Chapter 7
LOGAN
At one o’clock, I know I can’t avoid it any longer. I’m going to have to leave my office.
First, I change into jeans and a T-shirt, and once that’s done, I walk out into the lobby. Without looking at Bree, I ask, “Is Alex in?”
“No, he’s out for the afternoon with installations.”
“Sam?”
“No, same.”
I let my head fall back and am barely able to hold back my frustration. “Anybody else that works here?”
Her voice softens. “Nope. Just me and you.”
“Fuck,” I groan.
She stands up, and I can’t avoid it any longer. I look at her, and as soon as I do, I know I shouldn’t have. I swear I can still taste her on my tongue. Her sweet scent has stayed with me all morning, and I’ve sat in my office with a hard-on, thinking of all the ways I wanted to have her.
She crosses her arms over her chest. “If you tell me what you need, I can help you.”
It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her that I need to get off, that these fuckin’ blue balls are killing me, but I know that’s a bad idea. “Grab your stuff. You’re going with me.”
Her eyes widen, and she freezes. “Where are we going exactly?”
I put my hands on my hips. “To the Burkhardts’.”
Her face turns red, and her cheeks puff out. “I’m not going.”
I take a step toward her. “Yes, you are.”
She waves her hand toward my office. “Look, I get it. You want to punish me. Fine. I can take it, but I draw the line there, and I think I’ve had enough today.”
Clueless, I shake my head, wracking my brain. “What the hell does that have to do with the Burkhardts?”
She puts a hand on her shapely hip and glares at me. “You think I want to go to watch you flirt with that woman? Newsflash. I don’t.”
Floored, I rear back. “Flirt with her? It’s a job. You were there. We’re installing a security system.”
She laughs, and it sounds manic. “Oh yeah? I’m not installing anything because I’m not going.”
I suck in a breath and spit out the words without thinking. “I swear I want to bend you over my knee and spank that fat ass.”
She hisses a breath and glares at me through the slits of her eyes. “Oh no you didn’t. You did not just say I have a fat ass.”
She’s pissed, and I can’t lie. I love it when she gets riled up. I wish I didn’t, but I do. I put my hands in the air. “Stop it. I didn’t—”
She starts slamming notebooks, drawers, pens…. Hell, everything she can get her hands on. I stalk over to her and don’t stop until we’re chest to chest. “Are you really offended, Bree? I’ve licked, kissed, eaten, and fucked that ass. You know I love it, so I didn’t mean anything by that comment.”
I see her pulse jumping in her neck. No doubt she’s remembering all the times I’ve spent loving on her butt, and if I don’t step away, I’m going to show her right now just how much I’ve missed it.
I take a step back. “Grab your purse. You’re going with me.” I hold my hand up. “And I think you know me. Hell, you know me better than anyone. Amy is not my type.”
I walk out to the van and open the passenger side door.
Bree locks the front door of the office, breezes by me, and settles in the passenger seat.
I resist reaching for the seat belt and putting it on her.
Hell, the way she sits there, she’s waiting for me to do it, but I just stand here, looking at her blankly, until she puts it on herself.
I’m about to close the door when she stops me. “I need to make a stop first.”
I grit my teeth. “Why?”
She turns her head and looks me dead in the eye. “I’m not wearing any underwear. I had to remove them because they were… wet.” She gestures to herself. “And I can’t be climbing ladders or crawling under things in this.”
I grip the door so hard my knuckles turn white. “You’re not wearing any panties?”
She glares at me. “No.”
I stand back and shut the door. My cock twitches between my thighs, and it’s almost painful to walk around to the driver's side of the van. All I need is the image of Bree with no panties sitting at her desk. There’s no way I’m going to resist this temptation for the next nine months. It’s not possible.
I get in and start the van. “Where do you live?”
She lifts her chin. “Above Savage Ink.”
My head turns so fast I’m surprised I don’t get whiplash. “Excuse me? You live above the tattoo place?”
She nods and looks out the window, avoiding my gaze. I drive down the street, turn off Main Street, and stop at Savage Ink. Bree is out of the van before I even get fully stopped. I jump out and am one step behind her as she gets to the door.
“What are you doing?” she asks, staring at me.
I open the door and gesture for her to go in. “I’m going with you.”
She doesn’t budge. “Why?”
I shrug. Hell, I don’t know why. I should stay in the van and mind my own business, but there’s something inside me that wants to see where she is living.
When I don’t answer, she stomps past me, walks up the stairs, and unlocks the apartment door. I go in behind her, leaving the door open as I walk into the open concept living room kitchen area.
She mumbles, “I’ll be right back” and leaves me standing there.
I look around the bare room, disappointed that it’s so empty. This is nothing like the place Bree lived in in New York. It was decorated with personal items and pictures everywhere. It screamed Bree. This doesn’t.
I’m looking around, trying to sort things out in my head when someone calls from the doorway, “Who the hell are you?”
I pull my shoulders back and stare at the man covered in tattoos. “Who the hell are you?”
He walks into the apartment, holding some kind of Tupperware dish. “I asked you first. Where’s Bree?”
As soon as he says her name, I practically ignite. I step toward him, toe to toe. “What business is it of yours?”
We’re glaring at one another when Bree comes into the room, hopping on one foot, trying to put her shoe on as she balances on her other leg. “Logan, stop. Logan, this is Aiden. He owns Savage Ink. He’s my landlord.”
She gestures to me. “Aiden, this is Logan… my boss.”
Aiden’s face breaks out into a smile. “Oh, shit. I should have recognized you as one of the Brody brothers. Nice to meet you.”
He holds his hand out to me, and I shake it grudgingly. “You always just walk into Bree’s apartment when you want to?”
He smirks, not the least bit offended. Instead of answering me, he turns to Bree. “Sorry, but the door was open, and when I saw Logan standing here, I was worried it was one of the guys from the city.”
“What guys from the city?” I blurt out.
Aiden looks at me round-eyed and then turns back to Bree. They both stand there mutely, not answering my question, so I repeat it. “What guys from the city?”
Bree finishes tying her shoe and stands up.
She’s wearing black leggings and a long green shirt with the Stronghold Security logo on the chest, and her hair is in a ponytail on the top of her head.
“No one.” She looks at Aiden and points at the Tupperware.
“Is that for me? Gracie said you were going to drop off something.”
He nods proudly. “Yep, she made some cookies to help you sleep.”
Bree avoids looking at me. “Your wife is the sweetest. I’ll call her later to thank her. And thank you for dropping them off.”
He nods and looks between Bree and me again. “Gracie told me to tell you that if it will help, you can stay with us.”
I grunt, and there’s no hiding my obvious disagreement with that. “Bree, we should go.”
She nods. “Right. Thank you, Aiden, truly. But the apartment is perfect, and I appreciate you and Gracie so much. Please tell her I’ll call her later.”
He nods, and after a few more niceties, he leaves. I’m openly staring at Bree as she walks to the still open door. “You ready?”
I follow her out, and it’s not until we’re in the van and halfway across town that I break the silence. “What was that about?”
She’s looking out the window. “What?”
I groan, gripping the steering wheel tighter. “The cookies, the offer to stay at his house, the guys from the city. All of it, Bree. What was that?”