by SJ McCoy
When they arrived at the Boathouse, Logan wasn’t surprised to see Roxy’s friends sitting at the table right by the stage. Girls like that would want to be upfront and visible to everyone in the place—and close to the band, too.
He smirked to himself when he saw one of them making eyes at Chase, the lead singer. She wouldn’t have any luck there. Chase was as happily married as any guy Logan had ever known and … yep, there she came. His wife Kenzie had come out from behind the bar, and in their usual style, Chase pulled her in for a kiss that told anyone with eyes in their head who he’d be going home with later—and left no doubt about what they’d be doing when they got there. When he let her go, Kenzie went over to the girls table and smiled around at them.
Logan guessed that she was asking if they needed more drinks, but what she was really doing was telling them that Chase was off-limits. He chuckled to himself. The mating rituals of the female of the species amused him greatly. Whether they were trying to attract a mate or keep a mate, their actions spoke loudly to anyone who paid attention—and he paid attention. Usually, it was to select his partner in fun for the next few hours. Tonight, he was curious about Roxy’s friends. He had the feeling—and from what he’d just seen, he was right—that they were the kind who were out looking to get laid. Normally, he’d have his sights set on one of them, and possibly a second as a backup option. Not tonight, though. Tonight, he was watching them as a potential threat to Roxy. That was a crazy thought. They weren’t a threat, and even if they were, it wasn’t his place to protect her, but somehow, it felt like it was.
Austin nudged him with his elbow. “You go do your thing if you like. I don’t need babysitting and Colt’s over there with Angel and Luke. The others will no doubt be along soon. I wouldn’t want to cramp your style, but I’m not up to being your wingman yet. Maybe next weekend.”
Logan shook his head with a smile. “Nah. I’m not interested in those girls. They’re Roxy’s old friends.”
Austin laughed. “What and she’d kill you if you made a move on them?”
“No. I heard them talking about her at the café at lunchtime today, and they’re shitty people. Roxy doesn’t know it, though. I just hope they stay away from her, and if I have to, I’ll make sure they do.”
Austin raised an eyebrow at him. “Are you finally ready to come out and admit that you like her?”
“I’ve always liked her. She’s my friend.”
Austin pursed his lips. “You know what I mean.”
Logan stared at him for a long moment. “Sure, I think she’s gorgeous, but like I said, she’s my friend.”
“So, you’re sticking with your friends and fucks theory, and there’s no way a woman can be both?”
A shiver ran down Logan’s back. The words Roxy and fuck shouldn’t be allowed in the same sentence as far as he was concerned. That was dangerous territory. Even if he occasionally saw her face when there was another woman underneath him, that was just fantasy. Not reality. It couldn’t ever be reality. He cared about her too much for that.
Austin waved a hand in front of his face. “Hello? Did I lose you?”
Logan grinned. “No. Sorry. My circuits just got jammed thinking about Roxy and me like that. We’re not like that. We never could be.”
“Sure, you could. If you were ready to give up your ways.”
Logan’s heart skipped a couple of beats. That was a possibility he hadn’t considered before. He stared at Austin. “You think?”
Austin laughed. “I do. You should consider it. It’s obvious you like her, and from the way she’s so prickly with you, I’d guess that she likes you, too.”
“Hey, guys.” Colt appeared at Logan’s side. “What’s up?”
“Hey, Colt. How’s it going?”
“I’m good. I was starting to wonder if you were coming over or not. Are you? Or are you planning to introduce yourself to those lovely ladies who are all watching you like hawks?” He grinned at Austin. “I know you’re not going over there. Where’s Nadia?”
Austin blew out a sigh. “Not coming.”
As Logan listened to Austin explain to Colt that he’d finally broken up with Nadia, the bouncy brunette caught his eye and gave him a wave. He nodded but didn’t smile. Unfortunately for him, that wasn’t enough to put her off. She got to her feet and made her way over to them.
“I’ll catch you later, guys.” Logan left the others to meet her before she reached them.
