by Amelia Judd
She waded into the lake and sighed in bliss as the water lapped at her over-heated skin. As a strong wind whipped her hair around her face and shoulders, she worked through the breaking waves until she reached the shoulder-deep water beyond. She smoothed her uncontrolled hair from her face and slipped under the water.
Cool relief enveloped her, relaxed her, and doused the remaining flames of the ninety-degree day. She stayed underwater until her air supply gave out, enjoying the respite.
Her family was right. She had needed a jumpstart to get her life moving forward again. And crashing with Logan had definitely moved her life in a good direction. Sure, she didn’t have a career and still feared being alone at night, but at least she had more fun things to think about now—like seducing a sexy Aussie.
She’d worry about the other crap later.
The low hum of a powerful engine drew her gaze toward the lane leading from the highway. She watched Logan’s red car draw closer, then slip from view behind the cottage. A few minutes later, he strolled around the side of the house, heading toward the lake. He plunked down on the chair holding her towel and cocked his head to the side, staring directly at her.
“Come on in,” Kat yelled. “The water’s great.”
A boyish smile lit his face. “Says the Big Bad Wolf.”
“I promise not to bite.” Kat paused. “Unless you want me to.”
Logan tipped his head back and laughed. “You sound like you’re kidding, but I’m half-afraid you’re not.”
Kat chuckled and began moving toward the shore. “Fine. I’ll come out if you’re too chicken to join me.” When she reached chest-deep water, she paused. She could tell the knot of her suit top had slipped a little. If she didn’t want to flash Logan, she probably should tighten it before going any farther. Reaching behind her, she pulled the string loose and attempted to retie it.
And that was the moment the powers-that-be decided to have some fun. A powerful wave slammed into her back. She let out a strangled yelp, threw her hands in front of her in a useless effort to counterbalance, and tumbled face first into the lake.
A second after going under, she found her footing on the sandy bottom and popped her head out of the water. She gasped in a breath, stood to her full height, and slicked her long hair away from her face. She opened her eyes and looked at Logan, expecting to see him chuckling after watching her belly flop into the water.
Instead, his eyes were hot, dark, and transfixed on her. Well, on her chest to be more specific. She reached up to adjust her top, but there was no top to adjust.
Holy hell. She sucked in a horrified breath. Her breasts were bare. Completely frickin’ bare! She shot a horrified look at the beach and spotted two pieces of minuscule triangular black fabric sprawled in the sand. The damn wave had lifted the top of her flimsy suit over her head and carried it to shore.
She fisted her hands, fighting back the nearly overwhelming desire to cover herself. She wanted this. Well, obviously, not this exact situation, but she did want Logan to look at her the way he was right now. Even though she hadn’t planned on using nudity to get through his defenses, it seemed to be working pretty well for her. Might as well go with it.
She tipped her chin up and pinned him with her gaze as she slowly strolled toward the beach. She felt her nipples harden as both the summer breeze and Logan’s gaze caressed her body. She scooped her top out of the sand. Tension thickened the humid air and intensified the desire building under her tiny bikini bottom.
“If you keep looking at me like that, big guy, we might not have time to grill our steaks.” She stretched her arms up and wrung water from her hair, proud of her casual tone. Maybe he would be more likely to break the idiotic promise to her dad if he thought she walked around naked in front of guys all the time.
“Can’t stop,” he growled, his voice low and rough.
She felt a slow grin lift the corners of her mouth. “Good.” She stepped between his thighs and stopped only when her own legs bumped into the front of his chair. Then she slowly leaned forward and reached her arms around his neck. The heat of his breath grazed her nipples. Her core melted, and every cell in her body came alive.
“Kat … ” Her name sounded like a warning on his lips. But she also heard an unmistakable craving in his tone.
“Sorry, darl,” she said in a husky voice. “You’re leaning on my towel.” She lifted her towel from the back of his chair, wrapped it around her shoulders, and took a small step back.
Logan squeezed his eyes closed, fisted his hands on the chair’s armrests, and drew in a shaky breath.
She slowly trailed the back of her index finger down his cheek and across his full bottom lip. “Why fight the attraction between us? We’re both single, and neither of us want a commitment. Let’s enjoy the summer together.”
Logan opened his eyes and sighed. “I made a promise.”
“A stupid-ass promise,” she snapped.
“I promised not to hurt you.” Logan abruptly stood up, stepped away from her, and shoved a hand through his hair. “My relationships have a history of ending badly. If we sleep together … ” He paused, shaking his head slowly. “I’m not sure I can keep that promise.”
Open-mouthed, Kat watched him stride away from her. She’d always thought he was nothing more than a gorgeous, fun-loving guy, but he’d just walked away from an easy score. If nudity couldn’t get him to break his promise, what the hell would?
She blew out a sigh and slumped into the chair. Just her frickin’ luck. She picked a guy to seduce who hid a strong moral character behind a devil-may-care smile. Sure, she could try to find a different guy to have a casual affair with, but that idea left her feeling flat, and unmistakably disappointed.
She ground her teeth together. Damn Logan. She’d never even slept with him, yet it somehow felt like the jerk had ruined her for other men.
