8

Oh, Logan, I just love this place.”

“Tell me what you love about it.”

Claire glanced over at the man at her side as they walked back to their suite. She figured Logan had to be kidding. She loved everything about the lodge. Didn’t he? “Our accommodations are awesome, the food in the restaurant was delicious and everyone was so friendly. I enjoyed meeting that couple from England. This is their first time in the States and the Grand Canyon was the first thing on their list to see.”

“They couldn’t believe we’ve lived here all our lives and yet, we’ve never been here.”

“I know,” she said grinning. “I probably wouldn’t be here now if you hadn’t convinced me to tag along. Thanks again.”

“You’re most welcome. I’m enjoying your company.”

And Claire was enjoying his. Maybe a little too much. She hadn’t counted on her reaction to seeing him in the hot tub earlier today. She had awakened from her nap when she’d heard a humming sound outside her window and had eased from the bed to investigate.

That’s when she’d seen Logan. Dressed in swimming shorts, he was walking toward the hot tub. She had seen him in swim shorts before, when they’d been on Paradise at the same time. However, for some reason, seeing him at that moment had caused a reaction she hadn’t expected. Especially when she’d stared at his hard-muscled chest.

Why had the thatch of hair covering it sent heat swirling within her? And when she studied how the hair tapered down into a thin line as it trailed below the waistband of his shorts, she felt even more heat. She swallowed, realizing, at the moment, that moisture was starting to gather between her thighs. She couldn’t recall the last time she’d had such a strong reaction to a man.

If that hadn’t been bad enough, a few hours later, when they’d met to go down for dinner, she hadn’t been ready to see him dressed so casually in jeans and a chambray shirt. Maybe it was the color of the shirt--a shade of electric blue that seemed to bring out his features and the deep brown coloring of his skin—that got to her. Or it could be how good he looked in the snug jeans.

What was going on? She was sure she’d seen him dressed similarly before. Why, all of a sudden, was everything Logan did—or wore—getting her all worked up?

“You want to take a walk outside before we go back to our suite?” he asked breaking into her thoughts.

“Is it safe? What about all the wild animals that guy told us about? The ones he claims can jump over the gate?”

“I think he was pulling our leg. But don’t worry. I’ll protect you,” he said as he held out his hand.

Claire quickly placed her hand in his and he tightened his fingers around hers. She suddenly felt safe and secure. But then she felt something else. That same heat she’d been battling all day. What in the heck was going on here? The uncertainty made her shiver.

“You’re cold?” he asked her.

“No, I’m okay. It’s a beautiful night, isn’t it?” she said, quickly changing the subject and looking up into the sky. There was a full moon and stars filled the sky all around them.

“Yes, it is nice. Hard to believe it’s the same moon you see at night, no matter where you are, no matter what side of the planet you’re on.”

“I know.” They were still holding hands, although they were standing in one place in a gated area of the lawn. She should pull away, but for some reason, she liked having her hand in his.

They both stared up at the sky for a moment. It was as if the stars were slowly descending on them, wrapping them in a halo of something she couldn’t explain. She felt irresistibly drawn to Logan. At that moment, though, she resented the attraction she was beginning to feel toward him. It wasn’t right. This was Logan, her friend. But her mind was suddenly reminding her of something she’d conveniently ignored. He was also Logan, a very good looking, sexy-as-sin man.

“You’re shivering again.”

Was she? Maybe holding hands with him wasn’t so smart after all. “I don’t know why.”

“I think I do.”

Was that a husky tempo in his voice? “You do?”

“It’s the stars. They are twinkling.”

She wondered if that was supposed to mean something. “And?”

“And there’s a proverb that says that kissing under twinkling stars leads to lasting prosperity.”

She raised a skeptical brow. “An old Chinese Proverb?”

He smiled. “No. A new American one.”