“Hi. I was hoping you’d be here. I’m Courtney.”
Logan let his gaze travel over her slowly. Any other time, he’d be appreciating her long, lean body and those breasts, which he now decided were definitely not God-given. “Hi, Courtney.” When he finally met her gaze, the look she gave him told him everything he needed to know. If she weren’t Roxy’s so-called friend, he probably would have asked her if she wanted to get out of here right now—and he was ninety-nine percent certain that she would have said yes.
“You’re a friend of Roxy’s, aren’t you?”
He nodded. “I am.”
She surprised him by taking hold of his hand. “You should come and meet the rest of the girls. We went to college with her.”
He let her lead him over to the table where all the girls were watching him.
“Are you with her?” asked Courtney just before they reached the others.
He shook his head but didn’t answer, wondering what she was after. He had this nasty feeling that she was the kind of girl who’d make an extra play for him if she thought he was someone’s boyfriend.
She chuckled. “I didn’t think you could be. I mean …” She ran her hand up his arm. “You’re in a different league.”
He wanted to shrug her hand away and tell her what he thought of her. Instead, he followed her gaze when her eyes widened, and she muttered, “Damn!”
He echoed the sentiment at the sight of Roxy, who was now standing talking to Austin and Colt. She looked amazing. She always looked good to him, but she wasn’t one of those girls who went out of her way to turn up the heat—usually. Tonight, his temperature soared at the sight of her in a short, V-necked dress paired with cowboy boots. Her hair was different, her face was even prettier than usual. Either he was going nuts, or she’d done something very different with herself tonight. And he liked it—a lot.
She turned as if she felt his gaze on her and smiled when she saw him. It made his heart race. He was too used to her smile disappearing when she spotted him, but this felt as though she was pleased to see him. He wasn’t used to that.
Her smile did its usual disappearing act when she spotted Courtney standing beside him. Damn. He didn’t want her to think he was interested. He wasn’t. He was only talking to her to try to figure out how mean these girls were and what Roxy needed to know, so they didn’t hurt her.
Courtney smiled and waved Roxy over then turned back to Logan. “You made me wonder this afternoon in the café, I thought you were with her. But even then, I had a feeling you’d be coming with me tonight. You’re the kind of guy who likes to play, right?”
Logan pursed his lips. “I am, but I won’t be going anywhere with you. I’m not with Roxy because she’s too smart to have me. But that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like to be. She’s worth a hundred of you. We both know that there’s a one hundred percent chance of me getting with you tonight, and I know there’s less than a one percent chance with Roxy, but I’m more interested in that tiny chance than I am in you.”
Courtney glared at him, and he froze when he heard Roxy clear her throat beside him. He turned to look at her. To say she was shocked by his words was an understatement.
Courtney glared at him, too, then turned on her heel and went back to the table.
Logan’s heart raced as the silence between him and Roxy lengthened. She held his gaze and eventually cocked her head to one side and asked, “What are you playing at?”
He shrugged. He didn’t know how to tell her that for once in his life, he wasn’t playing anyon
e. He’d told Courtney the truth as he saw it; he just hadn’t expected Roxy to overhear it.
She shook her head. “I know you’ll say anything to get a girl into bed, but I don’t see how that tactic would work. Maybe showing a little interest in another girl might pique her interest, but saying something like you just did? That’s more likely to piss her off.”
He closed his eyes for a moment. Jesus. She’d just heard him admit how much he liked her and she thought it was some kind of game he was playing to make another girl jealous? What kind of monster did she think he was?
“Can I talk to you for a minute?” He took hold of her arm and led her away from the table where Courtney and the others were all watching them.
She scowled but went with him and didn’t pull her arm away. He didn’t stop until they were out on the deck. It was cold out here, and the big heaters didn’t reach the railing over the water where he finally stopped, but there was a heat rushing through him at being this close to her.
“What on earth is going on with you?”
