“A blowtorch, Marrock?”
Zee, the grey-breaded owner of Club Bandit, did not look impressed.
“Nothing in the rules about using open flames.” Logan shrugged.
“Nowthere will be,” Zee said.
“Got to break them to make them,” Logan said, his eyes on Harper the entire time. She fidgeted next to him. He put a hand on her arm, reassuring her.
“Your scene has sent the place buzzing,” Zee said.
“My intention,” Logan said. He loved a good show that got people talking.
“What are we going to do with you?” Zee said, clapping him on the back.
“Book me for another demonstration and up your insurance.” Logan grinned.
Zee laughed. “Have a good night.”
“What made you uncomfortable there?” Logan asked Harper, putting his hand on the small of her back. She shrugged a shoulder and flipped her hair behind her ear.
“Hey Victor, an energy drink and another bottle of water,” Logan called. “Kitten, look at me.” He spoke low, right above her.
“I didn’t know what to do,” Harper whispered. “You didn’t tell me what to say to Zee or if I should have said something.”
Yeah, he thought, being ignored might unnerve her. That’s why he’d tried that small dose of it.
Victor passed him his drinks, and he uncapped the bottle, holding it out to Harper. “Drink,” he said.
She took the bottle and lifted it to her lips.
“You don’t have to be on with me here, Kitten. In life, out there, you are laser-focused, never missing a detail, always taking notes. Alert to what your boss needs and wants. With me, you can disappear into the background, unless I want otherwise. That scene built trust between us, and I was giving you a breather. Zee took his cue from me.”
“Okay,” Harper said.
But his insides twisted because she looked hurt.
“Now, we can end the night here or I can take you down the hall into a guest room, and we can try something more. Your call,” Logan said, tangling his hand in her hair, tilting her face to him.
CHAPTER SIX - HARPER
Withme,youcandisappear into the background.
It was exactly what she wanted, but she found it difficult to do. His words sent her pulse racing.
Anticipating Xander’s needs, keeping up with work and taking classes, she was always doing something. It was the way she wanted it. Sensory input and being occupied kept the memories from clouding her present.
“Let’s go to the room.”
Lying on the medical table, not having to think about anything other than feeling where the wax hit her skin, had turned her brain off. All she had cared about was the next sensation. And she wanted more of it.
Logan tugged gently on the sash around the robe.
“Perfect,” he said.
Taking her water bottle from her, he put it down on the bar and took her by the hand, his cool touch calming the butterflies in her stomach.
At the top of the wide curving staircase, a slender man with a goatee sat at a podium.
