Chapter forty Tessa
Chapter forty
Tessa
Logan wrung two more orgasms from my body before we jumped in the shower again to clean off, only for things to take another heated turn once we were back in bed.
We seemed to have the same idea of taking advantage of having the night to ourselves.
The heated look he gave me when I slipped on one of his soft, well-worn T-shirts to sleep in had me tempted to attempt another round despite how deliciously sore and tired my body was.
When we finally drifted off to sleep, it was with his arm slung around my waist and holding me close as he buried his face in the nape of my neck, breathing me in.
Every time I shifted positions to get comfortable, he’d move with me or hold me tighter, like even when he’s not awake, he needs me as close as possible.
It would be perfect if it weren’t for the ringing sound that keeps yanking me out of my slumber. In the foggy haze of drifting in and out of sleep, I can’t tell where the incessant sound is coming from, but it’s starting to make me mad.
“Tess,” he rasps, his voice thick and heavy as though he’s fighting to wake up. Maybe the sound is disturbing him too. “Your phone is ringing.”
My eyes fly open as I hastily reach for my phone, nearly dropping it when I see the name flashing across the screen. “My mom’s calling.” My voice is frantic when I answer. “Mom? What’s wrong? Is Jake okay?”
I’m already picturing all of the worst-case scenarios, despite knowing that odds are, Jake’s fine.
There’s a part of me—whether because of the way I lost my husband or simply because I’m a parent—that will always panic when my child is away from me.
The only way I can ensure he’s safe at all times is to keep him with me, but that’s not possible.
He’s perfectly safe with my parents, Liv, and Logan.
Hell, I’d even trust Gray to watch him if it were absolutely necessary.
Beside me, Logan pulls himself up, resting his back against the headboard.
His brows pinch as he watches me. The icon at the top of my phone screen shows one missed call, and the guilt of not answering the first time coils in my stomach.
Every time Jake stays the night with my parents, I keep the volume on my phone turned up all the way, not wanting to miss any call about my son.
My mom sounds tired, fatigue clinging to her words as she says, “Take a deep breath, honey. Jake’s okay; he’s just got a stomach bug. Could be all the treats from the day. Dad and I got it all under control, but Jake’s asking to go home.”
Pulling in a deep lungful of air, I breathe a sigh of relief.
He’s alright. He’s not hurt.
“Okay, I’ll come get him,” I say, throwing the sheet and comforter off my legs as I climb out of bed and begin to pace across the bedroom.
I listen as she fills me in on how long ago Jake started getting sick to his stomach, the low-grade fever he’s running, and what they have done to try to keep him comfortable.
Logan’s attention remains on me the entire time, his eyes following me back and forth across the room.
“I’m sorry, honey. He’s fine here if you want to wait until morning.
Dad already got him cleaned up and in fresh pajamas.
” I pull my phone away from my ear to check the time.
It’s just after three in the morning. It feels so much later than that, but it could just be the lingering haze from having been woken up unexpectedly.
I know my mom’s right. Jake would be fine for a few more hours, but if he’s asking to come home, there’s no way I’m going to make him wait.
Even if he’s asleep when I get there, it’ll still be worth it to get him home and in his own bed.
“No, I’ll come now. Let him know I’m on my way.
” I toss my phone onto the bed and head for my closet in search of a sweatshirt.
I don’t want to waste time getting properly dressed, so I grab the first hooded sweatshirt I find, pulling it on before turning to my dresser to grab a pair of pajama bottoms. “I’ve gotta go. I have to go get Jake.”
I know he’s fine, but the knowledge doesn’t negate my pounding pulse. I’ll feel better once I have him in my arms.
Logan is already out of bed and moving to my side. Grabbing my shoulders, he urges me to look at him. “Take a deep breath, baby. What’s going on?” Concern paints his face as his eyes search mine.
The display of care for my son has my heart melting in my chest. It makes me want to sink into him and seek comfort in his arms, but I need to leave.
“It sounds like he has the flu. He’s gotten sick a few times and is running a bit of a fever.
You don’t have to stay for this. I know you have to get back to work soon. ”
“We will go get him. Let me worry about work. Why don’t you grab him a change of clothes, and I’ll grab a trash bag and get the truck started.
” He gives my shoulders a gentle squeeze and presses a kiss to my forehead.
I watch in stunned silence as he pulls on a pair of gray cargo-style sweatpants and a black T-shirt before heading out of the bedroom.
All in.
The words he’s spoken more times than I can count filter through my mind as I quickly get dressed.
I throw a clean pair of pajamas and underwear in a backpack for Jake, and in all, it takes us less than five minutes to get out of the house.
Logan’s sitting in the driver’s seat with the truck running, and when I meet his gaze as I climb in, a soft smile crawls across his face as he says, “Let’s go get our boy. ”
As if my heart needed another reason to love Logan Bennett, he didn’t hesitate to swoop Jake into his arms and carry him to the truck when we got to my parents’ place.
My dad greeted us at the door and apologized for ruining our night, to which Logan casually stated, “Nothing’s ruined. Our boy comes first.”
When we got home, Logan didn’t hesitate to carry Jake inside despite having gotten sick again in the truck.
After a quick warm shower and getting him changed into another pair of clean pajamas, I got him tucked into bed while Logan lined a small trash can with a plastic bag and placed it beside his bed.
With any luck, he’ll make it through the night without getting sick again.
His last temperature check still showed a low-grade fever, and he needs to be fever-free for twenty-four hours before he can return to school.
I’ll call off from the diner if I need to, but I don’t think Logan can so easily do the same.
“Are you sure you’ll be okay to work?” I ask, taking the mug of hot tea from Logan as he crawls into bed beside me. I’ve been battling nights like this one for so long on my own, I didn’t realize the comfort that would come with having a partner during these harder moments.
He simply offers me a soft smile, rolling onto his side and placing his hand on my thigh. “I’ll be fine, darlin’,” he assures, giving my leg a gentle squeeze.
I know the word “quiet” is banned among first responders, but I’m thankful that it’s the only word that comes to mind when I think of the way things have been around town lately.
There’s rarely a shortage of calls for medical assistance, and I know they spend a good amount of time running drills and making sure equipment is working properly, but we haven’t had any major fires in town for a while.
There have been some fires in surrounding cities, but none that required the assistance of our local station.
“If I feel like I need to, I’ll get someone to cover the first half of my shift.” The deep rumble of his voice is laced with exhaustion, and part of me feels guilty for being a contributing factor.
I hate the idea of him going to work tired and putting himself at risk. But it also comes with the territory of being a parent. I can only hope he knows himself and his limits well enough to stay safe while navigating the trenches of work and parenthood.