Darcy

As soon as I saw Logan, the gray half-moons under his eyes, the way his jacket fit more loosely than it should, I knew he was hurting just as much I was. And now, in his arms, it was as if the world had been put back together. I reached up to cup his face, to check that it was all real.

“I love you so much,” he said.

“We need to expect failure—one or both of us are going to freak out sometimes. You’re just not allowed to give up,” I said.

“I get it.” He slid his hands over my arse and pulled me toward him.

“Logan, we’re in your office.”

“Right,” he replied. “My totally private office.”

“Never going to happen,” I replied. “I’m not becoming the topic of office gossip. That’s my brother, not me.”

He walked backward toward his desk, pulling me with him. Without letting me go, he grabbed his wallet and phone and slid them into his pocket. “Then we’ll leave. It’s been far too long since I’ve kissed you. Even longer since you were naked in my arms. I can’t wait any longer.”

“You have work and we have a lot to talk about. A lot to figure out.” We had to be sensible. But I wanted him too. “And a lot of naked time in our future.”

“Don’t you get it?” he asked. “Work doesn’t matter to me when you’re in the room. I’ve learned my lesson, Darcy. You’re my priority now.”

I knew Logan Steele well enough to know that he didn’t say anything he didn’t mean. To hear how he loved me and how he wanted to make things work—I knew those weren’t easy things for him to say. He meant it. He was a man of honor. I knew our road ahead might be bumpy, but I was now convinced that he was committed to the journey.

“You can’t just abandon your company for the day. Be practical,” I said.

He sighed. “I absolutely can.” He took my hand and pulled me out of the office. “Julie, I’ve left for the day. Oh, and this is Darcy. She never needs an appointment and can interrupt any call or meeting I have.”

“Logan,” I said, wanting him to stop.

“She’s my…everything. And she comes first.”

Julie’s face lit up. I wasn’t sure it was delight or shock. “Good to know, sir. Enjoy your day.”

I didn’t even have a chance to say hello to Julie before Logan was striding to the lifts. I just offered her a little wave and she gave me a thumbs-up.

I figured that Logan was on a mission to prove he’d changed. That he was no longer convinced that he didn’t do relationships, that we were no longer friends who hung out. The determination in his grip, the resolve in his words…he meant business.

We stepped into the lift. “I know you wouldn’t say yes if I asked you right now,” he said, pressing the button for the lobby, three or four times. “But make no mistake, we’re together forever. I’m going to buy you a ring, take out an advert in The Times, and pledge to honor and cherish you in front of the entire universe. It’s all going to happen.”

It took me a moment for his words to sink in. Was Logan Steele talking about marriage? “You don’t need to do any of those things. You’re enough, Logan.”

“I’ll never be enough, but I’m going to spend my life trying to be the man you say yes to.”

He was right. A proposal right now was too soon. But there would come a time when our road wouldn’t be so bumpy, when things would have settled between us and we’d be looking forward to the rest of our lives.

I believed it. I believed in us. And I couldn’t wait.