“Okay,” he says, climbing out of the car. “I called a friend of mine who owns a garage. He’s going to come and tow it to his shop and see if he can diagnose it. I’m not a mechanic, but it could be as simple as your battery.”
“Thank you, you didn’t have to do that.”
He nods. “Let’s swing by and pick up some breakfast. I’m sure the guys are wondering where we are.”
“I can make something.”
“No. This morning has sucked ass for you. Just take a break, Logan. For the last month, you have made us three meals a day. One day of greasy breakfast sandwiches is not going to kill us.” He winks.
I don’t argue with him. Instead, I slide into the passenger seat of his truck and fasten the seat belt.
Kacen pulls into the McDonald’s drive thru and orders so much food that they lady behind the speaker sounded hesitant, as if he was pranking her. After reading it back to him for the second time, he assures her the order is correct and pulls to the first window. She looks surprised and relieved when he hands her his credit card.
When we make it back to his place, the rest of the guys are sprawled out across the living room, still half asleep.
“Oh, thank God!” Tristan says as we walk into the living room. “I’m starving.”
I can’t help but laugh at his theatrics. I empty the four large bags on the coffee table and leave them to it.
“Logan, eat.”
Kacen always insists I eat with them. “I will. I’m just going to put on a pot of coffee and grab a few bottles of water.”
“We can do it.” He goes to stand, but I hold my hand up to stop him.
“It’s fine. I don’t have much of an appetite anyway. It will only take me a few minutes,” I assure him.
I set the coffee pot up to brew and grab five bottles of water out of the fridge. When I turn around, Kacen is there. He reaches for the bottles of water and sets them on the island. I let out a little yelp of surprise when his hands find my hips and he lifts me to sit on the island as well.
His palms are flat against the island on either side of my hips. His forehead is resting on my shoulder. I’m too stunned to say anything. My palms are sweaty, so I rest them flat against my lap. My heart is thundering in my chest; I know he can hear it. I try to focus on taking deep even breaths.
Finally, he slowly lifts his head. His face is close to mine, so close that I can see the swirl of blues in his eyes, just like the ocean. “Logan,” his voice is gruff, “I—”
“What are you two doing in there? Kace, I thought you were bringing drinks?” Cole yells out.
Surprising me further, he presses his lips against my forehead and backs away. His hands are still flat against the counter, caging me in. Gently, he grips my hips and lifts me, bringing my feet back to the floor.
“Kace!” Gavin calls out. “You get lost, man?”
Kacen takes a deep breath and releases his hold on me. I watch him as he picks up four bottles, leaving one for me, and leaves the room.
What the hell was that? I want to rewind three minutes and hit replay. I want Cole to have not yelled out and interrupted us. What was he about to say?
“Logan! Get your fine ass out here before we eat it all!” Tristan yells for me.
I can’t help but smile. Grabbing my bottle of water, I make my way to the living room to have breakfast with the boys of Soul Serenade.
Kacen’s eyes find mine as soon as I enter the room. He looks at the empty spot next to him on the love seat. I take that as I’m supposed to sit beside him. I grab a bacon, egg, and cheese bagel and take my offered seat.
“So, is that hot roommate of yours seeing anyone?” Cole inquires.
“Not that I’m aware of. I’ve not talked to her much, and she left last night to go to Florida with her parents for two weeks.”
“Didn’t she just start a new job too?” Kacen inquires.
“Yes, but she’s known about the trip for a while. She made sure to tell them during her interview.”
“So you’re staying alone all week?” Kacen questions.
I nod. “Yeah, it’s quiet when she’s gone.”
“Is your place safe?” Tristan asks.
“As safe as it can be, I guess. We have a deadbolt on the door and we’re on the second floor.”
None of them say anything else, but I can tell they want to. Honestly, not one of them has a leg to stand on. I’m their employee, or Kacen’s really. It’s an odd situation.
Chapter 20
Kacen
I hate the thought of her staying in her apartment alone. Yes, she’s a grown woman, but what if the douchebag comes back? I don’t really expect him to. I saw the fear in his eyes, but you just never know about people. I want to demand that she stay here. There are more than enough bedrooms. Hell, she can sleep in mine.
Fuck! I cannot let my mind go there. I’ve had a hard time keeping my hands off her today. What started out as a means to get the guy to leave her alone, turned into me yearning for more. In the kitchen, I just couldn’t help myself. I wanted to tell her I don’t care that I’m her boss, that what we do is no one’s business but our own. We’re adults. Luckily, Cole interrupted us before the words left my mouth. They were on the tip of my tongue.
It’s not that I don’t want her, I do. I ache deep inside from wanting her, but I know from hearing her talk and conversations we’ve had that she no longer believes in the promise of love. That fucker messed with her head, strung her along, and made her feel like she wasn’t enough.
It’s taking extreme effort for me not to demand she stay here. I shove another bite of my sandwich in my mouth. Logan’s cell rings and she pulls it out of her pocket. I continue to eat, but listen intently. Yeah, it’s rude, but I don’t care.
“What?” she says, shocked. “How long?” She seems troubled by whatever the person on the other end of the line is telling her. “Are we allowed in at all?” she asks. My attention is now piqued even further. “Right, okay. So we need to just wait to hear from you?” She waits for an answer. “Thanks for calling,” she says as she taps the screen and lets her hand that was holding her phone fall between us on the love seat.
“What’s wrong?” I rush to ask her. I can tell that whatever she just learned has upset her.
She’s staring off into space and chewing on her bottom lip. I’m jealous. “Logan,” I say her name again, trying to get her attention. Resting my hand on her arm, I gently run my fingers back and forth, hoping it will help calm her. “Logan, babe, you’re scaring me. What happened?” My voice is gentle, yet firm. I’m ready to flip the fuck out!
Snapping out of it, she turns to face me. “That was the management company for my apartment. Apparently, the unit above mine sprung a leak in their kitchen. It leaked into ours. Our kitchen was the only room affected.”
That’s not so bad. “Okay,” I say, because that doesn’t sound like it’s too bad.
“They’re going to fix it, but we can’t stay there while they are. Stacy and I will need to find a new place to stay until it’s finished.” Finally she turns to face me. “Can I, I hate to ask this, but I need to go find a hotel room I can rent for an undetermined amount of time.”