He gave her a sheepish grin. “I’m making an idiot of myself.”
She didn’t try to hide her smile. “I knew that much. What I can’t figure out is why.”
“Those girls …” He hesitated. He wanted to tell her what he thought of them, but he wasn’t sure if she’d get defensive about them, or if he’d hurt her feelings when she found out what they really thought of her.
She made a face and shook her head. “I normally keep my mouth shut about the women you choose to … spend time with. It’s none of my business, but, as a friend, I wish you’d find someone else.”
“I’m not even thinking about it, Rox. I know you think they’re your friends.”
She raised an eyebrow at him. “Why did you put it like that? I think they’re my friends?”
He swallowed. There was no backing out now. “Listen. I’m sorry. I don’t want to hurt your feelings, but they’re … not nice. They’re not such good friends as you think they are.”
To his surprise, she laughed.
“No, seriously, Rox. I’m not making shit up. I’m not interested in them. I’m interested in you not getting hurt. They …” He didn’t want to tell her what he’d heard them saying about her at lunchtime. “They’re mean.”
She laughed again. “I know that much.”
“You do?”
She nodded. “You chose the perfect word. They’re like a bunch of mean girls. They were my friends in college—at least, I thought they were, but even then, I felt like a second-class citizen around them.”
“That’s crazy. They’ve got nothing next to you.”
She made a face. “I appreciate you looking out for me, I really do. I think it’s sweet of you. But you don’t need to lay it on so thick. They’re the pretty girls, the popular girls. I’m just me. If you want to go after one of them, I don’t mind. As long as you know what they’re like. But then, I don’t suppose their personality matters much to you.”
He pursed his lips and gave her a hard stare. “I’m not interested. I told you. I’m only concerned about you.”
“Hey. Are you okay?”
They both turned at the sound of Maria’s voice. Logan liked her. He was usually glad to see her, but he wished she’d give them a minute.
“What’s going on, guys?”
~ ~ ~
“Can you believe that Logan had already run into the girls, and he’s figured out what they’re like. He was trying to warn me about them—or protect my feelings, or …” Roxy wasn’t exactly sure what he’d been trying to do. She’d be forever grateful to him for what he’d said about her being worth a hundred of Courtney, but she didn’t get why he’d said it. He did tend to be protective of all his friends, so she’d guess that was it.
To her surprise, Maria grinned at Logan. “Well, aren’t you the sweetest? Roxy told me about them this afternoon. She doesn’t need that kind of negativity in her life.”
Roxy shrugged. “They’re not in my life anymore, I’m happy to say. It was just a rude reminder today. I used to feel so much less than them back then. They were so pretty; they were the popular ones; they dated the hot guys. I was just the tag-along-friend.”
“Well, you’re not anymore. You’re the one who has it all now. Look at you. Not one of them is as pretty as you are. Are they, Logan?”
“Don’t put him on the spot like that, it’s not fair,” said Roxy. She didn’t want him to have to say something that he didn’t mean.
He surprised the hell out of her as he let his gaze run over her, obviously appreciating what he saw. He nodded as he met her eye. “Can’t even come close,” he breathed.
A shudder ran down her spine as she looked back into his eyes. If she didn’t already know what he was like—the power he had over women and his ability to make them drop their panties, she’d believe that he was as interested in her as he looked—and she’d be willing to explore that interest with him.
Instead, she waved a hand at him. “Thanks, but you’ve both done all you need to build my fragile ego back up. You don’t need to lay it on too thick.”
His head jerked back, and a shadow of something she didn’t understand crossed his face. “I’m just saying it like it is, Rox. You’re gorgeous.”
He said stuff like that all the time—to her and to Maria and Angel, and Amber and Jade and all of their friends. It was just his way. He might look serious, he might sound different than he usually did, but it was just …
She didn’t have a chance to finish the thought as Maria slapped her arm. “You know what you should do? You should act as though you two are together. Wouldn’t it feel good to be with the guy that they all want but can’t have?”
