Club Destiny 1 Conviction (11 page)

Sam didn’t want to leave without
saying goodbye to Logan, although it would just be easier to sneak out than it
would be to face the man again. She had made a grave mistake earlier when she’d
allowed herself to get lost in his touch for even that brief moment. And then,
when he’d mentioned he wasn’t going to be able to forget what happened, she
knew she wouldn’t either.

The fact that he had actually
come onto her was weighing heavily on her conscious. Never, in as long as she
could remember, had she felt such a strong sexual pull toward a man.

But with Logan, Sam felt like an
entirely different woman. She wanted things she’d never wanted before. Her body
ached for him, her skin tingled with wanting his touch, and she didn’t seem to
care when or where, just as long as she could have him.

Shaking off the thought, Sam
looked around, finally locating Logan leaning against the railing surrounding
the veranda, talking to a couple of guys she didn’t recognize. Again, their
eyes met when she turned toward him, and she felt as though the world was
spinning faster, throwing her off balance again. She shook off the feeling,
tried to compose herself and was just about to head in his direction when Alex
walked up.

“Hey. Leaving so soon?” Alex
asked as he moved to stand directly in her path.

“I had thought about it. Seems to
be dying down and I have things to do tonight.” Sam lied. She had nothing to do
except escape to the confines of her small apartment and think about what had
happened between her and Logan in his hallway. That was too pathetic to admit
to anyone.

Alex was smiling at her, and she
recognized the mischief in his grin. Although she wasn’t personally attracted
to Alex McDermott, she could certainly see his sex appeal. The man was
immensely attractive, nearly as tall as and possibly a little broader than
Logan, but he didn’t have that air of confidence that Sam found so damn
appealing.

“So, did you enjoy yourself?”
Alex asked, but Sam noticed he kept glancing over in Logan’s direction.

Sam turned to see what he was
looking at, and she was met with a glare from Logan. “I did.” She admitted,
turning her attention back to Alex. “I was hesitant about coming, but I’m glad
I did. How about you? Do you normally come to these parties?”

“Logan and I have known each
other for a while. I try to stop by whenever I can.” Alex responded moving a
bit closer. “So, what are the plans for tonight? Going out?”

Sam watched Alex closely, picking
up on the fact that he seemed to be trying to antagonize someone. And that
someone appeared to be Logan.

“Just going home to get some work
done. The days are long, but there never seems to be enough time to get
everything done.”

“I know what you mean.” He said,
smiling unusually.

“What are you smiling about?” Sam
asked as she glanced behind her again, noticing Logan was still staring back in
their direction. She could see the heat in his gaze from across the patio.

“Who me? Just smiling. Is that
ok?”

“It would be if you didn’t have
this mischievous look on your face and if you weren’t trying to get Logan’s
attention.” Sam declared with a little reprimand in her tone. There wasn’t much
space between them so she had to look up to see his eyes, and she was sure from
Logan’s place on the patio that their positioning looked intimate.

“But it’s fun. It’s so easy to
get a rise out of him. Even more so when I know I was right.”

“Right about what?” Sam asked,
getting irritated with the game Alex was playing.

“Seems my friend Logan has a thing
for you. If you look over there right now, you’ll see he’s trying to kill me
with a glare. He’s probably just a little jealous of me talking to you.” He
laughed as he stepped aside so Sam had a direct view of Logan.

Sam noticed Logan didn’t look
happy, but when she smiled at him, he quickly smiled back, raising his glass in
her direction. Unhappy or not, the man looked like he could hold his own. It
didn’t take her long to figure out what Alex was doing.

“Ahh. So you thought you’d try to
add fuel to the fire?” As if Sam and Logan needed any fuel added to the fire
that ignited when they were together.

“You could say that.” He
admitted, then smiled down at her again. “I guess my job here is done, so I
should be heading out. Got a hot date tonight and it seems as though someone
wants to talk to you.” Alex stated as he glanced back at Logan, making the
other man tense.

“Well, it was nice of you to try
to play match maker, but it won’t do you any good. Logan and I work together.
He’s my boss. There isn’t anything going on between us.”

“I wouldn’t say that too loud.”
Alex whispered as he leaned closer, smiling again. “He might hear you and I
don’t think he has the same opinion as you do in this matter.

“For what it’s worth, he’s a good
man. Once he sets his sights on something he wants, he goes after it with
everything he’s got. So, if you’re trying to convince yourself there isn’t
anything between the two of you, that’s one thing. Convincing him will be an
entirely different story. It was terrific seeing you again, Sam.” Alex gently
touched her shoulder, then turned and sauntered off.

Sam watched as he walked away,
feeling like she’d just been given encouragement she didn’t need or want. “It
was good to see you, too.”

Deciding she better take the
opportunity to make her escape while she still could, Sam went to face the
music. She needed to say goodbye to her host. She had just mustered up the
courage to approach him when Deanna walked her way.

“Hey, Sam, I’m going to get out
of here. I need to get home to my kiddos. Thank you so much for coming out.
Let’s go to lunch next week. I know this fantastic new restaurant that just
opened up across the street that I’ve been dying to try.”

“That sounds like a great idea.”
Sam responded and then hesitantly accepted the hug Deanna offered. “I’ll see
you at the office on Monday.”

“Make that Tuesday. Monday is a
holiday, remember? Wouldn’t want you to show up when no one was there.” Deanna
laughed as she turned and grabbed her husband’s arm, steering him toward the
house.

"Good idea. Nice to meet
you, Tommy.” Sam smiled shyly. She had forgotten that it was a holiday weekend.

Just what she needed. More alone
time.

