Page 20 of Playing with Fire

“You're in denial if you think you don't like that man. You've had the hots for him since Jay's wedding. But I digress.”

I stole a quick look over, catching his gaze. He angled his beer my way before bringing it to his lips. Why did I find everything that man did to be either sexy or frustrating?

I smiled as two good-looking guys stepped up to our table and asked what we were drinking. Perfect, a distraction. Maybe this was exactly what I needed to get Logan out of my head. But I struggled to focus on anything the guys were saying, feeling Logan's gaze fixed on me.

Finally, I snuck a look back in his direction. His jaw was locked tight, and his lips formed a tight line as he stared back. I wasn’t surprised. It was how he looked at me more often than not.

I sighed and excused myself to the bathroom. It wasn't Nicole's fault I wasn't really interested in the guys who were chatting us up, and she seemed to be, so I didn't want to ruin it for her.

Coming out of the bathroom, I turned down the corridor that led back to the bar area and almost bumped right into a familiar large wall of muscles. The hallway was narrow, and he took up nearly the whole width of it. I inclined my head back to look up at him.

“Having fun?” His words were friendly enough, but I could sense that underlying tone of annoyance he had around me lately.

I swallowed and shrugged. “Sure.”

I was almost sure his eyes drifted down to the deep V of my shirt. But just as quickly, he pulled his gaze away and back to my face.

“Do you need a save?” He turned slightly and inclined his head toward the bar area.

I followed his gaze to Nicole looking back at me with a pleading look on her face. Oh shit. Maybe she wasn't that into the guy. I was so distracted, I must not have noticed.

“I can handle it.” Having my big brother in the room would be a surefire way to shut them down if needed. Worked every time.

Logan huffed, and I raised an eyebrow. Did he not think I could?

“I have no doubt you can.” He waved toward the table and turned, allowing me to brush past him.

I froze, the faint smell of smoke overwhelming me, reminding me of my father. Growing up with a firefighter dad, it was a smell I was familiar with. Sometimes, even after showering, he would smell of charred lumber and smoke. Most people would find the smell to be off-putting, but for me it was comforting.

With a deep breath in, I made my feet move, and I could feel his gaze remain steady on me as I made my way to Nicole.

“My brother and his friends want us to come join them.” I inclined my head toward their table and grabbed my cider from in front of Nicole. “Sorry,” I offered the guys with a quick shrug of my shoulders.

Nicole hopped off her stool and picked up her drink, following me toward my brother and the rest of his teammates.

“Those guys giving you issues?” Jay asked as I stepped up to their table.

I shook my head. “Nope. Not anymore.”

Logan smiled as he took his stool across the table from me. Not exactly how I hoped this night would end. The idea of someone else—someone attainable and interested in me—making my body respond like it did with Logan was pretty appealing.

Too bad my body missed that memo.

Chapter Thirteen

LOGAN

Slow daysat the house were the worst. A bunch of guys sitting around with way too much energy could be a recipe for disaster. Boredom and lack of an outlet had resulted in more than one argument through the years. None of those today, but the truck and all of our gear were now spotless.

A call toward the end of the shift ran over and made me late getting home. It was my first night back with Nikki and Alice since Saturday night, and I hated that I missed seeing them before bedtime. But I had three days off starting tomorrow, so that helped mitigate my frustration a bit.

I set my bag down in the foyer and climbed the stairs. After peeking in on them and verifying they were asleep, I gave them each a kiss before heading back downstairs.

I shouldn’t feel excited to see Izzy, but I did. I had to admit it wasn’t only my daughters I missed.

With a groan, I froze as I turned into the kitchen. She stood in front of the sink, washing dishes as she swayed to a beat. Her ass shook from side to side, the tiny shorts playing peekaboo. I closed my eyes, but all that did was conjure an image of me lifting her up onto the edge of the counter and devouring her mouth with mine.

I opened my eyes and cleared my throat, causing her to look over her shoulder at me.

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