Total pages in book: 59
Estimated words: 56885 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56885 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
“Not at all,” Logan says. “I can give Piper a ride home.”
Milo says his goodbyes, once again leaving me and Logan alone in a restaurant. This one is much busier than the jazz place, not to mention closer to where we work. Logan watches him go with that same handsome, rueful smile.
“Have you calmed down now?” I tease.
“I kind of lost it,” he mutters.
“Yeah, you don’t need to tell me that. I saw. I thought you were going to hit him or something.”
“No, no,” he says, the second no sounding like he’s trying to convince himself. “I just can’t think of you with anybody else.”
“That’s an issue, Logan, because you shouldn’t even be able to think of yourself with me.”
“It’s the only thing I can think about,” he says. He leans closer to me. Part of me wishes I could flip a switch and stop myself from adoring how he looks at me; that all-encompassing gaze tells me nobody else could ever make him feel like I do. “When you were talking about some things being easier to talk about over text, that wasn’t academic, was it? You hinted at what you told me before you stormed out of my office.”
I roll my eyes. “Okay, time for a little ABC, Mr. Boss. A—I didn’t storm out. B—If I were talking about that, what makes you think I can discuss it now? And C—you have to stop looking at me like that in public.”
“I don’t know any other way to look at you.”
“Well, try. This isn’t a freaking text thread. People can see us.”
“Milo was right,” Logan says, sitting back. “We work well together. Bouncing ideas around with you feels natural. Everything with you feels natural. As for the other thing, you know you don’t need to be ashamed, right?”
“I’m not ashamed of being a virgin,” I mutter, looking at the table. “It’s just something I don’t talk about. I wanted you to know this will not be some easy fling.”
“Nothing about this is easy,” he says, his eyes darting around the restaurant.
“Why are you so amped up?” I ask.
He stares at me, his expression changing, becoming dangerous somehow. I’m not sure that makes sense, but that’s how it feels. Like, if I keep asking questions, it will lead to a dark, awful place. I should stop and turn back, but that’s been the crux of it since this started.
I get the feeling there’s no turning back when it comes to Logan and me.
CHAPTER 15
LOGAN
When she asks me why I’m amped up, I know I can’t give her a complete answer. I don’t want to scare her with the mob stuff. I don’t want to ruin her first week on the job.
Hell, has it only been a week? It feels like so much longer.
She looks at me with gorgeous patience on her face, her cheeks a subtle shade of pink, makeup mixed with her natural warmth.
“Maybe it has something to do with my Hardcover living up to her name,” I say.
She takes a sip of her wine. “Logan…”
“I know. It’s not as easy as when we’re texting.”
“We shouldn’t be texting or talking like this.”
“I know,” I say passionately. “But you changed me, Piper. You changed me three years ago.”
She gasps. “Logan—”
“I know,” I snarl. “I shouldn’t talk like this. I shouldn’t think like this. I should keep control of myself. But when I was a kid…”
I trail off. What am I even saying? Why am I going there?
She shuffles closer to me, reaching under the table and taking my hand. “Hey, don’t close up on me now.”
“It’s like you said. Some things are easier over text.” I tell her.
“Just because something’s hard doesn’t mean you should shy away from it. Don’t look at me like that.”
“Like what?” I ask.
“Like I’m a dork,” she says.
I lean close, wanting so badly to kiss her, but I can’t, not here. She turns slightly away as if reminding me of that painful fact. “I didn’t mean to look at you like that, Beautiful. You’re just so impressive to me. You inspire me… it’s your attitude, your soul, just… just you.” My voice catches with emotion.
“We’ve got the same attitude about life. I won’t deny that. But it doesn’t mean this won’t blow up in our faces.”
“You changed me,” I whisper, pent-up emotion bursting from me. “That first kiss woke something up in me. For three years, I’ve been trying to pretend it’s not true. I’ve been lying to myself. Before that moment, I was broken. Dead inside.”
“Logan,” she whispers, her voice filled with emotion. “Why? Because of what happened when you were a kid?”
“Maybe,” I say, looking away.
She reaches over and touches my face, turning my gaze toward her. Doing this in public is a risk. She knows it. I know it. But she does it anyway. Looking at her is like a temptation to heal, to leave the past behind and not let it consume me.