"I'm sorry about the holdup," Tess said to Logan. "Let me just talk to Pam once more, and we'll be on our way."
"No worries," he told her. "Take your time." As he folded himself into a cushy chair, he watched her chat with the employees behind the main desk, who looked grateful and slightly in awe of her. They should be, he thought.
Tess Harrison wasn't the stuck-up, condescending snob he'd convinced himself she was. How many of his other clients, much less the wealthy, powerful people of Aspen, would lie down in the middle of a hotel floor to keep someone calm and still when they were hurt? Not many, he bet.
By the time he and Tess got her things into his truck and buckled up, Logan found himself saying, "That was a damn nice thing you did in there. Let me buy you some breakfast." He started the car and put his sunglasses back on.
Tess blinked, then smiled tentatively. "Thank you, but I already ate. I get up early. I've been up since seven."
"Ah. Okay." He checked the rearview mirror, then pulled out of the spot. "I'm sure he'll be okay, by the way. Terrence."
"He scared the shit out of me," Tess confessed. She leaned back into the seat, the leather squeaking a bit. Stealing a quick look into the backseat to check on Bubbles, who was curled up happily on the warmed seat, Tess shook her head. "I was checking out, and I heard Oh! Then a thwack. That was his head, hitting the floor." She shuddered as she recalled it. "He hit it hard. I whirled around, and he was down, not moving. For a few seconds, I thought he was dead."
Logan glanced at her; her brows were furrowed and her sultry mouth was twisted tight in a frown. He said, "But he's not. Even if he has a concussion, he's okay. And your kindness made him feel a lot better about tripping over his own feet and lying in the middle of a hotel floor. That was good of you. Really."
"I was worried. I didn't know what to do for him, so I just . . ." She shrugged. Her frown loosened, and her drawn features relaxed. "You would have done the same thing, I'm sure."
"Yeah, maybe I would've," he said. He made the turn onto the main strip. "But not a lot of people around here would've. You know?"
Tess shrugged again. "I guess . . ."
An awkward silence fell over them for a minute. Even Bubbles was quiet. Logan cleared his throat. "The house is fine. Took care of everything."
"Oh God. With all of this, I forgot about it!" She laughed, a self-deprecating chuckle that charmed Logan to his toes. "Tell me you didn't stay up all night out in your truck. Please."
"Of course I was in the truck," he said, "but I slept, and I was fine. Honest."
"I can't thank you enough." She pushed a few stray curls back from her eyes. "I'm the one who should be buying you breakfast."
He smiled, something warm flowing through him. "I already ate too. So . . . maybe a rain check?"
Her smile was as bright as the sunlight outside. "Absolutely."
* * *
Tess stretched out in her bed, drew a deep, cleansing breath, and exhaled it slowly. Her evening yoga class had been great, and the long soak in the deep tub afterwards even better. The royal-purple cotton pajamas she wore were so soft against her skin, it was a delight. She drew another deep breath, exhaled slowly, curled up in her bed, and let herself settle into the plush king-size mattress. Serenity washed over her. Bubbles snored lightly, an adorable furry ball on top of the blanket by her feet. The fireplace in the master bedroom was a gas fireplace, so she didn't have to do anything now but stare at it from across the room and relax.
She still couldn't believe what she'd done the night before. Such a stupid mistake. But at least there was a happy ending, and now a wry grin when she thought of the whole thing. And Logan . . . rushing to her aid, staying all night to watch the house, taking care of everything . . . he'd been a godsend.
A seriously handsome, somewhat surly, somewhat complicated presence who hadn't fully left her mind since he'd brought her home early this morning.
She'd spent the day catching up on work, then had an early dinner. There were quick phone chats with all three brothers to let them know what had happened, and then she'd gone to her twice weekly evening yoga class. She liked the instructor, Carrie, the group was a good size at ten, and Tess had no problem adjusting to Carrie's instructions and ways. Between the class and then the warm bath, she felt at peace and ready to float off to sleep.
And instead lay there wondering how Logan Carter spent his evenings after a workday.
Did he have friends? A girlfriend? He seemed like the type of man who would have both of those things, but preferred his space and solitude.
Then again, what did she know? She couldn't believe he'd held a grudge against her for her thoughtless comment all this time. Yes, what she'd implied was offensive, but not enough to warrant that kind of stubborn grudge. At least, not in her eyes. But it had, and she felt bad about that. She was glad she'd brought up the problem, and glad they'd come to an understanding. Because for some reason, the thought of him upset with her made her . . . sad? Uneasy? Regretful? What the hell was her deal when it came to him?
She grunted and rolled over, plumping up her pillows and tossing her long hair back over them. She had to stop thinking about Logan Carter. There was no reason to. He just worked in her house sometimes, they were acquaintances, that was all.
There was no reason for her to be intrigued by him, dammit.
Even if he was ridiculously gorgeous, in a no-holds-barred, manly man kind of way that made her hormones race like they hadn't in some time.
The last time she'd had sex was Labor Day weekend; a casual interlude with an old acquaintance that had been merely satisfactory . . . which, in turn, left her feeling empty afterwards. It had been the last push that convinced her that having her own life, alone, was definitely how it was going to be.
She'd felt so lonely that following week that it shocked her. Yet, at the same time, she knew how it had to be now. She'd always believed in love, even after her parents' disastrous uncoupling. She'd had boyfriends and looked for love her whole life . . . but it hadn't happened for her. Only once had she fallen in deep as an adult, and Brady had been a bad choice. At least she'd found out who he really was before she'd married him.
On her own was how she'd do it. She'd tried love, been slapped by it, looked again, come up empty . . . it just wasn't in the cards for her. Not everyone was going to find their soul mate like all three of her brothers had. She was the unlucky sibling, apparently. Not that she'd ever say that to them, or let herself drown in self-pity over it . . . it just was what it was.
She'd tried to date, do the casual thing . . . it wasn't for her. Meaningless sex had proven to be just that. She could give herself an orgasm just fine and not have to deal with the hollow, awkward feelings afterwards, lying in a bed with someone she didn't care about and knowing he felt the same. She hadn't had rock-my-world sex since Brady, though, and that was years ago now. She'd loved him, so it took the sex to a higher level, more satisfying both physically and emotionally . . . she'd always been that way. She knew other people could separate good sex from love, their body from their mind-hell, two of her brothers had been like that before they'd met their wives. But she'd never been able to do that. After this last attempt at a casual fling, Tess had decided that sex was just going to be another casualty of her lackluster love life. She'd be on her own, have her baby, and concentrate on the new path she'd forge for herself.
But she bet Logan Carter was good in bed. That gorgeous mountain of a man . . . oh, would she love to climb him. Something in her belly warmed at the thought, shooting tingles straight between her legs. She imagined him hovering over her in bed . . . his muscled, broad shoulders, those shrewd green eyes gazing down at her . . . and shook the image out of her mind. She had to stop thinking about him. Yet as she lay there for the next few minutes, she found that was easier thought than done.
Maybe that was it, why she was suddenly thinking about Logan? Something simple like she still had needs, and it had been long enough now that her itch needed some scratching? And Logan was a drop-dead gorgeous, six-foot-four, virile Viking of a man who practically emanated testosterone, so she was a little hot for him?