The Billionaire's Kiss (Scandal, Inc) (12 page)

"So what's the problem?"
 

"I'm not supposed to get involved with him. What if Amy found out? What if Hank found out? What if things go great with Logan, but then he finds out that I work for his father and have been lying to him this whole time? What if he ends up hating me forever?"

"Take a deep breath. You're not marrying him, Callie. You both happen to be young and attractive. If you think he's smart and funny, then he's smart and funny. You got shipped off to Newport against your will, and now you have a chance to enjoy yourself. Why not take it?"
 

"Because I know I shouldn't."

"It's not like you're lying to a saint here. Isn't his motto 'love 'em and leave 'em?' I'm more worried about you falling for him than I am about you hurting his feelings. Why don't you allow yourself to have a little fun? The Callie Haven I once knew loved to have fun. Then she took a job working a thousand hours a week for her older sister and forgot all about having a social life."

"Before I worked for Amy, I worked at a big law firm. I worked just as many hours."

"Yeah, but afterward you were able to go out and blow off some steam. When was the last time you went on a date, a real date and not some sting operation?"

"It's been a while," Callie said.

"And how long has it been since you've met a guy that you really liked?"

"Even longer," Callie said.
 

"So enjoy yourself a little. How am I supposed to live vicariously through you if you aren't living your life? I think you've forgotten how this is supposed to work. Me: shy, bookish, a little bit sassy. You: pretty, outgoing, full of stories. I need a story, Callie. Amy doesn't have to know. Just as long as you and Logan aren't running naked through the streets, you'll be fine. "

"Public nudity isn't really my thing," Callie said.
 

"Well, if it happens to be his, feel free to send pictures," Charlotte said.

"If he does something like that. I think I'll have to handcuff him to his bed," Callie said. As soon as the words left her lips, she knew how Charlotte would twist her words.

"Now we're talking," Charlotte said. "I'm sure he has a pair of handcuffs in his bedroom anyway."

"Not how I meant it, and you know that," Callie said. She shook her head and laughed.

"Yeah, right. What was it Freud said?" Charlotte asked.

"Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar?" Callie said. She wasn't sure she wanted to know where Charlotte was heading with this.

"Not when it belongs to Logan Harris," Charlotte said. Before Callie could reply, she added, "Have some fun. Live a little. Kiss him again and tell me what happens. Just don't fall in love with him."

“Why does everyone keep telling me that? It’s about the last thing on my mind right now."

"Good, I'm sure you can find more interesting things to fall into with him anyway, like maybe a bed."

"Repeat this to no one," Callie said. "This conversation never happened."

"Ooh, that sounds so official," Charlotte said, "I feel like I'm on one of your secret missions. This is where I say 'What conversation?' and you reply, "Exactly,' right? Kind of like I'd say I have no recollection of any conversations about you falling for an attractive billionaire heir, right?"

"Exactly," Callie said. She listened to Charlotte giggle and end the call. Callie waited for a moment and looked at herself in the half-fogged mirror. "I am not falling for Logan Harris," she said. She gave herself a smile. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing to let herself have a little fun. "Repeat after me," she said to her reflection, "No matter what happens, it didn't happen."

Exactly
.

Eight

Callie stood at the island in the middle of the kitchen, leaning over a mug of ginger tea. A long nap had cured her hangover, and she had even managed to eat a full meal. After reading and lying around, she was starting to feel restless. She thought about going for a jog, but it had been raining on and off, and she didn't feel like getting stranded outside in a downpour. Besides, she had been looking out the window toward the dock every few minutes, waiting for Logan's return. She tried to tell herself that it was her job to stay close to him, to keep track of what he was doing, but she knew she wanted him to come back for other reasons.

When she saw Logan's vintage speed boat pull up to the dock, her heart skipped a beat. She tried to remind herself to act cool and not to do anything stupid. She could spend time with Logan without crossing the line again. How much time she could spend before crossing the line remained to be seen, but, for the moment, she just wanted him to make that walk from the dock to her door as quickly as possible.
 

