by Lea Coll
“Oh, didn’t realize you needed one. I’ve never been fishing.”
“None of your other dates took you fishing?” he smiled.
“No, just study groups and bars, maybe.” I went to school in D.C., not a lot of places to go fishing.
“It’s your first date with a man.” Logan smiled.
I leaned back with my hands on the dock and tilted my head. “Oh yeah? Are we lumber-jacking for our next date?” I might have sounded too hopeful when I said that.
“Not sure lumber-jacking is a verb and I think you’d enjoy that too much.”
“Can we set that up, maybe at Luke’s farm? You need to be shirtless while you’re lumber-jacking.” I closed my eyes, picturing Logan’s bare chest as he swung an ax over his head, with worn jeans slung low on his hips.
“Obviously. No shirts allowed when axes are involved.”
“Yes! I like the way you think.” I smiled, loving our easy banter.
“Are you ready to fish?” He held out the first rod for me.
I stood up and brushed off my pants, eager to try. “Yes. What do I need to do?”
He smiled at my eagerness. He moved behind me, both arms wrapped around me to hold the rod. His voice rumbled in my ear. “Place your hands here. Then we’re going to cast out the line.” His hands covered mine as he guided me through the motions until the bait was in the water. “You want to aim slightly farther out than you want it to be. It’s easier to pull it in than re-cast. Now reel it in and try it again.”
“Can you show me one more time?” I didn’t need the second demonstration and he didn’t call me out on it, but I enjoyed the feel of his arms around me, his breath tickling my ear as he went through the instructions again.
“Let me know if you feel a small tug, which means you caught one. We’re trying to catch perch, which are small. This is the time of day they usually eat, so it’s a good time to try and catch them.”
“Anything else I should know?”
“You can have a seat. It might be a while.” He sat down cross-legged on the dock and I followed suit, our legs touching. “Perch like the cover of docks, so hopefully we’re in a good spot.”
“I’m just grateful there isn’t live bait.” I shuddered thinking of having to find worms.
“Perch like minnows and insect larva, but the bait shop was closed for the day.” He pointed at the marina’s office.
I watched my yellow bait bob in the water. I usually saw Logan in suits in the office, but I liked seeing him in his element outdoors. It made me want to see more of him this way. Casual and rugged, he was more attractive to me than ever.
He placed his rod on the dock and pulled salami, cheese, fruit, crackers, and bottled waters out of the cooler. “I have sanitizer too. It’s not romantic if you smell like fish.”
I was speechless for a moment. “You brought a picnic?”
“I told you this would be romantic.”
We ate, listening to the water lap onto the pilings and dock as we watched the sunset. It was beautiful, relaxing, and one-hundred percent romantic. I’m not sure I’d ever felt this content. No way the girls would believe I went fishing and enjoyed myself.
“Let’s re-cast on the other side of the dock. We’ve been here for a while with no tugs.”
I re-cast myself this time, then I tilted my head back, enjoying the quiet, when I finally felt a small tug. I jumped to my feet. “Logan! I think I caught one.”
“Calm down; you’ll scare the fish.” He smiled.
“What do I do?” I wanted to do it myself.
“Turn the handle to slowly reel the fish out of the water.” My bobber wasn’t far out, so it only took a minute or two to slowly reel it in, the fish flopping on the hook. It was the first fish I’d ever caught and it seemed big to me. I couldn’t stop beaming. I caught a fish. It was exhilarating.
Logan unhooked the fish. “It’s a perch, all right. I’d say about eight inches long. Good job.” Pride for me, evident in his voice.
“Can I can take a picture?” I asked.
“Quickly. We need to get him back in the water.” He carefully handed me the fish, which I took hesitantly; it was slippery and slimy. I smiled while he took a picture with his camera.
“Now, I can blackmail you,” he said, putting the phone back in his pocket. “Hold the fish underwater then drop your hands to let him swim back to his friends.”
