"What are you doing?" he whispered.
"I think you forgot to finish something." I giggled, then gasped as he hit just the right angle, and I tumbled over the edge, closing my eyes as I lost myself in him.
When I opened my eyes again, I watched, entranced by the emotions he displayed. There was no love scene I could write that was as tender as what we now shared, no words that could express what either of us felt. When he looked at me and smiled, I loved him more than ever.
Pushing back, I drove him in deeper, fighting the sensation to close my eyes again. I wanted to feel him, see him, share this moment with him more than anything else ever. For just a moment I wished I’d only ever been with him.
“Damn, woman,” he murmured, kissing me tenderly. Nose to nose, we just looked at each other, moving in unison. We were one, and everything was perfect.
“I love you,” I whispered.
“I love you too.” He picked up the pace now, pinning me to the bed as his tongue sought mine in another kiss. We tasted each other, our bodies pressed together, our skin flush. He stiffened as his climax approached, and with a loud groan he came. I was his, and nothing could be sweeter.
He rolled to my side, holding me, caressing me, looking at me with such a sense of wonder that I knew was written all over my face too.
Sharing kisses like we were two giddy teenagers, this was so much better than any other intimate moment of my life. I was loved, truly loved, and I adored this man who lay beside me.
“Did you get enough material?” he whispered.
Confused, I looked at him with eyebrow raised. “What?”
“I was kidding. Making a joke about your writing.”
“Oh, that. Yeah, I’ve got a recorder going under the bed. What the hell do you think?” I snapped.
“Sorry, Liv. I was just trying to joke.”
“I thought you hated what I was doing.”
“Not hated, just wished I’d known.” He smirked. “If you’d told me I was your muse, we could have had sex a long time ago.”
I slapped him on the arm. “Now you tell me.”
“Think we can make it, Liv?" He looked at me thoughtfully. "I’d really like to be here for you and the kids. They are so freaking amazing too.”
I smiled, kissing his cheek. “I think we can do anything. Especially now we’re together.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
By Monday morning I was much better, but still weak from being ill, and Logan insisted that I stay in bed while he dropped the kids off to school and day-care. I called in sick, collapsing back into bed once the call was made, and fell asleep.
Rousing when Logan joined me again, I laughed as he growled, pulling me into his arms.
“I figured I could play hooky with you,” he said.
“I’m not playing hooky. I’m trying to get over this horrid flu.”
He grinned, kissing me softly. “I’ll help you forget all about that. At least until it’s time to go and pick up the boys. I can drop them off; I don’t have authority to pick them up.”
Logan raised an eyebrow. “It does mean you need to get dressed at some point today. I’d rather you didn’t.”
I laughed. “Pretty sure the last thing I feel like today is getting dressed. I really just want more sleep.”
“Then sleep. I’ll sort out the rest.”
I slept most of the day, waking when Logan shook me gently. “Baby, we need to go and get the boys.”
“Hmmm,” I mumbled. "Fine, I’ll get up.”
I laughed as I spotted what was on the end of the bed. From the bag of clothes I still hadn't given to charity, he'd fished out those damn shorts.
Logan shrugged, grinning as I rolled my eyes and dug in the drawer for some clothes I could actually wear in public.
He'd even cleaned and dried a load of washing, and I pulled my jeans out of the washing basket, kissing his cheek as I changed. “You’re wonderful. You know that, don’t you?”
“You and your family bring out the best in me,” he whispered, patting me on the backside.
He guided me to his car. I snuggled into the seat before realising both the boy’s car seats were in the back.
“You thought of everything,” I said.
“I wasn’t about to put them in danger. They mean as much to me as you do.”
I couldn’t speak, I was so overwhelmed by him. Instead, I sat back and relaxed as we drove the short distance to school.
Donna stood outside the gates, and I bit down on my bottom lip when she spotted me as Logan helped me out of the car. He linked his arm in mine, pulling me tight to his side. “If you need to lean on me, I’m right here.”
