Everything I thought I was chasing, everything I thought I needed isn’t in that skyscraper across the street… no.
It’s in the bathroom, showering.
“Logan?”
My heart jumps a little as I hear her calling for me, more for how she’s calling for me.
“Can you scrub my back?” she asks.
I’m already halfway there.
“I’d rather scrub your front,” I tell her honestly, making her jump a little, then playfully punch me as I sidle into the huge shower behind her, her hair all soapy and her eyes half-shut as she has to feel her way around.
I make sure her hands find everything I want them to touch, and although it feels like I’m claiming her all over again, it’s calming to just massage her back with the sponge, help her rinse her hair and then hold her while I tell her what I have planned for the rest of the day.
It already feels like time’s slipping by. Our first day and it’s almost over.
Forty years I’ve waited for her. I can’t waste another second of my life without her.
“I thought we might do a little shopping?” I suggest, “Then grab some dinner?”
I only realize how hungry I am once I say it, and as if on cue, her stomach growls loudly and we both laugh as I dry her off and help her into one of the hotel’s robes.
I grip a towel loosely around myself and head for the tangled bundle of our clothes in the bedroom, trying to find out which is which.
“I think you tore your shirt,” Chrissy observes, finding it hanging over a lamp.
I discover her panties, which have suffered a similar fate but I’m not certain I want to give them back.
“Just cover yourself,” I tell her matter of fact. “You’ll have new everything in a few minutes, there are some great tailors down the street that do everything.”
I notice her face fall a little, she looks awkward and embarrassed again.
“What is it?” I ask her, moving over to her and hooking my thumbs into her robe, pulling her towards me.
I know the look, I see it whenever I announce a purchase or a dinner, anything that involves money really.
I don’t forget, I just speak before I think most of the time and people feel awkward because they don’t have access to the money I do, or they just never dreamed of being in a certain place, restaurant, or boutique.
“It’s fine, Chrissy,” I assure her. “From now on, you’re mine and that means anything you need, want, or whatever for any reason, it’s yours. Okay?” I ask her, lifting her face to meet mine, sighing a little as I notice her expression only looks more awkward than ever.
“Let’s just get outta here, get some clothes, and grab a bit, huh?” I ask her again, and she readily agrees as I internally debate the tailor or the regular shopping mall.
A burger stand over a five-star restaurant.
Whatever Chrissy wants. I tell myself, and I reluctantly hand her back her panties and try not to ogle her too much as she gets dressed again, but it’s no use.
By the time I go to zip up my own pants, I’m as hard as a rock again and I struggle to get dressed without looking like some wild man, crazed with passion for just one thing.
For just one person.
I breathe another sigh of relief when Chrissy agrees to boutiques and five star everything.
I don’t have any problem with the alternatives, but why fly coach when you can own the whole airline?
I know just the place too, and after letting the hotel know I’ll be needing the room still… maybe… we head out, and automatically my hand reaches out for her as we walk.
Maybe it’s because I left my jacket behind and have just my shirt and pants on for a change, or maybe it’s because I’m so close to a woman…
Nobody even notices me for a change, not a single look or pointing stare this time when Logan Parker steps out in public.
Maybe nobody recognizes the new Logan Parker.
The one who’s found his mate, who’s more at ease in his own life and is with someone who most recently stopped giving a damn about what anybody thinks anymore.
It’s a passing observation anyway, my eyes are on Chrissy and even though she’s so close I can’t help but stare at her, almost wanting to let her walk ahead of me so I can watch her move as she walks but no way am I letting go of her.
Not even for a second.
Chapter Fifteen
Chrissy
Walking with Logan is like being on a cloud. I thought there’d be people looking, taking pictures, like this morning but something’s different now.
It’s like he’s a changed man.
His hand on my back sending shivers through me with each step, we walk a while until he pauses at a boutique I’ve only ever seen in magazines.
He raises a brow in question and I feel myself nodding, but still can’t believe this is actually happening as he holds the door open and we both walk in.
There’s a very serious, older woman and an even older looking man, instantly scrutinizing us both.
I feel myself flush red and turn to Logan, thinking this was a bad idea, but in seconds it becomes clear.
They’re not judging us, they’re figuring out what we need.
And they know Logan, personally it seems.
“Mr. Parker, it’s been too long, please! Tell me you’ve come here in urgent need of some new outfits!” the woman exclaims in a husky voice, reaching for a swatch of fabric and a tape measure.
Logan leans in and whispers in my ear, “Just play along Chrissy, these people know what they’re doing,” he tells me calmly before replying to her.
“We do, Lana, we do. I have a dinner date and we’re terribly under-dressed after a long day at work. Do what you can for us.”
With another reassuring nod and a little wink, Logan leaves me in the care of Lana while he goes with the even more serious-looking gentleman to be fitted for his clothes.
Lana smiles once he’s out of sight, but I feel my own anxiety rising which she’s quick to put to rest.
“You’re the luckiest woman alive,” she remarks casually, turning me to face a full-length mirror and draping some fabric across one of my shoulders.