As we watched it swim away, I said, “It’s hardly blackmail if I’m having fun.”
He held out the sanitizer for me to use. “Really? I wasn’t sure you’d like this.”
I loved that he’d introduced me to something new. It was risky. Some women would have hated this date. Summer, the woman who interrupted our almost-kiss would have, and I wanted to be as different as I could be from those women. “I do.” I licked my lips and Logan’s eyes followed the motion.
He stepped closer and cupped my cheek. “We’re the same, you and I.”
“How so?” I asked breathlessly.
“We both put on these fronts. We hide from everyone because we’re afraid. But I see you—and the real you is amazing. You’re so bright and beautiful—your personality shines through even when you’re trying to push people away. You don’t intimidate me.” My heart rate picked up because this had been my greatest fear since my break-up with Greg. That no man could get past my job title or drive, but Logan was right, I just hadn’t met a strong enough man.
The kiss was slow and sensual. When he pulled back, I followed him, leaning into his body, not wanting to stop.
“Are you done fishing?”
After that proclamation, I was so done with fishing. “Definitely.”
He got to work on the fishing rods while I quickly packed the remaining food in the cooler.
We drove in silence back to my apartment. Once inside, I turned awkwardly toward him, nervous for the first time. This felt different than the night of the fundraiser, more intimate, more real somehow. I was getting a glimpse of life with Logan and it was making me question my stance on everything: relationships, my job. What he’d said tonight was everything I’d wanted to hear. I tried to push down the panic about what would happen if this ended badly, but it hovered in my thoughts.
He stepped closer to me, pushing my hair out of my eyes. “You’re thinking too hard. Let it go,” he kissed me lightly once, “Feel.” Another kiss. “Close your eyes and enjoy everything that happens tonight. It’s just you and me.”
I emptied my mind of outside thoughts and focused on the feel of his hands on my face and in my hair, his breath mingling with mine as his mouth hovered over my lips. “You’re mine tonight—mine to love.”
I didn’t have words for how he made me feel.
“Let me love you tonight.”
Yes, please. I’d do whatever he wanted as long as he made me feel good with his words, his lips, his hands. If this was our last time, I wanted to savor it. Then I kissed him, my hand played with the hair on his neck, and his arm went around my waist, pulling me tight against him. He was hard everywhere. His hands dropped to my butt, lifting my legs around his waist as he walked back to my bedroom. He placed me gently on the bed and when I went to pull my sweater over my head, he stopped me. “I want to do it.”
He was staring at me reverently as he slowly pulled off my sweater and tossed it over his shoulder, placing light kisses over my lace-trimmed bra, as he pulled the cup down, touching my nipples. “I want to go slow and savor you.”
I arched toward him, begging him to touch me, anything, as he reached behind me to unsnap my bra, the straps falling down my shoulders. He pulled it the rest of the way off my body and settled his hips between my legs as he took his time sucking on each of my nipples until they were pebbled.
Still fully clothed, he pulled my skinny jeans over my hips and off, leaving me in lace panties. He cupped me through my lace panties but I desperately wanted to feel his fingers on me and nothing between us. He pulled me to the edge of the bed and kne
lt between my legs, hooked his thumbs on my panties, and slowly pulled them down my legs inch by inch.
I was panting by the time his head dipped to my center, his breath on my thighs as he continued to tease me, placing light kisses there and then finally turning his attention where I wanted him most.
“Logan!” I jerked and cried out when he licked me in a feather-light touch. After the rough feel of the lace, I wanted more pressure, more friction.
When he finally increased the pressure, my head flew back and I was lost to the sensations of his finger pumping and his mouth sucking my clit. All I could think was more, more, more—the orgasm washed over me in long deep waves.
When the tremors stopped, I took in his muscular body, his cock, which jutted out from his body, which was beautiful. I couldn’t believe he was mine. I lay there mesmerized as he smoothed a condom down his cock. “Scoot up, gorgeous.” His body, the gravel of his voice, his soft command, made me want him more. I complied and he placed one knee on the bed before moving between my legs, his cock teasing my entrance.
