Page 28 of Trick or Trouble
Finishing his first bowl of soup, Logan turned to her again, his hand rubbing her thigh.“There is another reason I wanted to see you today, sweetheart.I’m scheduled to be in a conference in Ottumwa, Iowa, for the next three days.I’m leaving this afternoon and will be driving home on Sunday.”
Darcy's spirits drooped, but then she mentally kicked herself in the rear.“Okay.”
“Do you have any cases lined up where you have to leave your car while I’m gone?Because if you do, I can cancel it.I don’t want you doing it alone,” he added firmly.
“No.I have a new case, but it doesn’t require me leaving my car,” she replied, tongue in cheek.“But even if I did, your work is important.I don’t expect you to cancel a conference just for me.”
He smiled.“Of course, you don’t.But that’s who you are, sweetheart—always thinking of the other person.What you need is important to me.I can do these conferences in my sleep, and I have a friend who can fill in for me.I don’t want you out there on the streets alone.Promise me?”
Darcy felt like the worst kind of fraud.“I promise,” she said dutifully.She had another pending divorce case, but the promise was easy to make now that her good camera was repaired.She could take all her photos from her car again.She could feel a blush creeping up her throat with her omission, and of course, Logan saw it.He seemed to see everything.
His eyes narrowed, and his voice dropped to a low, dangerous tone.“Darcy?Are you lying to me?”
She bravely met his gaze without flinching.“Nope.I’m not lying.I willnotbe getting out of my car for a case.Since you’re being nice enough to come with me, I will return that favor.You don’t have to worry about me.”
But Logan wasn’t so easily appeased. His gaze seared into her, looking for every secret her brain might hold.Darned therapist.He knew when people were lying; it was a staple in his repertoire.At last, he spoke.“Maybe I should take you to your car for a reminder of what will happen if you do.”
The thought of him swatting her butt in her car in broad daylight was horrifying.“God no,” she whispered, looking around to see if anyone had heard.“I don’t break promises, Logan.Trust me.”
He studied her for a beat longer, silent and unreadable.She couldfeelhim flipping through his inner Rolodex of giveaway clues, deciding if her words were sincere.And when he finally nodded, saying, “I believe you, sweetheart,” it was both a reprieve and a sentence.
She let out a sigh of relief.Thank God.She wasn’t lying—omission didn’t count in her book—but she knew she was on dangerous ground keeping secrets from him.Why hadn’t she just told him about her camera?It would have been a relief for him to know that.
But she knew the answer, and it cut too close.The wounded, wary part of her—the one she tried so hard to bury—wouldn’t let her give him everything yet.Because she’d already fallen for him, faster and harder than she’d ever expected, and she needed to know he wanted more than a temporary thrill or a kinky play partner.
Chapter 7
Logan sniffed the airappreciatively when he entered Darcy’s apartment.The aromas of Italian cooking teased his senses, but they paled next to the warmth in her eyes and the smile curving her luscious lips.His chest tightened, his blood zinging.
“Come here,” he growled, drawing her into his arms for a kiss.“Your cooking smells like I’ve died and gone to heaven, but I’m hungry for more than food.”
She melted into him with a laugh.“Good to know I win out over garlic and onions.”
He silenced her sassy mouth with a deep kiss.Coming home to Darcy every night?He could get used to this.In fact, he wanted to.No one had ever made him feel this way before.
Finally, he lifted his head, switching to detective mode.“Cilantro...garlic...hmmm. Is that cumin andrealonions I smell—not the dried stuff?”
