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“Pshh. No.” I hum a nervous laugh, giving them a warning glare to play along. “I have no idea what they’re doing here.”
My sister squints at me skeptically. “Yeah, I’m not buying that.”
“Okay, okay.” My arms slap at my sides, exasperated. “Yes. They’re coming.”
“Seriously, Penelope? What the hell?”
Logan’s fully amused when he pipes up, “Technically, we’re on a date.”
Her head whips around so fast, I’m shocked her eyeballs don’t fly right out of her head. “A date?”
“It’s not a real date. I lost a bet,” I explain, as if that somehow negates the fact that he’s here, hogging all the air, and very much expecting me to spend the evening with him.
As if he isn’t right in front of her, she grits, “For the record, I’m not going to be nice to him.”
“Carrie,” I groan.
“In case you’ve forgotten, he broke your heart. Never mind that the guy’s held the top spot on the list of people I’d like to strangle for literally ever.”
Embarrassment creeps up my neck. I could have lived the rest of my life pretending Logan didn’t break my heart, let alone actually tell him he had.
When he glowers at her, I put myself between them, keeping Carrie at my back while mumbling an awkward, “Sorry.”
“Stop apologizing for other people,” he says in that bossy way of his. But his tone is otherwise gentle, and his gaze is shockingly supportive.
A subtle reminder that I have the power to control this impulse of mine, even though, right now, it feels impossible.
Carrie reinserts herself between us. “Don’t talk to her like you own her.”
It takes some effort for him to pull his attention away from me.
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Logan retorts apathetically.
When she steps toe to toe with him, Declan and I exchange wide-eyed stares.
“Come on, guys. Let’s just go.” I attempt to spare myself further embarrassment, but she charges on.
“You don’t deserve her, Logan.” He absorbs the brunt of her anger in silence. “You didn’t then, and you especially don’t now.”
His eyes flick to mine briefly, and I watch the muscles in his throat feather as he swallows. “I’m well aware of my unworthiness when it comes to your sister, Miss Vance.”
My insides knot at the intensity of that all-consuming stare, and I’m trapped, unable to look away, even when he breaks eye contact first.
“I don’t know how you finagled your way into joining us tonight, but if you don’t want me to break my heel off in your ass, I suggest you keep your hands to yourself and treat her with nothing but respect. Capice?”
“What I do with my hands is entirely up to Penelope,” he says with a mocking smile.
I blush furiously when I spin her away from him. “Declan, have you met my completely normal, not homicidal sister, Carrie?”
Humor dances across his lips before he offers us a cheeky wink. “If she’s gonna bust his balls like that all night, I think we’ll get along just fine.”
Matching his smile, Carrie breezes past Logan to where Declan offers to help her inside the car. But when I try to follow, I’m stopped by a wall of Logan.
I’m dodging his gaze like mad as he takes a careful step forward. “We should probably get going.”
His chest comes within inches of mine, my avoidance intensifying that slow-growing smirk. “You are a filthy, filthy liar, sunshine.”
“Telling her before now wouldn’t have changed the outcome, believe me.” I jerk my chin up defensively, unsure if it’s warranted, or if it’s because being this close to him is utterly terrifying. “And in case no one’s told you lately, you’re unbearably obnoxious.”