I spread my legs more, desperate to have him inside me. “Logan, now,” I pleaded softly.
He kissed me in response and then sucked my nipple into his mouth, working me back up again. “I don’t want to rush. We have all night.”
“Please, Logan.”
But I knew he would continue at his own pace. He drove me crazy, slowly rubbing the head of his cock along my slit until I was squirming to get him inside me. I lifted my hips in invitation until he finally pushed all the way in, filling me. Logan in my bed, inside me. I never wanted it to end. I’d never get enough of this.
Using long slow strokes, he leaned over me until his forearms were on either side of my head, kissing my neck, letting his teeth scrape here and there. The sensations were so overwhelming I couldn’t think about anything but the heat between us, the feel of his muscles clenching in his back as I tried to pull him closer to me and deeper inside me. With the orgasm building inside me, tears formed in my eyes.
He stilled, waiting for me to stop trembling with aftershocks before he sat up. “Hey,” he said, his thumb coming to wipe the tear that fell from my eye. But neither of us spoke about it because I knew he felt it too.
Instead, he continued to kiss me, prolonging his release. I wanted to stay like this forever—close to him with nothing between us. “See I told you. I knew it would be like this,” he whispered, kissing me softly. Then finally he lifted himself off me to take care of the condom.
I was so worried about being vulnerable with Logan and this was why. I knew it would be this intense. When he returned from the bathroom, I laid on his chest, wrapping a leg over him, wanting to be as close as I could get to him. It wasn’t enough as I tightened my arms around him.
“Hey, I’m not going anywhere.” His hand was rubbing up and down my back.
I tried to smile, but I was afraid that this wouldn’t last. There was no way he’d treat me with this care when I’d told him I’d talked to his dad behind his back. He was so angry with his father; I knew no explanation would make what I’d done better. I hoped that the closer we got, the more likely he’d listen to my explanation, but the fear was still there.
I didn’t want to say anything that would ruin this perfect night. I closed my eyes, pretending I deserved the love he’d shown me tonight. That I deserved him. He kissed the top of my head. “Night, gorgeous,” he said, just as I drifted off to sleep in his arms.
I WOKE UP TO THE feel of Logan’s arms around me as he kissed my neck. “Hey, gorgeous. Time to wake up for our run.”
“I don’t want to move.” I turned in his arms so I could see him. “There are other things we could do this morning instead.”
He edged away from my roving hands and me. “None of that. We need to take Bailey out too.”
It was then I noticed Bailey’s weight against my leg. I wanted to stay in the cocoon of my bed and not face reality. “Ugh. You’re such a slave driver.” I rolled onto my back as he got up to use the bathroom. “It was a bad idea to sleep with my trainer.”
He popped his head out of the bathroom. “Yeah, but your trainer is hot.”
“True, but my trainer should put out more.”
“Get up, sleepyhead, before I come over there.”
“Um, that sounded nice. What are you going to do when you get over here?”
He ran and jumped on the bed and I screeched in surprise. Before I could recover, he was straddling me, holding my hands above my head. Then he leaned his down to kiss me. When I came up for a breath, I said, “This is so much better than running.” I lifted my hips so that my core ground onto his cock.
He sat back on his heels. “I don’t know about that.”
I slapped his arm. “Hey!”
“Fine. I’d love to stay in bed with you all day, but duty calls.”
I wrinkled my nose. This was what I liked about Logan; we still challenged each other. We were both motivated people and if one of us was feeling lazy, the other would pick up the slack. I’d never be happy with a guy who didn’t move at the same speed as me. “Do we have to run?”
“You love how you feel when you’re done.”
“How do you know? I could hate it.” Did he know me so well?
“Well, you show up every day and when you’re done, you’re relaxed, smiling, and happy.”
“I could say the same about sex.”
