One Sizzling Night(29)

Next was a sheer, floral-print silk charmeuse blouse with skinny pants. Wearing an outfit like that, she’d have no problem defending herself, but even with a flesh-colored tank, the see-through fabric made it look as though she was naked underneath. It was very sexy, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to be that obvious.

The last choice was the simplest: a pale pink cashmere pullover hemmed at the waist with suede skinny pants.

All three had pluses and minuses, but she’d go with the pullover, and save the others for another time. To wear for someone she wanted to be with.

Damn, why did she have to keep torturing herself by thinking about Logan?

His meeting would be over by now. She wondered if he’d gotten the contract. She wouldn’t ask even if she had the opportunity.

She needed to stay focused on tonight, mentally prepare herself for any possible outcome. To that end, she’d found a well-reviewed beauty salon not too far from the apartment. She’d had her hair done, a spa mani-pedi and a half-hour chair massage.

None of which had relaxed her for more than ten minutes, not even the massage. Hardly a surprise, considering she’d used the time to think about Logan. And fret over how badly she’d bungled things with him last night.

Shaking her head, she picked up her cell phone and checked it for the tenth time. It was her only ticket to taking the pictures she needed, that is, if her nerves didn’t do her in first. She doubted Holstrom would welcome a selfie with her and the stolen Degas.

A noise from the living room stilled her. She’d heard Logan come home about ten minutes ago, and she was reasonably sure he’d either go out again or stay in his room until she’d left. Luckily, she had no need to leave her bedroom until the car arrived.

The knock on her door set her heart racing. Guilt washed through her, as if she’d robbed the Met or something.

The second she opened the door he barged right past her.

“Okay,” he said, his voice as stern as a ruler across knuckles. “This is how we’re going to play it.”

Without so much as a glance at her, he dropped a paper bag on the bed, next to her clothes. When he finally turned toward her, he had clasped his hands behind his back and stood tall, his feet shoulder length apart. For the first time she could truly see the military in him.

He looked hot as hell. Damn him.

“Play what?” she asked, matching his curtness. “What are you even doing here?”

He didn’t answer her immediately, which pissed her off.

“Well?” she asked at the same time he said, “Your dinner with Holstrom.”

Something new ignited inside her. And it wasn’t lust. There was only one way Logan could know about her dinner. Neil had gone behind her back.

The betrayal hit deep and hard. The only man she’d ever truly trusted since her father had deserted her was Neil. And he’d done what she’d very clearly asked him not to. She wished Logan would leave. She wished she’d never come to Boston. She should have let her father do whatever the hell he wanted, and forgotten about him the way he’d forgotten about her.

But she sucked it up, found her anger and let that fill the hole in her gut.

Then waited until she was reasonably sure her voice would hold up. “Neil?”

Logan stared back at her without speaking. Something dark and primal flickered in his eyes before he closed himself off to her.

“So, Neil called Sam, and Sam called you, and now you’ve decided to ride your white horse into my business. Well, you’re not welcome. Get out.”

“You’re right. That is how I found out about your plan. Or perhaps we should call it something else because a plan has a chance of succeeding.”

“Oh, get the hell out of my room.” She pulled the door open wider, as if that would make him budge. But he really needed to go. Despite her very real anger, the sadness and betrayal made her want to cry, and she wasn’t going to cry in front of him.

That it was Neil who’d betrayed her was almost inconceivable. She couldn’t blame Sam, although scratch that potential friendship. And of course, Logan. The way he was looking at her made everything a hundred times worse because she couldn’t read him.

From now on, she’d take her chances on being alone. She’d still work with Neil, but it would only be work.

And if Logan wasn’t out of there in the next minute, she was going to make sure he would walk out limping. “If I’m such a loser, what are you doing here?”

“You want to get rid of me? Call off this idiotic mission that could land you in jail. Or worse.”

“What do you care, anyway?”

“I don’t,” he said without as much as a blink. “But Sam does. And I care about her.”

