24. Logan
TWENTY-FOUR
LOGAN
“Good Morning.” I quickly kiss Savannah and hand her the coffee I picked up for her.
Her eyes are a little puffy, so I can only assume she was crying last night.
I wish she had let me come over, but I understand why she needed some time.
It’s obvious that she and Max have a tight-knit relationship, and I never intended to come between them.
Hopefully, we can all move on from this.
“Morning.” She takes the cup and looks at where the barista wrote “the most beautiful woman in the world” on the cup. Her face lights up with a smile, which is exactly what I was hoping for. “Did you ask them to write this?”
“Oh, sorry, that one’s mine,” I say, pretending like I’m going to take it back.
“You’re such a cheese ball.”
“Good thing cheese is on your list of favorite things.”
She smiles and kisses me again.
“You ready to go?” I ask, looking around her for her bags.
“Yep. Just finished zipping up.”
She sets her coffee down and walks down the hallway to her room. Kelsey pops out of the bathroom and heads in my direction.
“Hello, loverboy.”
I chuckle at the nickname. “Good morning, Kelsey.”
“Before she comes back out, I just want to tell you that if you do anything to hurt her, I’ll hunt you down and… well, you know what comes next.”
I smile and nod along, glad that Savannah has someone to look out for her. “Noted. I don’t plan on hurting her, Kelsey. She’s everything to me.”
“Yeah, I can tell. You get those lovey-dovey eyes every time you see her. I’m just getting my warning out of the way.”
“Did you give this same warning to Max?” I ask out of curiosity.
“No, because she doesn’t look at him like she looks at you. You have the potential to break my sister’s heart, and I don’t want that.”
Unsurprisingly, Savannah is not always open with her feelings.
I know there’s something between us, but I’m always wondering if she’s keeping me at arm’s length.
It’s comforting to know that someone close to her thinks she cares about me.
Makes me feel like I’m not making this up in my head because I want her to care about me.
“Kelsey, I think you know better than anyone that if one of us ends up with a broken heart, it’s going to be me and not her. Your sister is tough as nails.”
“She wants people to believe that, but deep down, she’s really sensitive. So be careful with her heart,” she warns.
“Yes, ma’am. You have my word.”
“Good.”
Just then, Savannah comes out of her room, rolling a suitcase behind her. “Let me get that for you.”
I take her luggage and we say goodbye to her sister, who is now smiling like she didn’t just threaten me. We get settled in my car and head to the airport.
“Anything I need to know before we see Max today?” I’m not asking for details on their discussion; I respect that that is private between them, but he is my athlete, too, so if he’s pissed at me, I’d like a warning so I can prepare.
“I think he’s fine. He seemed to understand. He was a little upset that we hid it from him, but he took it better than I expected.”
“Good. That’s good, baby. I’m glad you told him.”
“He does want us to tell Tati sooner rather than later. He doesn’t want us to get in trouble for any reason that could lead to being disqualified.”
“It’s a good idea. Maybe we can talk to her after this competition. If you’re ready… I’m not trying to rush anything.”
She tries to hide her smile, but I see it anyway. Maybe I won’t have to be her little secret for much longer.
The drive to the airport is quick, and we meet Max at security. He seems to be his normal cheery self, but I still feel like I should say something. I’m just not sure what that something is.
Max must feel the same because once we’re through security and at our gate, he says, “Should we address the elephant in the room?”
“Um.” Good one, Sokolov. Way to be the authority figure.
“I know you two are together or whatever you’re calling it. I’m fine, so we don’t need to make this any more awkward than it already is.”
I feel the tension in my shoulders release. “Thanks, Max. I’m sorry?—”
He holds his hand up to stop me. “You don’t need to apologize. Savannah chose you. Sucks for me, but I’m happy for you two.”
“It’s not going to make anything weird with me being your coach?” I ask. Getting the two of them to the Olympics is the goal, but if this is going to affect his work in any way, I need to know so I can fix it. Or, in the absolute worst case, bow out from being their coach.
“Nah, man. We’ve got shit to do. No time to let heartbreak take over.” He tries to make it a joke, but I can see the way he’s looking at Savannah. He’s hurting. And I get it; Savannah is amazing. I’d feel just like he does, or maybe even worse, if the situation were reversed.
Savannah gives him a sad smile, to which he responds with a bigger, fake smile. “I’m good. I promise. I’m gonna grab a water before the flight. Anyone want anything?”
“I’m good.” Savannah shakes her head.
After he’s gone, I sit down next to her. “You ok?”
“Yeah. I just feel like I’ve made a mess of things.”
“I think life is supposed to be a little messy.” I can attest that I’ve been through some shit, but here I am. Living, breathing, falling in love. The hard parts pass to make way for the better parts.
“Yeah, I guess maybe it is,” she agrees.
I settle in next to her and wait for boarding.
Since the flights were booked weeks ago, Max and Savannah are sitting next to each other, and I’m across the aisle.
Part of me wants to ask him to switch seats with me, but I know that if this is going to work, I need to respect their partnership.
I also can’t monopolize all of her attention just because I want to.
