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He bends his head to my ear, his warm breath tickling as he whispers, “The other night … it wasn’t the right time for us.”
My eyes flutter closed briefly. I’m putty in his hands. He straightens, his hand rubbing up and down my arm just above where he grabbed me.
“When?” I whisper. So wet with desire for him, I’d let him take me here right now.
“Soon, Sunshine.”
He places a finger beneath my chin, then bends to place his firm lips against mine. Sealing the promise of his words between us. It’s not like his hot devouring hungry kisses I remember. This is more considered, teasingly gentle and full of so much more promise. It squeezes my heart and sends a shivery thrill up my spine.
He releases my lips. “Now, I believe you wanted a coffee.”
My head is spinning. We’re definitely not done. I’m still willing my limbs to move when he’s halfway to the kitchen. I thought I was the one seducing Logan but maybe he’s seducing me.
Todd arrives exactly at ten o’clock which is reassuring in itself, but when I set eyes on the former NYPD guy for the first time, I’m convinced he’s definitely the man for the job. Todd is a walking solid wall of muscle, with the face and build of a former heavyweight boxer. Scarred and battered by a tough life, he looks like someone who’s met some bad dudes. And given his size and stature, I expect his opponents came off a lot worse. He’s not as tall as Logan but certainly broader, and tattoos peek out from under his sleeve which stretches around a bicep that’s as thick as the thigh on an average man.
He holds out a bear-paw-sized hand to introduce himself. The tenor of his deep soothing voice sounds completely at odds with his fierce look. If Todd isn’t a soul singer, then that voice is wasted.
On the dining table, he sets out his laptop and various other electronic gadgets that he pulls from a large case one by one. He seems to be a man of few words, which shouldn’t surprise me because he’s one of Logan’s friends. And if there’s one thing I know about Logan, he hates chitchat.
Todd begins by asking to see my cell phone, then after reading the texts, he asks about my social media accounts.
Across the table from me, Logan links his fingers together tightly and places them on the table in front of him. “I think there’s something else that Allie needs to tell you,” he says, looking at Todd and deliberately avoiding my pointed gaze.
Damn! This is the part I was dreading. Todd turns in my direction, waiting to hear what I have to say.
Logan is also now staring at me. “Go on, Allie.” His tone is encouraging which helps but it isn’t as comforting as when his arms are around me.
I clear my throat and for the second time in mere days, I tell the story of my father’s crimes. This time, it doesn’t feel so hard. Todd listens attentively, making the occasional note in his laptop while Logan sits opposite me, continuing to look down at his hands.
When I’m done, Todd nods and says only, “Good,” before going back to typing on his laptop.
I continue to watch silently as the thick fingers on his massive hand move adeptly across the keyboard. He’s been doing this for about ten minutes now.
“Would anyone like a coffee?” I ask, jumping up from the table. This sitting and waiting is nerve-wracking. I’m filling the filter paper with fresh ground coffee when Logan joins me.
“Are you okay?” he asks and when I’ve turned the percolator on to do its thing, he turns me to face him, then rubs his palms soothingly along the outside of my arms. I’ve noticed this is becoming a habit with him and I’m not sure if it’s for his benefit or mine.
“You know telling someone about my background isn’t easy.”
He nods, and I want to whack myself across the head. Of course, Logan knows how hard it is to talk about my dad, after all, it took me fourteen years to tell him. Even then, that was only when I had to.
“I’m just not sure that searching through my social media posts is going to turn up anything useful. I’ve got over two million followers.”
“Allie, Todd knows what he’s doing. You have to give him a chance. Besides, it’s all we’ve got.” He leans in and places a kiss on my forehead. I’m sure it’s only done to reassure me and soften the blunt reality of his words.
“This is needle in a haystack kind of stuff,” I mutter, bending my head forward to rest on his chest. There is something very comforting about listening to the steady beat of Logan’s heart beneath my ear.
“I know, Sunshine.” His hand threads through my hair, holding me in place. And we stay that way until the coffee is ready.
I give Todd his coffee and excuse myself. I’ll be moving into Katie’s apartment in a couple of days and starting on my packing I hope will take my mind off this whole mess.
I’m just placing my green tweed Chanel jacket into a suitcase when there’s a knock at the door. “Come in.”
Logan opens the door and smiles when he sees me sitting in the midst of a pile of my brightly colored designer clothes. “Todd wants to speak to us both before he leaves.”
I follow him back out to the living room. Todd is sitting at the dining table exactly where I left him. He isn’t smiling. He gestures for me to sit, and Logan takes the chair beside me.
Todd leans back in his chair. “Okay, I’m going to need more time on this but, I’ve been able to link the cell number that the text messages were sent from to the Facebook account of one of your followers. It looks like this person is based in California. And they’ve been commenting on your posts for a couple of months.” My mouth drops open.
