Crazy for Her(68)

“In the time period I write about, the colors had meaning. Yellow is for friendship,” she’d said, and handed it to him, following the gesture up with a sisterly hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Keep Evan safe for me,” she’d whispered.

He had held his yellow rose of friendship, standing awkwardly by when she told Evan that red signified love before throwing herself in his arms. That night he’d pressed the flower between the pages of a book and carried it to Afghanistan and back.

Maybe if she’d given her husband the yellow one and whispered in his ear, it would have been Evan who returned to her. Logan wished to God it had been so, because he loved both of them with every fiber of his being and every beat of his sorry heart.

What would Evan say about her standing naked in Logan’s bathroom after being thoroughly fucked by his best friend? Because she was magnificent, every single part of her, and she’d never been meant for the likes of him.

The guilt he thought he’d banished returned with the force of a desert storm. What right did he have to love Evan’s wife? He turned off the shower and walked out of the room, through his bedroom, and onto the deck. A hard rain battered him and he welcomed the beating. It was no less than he deserved.





CHAPTER SEVENTEEN



Dani stared at the space where Logan had stood only seconds before. What had just happened? Jeez, he was one moody, difficult man. She looked at the rose in the picture frame. Was it the one she’d given him? If so, why had he saved it, and why had it upset him that she’d seen it?

She remembered the first flowers a boy had given her. Thinking herself in love, she’d wanted to save the corsage forever and had pressed it between the pages of a book. Where it was now, she didn’t know. Chad Mitchell, as it turned out, wasn’t her forever love.

Had Logan thought he loved her back then? If so, the guilt of being in love with his best friend’s wife would have been a heavy burden for a man striving to be noble. Then, when he didn’t bring that man safely home . . . She gave her head a little shake. That was without even touching on his belief he was defective because his mother’s blood streamed through his veins.

What did all this mean for her? She might be figuring him out, but she was more confused than ever as to what she wanted from him. Why did she keep falling for these alpha males who thrived on danger? Why not a nice man whose closest brush with death was driving his car to and from his nine-to-five office job?

She set the picture frame back on the shelf, wrapped a towel around her, and then went in search of the man who kept breaking her heart. Walking through the dark bedroom and not seeing him, she stepped up to the French doors and looked out.

Logan stood at the railing, wearing not a stitch of clothing, staring into the night. She imagined she was one of the privileged few to see a Greek god in person, and a naked one at that—and what a fine ass her hero had. She dropped the towel, walked out into the rain, and stood next to him.

“Logan?” His gaze stayed on the gulf; his lips stayed pressed together. Rain poured down around them and lightning flashed every few seconds in the distance. Thunder rumbled long and low, but she barely noticed.

“Logan,” she said louder, more insistent. “Damn it, look at me.”

“You shouldn’t be out here. You’re going to get chilled and then get sick.” He kept his eyes focused on the water.

Stubborn man. “Then it appears we’ll be sick together. Besides, it’s warm and the rain feels good.” No response. “Please, Logan, talk to me.”

He turned to her then, anger radiating from him. “You want me to talk? Fine. I made a mistake and I don’t like making mistakes. I should never have touched you. You can rest easy it won’t happen again. Now go away.”

She touched his arm, and his muscles tensed under her fingers. “Why? What if I want it to happen again?”

“You’re Evan’s wife!” he practically shouted, jerking his arm away.

That might be a part of his problem, but there was more going on in his mind than just the idea she’d once belonged to Evan. “I was Evan’s wife, past tense. I loved him, you know that better than anyone, but he’s gone and he’s never coming back. Would you have me spend the rest of my life alone because I was once his?”

Instead of answering, he went and picked up his wet trousers, putting them on. He grabbed her wrap and handed it to her. “Put this on. I can’t think straight when you’re naked.”

Hiding her smile, she slipped the garment on, although as soaked as it was, she was still nearly naked. A bolt of lightning struck nearby, and she shrieked at the loud boom of thunder that immediately followed.