She shivered again, but this time, from total awareness. She knew exactly what was about to happen when he began lowering his mouth toward hers. She was tempted to stop him—after all, this wasn’t who they were--but then the thought of lasting prosperity had its merits, so why not? It was just a kiss.

With that thought in mind, she lifted her mouth to his and leaned in for his kiss.

Whoa! He needed to stop this. It was too soon. He had wanted to give Claire time to feel comfortable with him, to make sure she didn’t suspect his motives for inviting her to come with him. But with his lips mere inches from hers, he wasn’t sure he could give her anything but the tongue tangling kiss he’d been hungering for. But if he did, all his planning and hard work could be ruined. He had to retain control, somehow, even though just the thought of it was killing him. She wasn’t ready…yet.

So grudgingly, he did the only thing he could do at that moment—he dropped a friendly peck on her lips, and said, “Long prosperity, Claire.” Was that a flash of disappointment he saw in her eyes?

“The same to you, Logan.”

He drew in a deep breath before looking at his watch, deliberately breaking eye contact with her and trying to fight back the urge to pull her into his arms and ravage her mouth anyway. “It’s still early, but we need to be ready when the tour guide calls. You know what that means, right.”

She nodded. “We need to get a good night’s sleep.”

“You got that right.” Logan noticed he was still holding her hand when he led her back inside. Neither of them said anything as they walked down the long corridor to their room. He couldn’t help glancing over at her and noticed that she was looking straight ahead, apparently lost in thought. That allowed him the time to study her profile. Claire Fowler was a beautiful woman. She possessed the lissome stature of a runway model, and had the graceful walk to match. He liked the way she’d worn her hair tonight. Instead of flowing down her shoulders or pulled back in a ponytail, it was gathered up in a twist with a few strands curling around her temple. Although she was thirty-three, she looked like a woman in her late twenties. He figured it must be in the genes--neither her, Asia or their mother looked their real age.

To break the silence, he said, “Lyle called. He wanted to let me know that Monique is pregnant.”

“Oh, Logan, that’s wonderful. I am so happy for them.”

“Me, too. Lyle loves children and so does Monique. I could tell it wouldn’t be long when I saw the way they were carrying on about Leland. I just didn’t think they would try this soon.”

“I guess there’s no time like the present. Why put off until later what you can do now?”

Logan couldn’t stop the smile that touched his lips. He wondered if she would prescribe to her own principle. If she did, how would she have responded to the kiss he wished he’d given her earlier? The kind that wouldn’t have left any doubt how much he wanted her. “True.” He then glanced over at her. “You want kids one day, right?”

“Sure. But I won’t let my life be dictated by some biological clock, the way some women do. When it happens, it will happen, whether I have a husband or not.”

No husband? Was she talking about being a single parent? No, she couldn’t be. Claire was part of the “oldest sibling” club, and a prerequisite for membership was to have a high degree of responsibility.

He released her hand to unlock the door to their room and immediately felt a sense of loss. The moment they entered their suite, he knew housekeeping had come in while they were out. The fireplace was going, the lights were dimmed and soft music was playing, all setting a romantic tone.

“Ahh, how nice.”

He glanced over at Claire. She honestly thought so? Didn’t she know that compared to the twinkling stars, this was a notch up in the romantic category? Couldn’t she see how badly he wanted to kiss her—really kiss her.

“Let’s share a glass of wine before bed, Logan. It will help us sleep,” she suggested.

She clearly had no clue how her very presence fired his libido. But he couldn’t lose control, didn’t dare venture off course with his plan. Besides, he didn’t need anything to help him sleep. Knowing he would dream about her was incentive enough. But then he noticed the look of excitement on her face and in her voice. “Sounds like a good idea. You grab the glasses and I’ll get the bottle. Red or white?”

“Either will do.”

They went into the kitchen and he grabbed a bottle of white wine off the counter. Both bottles were compliments of the lodge. He glanced across the way and saw her reaching up to get the glasses from a top shelf in the cabinet. Just as one of the glasses was about to fall down on her, he placed the wine bottle aside and rushed over to her.

