As it had been earlier, the thought was a kick to the stomach, and his fingers actually flexed at the unwelcome idea. It'd only been a short time, but he liked having her in his life and had grown comfortable with it. With her. Jesus, how had that happened, much less so quickly?
"Dessert?" the waitress asked.
"No, thanks," Tess murmured with a smile. "We'll have that at home."
Logan's insides flooded with aching desire, both his body and his heart. Suddenly he wanted nothing more in the world than to take her home and make love to her. He wanted her all to himself. He wanted to bury himself deep inside her, hold her close . . . somehow shut down all his raging thoughts. "Check, please."
As they shrugged into their coats, his whole body started to hum with searing heat, the familiar rush of primal lust that gripped him whenever he thought about being with Tess. He was growing edgy with it. But as they got to the door and he opened it wide, they were blocked by a woman who was walking in.
"Sorry," the woman apologized. Then his eyes met hers, hers locked on his, and his heart skipped a beat. Holy shit. Ugh, no.
"Carrie!" Tess smiled brightly, lifting a hand to squeeze the other woman's arm. "Hi, how are you?"
Carrie's icy blue eyes blinked off the shock as she looked from Tess to Logan and back again. "Tess. Wow. Hi." She swept back her long blond hair, and as her stare settled on Logan, her jaw tightened a little bit.
He cursed up a blue streak in his head. Yeah, this was going to get awkward.
Clueless, Tess tipped her smile up to Logan. "This is Carrie. She's the fantastic instructor of my yoga class. Carrie, this is-"
"We know each other," he murmured, unwilling to play dumb or lie. He nodded in deference to Carrie, who was staring at him hard now. "How've you been, Carrie? You look good."
"Thanks. Well. Small world." The corners of her mouth twitched, something like a grimace. She crossed her arms over her chest and let her gaze lock on Logan. "I didn't know you two knew each other."
"Tess is my girlfriend," he said softly. Carrie's eyes got wider. Shit, double shit.
"Girlfriend," Carrie echoed. "Interesting. I thought you didn't do relationships. In fact, I believe I'm quoting you directly when I say that."
"I don't," he said. "Or, I didn't." He sighed. He couldn't tell her the truth about his and Tess's deal, but he hated the hurt he caught in her expression. Then he met Tess's questioning gaze with a solemn one of his own . . . and watched her smile fade as understanding quickly dawned in her eyes. That was Tess: astute, intuitive, and sharp as hell. "Carrie, look-"
"No, that's fine. That's great. At least now I finally understand." Her eyes narrowed on him, like heated lasers. "I get it. Maybe if I'd been an heiress, you'd have wanted a relationship with me, instead of my just being your regular booty call. Money like hers helps you swallow your reluctance, I'm sure."
Tess stiffened at his side.
"Don't do that," he said to Carrie, low and tight. "Don't insult her when you're pissed at me. You're better than that."
"Go to hell, Logan. I'm better than you." She shoved past both of them and stormed into the restaurant.
He stared after her, jaw clenched tight, heart pounding. Tess's hand on his arm brought him back.
"Let's go," she murmured.
He glanced down at her, saw the utter calm and regal cool of her expression . . . ah shit. This wasn't good. She was in Ice Queen mode. This wasn't good at all.
Nodding and placing a hand on her back, he escorted her out into the cold night.
* * *
Tess sat very still in Logan's truck, her hands in her lap. She was grateful for the warm air heating her, but something inside her had gone stone cold.
He was embarrassed and upset, she knew that. It was radiating off him in waves. But she sensed he wasn't ready to discuss it. His jaw was clenched tight, his posture stiff.
She was a little upset too. That surprised her. Because really, truthfully, she had no right to be upset with him or the situation . . . but she was. She went into her own head to try to figure out exactly why as they drove in heavy silence back to her house.
