by Savina Joyce
HER FOCUS
EXPOSED TO LOVE: BOOK TWO
SAVINA JOYCE
Copyright © 2019 by Savina Joyce
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Cover design by James, GoOnWrite.com
Edited by Laurie Holding
Formatted by Nina Morse, VA
CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Afterword
Coming Soon: Their Perfect Picture
About the Author
Also by Savina Joyce
CHAPTER ONE
PHAEDRA
P haedra let out a happy sigh and stretched her arms over her head. Rolling over, she looked at Logan. She still couldn’t believe her luck.
Phaedra loved the way Logan’s long blonde eyelashes laid so delicately against his cheek. His sandy blonde hair was tousled from sleep, but he still looked amazing. Only men could look this good first thing in the morning, Her hair was in two braids to keep it from suffocating Logan in his sleep. It was incredible to think that agreeing to pose as someone’s fiancé would get Phaedra the most amazing boyfriend in the world.
All she wanted to do was lie in his arms and gaze lovingly at his pretty face. If Logan woke up and saw that, he might freak out. Phaedra definitely would if she was in his place. They both had a lot to do today. She might as well get the day started. Phaedra decided to sneak out of bed before Logan woke up. Just as her feet touched the ground, she felt his arm wrap around her waist and pull her back.
“I won’t let you get away that easily,” Logan said.
“I wasn’t getting away. I was going to make coffee.”
“What about breakfast?”
“You’re right. I should probably stay here,” Phaedra said, settling back into the pillows.
Logan buried his face in her neck and mumbled something Phaedra couldn’t understand.
“I hope you just said that you’ll help me by making breakfast while I make coffee,” she replied.
Logan smiled at her. “I really hit the jackpot with you.”
“I guess you could say you landed an open and shut case,” Phaedra said as she dissolved into a fit of giggles.
Logan groaned and turned away from her. “It’s awfully early for legal jokes. I’m so disappointed in you.”
He rolled out of bed and headed for the kitchen. Phaedra hopped up and followed closely behind him. She couldn’t help but admire the view of Logan’s muscular back. With his broad shoulders and lean waist, Logan would be just as at home in an underwear ad as he was in a courtroom. Phaedra still wasn’t sure when he had time to work out, but he was always in peak physical condition.
When Logan began prepping for breakfast, Phaedra easily joined him. Phaedra had never cooked with anyone else, but the two of them seemed to fit perfectly in his kitchen. The open floor plan didn’t hurt. They had plenty of room to maneuver. It was so nice to prepare a meal while overlooking the city. She had no idea what he paid for rent, but whatever it was, it was worth it for the view alone. She was lost in her daydream when Logan pulled her out of her haze.
“Phaedra? Honey? Are we expecting company?”
“No. Why would you ask that?”
“Because you just scooped enough coffee into that machine for twelve people.”
Phaedra looked down and was surprised to see a huge pile of coffee in the filter. She chuckled. “Sorry. I got lost in the view.”
“It’s quite alright, I understand. It must be hard to wake up to a man this handsome.”
Phaedra made a gagging noise. “Lawyers really are the worst.”
“I don’t think you have any evidence to support that case, counselor.”
“You said it was too early for legal talk.”
“Excellent counterpoint.”
“Thanks for the generosity,” Phaedra said, rolling her eyes.
“What can I say, I’m a naturally giving man.”
Phaedra narrowed her eyes. Logan saw her reaction and made a dramatic show of preparing the omelets. He cracked eggs with the flourish of a stage magician. Logan threw in vegetables as if he were throwing cards. He refused to tone it down until Phaedra was laughing too hard to talk.
They ate together while engaging in more playful banter. Once he finished his breakfast, Logan got oddly quiet. Phaedra noticed that his brow was furrowed. She wondered what she could have done to make him frown. The food was delicious. Maybe she had given him too much coffee.
“Is everything alright?”
“There is something else I wanted to talk to you about.” Logan shifted in his seat. “You’ve been spending a lot of time here. Several nights a week, actually, and I—”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to overstay my welcome.” Phaedra’s heart sank. She was so happy here. She thought he was, too.
“No, you haven’t. I was thinking, sometimes my schedule is a bit hectic. Your job brings you to the city, but if I’m at work you just head back home. If you have a lot of work, and I have a heavy case load, you spend the night in a hotel. Hotels aren’t cheap in New York City. Maybe it would be cheaper if I gave you a key to my place.”
Phaedra stared at Logan, dumbfounded. They had been in a relationship for a few months. Phaedra hadn’t expected anything like this. Maybe he was still tired and didn’t know what he was saying. It was far too soon for the caffeine to have kicked in.
