AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Warmth filled Logan. It made no sense, but he liked standing with her like this and hearing her claim him as her family. It felt right on a gut-deep level that nothing other than surfing ever had.
“But I left Vanessa for you,” Henry protested, taking a step toward Gabby and holding out a hand.
“Then you don’t know me as well as I thought you did.” She raised her chin, and pride surged through him. She was so fierce and strong. “Because I would never get back together with someone who betrayed my trust.”
Something flashed in his eyes. “Not even for a big house in the country and a family?”
Logan heard her quick intake of breath and wanted to punch Henry. What a bastard to try to take advantage of her dreams for the future.
“I already have a house in the country,” Gabby snapped. “And I don’t want a family with you. Get out.”
Henry shook his head and sneered at Logan. “Are you sure it’s your baby? Do you really want to risk raising my kid?”
“Kids,” he corrected. “She’s having twins, and they’re definitely mine.”
He’d believed her the day she first told him—once he’d gotten over the initial shock—and that belief had never wavered. She wouldn’t lie about something like that, and the doctor had confirmed how far along the pregnancy was.
“What makes you so certain?” Henry demanded.
Logan intertwined his fingers with Gabby’s. “That’s none of your business, and as she said, it’s time for you to go.” He was proud of himself for being civil when what he really wanted was to hit Henry in the face and yell at him to get out of her life and never come back.
“Is that really want you want?” Henry asked Gabby. “If you kick me out, I won’t be back. We were together for a year. Are you sure you want to throw that away?”
She hesitated, and for a sickening moment, Logan thought she might reconsider, but then she straightened her shoulders and glared at him.
“I’m not the one who threw us away,” she said. “You are.”
“You heard her,” Logan said. “Get out.”
With a flash of real shock in his eyes, Henry backed out of the hall, his hands raised as if to defend himself.
“This is it then,” he called. “I won’t be back.”
“Thank God,” Gabby retorted.
Logan shoved the door shut before Henry could say anything else and flipped the lock. Gabby buried her face in his chest. He held her close and kissed the top of her head.
“It’s okay, sweetheart,” he murmured. “He’s gone and you won’t have to face him again.”
They heard an engine start outside and then the crunch of tires on gravel.
“Good riddance,” she muttered into the fabric of his shirt.
He closed his eyes and inhaled her scent. Paint and warm woman. His body tightened with interest and he released her, determined not to make her uncomfortable. He’d always been more attracted to her than was healthy and he hadn’t been with anyone else since their night together in February, which was the longest dry spell he’d had in years. It was understandable that he’d react to her nearness, but he didn’t want to scare her off. He touched his thumb and forefinger to her chin and tilted her face up.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
She drew in a deep breath and released it with a whoosh. “Yeah.” She moved backward and absently tidied her ponytail. “Sorry about that. I had no idea he was coming.”
He frowned. “I never thought you did.”
Her face was twisted with distress, and she didn’t seem to have heard him. “Apparently he found me by asking someone in town. I hate that he was able to track me down so easily.”
Logan froze. “Were you hiding? Did he hurt you?”
She sighed. “Only emotionally. But I liked the idea of being somewhere he wouldn’t find me. It made me feel free.”
“He won’t bother you again,” he told her. He’d seen the look in Henry’s eye. The other man wasn’t accustomed to rejection and Logan doubted he’d be lining up for more. But even if he did, Logan wouldn’t allow it to happen. It would only take a few words in the right ears and Henry would regret ever showing his face in Haven Bay again. “We’ll keep him away.”
