was going to get the pizza cooked.

  Robin reached for the TV remote when she sat on the sofa. Looking around the den, part of her wondered if anyone else had sat on the sofa snuggling up to her husband while watching home improvement shows. “Stop it,” she muttered as she mindlessly flipped the channels.

  “Talking to yourself?” Logan asked, seeming to appear out of nowhere. He handed her a glass of merlot. Robin took it from his hand and he closed his fingers around hers.

  “I’m glad you’re here.”

  “Me too,” she admitted. Logan dropped his hand.

  “Going to check on the pizza. Have you seen that new house-flipping show?”

  Robin shook her head. “Guess we’ll check it out.” A few moments later, Logan returned to the den carrying a tray of salads, pizza, and more wine. Robin cleared the medical journals from the ottoman in front of the sofa. “Light reading, huh?” she quipped.

  “More like research. There’s some shit going on at the hospital and I believe . . . We don’t have to talk about that. Not tonight. I just want this to be about us.”

  If only it was that simple, she thought as she sipped her wine. “Looks good,” she forced herself to say as he handed her a plate of salad.

  “Not your traditional Christmas dinner.”

  She dug into her salad and smiled. “When have we ever done traditional?”

  Logan picked up a slice of pizza and took a big bite. “The day we said ‘I do.’ ”

 

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