“I’ll be fine. It’s nice to get some fresh air. But don’t you dare let go of me,” I said, smiling up at him.
We walked past Donna and through the gates. I didn’t catch her eye; I just kept going, looking straight ahead. I had no resentment or irritation for her, just the pride that I felt getting on with my life. Being with the man I loved.
Jack’s eyes were wide as saucers as he left his classroom, sprinting towards me and throwing himself at Logan.
“Hey buddy.” Logan laughed, letting me go and swinging him around.
I loved watching them together. Over the time we’d known Logan, they’d bonded. Something still stuck in my gut thinking about Evan’s relationship with Jack, or lack thereof.
“Are you better, Mum?” he asked.
“Much better. I slept all day.”
“Yes, so now we’re going to go and get Thomas and I’ll cook you all dinner,” Logan said.
He grinned, leaning over to kiss me as I snuggled back up to him. Walking back out to the car, past Donna again, who stood there with her own children, was more satisfying than I could ever express. I felt her eyes on me the whole way as Logan opened the door for me and Jack, and made sure Jack was secure in his booster seat before walking around the car to climb in.
I smiled, taking his hand in mine as he sat, squeezing it gently. “You see that woman at the gate? The one looking at us?”
He turned his head. “Yes?”
“That’s my former best friend, Donna. The one Evan left me for.”
He looked back at me. “I’m sure she’s nice, but he’s still an idiot. I’m really glad he’s an idiot, though.”
Logan leaned over and brushed my lips with his.
“Mum, are we going to sit here while you guys kiss?” Jack whined.
We laughed, and I shook my head. “No, baby. Let’s go get Thomas and get home.”
* * *
I was going back to work in the morning, and it was late. Once the boys were tucked up we had gone to bed to lose ourselves in this new thing we had started.
His finger made circles around my nipple, and I studied him as he seemed lost in thought, staring into space.
“What are you thinking about?” I asked.
Without skipping a beat he looked up. “This. Us.”
My lips twitched as I itched to ask him exactly what, but I didn’t know if I wanted to hear it. Was he having second thoughts? “When I first saw Maddy with Andrew, I finally worked out what it was she and I had missing. She looked at him as if he were the only person in the room. It didn’t matter that I was there, or that we were sitting in a hospital with people coming by all the time. All she saw was him.”
His eyes searched mine and I met his gaze, wanting to know where this was going.
“Then, I met you. And I got it. The boys were there, wanting to play and making noise, but it was always you I looked at. I never had that before, Liv. That’s why it hurt so much when I thought you’d used me. I don’t do secrets.”
I reached out to touch his hair, stroking it between my fingers as he closed his eyes.
“I won’t ever keep anything from you now,” I whispered. “I’m sorry I ever kept things in the first place.”
He lay his head just below my breasts, and I kept stroking his hair.
“I saw a fu
ture for us." He planted a gentle kiss on my skin, his voice choking up. "You know, when you came here and I found out what had happened with your husband, something ignited in me. I still don’t get how anyone could give up anything so perfect.” He raised his head, moving up to kiss me softly. “This. Being in this bed together means I’m not letting go now. You and me; that’s it. I want us to be together. I want us to be a family. Maybe one day, well, damn it, I want kids with you.”
His face was inches from mine, his eyes pleading with me to feel the same way.
“That’s what I want too,” I whispered. “The boys love you so much. I love you so much.”
A few seconds of silence, and he grinned. “I notice you didn’t say anything about that last thing I said.”
I laughed. “Before Evan left, I thought those days were behind me.”
“I saw how you were with Maddy and Carly. That little baby waved her magic wand over you. If I ever came close to telling you how I really felt it was that day, seeing you with her. I saw the longing in your eyes, as if you weren’t finished. As if there were more you wanted to give.”
I smiled, nuzzling his cheek. “She does make me clucky. That is one beautiful baby.”
