4. Logan
Logan
No, no, no. This isn't... Goddamn it. Get out of this room, Logan. Now.
Tess is pressed against my chest, her weight warm and inviting. That's a terrible fucking idea.
No, it's worse than that. It's against the rules—my rule. The big one. The one I haven't broken since the moment I made it.
Fifteen years ago. When I left special forces to join Boss's company. When I was seconds from ruining my own life because I failed to save... her.
Staring into Tess's storm-cloud eyes, I can hardly breathe. It's so fucking stupid. I'm worked up over nothing.
Except she throws me off. I'm the guy who can read anybody—except her, apparently.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to—crap."
She isn't reading manipulative. She isn't reading desperate, isn't angling for a shoulder to cry on or a quick fuck.
She's genuine. Why is that?
Other women in her position would test the boundaries with the bodyguard. I've seen it happen.
But Tess isn't like that. All night at the party, she was oblivious to the looks she got. Didn't notice a single one.
I did.
It's all I can think about now. The way those men looked at her. Married men, tempted by a woman who—for all they know—is married too.
Assholes. Like she'd give them the time of day. She doesn't belong to them.
She doesn't belong to you either, Logan.
The thought cuts through me clean. I can't think like this about her. She's nearly half my age. A client. And I still have that fucking rule.
For good reason.
Distractions cost lives. And nothing distracts like sex.
"It's fine." I steady her on her feet, my hands still on her arms, her skin silky under my palms. "I'm your husband, remember?"
I'm trying to lighten the mood. Instead, something lights in her eyes, and a tiny smirk pulls at her mouth.
"As if, darling. I wasn't looking for any of that. I just wanted to get in bed and fall asleep before you. Because guess what? You snore."
She's been teasing me since the moment we met. Something about all that snark has me...
Hard as a fucking rock.
"Oh, really? Because if I remember right, you're the one who kept rolling my way in the middle of the night."
"I'm used to having my own bed!"
Her cheeks flush bright pink, and for once I can't tell if it's embarrassment or anger—which is annoying, since I usually know exactly what people are feeling.
Knowing her, it's probably both.
"Are you going to let me pass?" She lifts her brows, and I glance down her body again. Can't help it. "Well?"
Goddamn, she's stunning. That nightgown should be illegal. The thought of anyone else seeing her in it makes my blood boil, and I have to breathe through my nose when she crosses her arms.
Black silk, lace trim over two triangles that barely cover her. The hem barely covers her ass.
My brain wonders what I'd find if my fingers went looking underneath.
Stop, Logan. You're about to cross a line you can't uncross.
"Not exactly the doting housewife, are you?" I can't believe I said that. Why can't I stop teasing her? Flirting with her?
"Ha!" She rolls her eyes. "Absolutely not. I will never be like those women across the street. Even playing pretend."
There's so much challenge in her stare. A fire that calls to me like a moth to flame. My jaw clenches as I try to steady myself.
But everything in me wants to snap.
I'm not this man. I'm reserved. Calculated. I don't chase women, especially ones two decades younger than me.
And yet.
"Is that so?" I step closer, sliding my fingers up the outside of her arm. "You'd never submit to someone?"
She trembles under my touch, and it's intoxicating—the wide gray eyes, the blazing pink that dips down her neck to her chest.
I want to see what the rest of her would look like flushed like that. What her ass would look like with my handprint on it.
Dammit, Logan. You should stop. You should—
"What..." She blinks, swallows hard. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Just that I have a feeling, sweetheart..."
Calling her that lights up every dark part of me I've kept buried for years.
I'd forgotten how good it feels to dominate. Tess is reminding me fast.
"...that you'd love to do it for me. Wouldn't you?"
My hand slides to the back of her neck, hauling her against me—right where she should be.
"You'd love to be my good girl."
I didn't think her eyes could go wider. Her skin burn brighter. But they do.
Best of all, she whimpers—soft and desperate, bleeding out of her.
This is a bad idea. We both know it. I should leave. She should leave. Neither of us moves, flat against each other in the closet doorway.
Her eyelids flutter. A shaky breath rattles through her chest. I'm right on the edge, telling myself I can still stop this.
Then she looks at my mouth, and it's over.
I crash my lips down on hers.
Fuuuck, so damn good.
She tastes like wine from the party. I wrap my arm around her, hauling her tighter against me.
My cock brushes her, aching, and she groans against my mouth.
The kiss deepens fast. She opens for me as I drag my tongue over her lips. I drink her in—this small, curvy thing pressed against me, more at home here than my own suit ever was.
My hand slides down her back, down, down, until I'm cupping her ass, squeezing until she moans. I gather the lace hem of her nightie in my fist.
She's still wearing underwear. Some part of me wishes she weren't. I slip a finger beneath the cotton edge anyway, right where the curve of her ass meets her thigh.
More. I need more of her.
My mind is splitting in half. I can't stop. She feels too good, too responsive to every touch.
She isn't pushing me away. If she did, I'd be gone in a flash. Instead her tongue tangles with mine, her leg lifting to hook around my hip.
An invitation, silent and clear.
I take it, sliding my hand between her thighs until my fingers brush her.
Fucking hell. She's wet for me.
I tease her, sweeping back and forth beneath the fabric, light and quick.
This is exactly what I shouldn't be doing. How did she break through my walls like this?
Why can't I resist her?
I have no answer. Only the burning need to take her right here in the doorway. But I can't. I can't let this go that far.
What if she ends up like Rebecca?
Fear crowds out the arousal, and I falter. Tess hums against my lips, oblivious.
I'm here to keep her safe. That's the only priority that matters. She's in real danger, and I'm on the job.
She did nothing wrong tonight. I won't make her feel like the mistake was hers when it's mine.
I still my fingers, then slide them back, pulling away slowly.
"Hmm. Makes you wonder, doesn't it?"
I leave her right there on the edge. Better that than heartbroken.