Chapter Three
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The next morningafter his run, Logan’s thoughts returned to his trip to The Wild Vine the day before. He couldn’t believe how well little Gabrielle St. John grew up. Hell, she turned out to be smoking hot.
Most of the women he knew and dated in Dallas were professionals and dressed as such, with sleek, monochromatic wardrobes and sharp stilettos. Yesterday, Gabby’s tropical print halter dress, sandals, and long blond hair with pink and purple streaks surprised him, but it was still sexy. Very sexy.
Obviously, she’d blossomed from the quiet girl with big, watchful eyes. Their brief yet extremely close contact yesterday left him no doubt that she was still quiet and watchful, as though she were observing his every move.
He intended to do a little investigating before he picked her up tomorrow. After so long away from his hometown, everything had changed. Half the restaurants that had been in business when he graduated were gone.
After a shower, a bowl of cereal, and a cup of coffee, Logan called his younger brother, Brayden.
“It’s my only day off in two weeks of double shifts and it’s before noon. You better be dying, bro.”
Logan laughed at Brayden’s mumbled words. “Close enough. I have a date with a very sexy lady tomorrow night and I have no clue where we should go for dinner.”
“What the hell, man? You’ve been back in town for less than a week and you’ve already got a date? I’m a young, handsome doctor and I haven’t had a date in a month,” he complained.
“That’s because you work twenty-seven or twenty-eight double shifts every month,” Logan retorted.
“Yeah, well, I have student loans to pay off.”
Snorting, Logan flopped down on the couch in his living room. “Bray, Mom and Dad paid all your tuition, room and board.”
“Okay, so I’m a workaholic. Don’t judge me, you don’t know my life.”
As he laughed, Logan realized how much he missed his younger brother while he was gone. Brayden had visited him regularly when he lived in Dallas, but it wasn’t the same as being able to hang out with him once a week or drop by his apartment unannounced to drag his ass out for a run.
“Whatever, man. You’re not a complete troll. If you shaved or brushed your hair once in a while, I’m sure the nurses at the hospital would be all over you. Now, focus on my problem for a minute. Where should I take my date tomorrow?”
Logan heard some rustling as his brother sat up in bed.
“Okay, tell me more about her. What’s she like?”
“What does that matter?” Logan asked.
Brayden sighed. “Jesus, bro, I’m amazed you’ve ever even gotten laid. You do realize that your good looks are going to go at some point and you’ll actually have to rely on your personality to pick up chicks, right?”
“Ha, ha. Asshole. Actually, you know her. I’m going out with Gabby St. John.”
“Seriously?” Brayden didn’t sound happy. In fact, he sounded pissed.
“What? Why are you mad?”
“Logan, you can’t take her out to dinner, screw her, and then not call again like you’ve done with other women you’ve dated.”
Irritated, Logan scowled. “What in the hell are you talking about? I’m not a complete asshole.”
Bray’s silence said it all.
“Okay, I’m not that big of an asshole anymore. I haven’t treated a woman like that in a long time, man.”
“Only because you stopped having the time to hook up,” Brayden muttered beneath his breath.
That was harsh. “I’m not going to sleep with Gabrielle St. John!”
His brother snorted. “Yeah, right.”