Kensey’s chest ached, right where his verbal punch had landed. She kept her expression as impassive as his. “Nobody needs to worry about me. Now, go.”

“You don’t even know if he has the stolen masterpieces.”

“Logan, please. If you really do care about Sam, you have to leave me alone. It’s critical I stay focused. You understand that like no one else does.”

Concern briefly shadowed his face. “I’m going to wire you up so I’ll be able to hear what’s going on between you and Holstrom. I’ll be close enough to step in if things go FUBAR.”

“Wire me up? Are you crazy? The man must have metal detectors or whatever latest device there is to find out if he’s being bugged.”

“And we have Sam,” he said. “She’s come up with something that hasn’t reached the open market yet. The wire will be undetectable, and you’ll be able to use it for cause to get a warrant.”

Dammit, he had a point.

She had to get some air into her lungs. The way he spoke to her as if they’d never met, let alone made love was making her ill. Another deep breath and she said, “I don’t know if we’re going to his estate or somewhere else. He’s sending a car. If I am going to his home, it’s got to be guarded like Fort Knox. No way he’s not taking every precaution.”

“Thanks for the heads-up, but it’s not my first rodeo, and you don’t have the kind of time you need to run through every scenario you can think of. I’m ex-military special ops. When I say the wire isn’t a problem, it isn’t a problem.”

“Go to hell, you smug bastard.”

“Whether I’m smug or not, I’m still going to save your ass,” he said. “For Sam’s sake.”

“You’ve made that quite clear.” She looked down, hoping she hadn’t given anything away. Yes, she was hurt. But not over him. It was Neil’s betrayal that stung. “I appreciate your concern for Sam. I do. I like her, too. But I’ve got this.”

“Fine. Tell me your plan. If I can see its merits, I’ll stand down, no sweat.”

Tears threatened again, but she fought. Hard. “It isn’t a plan so much as a launching pad. I’ll go to his place, and I’ll play nice and ask him to show me his private collection. The way he wants into my pants? He’ll cooperate.”

“And...?”

“I’ll have to play it by ear.”

Logan’s head dropped back so he was looking up at the ceiling. The goddamn colors of the walls kept getting darker and darker and she wanted it all to just stop.

“Oh, for Christ’s sake,” Logan said. “Play it by ear?”

“I’m not as naive as you think. And I know how to take care of myself. I’ve got two black belts. He tries anything, he’ll lose a hand. Or something else.”

“You still don’t get it. You are absolutely that naive. And by that I mean you are headed into a world of trouble, and you don’t even know it.”

“I know his ego is so large it barely fits through doors, and he wants to show off. Especially to someone like me who knows art. The one thing about having a secret collection is that you can’t brag about it.”

“He didn’t get to where he is by being an idiot.”

“No,” she said. “But he is a man. And he doesn’t suspect me to be anything but a gold digger with an advanced degree. He’ll want to share his secret with me, because I’m going to be sufficiently interesting to him.”

Kensey saw Logan’s jaw tighten.

“I’m not really going to sleep with him.”

Their eyes met dead on. She almost wished she couldn’t see the turmoil in his gaze. He’d been stone cold so far. What had changed? Why now? Maybe he did care a little about what happened to her. Despite being a stubborn ass, he was, in the end, a good man. One she might have had a chance with.

Just because that was water under the bridge, it didn’t mean she’d stopped caring about him.

“You do realize,” she said softly, the fire and indignation gone from her voice, “that if you’re implicated in any of this, you’ll be finished. Not just with Holstrom, either. You’re risking your reputation and your vets.”

His jaw flexed, but he didn’t respond.

“How did your meeting go?”

Anger blazed in his hazel eyes. Didn’t he understand she wasn’t taunting him? She only wanted him to see reason.

“Look,” she said. “The person I’m trying to help was framed, but he’s not an innocent man. Get it? He’s not someone you’d cross the street for. And if things do go badly with Holstrom, I should be the only person to suffer the consequences. Please, please just drop it. Walk away.”