Page 29 of Frozen Hearts
“Sound reasoning, smarty-pants, but it’s not going to work. You’ll just have to wait. I’ll be there in one minute.”
He hangs up. Then a few seconds later, he strides toward me with a coffee in hand.
“Hey,” he greets with a broad grin that hits me right in the chest and instantaneously makes my day.
“Hey.”
Uncaring of the students walking past, most of whom are watching and taking note of our exchange, he leans in and presses a chaste kiss to my cheek.
“I’m supposed to be in my Marketing Ethics class, like, right now, so I can’t hang about. I just wanted to give you this.”
He shoves the coffee cup into my hand.
“Your coffee?” I question, confused.
He shakes his head. “Not mine.” Leaning in, his warm breath tickles my skin as he murmurs, “Sniff it.”
My entire body responds to those two words, and flashes of his face buried between my thighs as he sniffsmeflood my mind, turning my cheeks beetroot as I duck my head and inhale the sweet aroma of cinnamon and nutmeg.
He remains so close, that when I smile, my cheek brushes his. “Pumpkin spice latte,” I murmur before glancing up at Logan through my lashes.
“Yourpumpkin spice latte.” His voice is just as soft as mine, adding an intimacy to the moment.
My teeth sink into the plump flesh of my lower lip as I stare at him with what are probably literal hearts in my eyes.Damn, this man has figured out the direct line to my heart.
He tracks the movement like a man starved, giving me the impression he wants to devour me the same way I want to devour my latte—and him, for that matter.
Lifting his hand, he brushes his thumb along my lower lip before applying pressure and gently freeing it from the confines of my teeth.
“Thank you,” I say softly.
“You’re welcome, Shortcake.” Running his nose from my cheek to my ear, he whispers, “Enjoy the rest of your day,” before stepping away and hurrying down the hall toward his class.
As I turn toward my own classroom door, I notice various eyes on me—everyone having witnessed our exchange—including Whitney, the bitchy blonde from orientation. Her face is pinched, eyes narrowed as she glares at me with disdain.Whatever.The scent of nutmeg and cinnamon has me damn near groaning, and I refuse to let her or any of the rest of them ruin my sweet sweet caffeine fix. Instead, I turn my backs on them all and smile to myself as I take my first sip of heavenly bliss.
8
RILEY
“Ehh, where are we?” I ask as I peer out the windshield at the fields surrounding us. I lost phone reception when we turned off the main highway before we drove up a mile-long, pot-holed road that had me fearing the car would conk out and we’d be stuck out here in the middle of nowhere all night.
Alas, we made it here. Although I still haven’t figured out wherehereis, other than the obvious… a field.
A dark, creepy-as-hell field.
I watch horror movies. I see what happens to young girls when they do stupid shit like this. I knew letting Tara talk me into going out with her tonight was a bad idea, but I’m only now appreciating how truly idiotic it was of me.
And to top off my dummy sundae, I let her dress me up like a hooker in a maroon-colored dress that leaves absolutely nothing to the imagination. I blame the time I’ve been spending at Lux. Before I started working there, I would never have been caught dead in such a revealing outfit. Now, it seems modest in comparison to what we wear on stage. Or at least, it did seem modest until I pictured myself running away from an ax-wielding murderer wearing a bodycon dress that would happily ride up to reveal my ass crack if I didn’t keep tugging it down.
The only plus side is that my makeup is on point tonight, thanks to Tara. Winged eyeliner and dark red lips give me a sultry look, and she put mousse in my hair to give it extra volume, making me appear a little wild. Begrudgingly, I have to admit that I look pretty hot. A statement Tara readily agreed with when I hesitantly appeared from my bedroom earlier. It’s just so far from my normal that it has a twinge of anxiety piercing my chest. However, Tara dragged me out of the house and into her car before I had a chance to back out of whatever it is we’re doing tonight.
“You’ll see,” Tara sing-songs, not appearing to have the same serial killer fears as me as she pushes open her car door and steps out onto the soft, wet grass in her sky-high hooker heels like she was born with them on her feet. Unlike me, Tara isn’t the slightest bit fazed at the amount of skin she has on display. She looks hot in a sleek, black, backless romper that dips low between her ample breasts and shows off her long, tanned, legs toned from years of dancing.
Me, on the other hand… I totter through the long grass like a baby deer learning to walk for the first time as I repeatedly wrench my heels out of the ground each time they sink down.
Laughing with amusement, Tara takes pity on me and links her arm through mine, helping me navigate the uneven terrain as we head toward a large, abandoned warehouse that looks as though it’s one winter storm away from collapsing in on itself.
It would be a perfect setting for a murder house,I can’t help but think as we approach the side door where a bouncer is standing guard in the dimly lit entrance, a hulking presence with a rugged appearance that mirrors the murky wilderness surrounding us.
