Page 130 of Poet & Protector

“No, I’m good.”

I was waiting for him to pull the rug out from under me. I didn’t trust any of this.

“I’ll say goodnight then,” he said. “Sleep well, Mason.”

Logan walked away, turning off the lights in the living area. He went into the bathroom and closed the door. I heard the sink running a moment later.

It took me a minute to break out of my haze of disbelief. When my brain worked its way around to accepting the fact that Logan was going to leave me alone for the rest of the night, I hurried to crawl under the blankets. I thought it would be hard to fall asleep, knowing he was there, even if it was at the opposite end of the room. But the strain of all the hours I’d spent with him had totally sapped me. I passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow.

* * *

Logan Bane’s house

Thursday morning

The whirring noise of automated blackout curtains retracting stirred me from sleep. I blinked then bolted upright, briefly panicking as I tried to remember where I was.

Logan’s bedroom. I’d spent the night at Logan’s house.

I glanced around. Morning light spilled into the space as the curtains retracted. Everything looked the same other than Logan’s bed being a mess after he’d slept in it. He was nowhere to be seen, but I heard the shower running.

Okay. Next move, get the hell out of here. But how do I do that?

As much as I’d prefer to leave without talking to Logan, it was a bad idea. Plus, he’d let me sleep on the couch without bothering me at all during the night and I wanted to do whatever I could to continue that pattern. Showing a little gratitude would probably help my cause.

I’d wait until he came back in the room, then politely make my excuses and go to school. I scrubbed my hands down my face and finger-combed my hair. I’d have to skip a shower and wear my clothes from the day before. I wasn’t a fan of that, but I didn’t have time to run to the Nightshade compound and get ready. If I went home, I wouldn’t make it to school until second period.

I could dress quickly right now and be ready to go before Logan came out of the bathroom. I leaned over to grab my phone and my clothes from the side table I’d left them on last night.

Except there weren’t any clothes on the side table. My phone was there, but my clothes were gone. I bit my lower lip.

Where the hell are my clothes?

I grabbed my phone to check the time only to discover the battery had run out during the night. Damn it. I didn’t have a charger. Ansel and Nev were both going to be freaking out. My phone was dead and I had no clothes. This was not a good start to my day.

The drum of water from the shower went silent.

“Mason?” Logan called a minute later from inside the bathroom. “Are you awake?”

“I’m awake,” I answered, stood up and stretched, then started to search the floor around the couch. Maybe my clothes had gotten knocked off the table somehow. They didn’t seem to be anywhere. I even got down on my hands and knees to look under the couch. No joy.

Logan’s voice floated into the room again. “The shower’s free. I’ll order breakfast and have it sent up. Is there anything in particular you’d like?”

Clothes. I would like clothes. A working phone would be nice, too.

Growling softly, I stalked across the room and through the half-open bathroom door.

Hot, steamy air swirled around me. “Logan, I can’t find⁠—”

My words dissolved into a strangled noise. Logan was standing in front of one of the mirrors, shaving. That wouldn’t have been a problem. The problem was that he was naked. No robe. No towel. Completely naked.

Fuck. Why didn’t I knock? Or ask if I could come in?

No, I was pissed about my phone and clothes, and I had to storm right into the bathroom, forgetting who I was dealing with.

Now my body had locked in place and refused to ignore the commands my brain was giving it to turn around and walk back out of the room. I couldn’t do anything other than stand there, wide-eyed and speechless.

Unfazed by my arrival, Logan cut a glance at me. One side of his mouth hooked up as he took in my astonished expression.