Page 26 of Wanting Happily Ever After

“For what?” He winked and then, without warning, dunked under the water. A moment later, Logan reappeared, this time on the side of the paddleboard.

Faith gasped a little at his presence next to her. “Don’t scare me like that!” She swatted him and he laughed.

“Come swimming.”

“No.”

“Come on. It’ll be fun.”

She shook her head and forced herself to look forward. She could feel his eyes on her, taking in every bare inch of skin that her royal-blue bikini left exposed. Faith wouldn’t admit it, not to anyone, but she liked his attentions on her. The knowing that Logan was watching her. Attracted to her. Wanting—

The board shook and tilted dangerously to the side as Logan tried to pull himself up.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m coming to sit with you.”

His torso was held out of the water by his thick, muscular arms. It was Faith’s turn to checkhimout. And despite herself, she did just that. With her eyes hidden behind her sunglasses, she took in his strong biceps and his chiseled chest muscles that she knew had been honed, not from plenty of gym time but from hard manual labor.

“Like what you see?”

Her mouth dropped open. “You can’t see me through my sun—”

“Ah-ha.” He winked at her. “Youwerelooking at me. I was just guessing.”

She blushed and couldn’t help but laugh. “Busted,” she admitted.

“And?”

“And what?”

“Do you like what you see?”

Faith took the opportunity to take another look. He was still holding himself up effortlessly. “Not bad, I guess,” she offered after a moment.

“Not bad?” He jostled the paddleboard again so Faith had to grip the edges.

“I mean it, Logan. I’m not going swimming. It’s way too cold.”

“What?” His voice was laced with innocence. “But you’re so tough,” he teased, right as the first cold water drops hit the back of her thigh.

Faith gasped. “Logan! I mean it.”

He responded, with another handful of cold water on the back of her leg. But this time, he used his hand to gently, and way too seductively, rub it into her skin. The freezing water instantly turned hot. There was no denying the response his touch elicited in her.

Before she could react properly, he leaned forward on the board, until he was only inches away from her face.

Was he going to kiss her?

Did she want him to?

The answer both confused her and excited her. She reflexively closed her eyes, ready and wanting Logan’s lips to meet hers. She let out a small puff of air right as—

The icy water took her breath away as her head submerged. She pushed to the surface, sputtering and coughing. Faith wiped her drenched hair from her face and opened her eyes wide, her sunglasses lost to the lake. “What the hell, Logan?” Faith grabbed at the paddleboard before it floated away, and hung on with one arm.

He was too busy laughing to respond to her, but finally Logan looked at her and his laughter quieted.

He stared at her so intently that it unnerved her.

---