I try to keep my eyes on his, but he’s so close. They flutter closed as my whole body anticipates what’s coming. “Now?” I repeat and hold my breath. Waiting.
The weight of his body disappears so suddenly that I almost stumble forward. Bewildered, I open my eyes and frown when I see that he’s now four feet away from me.
“What?” I gasp, my confusion coming out in the sharpness of the word.
Though Logan stuffs his hands into his pockets all casual-like, his eyes are dark and full of desire. “Now we need to havea chat,” he says, the words rumbling from his throat and leaving me weak in the knees.
“Oh,nowyou want to talk?” I grumble. Embarrassment floods my face with heat, but I don’t care. Not when Logan rewards me with a beautifully cocky grin.
“Dangerous,” he says, shaking his head. “But I’m not losing this bet unless we have a clear conversation about what’s coming.”
“Losing the…” I feel like my brain is swimming in gravy, and I force a deep breath so I can think straight again. Yes. Clear conversation is a good idea. “You want to lose the bet?”
Logan laughs, and the quiet sound hits me right in the chest. “Savannah, love, if you think that kiss was enough for me, then we’redefinitelyhaving that conversation.”
He’s been calling me ‘love’ since the day we met, but somehow it sounds different today. It sounds like he really means the word.
“So youwantto kiss me again?” I clarify. I’m not sure I can trust my own brain right now.
Logan’s eyes jump down to my mouth, and his jaw muscles flex. “You have no idea,” he growls. “But…”
“But we should talk about what’s coming,” I say, repeating his own words. This is what I wanted, but now that it’s here, I’m terrified. No wonder Logan struggled so much with talking to Lola. What if this conversation goes a way I don’t want it to? Tucking my hands behind my back, I curl them into fists and drop my eyes to the floor between us. “Your season ends in June.” And it’s April. That’s not a lot of time.
“It’ll start again in January.” Logan sounds so calm that I’m afraid to look at him.
“So when will you need to be back?” How long do I have until Australia calls him home?
“Christmas with my parents would be nice.”
December. I can keep him until December, and then—
“But I figure if you come with me, I’m more likely to go,” Logan says. “Otherwise I reckon I won’t see them for a while, what with my dad’s health making it hard to trek to California.”
“Yeah, you can’t make him…” My words trail off, and I lift my head, stunned by the fact that his hungry look has only gotten stronger. “Wait, you want me to go to Australiawithyou?” What happened to ‘clear conversation’? This is the murkiest conversation I’ve ever had.
He shrugs, hands still in his pockets. “Like I said, if you don’t come with me, I might not find the will to go. Not even for the holiday. Wherever you are, that’s where I want to be.”
“TheThunder’sseason starts in January,” I realize out loud. And when Logan nods, tears fill my eyes. “You want to stay?” He nods again, and I have to lean against the door to keep from collapsing.He wants to stay. I don’t have to be afraid anymore and brace myself for a heartbreaking goodbye? Inhaling, I let the answer to that question settle in my belly and quell the unease I’ve been feeling for weeks. Logan wants tostay.
Relief and excitement and sheer love for the man in front of me flood my system and leave me reeling, which is the only explanation for the cheeky question that slips outof me. “With me?”
Logan groans. “For crying out loud, Sav, I’m in love with you. Of course I want to stay with you.”
Sweet biscuits.I dart forward, throwing my arms around his shoulders, and capture his lips with mine in a desperate, messy kiss. Logan wraps an arm around my waist and lifts me off my feet without breaking the kiss, and then we’re moving. He presses me against the door, teasing my mouth open at the same time. I melt into him, running my hand through his hair and drawing a groan from his throat. Lifting me into his arms, he grabs the door handle and pushes it open, kicking it closed behind us when we get inside.
Logan heads straight for the counter like a man on a mission and sets me down, his hands trailing down the outside of my thighs, then moving up to my ribcage, my shoulders, my hair. Wherever he can touch. His kiss is devouring and intoxicating, and I have never felt this fire that blazes through me. It’s deliciously intense, and I wonder how long I have before the flames consume me.
A deep yowl answers my unspoken question, telling me that there won’t be any consuming fires happening in this kitchen. Not if my cat has any say.
Logan breaks away and swears, leaving me bereft of his mouth as he turns to address our audience. Whimpering, I pull him back, and he dives back in with renewed efforts, prompting me to arch into him and try to get closer. But then another yowl cuts through the air, and Logan groans, pressing his forehead to mine and drawing in labored breaths.
“Menace needs to make up his mind.” Wrapping his large hands around my waist, he growls, “Do you want us to be together or not, mate?”
Beef chirps in reply.
“Maybe we shouldn’t leave that up to the cat,” I say breathlessly. I’m almost glad for the reprieve, though I’ll only need a few deep breaths before I’m ready for more. I grip the hair at the back of Logan’s head and press my other hand to his firm chest, holding myself steady as I breathe. “You really want to be together?”
With another curse, Logan finally pulls his head back, and I open my eyes to look at him. He’s completely perplexed, his eyebrows drawn low over impossibly dark eyes. “I kiss you like that, and you think I don’t want to be with you?”
