Lia
“Wake up, sleepy head. Come and see!”
I blink my eyes open, then open my mouth and let out the loudest yawn known to man—only to shut my mouth at once, when I see Logan chuckling.
“Asshole.”
“Come and see your new home,” he insists, pulling me gently out of the car… well, I’m not sure most people would call the way he pulls me to my feet gentle. But for him, it definitely is.
Aurora and Dolores are both sleeping in the back seat.
After all, we’ve driven pretty much nonstop since last night.
I don’t think it would have taken that long to get to Washington, but Logan has been driving on rough country backroads pretty much the entire time.
We’re all exhausted, but Logan is the only one who hasn’t slept at all.
And yet, he doesn’t look all that tired.
Maybe he’s used to it.
“Aurora...” I begin.
“I think we can trust her. Dolores, I mean.” Logan pulls me into a hug.
“She’s been taking excellent care of Aurora for one month.
We won’t let a little scare change anything.
We’re the ones who are on edge, running from Carmelo.
She’s been just as loyal as ever. Now, come on, ghost girl. Let me show you around.”
I nod, allowing myself to be reassured by his words. He’s right—Dolores has been pretty much holding the house together.
I follow Logan into something that looks like a glass cube. The house is sparsely furnished, each room in a different style. The living room is modern, the kind of place that Logan looks right at home in, whereas the kitchen looks straight out of the 1950s.
Then Logan leads me to a glass-encased porch, empty except for a daybed, and I forget all about the mismatched decor when I take in the beautiful forest and the waterfall in the distance.
“Oh, my gosh, Logan,” I breathe.
He wraps me in his warm arms. “It’s ours. Our first home. How do you like it, Lia?”
I turn around, unable to find my words. Instead, I sink into his arms, raising my face for a kiss. He gives it to me, pressing his soft lips to mine, slipping his tongue into my mouth.
“What do you think, little brat?” he teases, pulling away at last. “Do you think you can behave in our new home?”
“Do you think you’ll allow me to behave?”
“Well, now,” he smirks against my mouth. “That wouldn’t be any fun, would it?”
He tweaks my nipples through my dress, and I can feel his arousal pressing against me. “Try to conjure up some tears, crybaby. I’ll put our kid to bed.”
Our kid. I lean against the wall, watching him cross the room and go out the front door to wake Dolores and bring in Aurora. How did I get so lucky? How did I find such a father for my baby?
That’s what he is—there’s no doubt about it. She finally has what she deserves. A father and a mother.
Logan looks passingly disappointed when he returns to a dry face and a smile.
“I’m sure you can give me something to cry about,” I tease him.
“Mhm.” He grabs my wrist—again, very gently for him—and pulls me down on the daybed. “Let’s try something different.”
“Something different?” I ask uncertainly. “What kind of something?”
“You’ll see.”
He lies down beside me and tilts my chin up so that I’m facing him.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so close.
Well, of course I have, but never with this level of intensity.
We’re nearly nose to nose, but we’re not kissing, only gazing at each other.
I can see every single part of his beautiful face, from his dark eyes, brown flecked with green and yellow, the shaggy eyebrows on top, the brown, glossy curls tumbling around his face, the aquiline nose and small mouth that looks like it was made to smirk.
It’s hard to believe he’s mine. Really mine.
I don’t realize I’ve voiced that last thought out loud until his mouth takes its natural shape—a smirk—and he breathes, “I don’t think little captives can own their captors, can they?”
“Is that what I am?”
“Uh huh. Just about the cutest little captive I’ve ever laid eyes on. Seventy-four.”
“What?”
“Seventy-four. That’s how many freckles are on your face. I was counting them.”
I feel my mouth split into a happy grin. “That’s a lot of freckles.”
“And I’m going to kiss every one of them.”
I’m not sure he gives me seventy-four kisses, but he definitely gives me a whole lot of them, before leaning back and threading his fingers through my hair. “Your contact lenses make your eyes sparkle,” he murmurs.
“Mhm.” I’m half asleep, the distant sound of the waterfall and the warmth radiating from him lulling me into a state of deep relaxation.
My eyelids feel very heavy as he whispers, “I wonder if I could make you come while you slept.”
“Logan…” I try to lift my mouth into another smile, but I’m far too tired. “You can try.”
“Can I? Is it green?”
“Mhhmmm… yes… green…” I let out another loud yawn, far too tired to blush. “I trust you, Logan…”
The last thing I’m aware of is Logan pulling up my dress.
“Go to sleep, ghost girl,” he whispers as I sink into a delicious slumber. “I’m going to take good care of you.”