Ugh. Royally ticked at the thought, Kat jumped to her feet and stormed toward the house. No way would she quit so easily. She simply needed to rethink her approach. Her advances had been as direct as a smack upside the head. Logan might lower his guard and forget about that stupid promise to her dad if she employed a smidgen of subtlety.
Time for Plan B.
Chapter 6
IT took two hours and multiple beers for Logan’s blood to cool after the heated scene with Kat on the beach. It should have helped that she’d put on an unprovocative pair of shorts and loose-fitting tee for dinner, but it didn’t. At least she hadn’t brought up sex since she stormed into the house after her swim.
He liked Kat’s family, and he liked her. He didn’t want to hurt any of them. He needed to keep his word and keep his hands to himself. But he could only take so much. With Kat leaning over him—her perfect breasts wet and only inches from his mouth—he’d been so damn hard it hurt. If she hadn’t covered up when she did, he would have caved and taken her right there on the sand.
“Why the scowl, big guy?”
“I don’t scowl.”
After a dinner of grilled steaks, asparagus, and something she called smashed potatoes, they’d moved to the screened-in porch with a beer in hand to enjoy the cool breeze blowing off the lake. Kat had dropped to the couch, kicked her feet onto the table in front of her, and stared toward the lake, seemingly lost in thought. Apparently, she’d switched to staring at him.
“Oh, I totally saw a scowl. You should be careful. Those things will wrinkle you up worse than a raisin under a sunlamp. I like to keep my life as free of stress as possible.” She sipped her beer. “Maybe you should try yoga or something.”
“I don’t need yoga,” he grumbled. If he could find a decent place to work out, he would be able to burn off some tension, but the nearest gym was small, outdated, and over thirty minutes away.
“Then you need to get laid.” She winked and clicked her tongue. “That would definitely turn your frown upside down.”
Logan grunted, dropped his head back, closed his eyes, and rubbed his temples wher
e he could feel a mother of a headache forming. He’d been trying not to think about Kat, her fantastic body, or getting laid since she moved in with him. But the more he tried not to think about it, the more he couldn’t get it out of his head. Her bringing it up every five seconds didn’t help.
Besides, she was right; he really did need to get laid. Preferably with Kat and preferably soon. But Richard said she was going through a tough time. If he used her for sex, he’d feel like shit afterwards. And feeling like shit stressed him out, and damn it, he hated stress. Then again, not sleeping with Kat also stressed him out. He couldn’t win.
How the hell had his life gotten stuck spinning helplessly in a circle of stressful shit?
“You’re scowling again.”
He ground his teeth and rubbed his temples harder. He could feel the lines of tension etched in his face, so he didn’t bother to deny it. Keeping his hands off Kat while they lived together would probably age him ten years. Hell, he’d consider himself lucky if a few wrinkles were the worst thing that happened to him this summer.
He’d only made the mistake of giving his heart to a woman once, when he was young and stupid. After that, he’d adopted the carefree attitude that worked so well for him. The only time things ever got mucked up was when someone tried to get serious. But Kat didn’t want serious, so why was she twisting him into knots?
He took a deep breath to relax his features and lifted his head from the back of the couch to look at her again. She sat cross-legged, beaming a Cheshire-cat smile at him. She didn’t fool him. Her wide smile might say charming and innocent, but the spark of mischief lighting her blue-gray eyes said she knew the effect she had on him.
“You enjoy torturing me.”
Kat tipped her head back and laughed. And damn if it wasn’t the sexiest thing he’d ever heard. The sultry, rich tones of her laughter oddly soothed and aroused him at the same time.
Christ, he was a fucking mess.
“I’m honestly not trying to tease, torment, or torture you. Well … not right now at least. Sorry if crashing together has made your life difficult. Can I do anything to make it easier?”
“Keeping your clothes on would help,” he grumbled.
Kat’s eyebrows shot up.
“I mean it, no more nudity. And you need to find a new bather for swimming, one with enough fabric to cover”—he gestured toward her body—“everything.”
“Fine. Whatever. No nudity.” She took another sip of her beer. Then, beer bottle still in hand, she pointed at him with her index finger. “But you really need to work on being less of a fun sponge.”
“Huh?”
“You kinda suck the fun out of everything. You should loosen up, relax a little bit.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” he snapped, grabbing his beer from the table with more force than necessary. “I’m a carefree, fun-loving guy.” He ground the words out between clenched teeth.
Kat cocked her head to the side. “Most guys would jump at the chance of no-strings sex, and you just made me promise to keep my clothes on for the summer. Even though your reason for saying no is bullshit, you’re still sticking to it. I hate to break it to you, Logan, but that makes you sound kinda mature and responsible, not carefree and fun-loving.”
“Holy shit. I’ve turned into Pax.” He dropped his head back again in misery. “I’m too bloody serious and more concerned about doing what’s right than having a good time.” He beat the back of his head against the hard cushion a few extra times as the depressing realization landed with a heavy thud in his gut. “I’m not sure if I should feel proud or disgusted.”
“Don’t sweat it. My brother is a great guy. And now that he’s with Sage, they’re having a lot of fun together. Besides, we all have to grow up sometime.”
