Crush(44)

My tears were like a waterfall and although I tried to speak, my words were utterly incomprehensible. It had been such a long day, and I thought I would be much stronger about today’s events than I actually had been.

Logan clutched me to his chest and gently stroked my hair. “Shhh . . . don’t cry. I know how hard today must have been for you. That’s why I wanted to be there for you. That’s why I was there at a distance. It wasn’t because I thought you weren’t safe, but because I wanted to be able to comfort you if you needed it.”

If that just didn’t make me cry even harder. “I love you. I can’t lose you.”

He pulled back and gripped my upper arms. “Hey, where’s this coming from? You’re not going to lose me.”

“Besides Clementine, you’re all I have left in this world. Without you, I’d be practically all alone.” The thought made me shudder and I squeezed my eyes shut. I didn’t want to be alone anymore.

“Hey, look at me.”

I opened my eyes to see those hazel pools gazing at me. I felt like it had been so long since he’d held me.

“I love you. I know I don’t say it enough, but I do.”

I nodded. I knew he did, but would he still when I confessed what I had yet to tell him?

His fingers went back to unbuttoning my coat. “Let’s get this off.”

My coat peeled off easily, but the revelations from the day would stay with me forever. Out of his arms, I could think more clearly. It was as if my emotions were running on high octane. Recognizing this, I went to sit on the steps to talk to him from a distance. I wiped my tears away with the back of my hand. “About the Mercedes, Clementine’s new nanny’s car is in the shop and Michael is going back to work Monday, and he needed it so Clementine wasn’t left at home stranded.”

Sugarcoating the issue by not telling him that Michael had asked for the car back wasn’t the smartest idea but I didn’t want to upset Logan, and I knew explaining the situation the way I had with Peyton would. Tomorrow I’d tell him everything; tonight I needed him. It was selfish, but for once that’s what I wanted to be.

He stepped forward and crouched down in front of me. “It’s not that big of a deal.” He wiped a stray tear away with his thumb. “You hated that car anyway. You can drive mine until we go get you a new one.”

My voice was still shaky with tears. “What will you drive?”

“My old man’s license is still suspended, so I’ll take his car.”

Distance had sounded like a good idea a minute ago but now that he was so close, I just couldn’t keep my hands off him. My palms slid from his chest to his well-defined shoulders. “Are you sure?”

That long, lean body eased forward and I found myself lying back against the stairs with him hovering over me. “There are a lot of things I’m not sure about, Elle, but you aren’t one of them.”

Breathless, I found it hard to talk, to think. “I meant that you love that Range Rover.”

“I know what you meant,” he said, his mouth moving close to mine.

“I was thinking of getting a Prius like Peyton’s,” I babbled. “It’s really cute.”

“Whatever you want. Give me a few weeks to get the money together, and we’ll go pick one out.”

I shoved him back. “You aren’t buying me a car. That’s not what I meant. I meant as soon as I can save some money.”

Ignoring my little outburst, he stood and reached out a hand. “Come with me, I want to show you something.”

Butterflies swarmed in my belly as I took his hand.

Connected, he led us up the stairs, through my room, and then stopped at the closed bathroom door.

Perplexed, I waited for him to turn around.

When he did, his smile alone practically seduced me.

I had no idea what we were doing outside my bathroom door but with the way he was looking at me, I didn’t care if we were fixing the rattling pipes.

Dropping his hold on me, he grasped the old glass knob and pushed the door open to my tiny bathroom.

I couldn’t believe what I saw.

The old-fashioned black-and-white tile floor was aglow with dozens of small red tea candles carefully placed around the perimeter. The claw-foot tub was filled with water and red rose petals were floating on the surface. There was a bottle of wine with a single glass beside it on the marble counter that held the sink.

My hands flew to my mouth. “It’s beautiful.”

A shyness crossed his face. I’d seen it a few times, but it wasn’t until right now that I figured out what caused it. He was nervous when he did anything even slightly romantic. And, God, if I didn’t find that utterly adorable. “You think?”

“I know.”

Those magical fingers started to unzip my simple black shift. “I wanted to do something to make you feel better.”

A shiver rocked my body as his hands glided up my back to my shoulders to slip the fabric of my dress down. One, then the other, and then it fell to the ground and left me standing in my bra, underwear, and hose.

It felt like the room was spinning, but it was me. He’d spun me back toward him and we were moving in a small circle. My head on his shoulder. His arms around me. Mine around him. No, we weren’t just moving, we were dancing. Dancing right in the middle of my bathroom.