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As if beating myself up as I drove away hadn’t been enough, the guilt only worsened with Logan’s text.
Logan: I’m sorry if I took that way out of your comfort zone. I want to do right by you. I just reacted to having you so close. Won’t happen again unless you want it to. I’m sorry
Two sorrys?What happened to the playboy?Why couldn’t he have just let me leave and blissfully pretend nothing happened? That I’d imagined the entire thing. I know he’s trying to be nice. Put my mind at ease. But still, it’s not helping. Him being around isn’t helping. Him being Liam’s brother definitely isn’t helping. He’s everywhere. And trying to pretend that a little part of me isn’t excited every time he walks into a room is becoming damn near impossible.Ugh! We’re practically related.
“What’s got you in a spin?” Dwayne asks as he enters my office Friday afternoon.Are we friends now?
I shake off my thoughts and offer him a small smile. He doesn’t need to know my problems. Nor do I want to tell him. “Sorry, it’s just been a long week. How can I help you?”
“I’m here to negotiate the terms of my sentence.”
“Your sentence?” I ask, eyebrow raised as I bite back a smile.
“That’s what it feels like. I’ve been told I have to prove myself before the season starts by staying away from alcohol, women, and fun.”
“No one said anything about staying away from fun.”
“Yes, but being without the first two kind of makes the third a given.”
I close my eyes and blow out a breath. “Dwayne, Dwayne, Dwayne.”
“I like the way you say my name.”
And my eyes flash open. “Jesus. Every word out of your mouth is proof that you need to do this.”
He throws his head back and laughs. “You need to lighten up.”
Crossing my arms over my chest, I shake my head and smile. “Just tell me why you’re here.”
“I think I should be given one day off a week to let loose. Otherwise, I might go insane.”
Leaning back in my chair, I bite back a laugh but can’t stop the smirk that appears. “That’s not a negotiation. That’s a request.”
“Right. In exchange for that, I’ll…ensure I keep it private. Only drinking in the Ball House and getting the guys to bring the women to me.”
Wow, just wow.I have no words, and it’s getting even harder not to burst out laughing, because he’s serious. But I need to be professional.
“Umm. What do we get out of this negotiation?”
“That I’m making sure the team doesn’t look bad.”
Oh, lord.
“Let me take all of this great information to Rita, and I’ll see what I can do.”
Dwayne smiles, and I have to remind myself that he’s got a shit home life, and he’s young. Maybe he doesn’t know any better.
“Thanks, Dani,” he says, stepping closer. I shoot him a warning glare but he ignores it and kisses my cheek before walking away. I resist the urge to rub it off my face until he’s gone, and I’ve just raised my hand when he pops his head back in, and I freeze.
“How about I volunteer for that charity cleanup day? Will that sweeten the deal?”
Oh, I know it will.“It can’t hurt.”
When I get home from work that night, I have to physically stop myself from replying to Logan, even though it’s been five days. It’s not fair to message him when I haven’t decided what I want. Or how I feel. And I’m still not entirely convinced that he wants anything from me. This could still very much be about him trying to reach the unreachable.
I spend Saturday watching my favorite movies and keeping to myself. No outside communication whatsoever. And by Saturday night, I’ve made a decision. I need to talk to him. To tell him what’s going on in my life and why I’m not interested in a quick hookup.
Maybe then he’ll finally back off.And that’s what I want, right?