“One day we’ll have that. You and me. I never wanted to settle down so much as when I saw your reaction to Carly. That, and your boys are incredible. You’ve done an amazing job with them.”
With that he kissed me again, and I lost myself in the warmth and love of this man who was no longer just my friend.
He was everything.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“Maddy asked me if we wanted to go and have dinner with them on Sunday,” Logan said the following evening.
“Did you tell her?”
“She called to see if I’d ventured over here to make up with you. I frustrated the hell out of her by being so stubborn. She was so determined to get us together.”
I laughed. “I like her, I really do.”
“I think she felt guilty about pointing me in the direction of that story.”
I hooked my fingers into the belt loops of his jeans and pulled him toward me. “She did. She came and saw me to apologise.”
“Really?” His brow furrowed.
“She just wants what best for you. Maybe you’re just friends now, but she still loves you enough to not want you to screw up your life.”
He cocked his head, running his eyes down my face.
“Yeah, well, I could have done that easily by being so stubborn. Nearly lost the best thing that ever happened to me.”
When he said things like that my stomach still plunged to my knees. I’d gone from being someone’s regret to someone’s dream. I didn’t know if I’d ever get used to that.
“Shall we go and see her?” I asked.
“If you want to. Might be a bit strange being in your old house, but I’d really like it if you two got closer. She still means a lot to me in a purely platonic way.”
He kissed my nose, leaning his forehead against mine, and I knew the last bit of that sentence was for my benefit.
“Besides, then you can meet her husband. Who knows? Maybe you’ll completely understand why Maddy adores him so much. He’s pretty good-looking, for a dude.”
I cracked up laughing, lifting my arms and wrapping them around his waist, burying myself in his chest.
“I think I like you better.”
“Are you sure? You haven’t met Andrew.” He held me close as I laughed, planting kisses in my hair.
“I love you.”
“Ahh, knew I could get you to say it.”
* * *
“Where are we going?” Jack asked.
“Our old house,” I replied, looking over to the back seat. His eyes grew wide.
“Are we going to live there?”
I shook my head. “Maddy lives there now. Maddy and her husband and Carly.”
When we pulled up outside, Jack squealed. “Look, Thomas.”
This was weird. It was our old house, but it wasn’t, if that made sense at all. Maddy and Andrew had made it all their own, and all remnants of my life had been removed.
It felt clean, fresh, and it did my heart good to see the building being looked after. The way we should have taken care of it.
Maddy sat inside on the brown leather couch, Carly in her arms as she breastfed. Andrew had opened the door and ushered us in with a big grin on his face.
“You must be Olivia, I’ve heard all about you.”
He was tall, with blond hair that matched Maddy’s. They were such a handsome couple, it was little wonder Carly was so cute.
“It’s good to meet you. This is Jack, and Thomas.”
The boys ran toward the couch, scrambling to see Carly. The little blonde head turned at the sound, pulling away from her mother.
“Oi. Little Miss Distracted.” Maddy laughed.
Carly’s arms waved, and she grinned at the boys before returning to her feed. I moved to sit beside her. “Every time I see her, she’s so much bigger,” I said.
“She’s rolling over now. Won’t be long until she’s crawling. Then I’m in trouble.” Maddy grinned.
“Won’t be long and she’ll be able to run around with the boys.”
“Can we get a baby?” Thomas asked.
I froze. Where had that come from? Unable to answer, I looked to Logan for help. He laughed, shrugging. “Maybe one day,” he said, meeting my gaze.
“Dinner’s nearly cooked.”
The unmistakable smell of chicken made my stomach grumble and my mouth water. I loved that smell; it made me remember countless roast dinners in this place. I loved cooking big dinners for my family, and yet we hadn’t had anything like it since we’d moved into the apartment. I guess my heart just hadn’t been in it.