Roxy blurted out a laugh. She wasn’t about to admit just how good that would feel. But she couldn’t do it—even aside from the fact that Logan wouldn’t want it. If he pretended to be with her, he wouldn’t be able to make a move on whoever he was going to be with later. There was bound to be someone. He rarely left the Boathouse without a girl on his arm on a Friday night.
She turned to look at him, expecting to see a horrified look on his face and hear him make excuses about why that would be a bad idea. Instead, he was grinning.
“I think that’s an awesome idea, Rox. What do you say? Want to be my girlfriend for the night?”
She laughed. “Why would you even want to?”
He hesitated for a moment and then shrugged. “Because they made you feel bad. If I can help you feel good, then I’m all in.”
She had to press her lips together. She knew he’d be able to make her feel good. She fantasized about it often enough. But she had to pull herself together. That wasn’t what he was talking about. She smiled at him. He was talking about being a real friend, and that meant a lot. “Are you sure? I know there are other things you’d rather be doing with your Friday night—I don’t want to screw that up for you.”
He smiled. “It’ll be my pleasure. Helping you out is much more important.”
“That’s right,” said Maria, who Roxy had almost forgotten was still there. “He can hang out with a random chick any weekend he chooses. This is his one and only chance to do this.” She gave Logan a meaningful look. Roxy just wished she understood what the meaning was.
Chapter Four
“Where did Roxy disappear to?” asked Lucy. “I thought she was coming over. And where’s that guy gone—the one from the café earlier? I thought you’d snagged him, Courtney.”
Courtney made a face. “So did I, but apparently he has a thing for Roxy. They went outside together.”
“Wow.” Lucy smiled. “Who’d have thought she could land a guy like that? Good for her.”
Jana laughed. “Don’t look like that, Courtney. I’m sure he’d choose you if he’d met you both at the same time.”
Courtney shrugged. Normally, she’d be sure of that, too. But what Logan had said? That Roxy was worth a hundred of her? That had stung. It wasn’t true, of course. Roxy
was a nobody. But then Logan was just a small-town guy who didn’t know what he was talking about. Still, she hadn’t liked hearing it. She was used to guys making a play for her, not snubbing her in favor of a dowdy one-time friend.
“Never mind,” said Lucy. “There are lots of hot guys here. I’m sure you’ll find yourself another one before the night is out.”
Courtney scanned the bar. It was true. There seemed to be an unusually high percentage of hot guys in this place. Many of them were with partners, but there were still plenty who seemed to be single. Her gaze came to rest on the guy who Logan had come with. He wasn’t quite as good-looking as Logan. He was fairer and seemed less outgoing, but he was built and had a strong jawline and gorgeous eyes. She watched as he chatted with a group of friends. It looked like he was explaining something to them—something that made them look happy even though he didn’t seem too happy about it.
“What’s up?” asked Jana. “Have you selected your next victim?”
She smiled as she saw Logan and Roxy join the group. “Yes, I think I have. I’m going to say hi to Roxy. I’ll be back.”
~ ~ ~
Roxy couldn’t help but smile when she heard Austin’s news that he and Nadia had broken up. She felt bad because, although he was saying he was relieved, he looked a bit down. She gave him a hug and stepped back with a smile. “You’ll be okay. It might take you a while; you two have been together for a long time, but it’s for the best. You haven’t been happy with her for as long as I can remember.”
He nodded and gave her a grateful smile. “Thanks, Roxy. I know you’re right. My first reaction was just a big sigh of relief, but now it’s hitting me.”
Maria smiled at him. “It will do, but you’ll get past it. You’ll miss the routine that you’d fallen into with her, but it wasn’t a healthy routine.”
“I know. I’ll be okay.” He smiled around at them all. “Any chance we can change the subject?”
Logan punched his arm. “Sure, we can, but before we do, tell me—is it because you don’t like being the center of attention, or because you’ve spotted the same people I have and you don’t want one of them to hear this?”