“Here, let me help with that, Claire” he said, leaning up and grabbing the second glass. “I didn’t realize you were so short.”

“Hey, watch it. I don’t consider 5’8 to be short, Logan.”

He grinned. “Since I’m 6’3, I do.” They were standing close, nearly as close as they had been standing earlier under the stars. Darn, but she smelled good.

Logan knew he should take a step back. He’d given her the glass so there was no reason he was still there, almost right in her face. “I’ll go back and grab the wine,” he said, moving to the counter to pick up the wine bottle.

“Okay. Thanks again for your help.” She turned to leave and he watched her go, appreciating the sway of her hips under the skirt she was wearing.

Suddenly, she stopped, then glanced over her shoulder and caught him staring. She met his gaze, looking at him a little dumbfounded. “Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing is wrong. I was just thinking about something.” That was the only excuse he could come up with for having been caught ogling her ass.

“Oh. I just wanted to remind you to grab the bottle-opener.”

“Okay, I will.”

Then she left the kitchen, leaving him behind to fight the desire he felt racing through his body. His erection throbbed, and he wondered if she’d seen it. Hopefully the wine bottle had blocked it from view.

He took a deep breath. It was time to pull himself together.

Claire placed the glasses on the table in front of the fireplace. Had she imagined it, or had she caught Logan checking her out? Okay, so she was a woman and he was a man—attraction happened. But would it happen between two individuals who were just friends? Then again, hadn’t she been checking him out, earlier. And, of course, there was that incident under the stars. She honestly thought he’d intended to give her more than just a peck on the lips. Had she thought--or had she hoped? It didn’t matter now but…

She glanced toward the kitchen and heard him opening and closing drawers. Should she tell him the opener was on the counter, near where the wine bottle had been? What was the saying? Had it been a snake, it would have bit him.

She glanced at the fireplace. Maybe it hadn’t been a good idea to suggest they relax in front of the fire with a glass of wine. But she hadn’t been ready to leave his company yet, and thanks to the nap she’d taken earlier, she was wide awake.

“Found it.”

She glanced over and watched Logan walk toward her, all six’ three of him. Why did he have to be so easy on the eyes? “For a moment there, I thought I was going to have to help you look for it,” she teased, scooting over to share the sofa with him.

When he sat down beside her, she was struck by how the denim of his jeans molded to his thick, muscular thighs. She swallowed. What was she getting herself into?

He opened the wine bottle with a proficiency that spoke of practice, then poured wine into their glasses. “Not too much. Otherwise I will sleep through the alarm,” she warned.

“Then I’ll have to wake you up.”

The thought of him entering her bedroom while she slept kicked her pulse into gear. She tended to wear very little clothing when she slept—sometimes

nothing at all. If he had to come and get her, they’d both experience a very different kind of awakening. “I’ll set my backup alarm to make sure you won’t have to do that.”

She took a sip of her wine, and thought it tasted good. She looked at the bottle to file the brand name in her mind so she could find it elsewhere, then watched Logan take a sip, noticing how his lips covered the rim of the glass. It would have been nice to have had his lips cover hers that same way under the stars.

Claire blinked. What the heck was going on with her? Did she need to pinch herself to resuscitate her senses? Especially the common sense she’d always been so proud of? Since drinking wine in front of the fireplace was her idea, she figured she needed to get a conversation going before she started drooling.

“Did I tell you that I’m thinking about going on leave from the State Department?”

Suddenly his head whipped around and dark eyes stared at her. “What? Are you serious?”

She shrugged her shoulders. “Yes. There’s nothing definite in the works yet, but I’m giving it some serious consideration. It would just be for a while. Maybe a couple of years. A number of diplomats do it from time to time.”

“Why would you? I thought you enjoyed your job.”