He lifted his head to study her. “Have you?” he asked hopefully.
“Hell no. I’m still lots of fun.” Kat shot him a cocky smile, then picked up her phone seconds after it pinged with an incoming text. As she read the message, her smile slid away. “Frick,” she mumbled under her breath and tossed her phone onto the cushion beside her.
“Problem?”
“The part for Bruno’s air conditioner won’t be in until Monday, and now I have somewhere to go Sunday. Since they’re still predicting temperatures in the nineties the trip is going to suck. Seriously, when is this heat wave going to end?”
“You can take my car.”
“For real?” Kat asked, eyes wide. “Your car is sweet. You’d let me drive it?”
“Sure. It’s a short-term lease. I wanted a fun car since I’m such a fun guy,” he added dryly.
Her pretty face fell. “Shoot. I forgot. It’s a manual. I never learned how to drive a stick.”
For some inexplicable reason, her melancholy tone and dejected expression made him want to do anything he could to make her happy. “I don’t have any plans this weekend. I can teach you on Saturday.”
“You will?” Kat clapped her hands in excitement. “I tried to learn when I was younger but couldn’t figure it out. Now Dad refuses to let me try again with his car.”
“Why not?”
She dismissed his question with a causal wave. “He’s overly cautious. I’m a good driver, no matter what my family thinks.”
“Am I going to regret this?” Logan asked pointlessly since he was already regretting it.
“Probably.” She shrugged. “Apparently, I grind the gears a lot.”
He cringed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t think a dropped transmission is covered in my insurance policy.”
“Bummer.” Kat hopped to her feet with a grin. “Too bad you’re a man of your word. You’re stuck with me now. I’m off to bed. Night, Logan.” Kat gave him a saucy little wave and sauntered into the house.
“Goodnight, darl,” Logan murmured, acutely aware of how empty the porch felt without her.
Whenever possible, she’d avoided him in Costa Rica. But here, in only a few days’ time, he’d grown used to having her around. Though a tiny little thing, Kat could fill any room she walked into with presence alone. Yeah, she loved to torment him, but he loved her wit and smart-ass comments. She kept him guessing and kept him sharp—a refreshing change from the predictable women he usually hooked up with. He would miss her when he left.
Unease curled through him at the thought. He needed to be careful and keep his attraction to Kat from growing into anything serious. If he didn’t, he could end up with a lot more to regret than a few wrinkles and a ruined transmission.
•••
Three days later, Logan yawned and leaned back against the kitchen counter. Today was driving lesson day, and he and Kat had gotten up early to hit the road while most people were still in bed. He hadn’t seen her yet, but he heard her singing “Born to be Wild” while she got ready in the bathroom. It didn’t bode well.
When her rendition ended, the bathroom door swung upon, and she strutted out in a black dress so short and tight his pulse kicked up a beat.
“What are you wearing?”
“This is my kick-ass driving outfit. Pretty awesome, right?”
“You look like you’re in a motorcycle gang.”
“Exactly. If I’m going to be flying around town in that hot little car of yours, I want to make sure I send the right message.”
“Darl, ‘bad girl’ is the only message you’re sending in those clothes.”
“Sweet! Which reminds me. If any guys check me out while we’re in the car, you need to duck down. That whole good-boy, Mister-Moral image you’re sporting would totally ruin my street cred.”
“You don’t have any street cred,” Logan pointed out dryly.
“I will after today. Now let’s get to it.” Kat grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the house.
He shook his head. “Whenever you say something outrageous—which is often—I am pretty sure you’re kidding. But honest to God, I’m not positive.”
Kat grinned from ear to ear. “I
t’s part of my charm.”
Logan laughed and slid into the passenger seat. “So, are you kidding?”
“Sometimes I am. Sometimes I’m serious. Usually, it’s a bit of both.” Kat climbed in behind the wheel.
“You were kidding about me hiding so you could pick up another guy in my car, right?”
“Nope.” She shook her head. “That one I’m serious about.”
Logan snorted. “Sorry, darl, no way in hell that’s happening.”
“You’re jealous.”
“I’m not jealous.” Just because his chest burned at the thought of another guy hitting on Kat, didn’t make him jealous.
“Don’t sweat it. It’s kinda cute.” She winked. “Okay. How do I make this bad boy go vroom?”
After listening intently to his directions, Kat pushed in the clutch, shifted the car into first, eased up on the clutch, and applied the gas exactly as he’d instructed.
The car bucked twice and died.
Three more attempts, three similar results.
Kat’s grip tightened on the wheel as she dropped her head back against the seat. “This is just like last time. I did precisely what I was supposed to do—four times—and it didn’t work. Are you sure you didn’t forget some crucial piece of information, like an incantation to chant when lifting the clutch?”
“No magic required, I promise.” Logan chuckled as he rubbed the back of his neck, trying to think of a way to explain it to her. “You’ve got to feel the car. Really hear the engine and instinctively know what to do. Why don’t you try letting up on the clutch slowly until you feel the car start to respond? Then just hold your foot there. Don’t do anything else.”