“Based on your shocked expression, I will assume that you don’t like the idea.”
“It’s not that. You just caught me by surprise.”
“Look, I’m not asking you to move in with me. I just think visiting would be
easier for everyone this way. Plus, we’ll get to see each other more. Assuming you want to see more of me.”
“There is no need to assume. I can’t get enough of you,” Phaedra replied.
Logan walked over to her chair, reached down, and began lightly massaging her shoulders. She couldn’t say no to that. Logan didn’t have to be this persuasive. Phaedra was thrilled by the prospect of having this much access to Logan.
Until now, it had never occurred to her that they might exchange keys. Yes, they had fallen for each other while pretending to be engaged, but this was a big step to take in any relationship. Phaedra tried to remind herself that she should take her time and consider all of her options. This was an opportunity to take a leap of faith. When she stopped lying to herself, she had to admit she was happy to make the jump. Phaedra had been taking great pains to leave no trace of her existence in Logan’s house whenever she spent the night. She hadn’t even left a toothbrush. Logan never questioned it. She knew she was well on her way to getting her own drawer now.
CHAPTER TWO
LOGAN
L ogan did a victory dance around his apartment as soon as Phaedra left. He’d had a duplicate of his apartment key made about a week ago, but he hadn’t been able to get up the nerve to give it to Phaedra. He was afraid that she would say no when he offered it.
It was a big commitment. He wasn’t sure what would have happened to their relationship if she had said no. Things would have definitely gotten awkward. Logan was grateful that he didn’t have to find out.
Now, there was a good chance that he could come home one day and find his lady already waiting for him. Excited by that prospect, Logan found himself wishing he had offered her a key sooner. Logan knew exactly how lucky he was to find a woman like Phaedra. Granted, their relationship had initially started as a financial arrangement, but it had grown into so much more. Logan had the woman of his dreams and things seemed to be progressing nicely on the job front, too. Logan couldn’t remember the last time he had been this happy. He couldn’t wait to see what the next phase in this relationship held.
Technically, they were still engaged. They didn’t really talk about it much. It took some pressure off of Logan. He didn’t have to worry about being coerced into popping the question. He wondered if they would ever end up getting married. Logan wasn’t even sure that he would make a good husband. Right now, all he wanted to do was spend as much time as he could making Phaedra happy.
When Logan returned to work, he had an extra spring in his step. His receptionist, Shelly, couldn’t help but notice.
“It looks like someone is having a good day,” she said.
“I’m having a good life,” Logan replied.
“It must be that lovely woman of yours.”
“It always is.” Logan leaned closer. “Can I tell you a secret?”
“You know I love gossip.”
“I gave Phaedra a key to my place.”
Shelly clapped her hands. “Oh that sounds serious. Almost like you’re planning to make her your girlfriend. Congratulations,” Shelly said with a giggle.
“Very funny, but thank you. I couldn’t be any happier than I am right now.”
“I hope you’ll be even happier when your wedding day rolls around.”
A smile spread across Logan’s face. “I hope so, too.”
Logan went into his office with thoughts of wedding bells ringing in his head. He wondered what kind of bride Phaedra would be. Would she wear a classic fairytale ball gown? Or, maybe something modern and funky with a hint of bright colors. He didn’t know much about wedding dresses, but he knew Phaedra. She would look amazing in anything.
He couldn’t sit here and daydream about this all day. Since Phaedra had made such a good impression on the powers that be at the office, Logan was on the fast track to becoming partner. All he had to do was make sure he kept his nose to the grindstone, making his hours and bring in new clients. It was tough when all he wanted to do was spend time with Phaedra, but the job must go on.
Logan shook his head, trying to clear it of all thoughts of Phaedra. There aren’t a lot of law cases that involve mooning over a pretty woman. He had two meetings planned with new clients, and enough casework to last him a month. He put his head down and got to work.
By the time Logan’s work day was done, it was pitch dark outside. He was exhausted. Shelly was long gone and most of the office was dark. He regretted not ordering takeout, but didn’t want to add to the security guys’ workload; they deserved an easy night. He headed home to make do with what he had.
On the way, he saw couples everywhere. Logan realized that was the only thing on his mind lately. Love. It was an odd sensation. For years, he had been so focused on building his career. In high school, he focused on getting good grades. It was the same for college and law school. Then, he focused on getting into a great law firm.
Once that goal was accomplished, all he wanted to do was build his career and make partner. Looking back, he realized that all his focus had been beneficial. It was also very lonely. None of his focus had been on making friends or having a life. When he was old and gray, his job wouldn’t take care of him or keep him company.