“Get up before I resort to spanking.” He rolled off me.
I pouted. “If this is how you treat me, no more overnights for you, buddy.” Since sex wasn’t an option, I got up to put on a sports bra and skin-tight shorts.
He came up behind me, caressing my ass. “Is this on purpose?”
“Yup.”
He gave my ass one last squeeze. “I have plans for you later.”
I grabbed my shoes next to the front door, tying them. “Want to take Bailey with us? We have to take him out anyway.”
“Yeah, good idea.”
It felt like we were a family on that run. Logan held Bailey’s leash as he bounded between us, completely in his element, tongue rolling out the side of his mouth. We had to keep a certain pace or he’d stop to smell everything.
Logan’s words from the night kept playing in my head—he wanted to love me, savor me. And the things he’d said when we were fishing—I was smart, beautiful, amazing. When had anyone ever taken the time to know me truly and love what they saw?
Greg assumed I didn’t want the same things he did. I’d only earned my parents’ approval when my grades were great. I never said it out loud, but I always worried what would happen if my grades dropped or I wasn’t successful in my career. Would they still love me? I was always seeking someone’s approval but falling short.
What did Logan’s words mean? Did he just get caught up in the moment? It certainly hadn’t felt like it, and I could see how we’d be together: work hard, play hard, as long as we came home together at the end of the day. I closed my eyes and pictured our life together—a home with a yard, a dog running around, and even children. With Logan, I could accomplish anything. I could do it all, have it all. This was how it was supposed to be. The person you were with should make you a better person, make all of your dreams possible. If only we didn’t have work, and now his dad, in between us.
I went through the day on a high from my night and morning with Logan until an email came in from Callum Gray’s secretary with my salary and benefits package. My mouse hovered over the email but I couldn’t bring myself to open it. If I did, it would be official. It would be the next step in considering the job. Right now, I wanted to live in this bubble with Logan, where work didn’t touch us. Cal said there was no rush to answer, so I closed my email out and tried not to think about it. But it was always hovering on the edge of my conscious.
What would Logan think when he found out? He’d let me in and this was how had I repaid him, by meeting with his dad behind his back. I knew the longer I waited to tell him ab
out the meeting, the worse it would be for me.
ON RACE DAY, I WOKE up bright and early with a stomachache. I was so stressed about work, Logan, and what to do about Cal’s job offer. I was in no shape to run.
I checked my phone.
Cocky AF: Ready for the race, gorgeous?
I sighed. He used that nickname even in texts.
Ashley: Yes, r u?
Cocky AF: I was born ready.
Oh my God. I smiled and wished there was a way we could be together and not have work stuff hanging over us. I quickly pulled on my workout gear and tried to eat some oatmeal and a banana. Logan had texted suggestions for a good pre-workout meal. I sucked down as much coffee as I had time for, I needed to be sharp. My doorbell rang and I carried my mug with me to the door.
“Are you ready?” Emma rushed in a bundle of energy followed by a more sedate Luke.
“Unfortunately. Let’s get this over with.” I stepped back so they could enter.
“You don’t sound excited,” Emma said.
“Nope.” I was about as unexcited as I could get. Thankfully, I’d already talked to Logan and we’d agreed to run separately. He wanted a good race time and I’d just hold him back. Knowing the Gunner firm, they would probably award the position to the fastest runner today. They were assholes from the beginning, so I wouldn’t be surprised at anything they did.
She linked her arm with mine. “You’re my running buddy. I need you to be a bit more positive.”
I tried to smile. “Fine. I’m ready. Happy now?”
She wrinkled her nose. “No, but it will do for now.”
Luke checked his phone. “We should get going.”
When we arrived near the starting line, my stomach dropped when I saw Logan speaking with the woman who’d interrupted our almost first kiss, Summer.
Her hand was on his forearm, her long pink fingernails seemingly digging into his skin. “I can’t believe you’re here,” Summer said to Logan.