By the time they got home, the tension was still thick as could be, and both of them had gone quietly rigid. She opened the door and Bubbles came running, barking her happy hellos. Logan crouched down to pet her as Tess removed her long coat and hung it in the closet. They moved into the living room and she turned on some lights.
"Would you like some tea?" she asked as he pulled off his coat and set it on one of the armchairs.
"No," he said gruffly. "I want to talk about what happened."
"Okay." She stood there, intertwining her fingers in front of her.
He shook his head in displeasure. "You're mad. I don't blame you. I'm sorry."
"I'm not mad. And you have nothing to apologize for," she said. "First of all, you have a life of your own, and who you slept with before me is none of my business. Second, you didn't insult me, she did."
"I hated that," he bit out. "She was just lashing out."
"You think I don't know that?" She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. "Guess I'll be switching into a new yoga class. It's a shame. She's great at it. I liked her."
He sighed and raked his hands through his hair, then over his face. "Okay. So, she was the one I was seeing last year, obviously. It started as a casual fling, but she . . . started having feelings for me. After a few months, she wanted us to date exclusively, turn it into a real relationship. I didn't." He started pacing the living room. "So yeah, when she saw us together, that's one thing. But for her to hear you're my girlfriend, when I told her in no uncertain terms that I didn't do relationships? Of course she's surprised, and probably hurt, and I feel bad about that. I do." He scratched at his beard as he added, "But she had no right to sling an arrow your way. That was uncalled-for."
Tess shrugged. "Don't worry about that. I'm fine."
"No, you're not. It's all over you. You're back in ‘untouchable princess' mode, and I hate it." He stopped and looked at her mournfully. "I'm sorry, Tess."
"Stop apologizing," she demanded. "You did nothing wrong."
He pinned her with a sad look. "Then why do I feel like you're a million miles away when you're standing right here?"
She stopped cold at that. He was right, and that wasn't fair. They were friends. She could tell him anything. She trusted him enough, and respected him enough, to do that. "All the way home, I tried to figure out why I'm at all bothered by this. It's got nothing to do with me, and I have no right to be put off. But here's the truth . . ." She lifted her chin a bit, twisting her hands as she admitted, "It's been easy to get lost in this. Especially tonight, with the romance of Valentine's Day and all that . . . It was really lovely. I was really enjoying it all. But the lines got blurred tonight, and I'm mad at myself for forgetting that."
He shook his head in frustration. "I was enjoying it too. We were having a great night. But-"
"Logan . . ." She took a deep breath. "The truth is you're sleeping with me because we made a deal. Because you have to. But you slept with her simply because you wanted to. And I'm . . . a little jealous about that." She pushed her hair back over her shoulders. It was hard to admit it out loud, but she would. "I wish you wanted me for the sake of just wanting me, like you did her at one point. I envy the fact that she attracted you on her own, without strings or a pact. I have no right to, but I'm human. So . . . yeah, it stings a bit." She tried to shrug as she added, "That's on me. I'll get over it."
He stared at her so forcefully, she felt her skin heat. Closing the space between them in two long strides, he gripped her shoulders and said in a low, intense tone, "We're telling the truth? Okay, truth. Yes, we made a deal. I'm sleeping with you because of it. Lucky, lucky me. But if you think I don't want you, you're not as smart as I thought you were."
She swallowed hard as her heartbeat upped its pace. His hands ran up and down her arms as he stared into her eyes, compelling her to not look away. "I love sleeping with you, Tess. I think about it all the time, and I shouldn't. You're my fake girlfriend. Friends with benefits, and that's it. But being in this thing with you . . . It's fun. Because you're amazing." A grin bloomed on his face. "You're easy to talk to and goddammit, woman, I'm sorry, but I love getting in bed with you. That's the truth. Legal papers and all, deal or not . . ." He trailed his fingers along her cheek, her silky jawline. "I've never been so attracted to a woman in my entire life." He peered harder, brows furrowing as he whispered, "Jesus, Tess, do you really not feel that from me? Have I ever made you feel like making love to you is a chore?"