Hopefully, Phaedra would.
Just the thought of her brought a smile to his face and a warmth to his heart. Logan barely remembered the rest of the cab ride home. All he could think about was her.
Once he was home, Logan was still riding his Phaedra high. He was inspired to make a full meal. Usually, he would just go home after a late night at the office and make a sandwich. Today, he went home and made a whole meal. It wasn’t gourmet by any standards, just sausage and peppers over white rice.
Logan would love to cook for Phaedra someday. Cooking was one of his secret thrills. He didn’t like to brag about it. Logan felt like all adults should know how to cook, men included. He just wanted to feed his woman.
CHAPTER THREE
PHAEDRA
P haedra was excited to surprise Logan at work. She was used to being surprised by him, but she never had a chance to return the favor. She decided to show up at his job and surprise him with his favorite brand of fancy pens.
Phaedra got him a few, because she knew that he had a lot of work to do. While Logan often typed his legal briefs on the computer, he still enjoyed writing longhand. Writing with his favorite pens would be a great help.
She showed up in the office and was quickly buzzed up by his receptionist, Shelly. Shelly loved Phaedra, and was tickled pink by her relationship with Logan.
Unfortunately, Logan was in a meeting when Phaedra arrived, so she couldn’t see him right away. She was having a friendly chat with Shelly when a strange feeling overtook her. Suddenly, she was sweating and felt a tightening sensation at the back of her throat. Before she knew it, she was running across the room stuffing her head into a trashcan. While Phaedra was getting sick, Shelly was polite enough to turn her head. When she was finished, Shelly called the custodial department to have them immediately clean up the mess.
“Is everything ok, Phaedra?” Shelly asked.
“It’s the weirdest thing. One minute I was feeling fine, the next I was sick.”
“Interesting,” Shelly said in a way that seemed like she knew more than she was letting on.
Phaedra noticed Shelly was looking at her strangely too, but she was too preoccupied to give it much thought. She excused herself to the restroom so she could clean her face. She was grateful to find mouth wash. At least her breath would be fresh when she greeted Logan. Phaedra was feeling better already.
When she got back to Logan’s office, Shelly was still looking at her strangely. Phaedra couldn’t blame her. It wasn’t every day that a woman threw up in your trashcan.
“I know this sounds silly, but can you not tell Logan about what just happened? It’s really embarrassing.”
“I understand. Besides, you’ll have to tell him yourself, sooner or later.”
“What does that mean and why are you smiling at me like that?”
“I’m not sure what you mean,” Shelly replied, smiling harder.
Logan came around the corner, which ended the conversation. Phaedra turned her back and began fussing with the gift bag that held Logan’s gift.
“Well this is a welcome surprise. Did you bring something for Shelly in that bag?”
“Of course not, silly. She’s here for you,” Shelly replied.
“For me? It’s not my birthday. Is it some kind of anniversary? Did I forget?” Logan asked. A panicked tone crept into his voice.
“No. Of course not. It isn’t an anniversary. I just wanted to do something nice for you.”
A smile quickly replaced the panicked expression on Logan’s face. He walked over and wrapped Phaedra in a big hug. “I swear I’m the luckiest man in the world.”
Phaedra giggled.
“I think it's time for my break. You two have fun catching up,” Shelly said as she made her way out of the room.
“She ran right out of here. Is there something embarrassing in the bag? Furry handcuffs?” Logan asked with a sly grin.
“I guess you’ll have to open it and find out.”
Logan tore into the gift bag, tossing tissue paper everywhere. Phaedra gathered the mess and put it into the freshly cleaned trashcan. There was no reason to leave a mess for anyon
e else to clean up.
CHAPTER FOUR
LOGAN
L ogan was thrilled to see that Phaedra had brought him astronaut pens. They weren’t really called astronaut pens, but when he was a boy, he had heard about this particular brand being the only pens used in space. They had been his favorite ever since. Fortunately, the company that made them was still in service.
The pens were attractive, sleek, silver pens. They looked good in his leather briefcase, too. Luckily, he never had to explain to anyone but Phaedra that he was still that same astronaut-loving kid at heart. To be fair, he thought, lots of kids dreamed of being an astronaut when they grew up.
Even though Logan didn’t get to see his spaceman fantasies come true, he knew that he was living the dream. He had a fantastic job and an awesome girlfriend. He was happier than he had been, maybe ever.
Logan only mentioned the pens to Phaedra once in passing, yet here she was to surprise him. Logan couldn’t ask for anything more. He thought back to giving her the key the other morning. Who knew what surprises she would have in store for him at his house?