“Logan Parker is never seen with a woman, and if he is, she’ll be his for life, trust me on that one,” she says, sighing to herself before busily measuring me and asking whether I like things a certain way.
Things I’ve never even considered when thinking about clothes.
“I usually just try to get things that fit,” I say, not intending to sound so stupid, but Lana’s a true professional.
“You have a beautiful figure, full and as a woman should look,” she says, a matter of fact.
I can see her memorizing measurements and I let her know a couple of the fabrics I like the feel and look of. She leads me to a smaller part of the boutique, with the most luxurious lingerie I’ve ever seen and orders me to pick out what I like and try it on in the private fitting room, which is a whole room in itself.
I get lost in trying on so many things and I decide I want them all but the stab of reality bites in my chest.
Nothing has a price tag. I can only imagine how much all this stuff costs, more than our house I’m sure.
There’s a robe I slip on over the one pair of undergarments I settle on and step out, finding the room empty but I can hear Logan’s deep and powerful voice from somewhere close by. There’s also Lana’s husky voice, blended with the soft sounds of the industry from a sewing machine and the hiss of a steam iron.
It’s dark outside by now, and I feel giddy from lack of food, my stomach groaning again when there’s some commotion out front and I peek around the corner, keeping myself hidden from view.
An armed security guard at the door, with another escorting a man with an armful of what looks like black briefcases all stacked up. He looks flushed, sweating, and I again hear Logan’s deep voice before a door closes.
I wonder if this is really just a day in the life
of Logan Parker… and if I can keep up.
I sit timidly on the edge of a soft leather chair, waiting for what feels like an hour before Lana reappears at the same moment I hear doors opening and closing again, the sound of people leaving the boutique as the heavy front door is unbolted.
Holding an outfit on hangers as if it’s about to explode, she flips the edge of my robe open long enough to give an approving look at my choice of underwear.
“Put it on, put it on,” she urges me, ushering me back into the changing room.
I’ve never had an ugly duckling- Black Swan moment, but I figure this is as close as I’m gonna get in this life.
The outfit, like the underwear, fits as if made just for me… because it was.
Every part of my body I thought I hated looks like it belongs and the whole outfit makes me look and feel better than I have in my whole life.
I’m choking back tears by the time Logan appears, his own new suit making him look like a diamond freshly cooled from some hunk of smoldering, ancient coal.
His dark eyes on mine, and a velvet box in his hand as he eyes me up and down, making that low sound that makes me swoon on the spot. Feeling bad for making my new panties so damp so soon, but he only growls deeper, as if sensing his effect on me.
“You’re just perfect,” he croons. “Just perfect.”
I can only make a squeaking sound of my own, pressing my thighs together as he draws nearer, kissing me before lifting the lid on the box.
Chapter Sixteen
Logan
It’s too much. That’s the look my tailor, the jeweler, and even the security guard give as I point out the necklace while making my calls, putting the phone to my chest for a moment.
“That one!” I exclaim, and then motion for him to show me what else he brought along.
I don’t want Chrissy feeling anything less than a Queen from now on, I’ve decided. And if she wants a taste of luxury, then we can have plenty of that on the way.
The car’s already waiting, and so am I. I need my clothes and my woman ready so we can get out of here and go eat.
My call’s cut short anyway. Turns out the desperate seller of a certain hotel chain’s gone cold. Very cold on the idea, even though I offer him a premium deal.
“And if you’re not gonna pay for your room, I’d appreciate you letting someone who will pay stay there!” he shouts before hanging up.
Weird, a month ago he would’ve taken half what I was offering. Something must’ve changed for him… but what?
Shrugging and reminding myself the rest of today is supposed to be all about Chrissy and me, I nod with approval when the suit’s presented and quickly finish up a little other business with the jeweler, checking the time on my new watch.
“Thanks again for coming over, Hershel, at such short notice I mean,” The old man clicks his tongue and raises his eyes, but he knows it’s been worth it for him.
Be a midnight supper at this rate.
Once I see Chrissy though I forget everything else. I absently sign off on the jewelry and shoo everyone else away with a wave of my hand, offering it to her and kissing hers before I open the box.
The light from the diamonds sparkles in her eyes and she looks stunned like she’s not sure what’s really happening.
“I thought a bit of bling with your new dress might be nice,” I tell her.
She starts to shake her head, first in astonishment but then in refusal.
“Logan… I couldn’t. I can’t…” she says, looking at me with some determination.
I frown. “Why not?”
I’m not used to hearing ‘can’t’ and ‘no’ and that’s two in a row including my phone call.
“I mean, it’s beautiful. It truly is… but it just looks so expensive,” she says, flushing red and looking less like the girl I remember from earlier today.
“It is expensive,” I tell her, “and I’m giving it to you. I told you, Chrissy, you’ll want for nothing from today forward and me spoiling you… well, you’ll just have to get used to it. Now, can you please try it on so we can go eat?” I ask her, trying not to sound hurt but I do feel a little awkward myself at having to demand she accept my gift.