The flight to Atlanta isn’t too bad. I nap for most of the flight.
Now that we’ve got one competition under our belt, I think we all feel a little bit more prepared.
When we get to the rink, I sign them in so they can get warmed up.
I have to talk to people in the industry, some of whom I saw at the last comp and some of whom are new.
I don’t mind chatting, but my eyes are always looking for Savannah.
I love to watch her skate both as her coach and as a spectator.
Even if I know she’s nervous, she always looks confident on the ice. That’s what makes a good skater.
After their practice session, we’re ushered to the press room.
I make it a point to stand at the back of the room so that none of their interviews focus on me.
This competition is about Savannah and Max, not me.
Of course, like last time, they get a few questions about what it’s like working with me.
This time, I notice Savannah blushing. She stays professional, but I know what that blush is for.
After a long day at the rink, we head to dinner just like last time, except now, Savannah sits on my side of the table instead of Max’s.
We all have one drink, but Max deviates by ordering a second and a third.
At that point, I know I have to cut him off and remind him he has to perform tomorrow, and skating with a hangover would not be good for any of us.
He takes a last sip of his beer and smirks as he puts the bottle down. I can already tell he’s about to say something stupid.
“I have a proposal for you two.”
“Max, what are you doing?” Savannah asks. She sounds irritated, and I don’t blame her. I think his feelings are starting to catch up with him now that he’s seeing Savannah and me together.
“I have a proposal,” he repeats.
“Let’s hear it,” I say with a sigh. Might as well humor him.
“The three of us,” he says and then stops like we’re supposed to understand what he means. Savannah and I look at each other, but it’s clear she doesn’t know what he’s talking about either.
“What about us?” I ask.
“The three of us together. Tonight,” he repeats.
“We are together,” I say slowly. He can’t possibly be suggesting what I think he is. Can he?
“No. Savannah and I have a tradition. We always sleep together the night before a competition. I know the two of you are together now, so how about we all do it together?”
“I need you to be perfectly freaking clear here, Max. Are you suggesting a threesome?” Savannah whispers. She doesn’t sound too happy about this, so I decide to let her handle it.
“Don’t look like that, Sav. You admitted that you thought it would be hot. Remember? That morning we went on the hike?”
Oh. This is news to me.
“I didn’t admit anything,” she responds quickly.
“I mentioned it, and I could tell you got turned on. Don’t lie.”
“I’m not lying about anything,” she leans over and whisper-shouts across the table.
“Come on. Think about it. The two of us have had sex. The two of you have had sex. What’s the problem if we all do it together? Two men pleasuring you. What could be better?”
“Max…”
He leans back in his chair and smirks at her. She sits back too, glaring at him with arms crossed over her chest.
“Think about it, Sav. Think how good it’d be for you.
” It seems like she might be considering this since she didn’t flat-out say no, and I don’t know how to feel about this.
I wouldn’t consider myself a jealous person, but I’ve also never felt this way about a woman before.
I’m not sure how it would feel to see her with another man, even if I were there.
But hearing the revelation that she thinks it would be hot intrigues me.
The last thing I want to do is deprive my girl of her fantasy.
Max looks at me and raises an eyebrow. “Coach?”
Fuck. “I’m not going to decide what Savannah does with her body.”
Her head turns in my direction. “You’d be ok with it?” There’s a hint of hesitation in her voice as if she thought I would be the one to say no.
“I’m willing to try anything once, as long as it’s something you want. Max is right. It would be all about you.”
Max leans forward across the table. “It is our tradition, Sav. What if we don’t do it and then something bad happens on the ice tomorrow?”
“Max!”
“Don’t try to convince her because of a dumb superstition. If she agrees to this, it needs to be because she wants it,” I growl.
“Fine. Then let it be like a final goodbye for us since we didn’t know the last time would be the last time,” he says.
Savannah looks from me to Max, apparently thinking it over. Then she looks back at me. “Are you sure you’d be ok with this?”
I can’t pretend it doesn’t make me happy that she’s more concerned about me in this scenario.
Another little glimpse into the fact that she does care about me.
“I’m ok if you’re ok. I certainly don’t want to make a habit of it, but if it’s something you’re interested in, I’d like to be there when you experience it. ”
She nods and takes a few more seconds before finally responding. “Ok.”
“Yes!” Max exclaims, raising a triumphant fist in the air. He’s a little too excited about this, but I guess I can’t blame him. I’d be the same way if I were in his shoes. I’d be just as desperate.
“But,” Savannah says, grabbing my attention. “If anyone gets uncomfortable—that means you too, Logan—we stop. We all have to communicate if this is going to work.”
“Yes. One hundred percent. Got it,” Max agrees quickly.
“Yes, ma’am. I’ll make sure you know exactly how I’m feeling throughout.”
“Ok.”
“Great. Let’s get the fuck out of here.” Max looks around for our server to grab the bill.
I grab Savannah’s hand under the table and squeeze.
She squeezes back. I would kiss her, but there’s a strong possibility that someone could see us here, and the last thing I want is our relationship to be outed before she’s ready.
So, I settle for a hand squeeze and a smile.
This is going to be an interesting night.