Chapter 8
Logan
I open the door, thinking it’s one of the guys. A flash of black hair pushes past the door, and my surprise quickly morphs to worry as Mia wraps her arms around me.
Her whole body trembles as she presses her face to my chest.
I see the bags from over her head, and keeping one arms around her, I bring them in before shutting the door.
Holding her, I press my lips to the top of her head. Questions race through my mind, each one adding to my worry.
It’s clear she needs me to hold her right now, and that thought makes my heart want to fill until it feels like it’s going to burst.
She came to me. I was the person she thought of first when she needed someone most.
I close my eyes, letting the moment soak in. Only when her trembling lessens, do I bring my hand to her hair. I brush it away from the side of her face and neck, pressing my lips to the side of her face.
I keep my mouth against her soft skin, and whisper, “Talk to me.”
She turns her head until her cheek is resting against my chest and it brings my lips to her forehead. I keep caressing her hair, while my other arm remains tightly wrapped around her.
“I tried to talk to Josie. She wouldn’t listen and lost her temper,” she whispers. I hate hearing how upset she is.
I know there’s more to it than those two sentences. I bring my hands to her face so she’ll look at me, but when my eyes drop to the red mark on her face, anger makes me see red.
“Did she hit you?” I take her hand and pull her to the kitchen. I stay busy, taking a frozen steak from the freezer and wrapping it in the first towel I see, trying to get control over the rage I feel.
I put it aside, then taking hold of Mia’s hips, I lift her onto the counter. I pick up the poor excuse for an ice pack, and lightly brush my fingers over the bruise before gently pressing the towel to it.
With my free hand, I take hold of her hip, and push my way between her legs. I lean into her, needing to be as close to her as possible right now. Knowing someone hit the women I love is killing me.
She brings her hand to her face and places it over mine, while her other takes hold of my side. I take another step forward until our bodies touch, pressing a kiss to the side of her neck.
I know I’m supposed to keep my distance from her until I’ve had a chance to talk to Rhett, but fuck it’s next to impossible.
When Mom decided she no longer wanted to be a mother and shoved us off on Mr. Hayes, Mia’s was the first smile I saw.
This is the girl who trusted me with her secrets, who let me be the first to kiss her, let me take her to the prom. She was the one who sat next to me studying until late at night just to let me know I wasn’t alone.
Jaxson might be my twin, and we’re very close, but we dealt with Mom taking off differently. Mia was the one who understood that I just needed someone to be there, quietly sitting with me while I tried to make sense of it all.
“What happened, Sweetheart,” I ask, needing to hear it all.
“I tried to tell her that I’m moving, but she just lost it. She started ranting, but it escalated so quickly. I was shocked when she slapped me. I pushed her so hard she fell to the floor. You know I’m not violent. I hate that I lost control. She kept on ranting and coming at me until, and I realized that’s what she wanted. She wanted me to fight and I won’t sink to that level. I took my bags and left. I only realized I was coming here when I reached your building. I’m sorry for just barging in on you, but …” she lets out a breath, then whispers, “I needed to see you.”
I pull back a little so I can see her eyes. I want to kiss her until she forgets about Josie and the fight. Fuck, I want to strip her down and make sure she’s not hurt anywhere else.
But Rhett.
“I’m glad you came to me. It sucks that it’s because you had a fight with Josie, but I’m glad nonetheless.”
She moves her hand down, taking hold of my wrist. Her eyes drop to my mouth. Her teeth pulls at her bottom lip, making me instantly hard.
“We need to talk about this,” I say, meaning ‘us’.
She nods but waits for me to go on. Her fingers tighten on my side.
“I want more with you, Mia, but I need to talk to Rhett first. It wouldn’t be right for me to act on my feelings for you without talking to him.”
Her tongue darts out, wetting her lips, which makes me want to lean closer so I can taste them for myself.
“Feelings?” she whispers, her cheeks flushing lightly with color.
“Yeah.” I search her face hoping I’m right and that she does want more with me, too.
“So, you care about me, but you’re holding back because of that stupid rule Rhett made when I was eighteen?”
I can hear that she wants to argue about the rule, so I quickly explain, “He threatened to kill us if any of us so much as thought about touching you. But I’m not holding back because of the rule, Mia. I need to talk to him because it’s the right thing to do. He’s a huge part of both our lives. We owe him a heads up before we take this further.”
She pulls my hand holding the pack away from her face, and I’m relieved to see that it already looks better.
“Just to make sure I understand,” she whispers as she brings her hand up to my shoulder. “You feel this too?”
“I feel it too,” I say, smiling. I’m glad that’s out there now. “I don’t want to be just your friend, Mia. I want you. I want to fucking kiss you so badly it’s taking all my strength to hold back.”
“You’re not allowed to touch me, but Rhett never told me to stay away from any of you.”
I frown not following her.
“Which means I’m allowed to touch you,” she spells it out for me.
My smile grows, and I should tell her that we still need to talk to Rhett first, but then she leans forward and presses her mouth to my jaw. She brings her hands to my neck and lets out a soft groan when her fingers press lightly against my skin. With her lips, she leaves a scorching trail to my chin, then down my neck, and only stopping when she’s blocked by my shirt.
“Mia,” I warn her, my voice low with need.
“Shh.” It’s barely a sound as she takes hold of my shirt and pulls it over my head.
“You came here upset. I don’t want you to regret anything tomorrow.”
She pushes against me until I take a step back, then she slides off the counter. Taking hold of my hand, she pulls me to the bedroom.
I’m just about to stop whatever she has in mind when she turns to me and says, “Let me sleep by you, Logan. Let me touch you. I won’t push for more. I respect the fact that you want to talk to Rhett first, but I need this. I need to be here with you. I know it’s selfish of me to ask, but it’s what I want. I’ve wanted it for so long, and finally knowing that you feel the same way about me… I don’t have it in me to wait a second longer.”
I love how honest she is, never afraid to speak her mind.
When she takes her shirt off, I groan out loud. I’m going to be hard as fuck all night long. She has an alluring smile playing around her lips as she shoves her shorts down.
I let my eyes slowly move down her body, taking in every inch of bare skin, and that’s when it sinks in. Mia feels the same. She wants more between us.
When her hands drop to my jeans, I bring my hand up to her face. I feel her breath on my chest while her fingers work to get the zip down.
I let her push the jeans down my legs and step out of them. I tell myself as long as I don’t kiss her or take her the way I’m burning to take her, we’re not crossing any lines.
I frame her face with my hands and lean down until I can feel her breath on my lips. With my thumbs, I trace the line of her lips, mesmerized by how soft they are.
She takes a shuddering breath which weakens my self-control to breaking point.
When she lifts herself on her toes, I turn my face away, and our lips brush over each other’s cheeks instead of meeting.
“Once I kiss you I won’t be able to stop. I want our first time to be special, without worrying what Rhett’s reaction might be.”
She lowers herself and takes hold of my hand, pulling me to the bed. When I lie down I watch as her eyes drop to the hard-on tenting my boxers. I can’t hide my body’s reaction from her.
She follows me, crawling onto the bed and up my body. For the first time, I wonder if she’s had sex and the thought of another man taking her virginity burns a hole in my heart.
She presses a kiss to my abs, and I have to close my eyes, so I don’t flip her over and rip her underwear off. She keeps torturing me, kissing her way up my chest until she reaches my neck. She takes a deep breath as she lies down on top of me, bringing her hand to the side of my neck. I wrap my arms around her, enjoying the feel of finally being skin on skin with her.