Epilogue

Oh my God. Why the hell had she agreed to this insanity?

Taylor’s heart was stuck somewhere in the upper third of her esophagus as the large inflatable raft plunged down a swell in the river, headed straight for the churning rapids ahead. The biggest ones of all in this whole trip.

“I hate this!” she yelled over her shoulder at Logan, uncaring that there were seven other people in the boat, too terrified to take her eyes off the looming rapids or stop her frantic paddling for even a moment. What an asshole, for putting her in this predicament. “I hate you!” She was going to kill him once this was over.

If she lived through it.

His deep, slightly evil chuckle rankled her nerve endings. “Hey, the best part is yet to come!”

Best part? How was any of this even remotely fun? Her idea of fun was relaxing and unwinding. This was nuts.

It was the first weekend she’d had off since the whole Dillon incident, and instead of staying home curled up all nice and warm with Nimbus and Sudoku up in her loft, she’d let Logan talk her into white water rafting. He’d been so sweet to her over the past few weeks, taking her out on quiet dates, just the two of them, being patient as she recovered from the mental and emotional aftermath of what had happened with Dillon.

Over quiet dinners, movies or sometimes just a walk or a drive together, he’d revealed a tender and romantic side she never would have guessed someone as tough as him could have. She’d convinced herself it was time to move outside of her comfort zone because Logan so clearly loved doing outdoorsy stuff and she wanted to make an effort to share them with him.

She’d never regretted a dating decision more. Now, here she was, stuck in this rubber boat for at least the next hour, soaked to the skin by all the spray and the water sloshing over the sides of the boat and trying not to throw up or scream like a little girl as they hurtled down the raging river.

The bow of the boat dipped suddenly and another wall of water crashed over her head. She gasped and sputtered, arms flailing like mad as she sportingly tried to keep paddling.

Logan laughed again. “Lower your arms. You’re paddling through nothing but air.”

Her cheeks burned and she scowled as she realized what she was doing. She was tempted to turn around and whack him over the head with her fucking paddle but she was too afraid to stop so she dipped the end lower, hit water, and pulled in a hard stroke.

The muscles in her shoulders and arms were knotted, burning, screaming for a break, and there was none in sight. Up ahead the water looked like it was boiling where the rapids swirled in the center of the river. There was no escape, nowhere to go but through them.

“Hold on tight,” he called out gleefully as they reached the rushing mass of white water.

You asshole, you did this to me! “Fu—” The blistering curse word she’d meant to snarl at him ended on a terrified intake of breath as the boat lurched upward and shot sideways.

“Keep paddling!”

Oh, fuck, they were all going to die.

Her eyes were stretched wide as she paddled for her life like a frantic woman, sputtering each time the water hit her in the face. Please don’t let the boat flip over, please don’t let the boat flip over.

Logan howled with pure glee as they bucked up and down, back and forth, like they were caught in some kind of psychotic washing machine from which there was no escape. What was wrong with him?

She lost all sense of time or direction as they plunged further into the rapids, every sense focused on surviving this trial by fire. Then, finally, the water began to calm and smooth out.

Her arms were like lead, a rapid tremor streaking through her body. She was alive. Freezing and still dealing with the shock, but alive.

And strangely, a feeling of euphoria began to rise inside her. Probably because she’d just had another near-death experience and lived to tell about it.

A strong hand closed around her right shoulder and squeezed. She winced and moaned at the pleasure-pain of it, barely resisted the urge to throw it off.

“Good job. Put your paddle down and rest for a bit.”

The paddle dropped into her lap like it was a lead weight. It took a good five minutes until her brain started functioning normally again.

After another twenty minutes of relatively smooth water they turned a bend in the river and the tour company vehicle came into sight on the left-hand shore.

She expelled a relieved sigh. Thank God, it was almost over. And bless them, someone had even started a campfire for them. Anxious to get to shore, she even managed to paddle the rest of the way.

By the time they got to shore, she was feeling pretty damn pleased and proud of herself. Exhilarated almost. Now that she’d survived her first white water rafting experience, she could kind of see why Logan loved it so much. The thrill of conquering nature.

Not that she would ever tell him that.

Logan and the guide hopped out to pull the raft onto the bank and everyone else climbed out. Taylor’s legs felt like over-boiled noodles.

Her waterlogged shoes squished with each step she took up the bank and she was pretty sure her hands would be numb forever. She was dying to get dry and warm again, then devour whatever supper the tour provided.

Halfway up the bank, a pair of muscular arms wound around her waist from behind. She stood rigid as Logan pressed up tight to the back of her, his beard lightly scratching the side of her temple as he nuzzled her.

“You did great,” he murmured, his warm lips making her shiver. “Still mad?”

A growl emitted from her throat. She jabbed an elbow lightly into his stomach and he laughed softly.

“How mad? Scale of one to ten.”

She folded her arms, scowling straight ahead at the fire that beckoned to her weary body. “Nine-point-six.”

“Ouch. That’s pretty mad.”

“Yeah. Plus I’m freezing and wet and tired.” Not to mention proud.

“Hmm.” He lowered his head to nuzzle at the side of her neck. “Bet I can warm you up real quick.”

What? “Don’t you da—”

Too late. He was already swinging her up into his arms and striding up the sloping bank in spite of his still healing knee, making a spectacle. Taylor balked and tried to get down. He wasn’t having any of it, just held her tighter as he headed to the fire.

“Put me down,” she whispered, mortified. People were staring. They were all staring, and smiling at them.

“Nope. Not until you’re warmed up.”

She shoved at his shoulder. “I’m warm, okay? I’m warm.”

He tightened his grip. “Not as warm as you’re gonna be in a minute.”

Her face was burning when they reached the fire. Someone handed Logan a blanket. He plopped down in one of the chairs around the fire and wrapped the blanket around her before tucking her securely into his lap.

She looked up at him in annoyance. A grin twitched his lips when she glared, and he smoothed a strand of wet hair away from her forehead. “I really love you, you know. Like, totally pathetic, head over heels, can’t live without you love you. You’re it for me.”

Her glare melted away, replaced by shock. Neither of them had said the actual words yet, and it was a huge deal to her. She’d been waiting for the right time, had planned to tell him tonight when they were alone. “You’re going to tell me that now? Here?” In front of everyone? “Really?”

“Guess so,” he said, looking mighty pleased with himself. He cupped her jaw with one hand and pressed a kiss to her cold lips, his thumb resting in the dip beneath her lower one. “I love you to death. And I want us to move in together full time. Even though I annoy the crap out of you when I leave my wet towels on the bathroom counter and don’t load the dishwasher properly.”

Warmth flooded her and she melted, unable to hold onto her annoyance. He was ridiculous, and alpha, and yet sweet and thoughtful too. Not to mention protective and supportive. How could she not love him?

“I love you too,” she whispered back, smiling as she wound her arms around his neck and hugged him. “And yes, I want you to move into my place for good. Even though I’m still a little bit mad at you for today.” She couldn’t let him off the hook entirely.

Logan pumped one fist in the air in triumph. “She loves me,” he announced to no one in particular, his tone full of male satisfaction.

The entire group cheered and Taylor buried her face against his neck, laughing. He was so unexpected, so opposite from her in most ways, pushing her little by little out of her shell until she hardly recognized herself anymore.

Though that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, for someone who’d been as isolated and rigid as her.

Logan had been right: in all the ways that mattered, they did complement each other pretty well. That would help them navigate the uncharted waters of this relationship. But the absolute best part was knowing that as they paddled through the rapids of life together, he would be there for her at every turn.

—The End—