Between You and Me(26)

His brows shot up. "You say that like . . . you were trying to figure me out."

"Maybe I have been." Tess changed the subject with a hint of a grin. "So  I gather your mother-who sounds like a badass, by the way-doesn't like  your loner mentality and thinks she's going to get you to change your  mind somehow?"

His eyes caressed Tess's features. Damn, she was clever. Pulling him out  before he fell too far down the hole. Grateful, he nodded. "Something  like that. I just think she wants more grandchildren. My brother has  kids, but he's too far away." Logan smirked. "I hate to burst her  bubble, but I don't want kids. After what I've seen . . . I can't bear  it. The idea of something happening, or the potential of more loss . . .  It's too much. No family for me. End of story."

Tess gaped at him. Finally, he saw a lick of something like pity in her eyes as she murmured, "Wow."

"Wow nothing. Fewer ties, fewer chances for me to fuck up again, or to  lose something so big that the next time, I won't get back up again.  It's pretty simple, really." Logan suddenly ached for a beer and grabbed  his glass. It was almost empty. He sucked an ice cube into his mouth  and chewed on it, anything for distraction.                       
       
           



       

Tess just folded her hands in her lap. "Whatever works for you."

"That's what works for me."

"It sounds lonely," she said quietly.

He shrugged. "On occasion. But so what."

She pressed her lips together and nodded.

"Tess, I didn't mean to sound harsh."

"You didn't. Not to me, anyway. But you sound pretty harsh on yourself."

"I have to be. Gotta keep myself in line."

Sounds more like you're still punishing yourself, she thought. But that wasn't her business.

"Look," he added, his voice softer. "I came back from hell. I worked  hard to do it, and I'm happy now. I'm good. It could've gone the other  way. I'm grateful for what I have."

"That's a good way to be."

"I think so. Give me the simple life."

The waitress hovered nearby and Tess waved her over.

"Would you like to see the dessert menu?" she asked.

"Hell yes," Logan said enthusiastically.

Tess arched a brow at him.

"Hey, gotta let me have one vice. Mine's sugar. I admit it."

"So the way to your heart is with sweets, huh?" she teased.

"You got it. What about you?" He locked his pale green eyes on her,  searching, a sly grin on his face. "What are your hidden vices? How does  Tess Harrison indulge herself?"

"Umm . . ." She thought it over, grinning back. "I'm no sugar junkie, but I'm a sucker for flowers."

His brow furrowed. "Flowers? You eat flowers?"

She burst out laughing, "No! I love fresh cut flowers," she said. "I  always have them. I have them both at my office in the city, and in my  home, in several rooms. I need that burst of color, that hint of life,  especially in the winter. I spend quite a bit of money on that, so I'd  say that counts as my indulgence."

"That's a damn nice one," he said with appreciation.

"And when I got here, you'd filled the house with poinsettia plants," she said. "That, um . . . went a long way. I loved that."

"Without even knowing," he said, his smile growing. "Gold star for me."

"Absolutely."

* * *

By the time Logan pulled up in front of Tess's house, she was warm, full, tired, and happy. "I had a great time today."

"I did too," he said with a smile. "Thanks again for inviting me."

"Any chance you'd like to do it again sometime soon?" she asked. "You're a worthy ski partner, and I had fun with you."

"Yeah, I'd like that," he said. "But next time, I pay for my lift ticket."

"Deal. Sometime next week?"

"Sure. Give me a call, we'll work out a time."

"Well, you have a job with a real schedule. Right now, I don't. I'm free as a bird. So you give me a call."

His eyes held hers as he said, "Okay. I'll do that. You're on. Got yourself a ski buddy."

God, she wanted to kiss him. Sitting so close in the warmth of his  truck, he smelled good and his eyes were intense and his mouth was  inviting and she wanted to kiss him so bad. But this new friendship-all  the things they'd revealed to each other that day-she didn't want to  cross any lines or mess it up. For now, she'd hold back.

But still couldn't resist flirting a little bit. "So," she said boldly.  "Are you coming in to soak in my tub or what? The offer stands."

His gaze turned hot, a full-out smolder that made her belly do a wobbly  flip. "The offer is more tempting than you know." His voice had dropped  low and dead sexy, making her shiver. "But I think I'd better head home  for tonight."

They stared at each other for a moment, pure electricity crackling  between them. She could feel her blood in her veins, racing now, hot and  needing, as his eyes lowered to her mouth for a few seconds before  lifting to meet her gaze again.

"You sure?" she asked. Her heart thumped in heavy beats.

"Only so much temptation a man can take," he murmured. "And you're testing my limits as it is, Tess. You have to know that."                       
       
           



       

"I didn't know that."

"Well . . ."

She leaned in, her face so close to his that she could feel his hot breath feather against her lips.

"Tess." He whispered it as a protest, but his eyes gave him away. He wanted her too, she could see it all over his face.

She closed the distance between them, pressing her mouth to his. It was a  brush of her lips against his, just the slightest touch. But his hand  lifted to cup the back of her neck and hold her there. He took control  of the kiss, gently but surely, slanting his mouth over hers to take  more of what he wanted. Her mouth opened with a little sigh as their  tongues met and swirled slowly. As they leaned into each other, his  fingers threaded through her hair and his other hand came up, cradling  her head in his hands as his mouth consumed hers.

Her senses reeled. His full beard tickled her face, surprisingly soft  against her skin. The feel of his mouth on hers, his hands in her hair,  his big, warm body so close . . . her head swam with it all. He deepened  the kiss and groaned softly into her mouth, and she was lost. She  surrendered willingly, kissing him back with the same slow, sensual pace  he'd set, her fingers clutched in his ski jacket. She could have kissed  him for days.

He broke away slowly, leaning his forehead against hers, eyes still  closed. "Jesus," he whispered. When his eyes opened to focus on her,  they were heavy lidded with lust. "You . . . you better go inside now."

Still catching her breath, she touched his cheek. "You sure you don't want to come in?"

"I do want to," he said, his voice thick. "Too much. So I'm not going to."

She pulled back, trying to hide her disappointment. "Okay."

"Tess . . ." He stared at her, his mouth opening and closing as he  fought with what he wanted to say. "You're an amazing woman. I like that  we're . . . kind of friends now. Let's try to stick with that for now,  okay?"

The disappointment sharpened in her gut, but she pasted on a smile. "Fine."

"Ah crap. No, no, don't say fine," Logan demanded gently. "When a woman  says fine, it's never fine. Even a loner lumberjack like me knows that."

She couldn't help but giggle.

"Tess, you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen," he said  earnestly. "Don't think for a second that I wouldn't love to go inside  with you right now, because I would. But you have an agenda, you're  gearing up to go through some medical . . . stuff . . . and I don't want  to get in the way of that."

She gaped at him in shock. "I . . . I don't know what one thing has to do with the other."

"You have big plans," he murmured, trailing the backs of his fingers  along her cheek, eyes locked with hers. "I'd be a distraction. You said  it yourself, you don't want any distractions right now." His gaze turned  wicked and hot as he added, "I promise you, it'd be a fantastic  distraction. A sexy, fun, passionate distraction . . . but this  friendship we've started? Means more."

"We're attracted to each other," she said flatly.

"Can't deny that." He touched his mouth to hers again, a light brush of  his lips, and her whole body shuddered. "But I shouldn't go inside with  you. Not tonight."

Her nerves jangled, every nerve ending alight and aware of him. Her  heart beat hard and fast as she nuzzled into his palm, stared right into  his eyes, and whispered, "If you insist."