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She hops off the barstool and carries our empty mugs to the sink, leaving me to dwell on her words. When she’s rinsed and placed them in the dishwasher, she says, “I’m off to bed, I’m beat.” I nod, accepting the hug she gives me before leaving.
I wonder if Logan wanting to find my mother is tied up in his relationship with his own. I check my cell, it’s not that late. Maybe it’s time for Logan and me to talk. I type out a short message and hit send.
Chapter twenty-six
Logan
Bzzz , bzzz. My cell vibrates across the coffee table with an incoming message. Surprise has me snatching it up when I see Allie’s name on the screen.
Allie: Are you home yet?
Logan: Yes, why?
I don’t get a response to my question but a minute later there’s a soft knock at my door. I open it knowing Allie will be on the other side. Allie was gorgeous in her red ball gown tonight, but this version, barefoot in a pair of silly pajama pants, is adorable and preferable. My body reacts instantly and I’m glad I’m still wearing dress pants, to contain the evidence.
“Can I come in?” she asks, sounding uncharacteristically quiet.
I stand back and wave her through. A waft of her floral perfume from earlier teases my nostrils when she passes.
I follow her into the living area. “Would you like a drink?”
Her eyes track to my whiskey glass sitting on the coffee table and she says, “Just a water please.”
I hate how tonight she’s acting like a guest in my home rather than my roommate or girlfriend which is how I’d been starting to think of her. She might have moved out, but I want her to still see my place as an extension of hers. I guess the chances of that are slim after our recent disagreement.
I get her water and join her on the sofa, leaving a cushion width between us. “Is Katie okay?” I ask, suspecting that their early departure from the party might have had more to do with Katie and Drew than it did us. Allie nods.
I take a sip of my whiskey, watching her over the rim of the glass. Waiting for her to speak first and explain why she’s knocking on my door close to midnight when I’ve spent the last week trying to convince her to do just this.
Her throat bobs with a gulp and she turns toward me, bending one leg to tuck her foot beneath her. “I told Katie,” she says when she’s finally settled. Her emerald eyes are wide, searching mine for a reaction.
“What exactly did you tell her?” I ask cautiously, suspecting that she means her secret, but I want to be sure.
She looks down where her fingers fidget with the drawstring on her festive pajama pants. “Everything ... about my family … about the threats.” She looks up, our eyes locking. “And about us.”
Surprise pounds out a new rhythm in my heart. “Right. And are you okay?” I ask, then clear my throat of the scratchy dry feeling that coats it.
Her shoulders slump and her eyes fill. “You’re too good to me ... I’m sorry I reacted so badly to Todd finding my mother. I know you were just trying to help.” Her hand stretches across the cushion, reaching for mine, our fingers curling tightly together when they connect.
Confusion has me blinking several times, surely I didn’t hear her correctly. What has caused this 360 degree change of heart? I swear I will never understand this woman but one thing I do know, I’m not stupid enough to pass up the offered olive branch.
I squeeze her hand lightly. “I’m sorry too. I know I should have talked to you about it first.” She nods and I slide closer toward her on the sofa. I need to have her body touching mine to truly be able to relax in the knowledge that she’s safe and that we’re going to be alright.
“Allie, all I wanted to do was to protect you. It keeps me awake at night worrying that I won’t be able to.” She searches my eyes and I know she sees the weariness in them, an accumulation of the sleepless nights over the last week.
She leans into me. “I know it’s who you are. It’s what I … like about you. You’re a good man. I shouldn’t have lost sight of that. But the thought of having to face my mother again horrifies me.”
“You don’t have to see her. She won’t even know Todd is investigating.”
She nods slowly. “I guess if it’s the only lead we’ve got then he should do it.”
My eyes briefly drop to where our hands are clasped between us, and I fill my lungs with air for the first time in what feels like days. “Thank you.”
Her free hand reaches up to bring my face to hers. Our lips coming together in one breath. This is how we should be, where we belong. I draw her closer, her warm body molding to mine. Arms entwined. Our chests rise and fall to the same rhythm.
Her soft sensuous kisses have me wanting more. But tonight has to be about something other than us just falling back into bed together and having wild hot sex. Allie knocked on my door to talk and that’s what we need to do. The sex will have to wait. I pull my lips from hers with a series of feather-soft kisses that run from the corner of her mouth to that sensitive spot she likes just below her ear. Her soft moan triggers a primal need to reclaim her as mine.
However, instead of feeding my desire, I shift to a more comfortable position for both of us so we are stretched along the length of the sofa with Allie tucked into my side. She bends her leg to lay it across my thighs and her cheek comes to rest against my chest. My heart beneath her ear thumps out a welcome to her warm weight.