“I know but it’s something I’ve been thinking a lot lately…especially over the past couple of weeks. That bombing did it for me. Losing my friends was hard. It still is hard. Living abroad is getting dangerous, even in areas considered safe.”

She took a sip of her wine. “That doesn’t mean I won’t ever live or travel abroad, but I think it’s time I come home for a while. There’s a new program where I can take a leave of absence and teach at a university for a while, without losing any of my seniority or tenure status. I haven’t told Asia or my mom that I’m considering this. But several colleges have already offered me teaching positions.”

“I think that’s wonderful, Claire.”

“I haven’t definitely decided what I’m going to do, but right now, it is a consideration. There are times when I feel so sad, thinking about my friends.”

“I understand. I remember losing my best friend when I was in medical school.”

She lifted a brow. “You did? What happened?”

He took another sip of his wine. “Car accident. He was returning to Harvard from spring break and was killed in a head-on collision with a drunk driver. There’s no doubt in my mind this world lost what would have been a gifted surgeon, that day. Charles Hughes was exceptional. He’d been my friend ever since high school. We’d both gone to Harvard and he’d been my roommate from day one. I took his death hard.” He glanced at her, when she said nothing. “So, I know how you feel.” Then he shook his head. “No, actually, I don’t really. I lost one friend. You lost four. Your pain has to be that much greater. I honestly can’t imagine.”

“How did you handle it?”

“I didn’t. I left school and went home to Gary. Home to Pop.” A small smile touched his lips. “You know, it doesn’t matter how old you are, when bad things happen, you automatically seek comfort from your parent. Pop was there for me. He helped a lot.”

Claire couldn’t help agreeing with him. When the phone lines got unblocked and she’d been able to call out of Algiers, the first person she’d contacted had been her mother. And just like in the old days, she had cried a river of tears while Annie Fowler had listened and comforted her, although they’d been thousands of miles apart.

“Did you stay away from school long?” she asked him.

“Nearly an entire semester. Luckily for me, my professors understood. They were as shaken up by Charles’s death as I was. He was well-liked.”

He didn’t say anything for a minute, and then added, “But I do understand the feelings of guilt you’re experiencing, Claire.”

She studied him for a minute. “How can you?”

He took another sip of his wine, then admitted, “Because I was supposed to have been in that car with Charles. He was the one with wheels so I pretty much depended on him whenever I needed to come home from Boston. But this particular time, even though I’d caught a ride with Charles home, I decided to catch a train back to school a couple of days early to get a head start on this project I was working on. That’s the only reason I wasn’t in that car with him.”

Logan didn’t say anything for a moment. “It took a long time for me to understand and accept that I wasn’t meant to die in that car accident with Charles. Someone upstairs had different plans for my life. It was hard for me to accept that, but eventually I did. That’s why one of the first things I did, after setting up my medical practice, was to establish the Charles Hughes Medical Scholarship. So, in a way, his memory lives on. Besides, I know my buddy would have wanted me to enjoy life and not allow his death to destroy my happiness.”

Claire finished off her wine. She appreciated Logan sharing his story with her. “Thanks for telling me that.”

He met her gaze. “I didn’t know your friends, Claire, but I’m sure they would want the same thing for you.”

They stared at each other for what seemed like endless moments, and then suddenly, he broke eye contact, mumbling something under his breath before standing. “I think we’ve had enough wine for tonight, especially if we plan on getting up early tomorrow,” he said, grabbing both their empty glasses and the wine bottle.

“I can help you carry -”

“No, I’ve got this. Go on to bed and I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Oh, okay,” she said, standing as well. “Good night.”

As she walked off toward her bedroom, she knew that if she were to look back over her shoulder again, she would find him standing there, just like last time. Staring. Checking her out.

Claire inwardly smiled at the thought of that. For some reason, the thought that Logan Montgomery was beginning to see her as more than a friend didn’t bother her so much anymore.