Logan knocked on the apartment door and waited. Seven in the morning, even on a Thursday, was probably too early for Noah to be up. Jodie would be awake, though.

The deadbolt thunked, and seconds later, the door creaked open. Jodie was already turning away, but not before he caught a glimpse of the shadows under her eyes.

“Late night?” he asked as he followed her into the kitchen.

“Finals. What do you think?” When she first got to California, he’d struggled to keep his gaze from falling to her ass and watching the way her hips swayed when she walked away.

It took time, but he’d trained himself to keep his focus straight ahead. “Right. Duh.” He pulled out a chair from the kitchen table and dropped into it. “Sleeping beauty up yet?”

“Doubt it. Coffee?” Her words were strained.

“I’m good. Thanks.”

“Your loss.”

When Logan was sixteen and his father married Jodie’s mother, the melodramatic teenager he was swore it was the worst thing to ever happen to him. Gaining a new sibling was bad enough, but even then, Jodie radiated temptation.

He did a decent job of pushing her away, to the point of making her hate him. Then he left for college. Out of state. Away from Jodie. Only seeing her on holidays, at family dinners, was no big deal. She couldn’t stand him, and he’d grown up. Didn’t need to let his dick think for him.

She grabbed a mug from the cupboard, filled it with coffee, then opened the fridge. When she bent at the waist to grab the milk, his gaze drifted without permission. She did wicked things to her jeans.

When she applied for Master’s programs at various schools, he fucked up. She’d narrowed it down to two choices—Brigham Young University and Stanford. If he’d kept his mouth shut, she would have stayed in Utah, and probably been miserable with BYU’s code of conduct, but she would have gotten as good an education, and she wouldn’t be here.

But no. He had to say he had a friend who needed a roommate. This was her first choice, after all. She should have moved in with Noah and been put off by his social life and too busy studying to have one of her own. Instead, she had to go and develop a crush on the douchebag.

“You’re welcome to go wake him up if you want.” Jodie took the seat next to Logan and set her drink on the table.

Up close, it was easier to see the lines of exhaustion marring her features. They didn’t make her any less captivating. He shook his head. “I’ll get to it. We don’t have to be out of here for a little while. How are you?”

“Finals. How do you think?” She gave him a thin-lipped smile and sipped her coffee.

He chuckled at the hint of teasing in her dry tone. “Tired. Grumpy. Anxious for that moment when it’s over and you can breathe.”

A hint of genuine leaked into her expression. “Nailed it. You?”

“’Bout the same. Pass, fail—it’ll be done.”

She nudged her mug toward him. “Sure you don’t want some?”

“All right.” He took a long swallow of her coffee. Perfect mixture of sugar, cream, and hot. His mind tried to fast forward to the innuendo saying that aloud would lead to, and he shoved the errant thought aside.

“A bunch of us are meeting up in Oregon in June, for The Warped Tour. Susan, Olivia… They have extra tickets, if you’re interested,” Jodie said.

Some of his favorite bands, a huge music festival… That sounded like fun. And another bad idea. “I can’t.”

She raised her brows. “Bowling for Soup. Save Ferris…”

A giggle floated from the direction of the bedrooms, and Jodie’s playful expression vanished behind a scowl. She jerked her head toward the noise, before turning to stare at her coffee. Like that, the mood—as tentative as it was—shattered.

“Why do you do this to yourself?” Logan couldn’t keep the irritation from his question. He hated seeing her waste energy on someone like Noah.

Jodie turned her glare on him. “Do what?”

“You’re not right for him. The two of you won’t end up together.” He could have phrased things more nicely.

Jodie rolled her eyes. “Thanks for the news flash, Dan Rather. I got that far on my own.”

“Are you sure?”

“Why is it any of your business? What do you care who I hook up with? So what if it was Noah?”

Her with Noah? Worst. Idea. Ever. “It won’t be.”

“Because I’m not his type?” She made a noise that was half-growl, half-sigh.

Logan laughed. “Not even close.” He could deescalate this in an instant if he tried. An apology, a few words to clear up his meaning… Jodie was reasonable—she’d get it. He didn’t want that, though. This was one of his easiest tricks for keeping her at arm’s length. “The two of you would be a terrible match.”

She clenched her jaw, hurt and fury shining in her eyes and fracturing the crystal blue. I’m sorry hovered on the tip of his tongue. He hated hurting her.

“Noah. Company.” Her yell threatened Logan’s eardrums. She pushed back from the table. “I have class. Catch you later. Or not.”

Logan let her leave. He hated pissing her off, but it was better this way. It wasn’t like he could make a move for his stepsister.

Noah stumbled from his room a moment later and paused in the kitchen doorway. “Did you piss off the shrieking banshee?”

Logan clenched his fist at the insult. “Maybe she didn’t get enough sleep.”

“I tried to keep it down.” Noah shrugged.

A redhead emerged, smoothing a black, fitted dress over her hips. She stopped next to Noah. “I need to get going,” she said.

“All right. I’ll call you.” He wrapped an arm around her waist long enough to kiss her on the cheek. When she was gone, he turned back to Logan. “Give me ten minutes to get ready, and we can go.”

Logan sank a few inches in his seat and let the silence drift in around him.

As far as he was concerned, spring break couldn’t get here fast enough. Even if it was a week in a condo with Jodie and their parents, he wouldn’t be expected to hang out with them, aside from the occasional meal. He’d put some distance between himself and school, and find someone sexy and temporary to clear his mind.