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She kissed him, catching his groan, savoring the vibration of it coursing through her.
Jeanie was quickly learning that Logan didn’t do anything halfway, including kissing her. He didn’t rush. He took his time. He was thorough. Jeanie had never been kissed like that before. It was like he could kiss her all day; like he would never tire of it. Like kissing wasn’t just a means to an end.
But Jeanie didn’t want to kiss all night. She had other plans, or at least she did until the knock at the door.
The knock might as well have been gunshots for how quickly Logan reacted.
His hands pulled away from her body so fast she got whiplash. He took a step back and then another, putting as much space between them as he could. His face above his beard was a bright, embarrassed red. His blue eyes were wide with guilt or fear, or something else entirely; something like regret.
He tore away from her like they’d been caught holding the murder weapon while hovering suspiciously over the dead body and laying out their evil plan loud enough for everyone to hear.
He jumped away from her, like he might catch fire if he touched her.
He dropped his hands from her body, like he couldn’t bear the thought of anyone knowing what they’d been up to these past few weeks.
And suddenly, this secret relationship was less fun.
She watched Logan run a hand through his hair as he walked to the door. She listened as he spoke to the person on the other side. Something about a shipment coming in early. And by the time he’d closed the door and turned back to her, the moment was thoroughly ruined.
Suddenly, the warnings from her new friends were ringing in her head. Warnings about Logan falling hard, about Logan having his heart broken. So many warnings about treading carefully around this man and trying not to hurt him. But for the first time since they started this secret thing between them, she wondered who was protecting her from getting hurt.
It had seemed like a good idea when they started, like a low-pressure way for them to have some fun, but now things were twisted in her gut. Things were less fun when she could see how this ended. When she could so clearly see how not over his ex he was. When she could feel how much she’d let herself like this man, to come to depend on this man. And she refused to let her feelings for Logan get all tangled up with her feelings about being here.
Whatever happened with Logan, Jeanie liked it here. She liked her new friends and her new book club. She was learning how to be a good owner and boss. She had a cat for goodness’ sake! She couldn’t let suddenly complicated feelings for Logan derail her plans.
‘I should go.’
The crease between Logan’s brow deepened. ‘Jeanie, I—’
‘No, no. It’s fine.’ She waved a hand, brushing off his impending apology. She didn’t want it. She just wanted to go home and untangle her confused thoughts, to tend to her bruised feelings. ‘It’s just that I have some ... uh ... some inventory to do. And Casper needs di
‘I’m sorry about that. It was just a work thing, but you know how this town talks.’
‘Right. I know. No big deal.’ Her fake smile hurt her cheeks.
‘Jeanie.’ His voice was low, demanding she tell him what was going on inside her head.
‘It’s totally fine, Logan. This is what we agreed on from the begi
He frowned, his expression darkening. ‘You’re not happy about it.’
‘Says who?’
‘Me. You’re doing that awful fake smile.’
‘What fake smile?’
‘That one! The one you do when you’re trying to convince me you’re fine when I know you’re not. Why do you do that?’
‘I don’t do that.’ How dare he pretend he knew her so well! ‘I’m just starting to think maybe this isn’t a good idea.’
He flinched at that, and Jeanie almost felt bad about it, but something about being tossed aside in the middle of a really great kiss had set something off inside her.
‘We hardly know each other, and this has been really nice, and I really appreciate what you’ve done for me since I moved here, but maybe we should just cool it. For now, anyway.’
‘Cool it?’
‘Yeah.’
‘That’s what you want?’
Jeanie blew out a long, frustrated sigh. ‘I don’t know what I want, okay? That’s kinda the problem. And every time I think I know what I want, you look at me like that and you kiss me, and I can’t think when you kiss me!’
‘You don’t want me to kiss you anymore?’ He’d stepped closer at some point, and he hadn’t dropped her hand. He kept his fingers intertwined with hers.
‘Well, I don’t want you not to kiss me.’
‘Jeanie.’ He did it again, said her name in that stern, sexy way that made her want to spill her guts to him. He should have been an interrogator.
‘Yes?’
‘You’re being very confusing right now.’
‘I know. I’m sorry.’
‘It’s okay. I can wait until you figure it out.’
The tightening knot in her belly loosened. ‘Okay.’
He nodded. ‘Okay.’
‘Logan?’
‘Yeah?’
‘What happened with Lucy?’
It was Logan’s turn to blow out a long sigh. He ran a hand down his beard and shifted uncomfortably on his feet, like he’d rather run than have this conversation, and for a minute Jeanie thought he might not say anything at all.
‘She wasn’t happy here,’ he said at last. ‘She wasn’t happy with me.’
‘I’m sorry.’
He shrugged. ‘It was going on for a while before I proposed, but I thought I could fix it. I thought I could change her mind about living here, but...’ he hesitated, with another shrug of his broad shoulders, ‘it didn’t work.’
‘It doesn’t say anything about you that she left, you know.’
He huffed.
‘I’m serious. Just because you weren’t a good match doesn’t mean it was your fault.’ She held his gaze. He looked at her intently, like he was judging the sincerity of her words, like he wanted to believe her. ‘Besides, she was clearly a fool to give up a chance to be co-owner of those hilarious chickens.’
A startled laugh escaped him. ‘They are my biggest selling feature.’
Jeanie smiled, stepping toward him, already feeling herself pulled back by his gravitational pull. It must be because he was bigger than her. That was just science, right?
‘I don’t know,’ she said. ‘There are a few other things.’
‘Oh, yeah?’ A smile started at the corner of his mouth. A tentative, hopeful little thing.
‘Well, I think you might have a future as a detective or maybe a locksmith.’
His smile tipped bigger.
‘You’re pretty cute.’
‘Oh?’ A blush crept up his cheeks.
‘Yep. And not a bad kisser.’ She stepped into him and planted a soft kiss on his lips. ‘But I really am going to go.’
Her emotions were still way too all over the map to make staying here in this small space with this large man a good idea. She was bound to make decisions she would regret later.
‘I like you, Jeanie,’ he said, his voice low and rough.
‘Okay, good.’ It was good. A good start. But Jeanie still didn’t know where that left them and this weird, secret limbo they were in. She didn’t know if she was still willing to sneak around this town and pretend they weren’t together when it turns out she really wanted them to be.
‘Okay, good,’ he agreed.
‘I’m leaving now.’
He dipped his head and kissed her one more time, making her seriously reconsider her entire leaving plan, but then he let her go.