“Andrew’s roast chicken is to die for. He does the potatoes in the chicken fat. I could live on those,” Maddy said, gazing adoringly at her husband.
“I love doing them that way,” I said.
“Mum hasn’t cooked that for aaaaaages,” Jack said.
“Well, when we’re in the house there’ll be a new kitchen, and plenty of room to cook roasts and different things,” Logan said.
Wait. What? We hadn’t talked about moving in together, although I guess Logan’s natural progression had always been to move into the house. I hadn’t thought about us doing that; there was so much to think about. Moving in with someone was a huge step, and I hadn’t even seen the place. Not that it made a difference; one of us moving from one apartment to the other was huge.
Was I overthinking it?
Apparently I wasn’t the only one.
“Isn’t it a bit early to be talking about moving into the house together? Poor Olivia, you’ve been with her for five minutes and you’re taking over her life,” Maddy said matter-of-factly.
Logan’s hand landed on my shoulder, and I looked up to see him smiling down at me.
“Liv knows the score. I’m not talking about tomorrow.”
Well, I didn’t, but now I knew that was his long-term plan.
“Besides,” he continued, “the house still needs a lot of work before anyone moves into it.”
Whew. For a moment, I thought I’d have to panic about just how fast he was moving.
“Good. You don’t want to push her, Logan. She’s a good one.” I looked back toward Maddy, and she winked.
“Anyone want a drink? I’ve got beer and juice in the fridge,” Andrew asked as he made his way back to the kitchen.
“Beer would be great,” Logan said. “Liv?”
“Just a juice, thanks.”
Logan bent and kissed me before leaving for the kitchen to retrieve our drinks. I watched as he joined Andrew.
“I’m glad you two are together. He looks happy. So do you,” Maddy said. Carly finished and Maddy covered up, pulling her to sit up all in one swift movement. “Listen to this,” she said to the boys. Patting Carly on the back soon produced a big burp, and the boys giggled.
“I bet you guys did that when you were little,” she said.
“We still do,” Jack said, nudging his brother.
I loved watching them, so comfortable around Maddy and Carly.
Maddy placed Carly on a blanket on the floor. She started on her back, but soon rolled over to face me, grinning at me so proudly, as if she’d just achieved the greatest thing ever. I guess when you’re a few months old, that was how it seemed.
“Liv.” I looked up. Logan stood over me with my drink, and I took it from him and blew him a kiss.
He knelt on the ground beside me, and leaned over to talk to Carly.
“Aren’t you clever? Yeah?”
Pretty sure my ovaries twitched looking at them. He couldn’t be more perfect if he tried.
I caught Maddy watching me out of the corner of my eye and turned my head to smile at her. She nodded towards Logan, continuing to nod at me, and I didn’t have to ask her what she was trying to tell me. I think she could see our future too.
* * *
We climbed the stairs to the apartment, tired and sleepy from our amazing dinner, and it was later than I would normally let the boys stay up till.
“Pyjamas, brush teeth and bed,” I said as we came in the door.
Thomas yawned, and I ruffled his hair. “Come on, little man. Let’s get you to bed.”
Logan went to the kitchen, and the kettle whistled while I helped the boys get ready for bed. If I knew him at all, he’d be making us a hot chocolate before bed. He’d done it the last few nights.
Thomas and Jack were both in bed, the blankets covering them, and I kissed one and then the other to say goodnight. “Sleep well, guys. I’ll try to let you stay in bed as long as possible in the morning. Hope you had fun tonight.”
Thomas nodded, his eyes trying desperately to close, and I gave him another kiss.
“Hey you two, sleep well.” Logan’s voice came from the door, echoing my words, but I think by the time he said them the boys were already asleep.
I sat on the end of Thomas's bed for a moment, just watching them. For all we’d been through, they’d come out the other side stronger if anything. Jack tried so hard to help around the house now he was a little older, and Thomas had become more confident, more sure of himself. I was so proud of them both.
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