Rather than hesitate any longer,
Sam headed toward the veranda where Logan was standing, still talking to the others.
“I think I’m going to get out of here. Looks like the party is winding down and
I’m sure you’re ready for a break. Is there anything I can do before I go?”

“Actually, there is. Gentlemen,
if you’ll excuse me for a minute.” Logan backed away from the group of men,
gently guiding Sam to the house with his hand at her back.

She felt the warmth of his touch
like a flame kissing her skin. Along with the heat came that odd sense of
safety, coupled with a large dose of fear.

“Do you need help cleaning up?
I’ll be glad to help.” She offered when they made it away from the others.

“Actually, no.” Logan gestured to
the two women who were moving quickly around his kitchen, apparently hired to
clean up the mess. “I would like to ask you to stay though. I’ll get rid of
everyone else, and then we can talk. I haven’t seen much of you over the last
couple of months, and I’d like to see how things are going.”

Sam’s first thought was to say
yes, she’d stay. For as long as he wanted her to. But, the part of her brain that
housed her common sense managed to speak up louder than the part that was led
by her hormones. “We can catch up on Tuesday.”

When Logan’s gaze turned hot, Sam
knew he didn’t just want to talk about work. And there lay the problem.

“I’m not past begging, Sam. I’d
like the opportunity to talk to you away from the office.”

“I don’t know if that’s a good
idea, Logan.” She whispered, but he quickly interrupted.

“Good idea or not, I’m past that
point. Please stay.” He lowered his voice, taking her hands in his.

Her body reacted with a flood of
desire, making it almost impossible to deny him anything just from the
roughness caressing her fingers. She ached to have his hands on her body, and
that thought caused her to jerk her hands away from him. Maybe they could
compromise. She’d stay so they could talk, but he couldn’t touch her.

“Ok. To talk. That’s all.”

“That’s all.” He confirmed, that
damned sexy, crooked smile gracing his lips. “I’ll have everyone gone in ten
minutes.”

Sam nodded her head, though her brain
was screaming at her to turn and run. Agreeing to stay was going to be the
worst decision she’d made in a long time.

She wasn’t naive enough to
believe they would only talk when the two of them were alone and away from
prying eyes. Given half a chance, talking would quickly lead to something
entirely different and as much as she wanted to deny it, Sam wanted Logan more
than her next breath. When it came to him, she had zero self-control.

~~  ** 
~~  **  ~~  **  ~~

Logan was true to his word. The
few remaining people had left within ten minutes, and after he’d walked the
last person out, he joined her in the living room.

“Let’s have a drink by the pool
while the maid service cleans the house. It’s nice out tonight.”

Sam stood to join him and he took
her hand in his, lacing their fingers together. She followed behind him,
allowing him to lead her through the large, open kitchen and out the back door.
On their way out, she noticed another woman had joined the original two in the
kitchen and they were working furiously, not wasting any time.

Logan stopped at the outdoor wine
refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of white wine, his one hand still holding
hers. Her stomach churned with burning anticipation.

This was bad. No, this was beyond
bad. This was a recipe for disaster.

“Have a seat.” Logan gestured
toward one of the lounge chairs by the pool as he took the one on the other
side.

“It was a lovely party. Everyone
seems to enjoy these little get-togethers.” Sam stated.

“I like to get everyone together
outside of work to remind them there is life outside of the office.”

“I think I was surprised to see
how many significant others there actually were.” Sam admitted, not sure where
she was taking the conversation, but she didn’t want the silence to linger. “I
can’t imagine how they manage to make their relationships work, with the
stresses of work and all, but clearly it can be done.”

Sam had watched everyone during
the afternoon, noticing the couples and the way they interacted. It was
actually sweet in many cases and she found herself envying them at times. At
others, she found herself wanting to run out of there as fast as possible.

“I think there’s a delicate
balance. You have to give 100% to your job, and you have to give 150% to your
relationships. It’s the only way to make them work.”

“You sound as if you’re speaking
from experience. Have you been married before?”

“No.” Logan said almost too
quickly, but then he took a sip of his wine. “I was almost engaged at one
point, but I backed out just in time. Turns out I didn’t know as much about her
as I thought I did. How about you?”

“Nope. Never married, never
engaged.”

“Anyone serious in your life?”

Sam recognized they were
venturing into very personal territory, but the warm breeze and the wine were
giving her a chance to relax, so she gave his question some thought before
answering.

“At one point, I thought I was
serious about someone, but he proved me wrong. Unfortunately, I had already
invested myself in the relationship just to find out he was sleeping with other
women. I learned my lesson fast and hard, but not before the damage was done.”

“What sort of damage?”

Sam watched with an intense
fascination as he took a drink and swallowed. His huge hands held the delicate
wine glass with such ease, but it appeared he could break it in half with
little effort. She had to force herself to focus on what he had asked her.
“Trust issues.”

“I can see how that happens. I’ve
probably been that guy; with the exception that I don’t make promises I can’t
keep. It doesn’t stop some women from finding promises that aren’t there. I’m
sure there’ve been some pretty nasty rumors about me.”

“Is that right? But you seem like
such a charming guy. Couldn’t imagine any man thinking a woman might just
assume anything.” She smiled facetiously and took a sip of the wine.

“Sam, I get the impression that
you’ve got a vicious, mean streak.”

“A mean streak? What would give
you the impression I’m anything but sweet and innocent?”

Her comment elicited the laugh
she hoped for, and Sam let the sound of Logan’s deep rumbling voice wash over
her. Maybe she could do this. Sitting here, like this, with Logan was almost
natural. He was easy to talk to.