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“What happened?”
Her breath whistled through the phone when she breathed. “The car made a popping sound and then started to shake, so I pulled over and it started smoking really bad. I turned it off, and it won’t turn back on.” Simone sniffled. “I don’t know anything about cars. What do I do?”
“I’m on my way.” I dropped the knife in my hand on the counter and wiped my hands off on a towel. “I’ll be there in twenty. Send me the GPS location for your phone.”
She sniffled again and my stomach sank further. “Logan, I’m scared. And it’s so cold.”
My mind filled with images of her face streaked with tears and shivering each time a passing car made hers shake. “Make that ten.”
Ash hollered behind me when I took off out the back door. I ignored him, climbing into my car and speeding out of the parking lot. I would answer all of his questions later, and probably plenty of questions from everyone else too, but right now, I needed to get to Simone.
The rain hammered my windshield, battling my wipers. Beneath me, my tires hummed on the wet pavement, and when I hit a puddle of standing water, it splashed against the side of the car and caused my steering wheel to jerk slightly. I didn’t slow down, merging onto the highway and picking up to the speed limit.
When I saw the flashing brake lights ahead, I was relieved. Her car. I assumed she would be in it and safe, and I pulled over on the side of the road behind her. I threw my door open, checking to make sure there weren’t cars approaching before I rushed to her door.
She looked up at me, and her tear-streaked face was terrified behind the rain-blurred window. I pulled at the handle, yanking it open and leaning in. I cupped her cheeks and ran my thumbs along her skin, searching for any evidence of her not being okay. A sob broke from her lips, and she dropped forward against me.
“Logan,” she cried. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
She shook with each shiver, and her teeth chattered quietly. “Come here,” I said, tugging her out of the car. I removed my jacket, wrapping it around her and using it to hold her against me. “Don’t worry about that right now.”
She choked on another sob, burying her face against my chest. I rubbed my hands along her back quickly, trying to warm her up. I pressed my lips against her hair, inhaling the sweet scent and feeling comfort. Simone was okay.
“I can’t possibly afford to fix this car,” she said. Her complaint was muffled against my chest, and she sniffed. The tears streaming down her face soaked my shirt with the rain.
“Sweetheart, we will figure that out. For now, I just want to get you out of this rain and home.” I nuzzled her hair, and she wrapped her arms tighter around me.
Simone nodded, sniffing. I kept my arms around her, walking her around to the passenger side of my car and opening the door. She hesitated before sliding into the front seat, meeting my gaze. I stared when she nervously chewed on her lip, and my dick swelled in my jeans. Now?!
The way her eyes narrowed and darkened let me know I wasn’t the only one thinking about the new friendship between us. As much as I was thinking about fucking her against the side of my car in the rain, my stomach twinged when I thought about her shivering in my arms. I felt a protective urge to make sure she was safe. Safe meant off the side of the highway, even if it meant driving her away from it with half an erection painfully pressing against my zipper.
She kissed my cheek, giving me a soft smile before she folded herself into the front seat. “Thank you for saving me.” The quiet purr in her voice made my core twist with a dread I was desperate to feel more of.
It felt like strings—strings quickly attaching themselves.
Chapter 22
Simone
When my car stopped working and I sat on the side of the road, the first person that would’ve come to mind three weeks ago was Chance. My cousin had always been my protector, but when I couldn’t get my car to start tonight, I didn’t even think about calling him. Logan was the first name I’d looked for. I sighed.
“Are you okay?” he asked, looking at me out of the corner of his eye from his spot in the driver’s seat. His voice was decorated with slight concern.
I nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay. Thank you, Logan.” I paused and shrunk back into the seat, wrapping his jacket tighter around me to fight off a chill threatening to travel my spine. “You kind of saved me.”
“Kind of?” He smirked briefly before his face no longer showed the amusement that had been there a moment earlier. “Did you think there was any chance I was leaving you on the side of that highway in the dark and the rain? No fucking way.”
Logan clenched his teeth, and the line in his jaw sharpened. The glow from the streetlights cast alternating light and shadow on his face. I studied it like I had never seen the small features. His long eyelashes fluttered when he blinked, and when he looked at me from the corner of his eye, a small smile tugged briefly at the side of his lips. Butterflies erupted in my chest.
I was nervous when we pulled into my driveway, and I pulled his jacket away from my body. My arms desperately wanted to keep it wrapped around me. Being enveloped in the smell of juniper and the body heat leftover from him wearing it had been a comfort when he pulled me into the rain, and on the ride home, I had settled into the comfort of the thick cotton.
Logan opened his door, watching for me to do the same before he stepped out into the rain. I mirrored his movement, dropping his jacket back on the seat before closing the car door behind me. He led the way to my apartment, and I knew by the light through the window that Emmy was awake. She was going to want to know why I didn’t call her.
We stood facing each other in front of the door, our heavy breaths mixing between us. My eyes flickered from his lips to his eyes and back, crossing the path of his gaze doing the same. I sucked in a deep breath and ran my tongue along my bottom lip.
“So, um…” I stuttered.
He moved to cup my face, running his thumbs across my cheeks. His eyes searched my face like they had when he’d pulled up on the highway. They held the same intensity they always did, but less of the hatred and more concern. “I just… I’m glad you’re okay.”