Leaving me wondering about something else too…
“We’ll both feel better after we eat,” I tell myself aloud, kissing her gently again and ushering her into the waiting car outside, deciding putting on the necklace can wait, maybe.
The restaurant’s only a little way, and I thumb the velvet box with the necklace in it, eventually setting it aside.
She opens her mouth, but I smile and kiss her instead.
“You don’t have to wear a stupid necklace, Chrissy. I just thought of your eyes when I saw it and you know what? It doesn’t even come close to the real thing.”
“It’s not stupid,” she says quietly, looking out the window and I can see her chest shivering with emotion.
“It’s the most beautiful thing… I just don’t understand how-”
I lean over and pull her closer to me.
“Hey now, none of that,” I whisper. “I told you Chrissy, and I’ll keep telling you. You’re the best… the only thing to ever really happen to me. Don’t blame a guy for trying to show it in more ways than one.” I half mumble, creasing a smile, telling myself it was too much after all.
“It’s the world I live in,” I explain. “A world I want you in too from now on.”
“I just need… some… time to adjust, I guess,” she says, smiling finally and wiping her misty eyes as I make a point of tossing the velvet box into the seat opposite us, making her gasp.
“I didn’t say throw it away!” she laughs, and I feel better for it, for having her tell me that there’s some getting used to things on her part.
“The clothes, the car, the hotel,” she explains. “It’s like a fairy tale.”
“And you’re the princess,” I tell her, “My Queen.” I bow again, kissing her hand all the way up her arm to her lips.
The car stopping and the shadow of someone near the window tells me we’re at the restaurant, but anyone who knows me knows well enough to wait until I open my own door before interrupting me.
“Hungry?” I ask, and hearing both our bellies growl in reply, we laugh and I feel better for having cleared a few things up.
“We’ll eat and then you can tell me what you feel like doing,” I tell her. “I don’t want to sound like I’m bossing you around.”
“You can boss me,” she says, clutching my hands before I open the door, mouthing the words thank you before pecking my cheek, making me feel like a schoolboy.
I tell the driver to wait for us and we make our way in, I don’t really notice much else, having Chrissy on my arm and her eyes on mine are all that matters.
Even though I’m already picturing myself helping her out of that dress.
Chapter Seventeen
Chrissy
With Logan staring at me so intently, I hardly have a mind for food.
But once it arrives we both let out a series of moans and groans, and I’m relieved that Logan likes to enjoy his food as much as I do.
I should feel self-conscious about eating in front of him, but after everywhere else our mouths have been today, this is nothing.
Logan’s right.
After eating I feel a lot better. Like I can think clearly again, grounded.
“A good steak always hits the spot,” Logan agrees without me having to say a word.
There’s no room left for anything else like dessert, but the waiter offers and we both screw our noses up, eyeing the door instead.
“Something better in mind?” he asks me with a gleam in his eye, but there’s something safe about the restaurant, something homely.
“Back to the hotel?” I ask and he keeps his face screwed up.
“No more hotels,” he says grimly, and then forcing a smile he promises to explain it all another time.
“I thought we’d head back to mine… unless
?” he asks in an open question.
Hearing him refer to Logan Industries as ‘heading back to mine’ is funny, but a jolt of panic runs through me as I imagine my own house… my dad’s house. With my dad in it…
“Uhhh, your place sounds great!” I squeak, wondering how I’m gonna face my dad. If I even can. I’m, dressed like a freakin’ princess and have just been given jewels worth more than our whole neighborhood.
“Something wrong?” Logan asks, genuinely concerned.
“It’s my dad,” I tell him honestly.
He thinks for a moment and then nods his head. “I know, I know. I want today to be just us though, okay? We can deal with any fallout tomorrow,” he suggests.
Fallout?
I want to feel the old me, the panic and insecurities, but something in Logan’s eyes is soothing me. His calm decided, and determined look tell me everything I need to hear without a single word.
I feel so safe with him, so special. Anything my own mind could dream up, he’s there to deal with it. Unfazed and totally unafraid.
“Logan, I…” I start to say, but it sounds so thin, so weak compared to the man himself.
He takes my hand in his.
“I love you, Chrissy,” he says firmly, finishing my thought for me, and then I can say it, hell I feel like screaming it.
“I love you too, Logan.”
It’s only once we’re back in the car, then again in the huge foyer of Logan Industries, welcomed warmly by the doorman that I realize…
I can be anywhere with Logan, it’s him that makes me feel so at home.
“Uh… Mr. Parker, begging your pardon, sir,” The doorman calls out after us.
Logan turns, giving the man his full attention while he steps over to us.
“Security has been asking after you a lot. So has a Mr. Foster from PR and accounting. About his daughter,” he adds without looking at me.
“Thanks for the heads up, have a nice night!” Logan chimes cheerfully, taking my arm in his and choosing the private elevator over the main ones. Even though the building seems totally empty.
Dad's CEO Boss: An Instalove Possessive Age Gap Romance (A Man Who Knows What He Wants Book 203) Page 6