As he approached, Callie grabbed a newspaper and tried to pretend that she hadn't noticed him. "Hello? Come in," she said, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible. Logan stepped into the kitchen, and she smiled. "Oh, it's you. Any ideas of what there is to do around here when it's raining?"

Logan's shirt was soaked through from rain, and it clung to his broad shoulders. Callie couldn't help but wonder if she should offer to take the shirt and find him something dry. Had that been his plan from the beginning? She cleared her throat and said, "Anything?"

"There are a few things that come to mind, but the rain is only necessary for a few of them."

"Do I even want to know?" Callie asked.

"It depends. How flexible are you?"
 

"Just because I kissed you doesn't mean you get to hit on me nonstop."

"Just intermittently?"

"I suppose that works for me. She smiled, "So come on, what is there to do around here?"

"I know. How about I give you a tour of the house?"

"How much more is there to see?" Callie said with a laugh. "I can see the whole place from kitchen to bedroom from my seat right here."
 

"I meant the mansion. Did my father ever tell you the story behind it?"

Callie shook her head. Other than instructions for how to keep his son in line, Hank hadn't told her much of anything.
 

"Come with me and I'll show you then. It's more fun to tour the house when it’s raining anyway."

"Why's that?" Callie asked.

"Because it feels like it's its own world when it's raining. That, and it's haunted."
 

"You're kidding, right?"

Logan smirked at her and declined to answer. "Why do you think I choose to sleep on a boat when I have a perfectly good mansion at my disposal?"
 

"I thought you didn't want to live in your father's house," Callie said.
 

"Either that or I'm afraid to spend the night there. I'll let you decide which version you believe once I've given you the tour, but I can assure you that the past few decades have been the quietest in the history of the home. Before that, this house was infamous."

"Infamous?" Callie asked. This whole trip, she had been hoping to keep Logan away from anything even remotely 'infamous.'

"Come on, I'll tell you the story while we walk."
 

"It's pouring out, Logan."
 

"There's nothing wrong with getting a little wet. Come on. It's a short walk. I promise, you'll survive."
 

"Don't you have an umbrella or something?"

"Of course. I have several. They're all up in the mansion. I promise the walk back down here will be bone dry."
 

"It's not the walk back I'm worried about," Callie said.

***

Logan took Callie's hand and led her out onto the lawn. The ground was soft underfoot, and he felt each and every raindrop as it hit his skin, fat drops of water that hit with weight and speed. They'd be lucky to make it to the house without getting caught in a downpour. The rain had picked up in the few minutes since he had stepped inside the guesthouse, and with each passing moment, it grew heavier. He kept his fingers entwined in hers as he walked. Her warm palm made him feel grounded as gust after gust of wind rose up from over the ocean and blew the rain against their backs.
 

Within the first few steps, Callie's hair was already soaked. The wind blew it into her face, and the stray strands stuck to her cheek and her forehead. Logan reached over and brushed back her hair, taking a moment to admire her eyes. There was something about her that was even more beautiful when she wasn't trying, a natural grace in the way she walked and in the gentle curves of each of her features.
 

Logan wanted to stop right there in the middle of the wide lawn and just marvel at her. He wanted to stare into her eyes and press his lips against hers again. He wanted to feel that warmth and excitement. He wanted to feel it over and over again. He tightened his grip on her palm as they approached the house. For the first time in a long time, there was no place he'd rather be, and no one he'd rather be with. Of course, explaining that feeling to Callie was out of the question.

The way she smiled drove him wild. It tied his stomach in knots and made him say stupid things. He moved closer to her as they stepped up onto the mansion's wide patio and slid his arm around her. Her shirt was soaked through, clinging to her every curve.
Lucky shirt
, he thought. "Did I tell you the walk came with a complimentary outdoor shower?"

"Funny," Callie said. "I thought you said that it wasn't raining hard."

"I can assure you that inside the house it is not raining."
 

"I'd be concerned if that weren't the case."
 

"Well, it's probably large enough inside to have its own weather." Logan pushed open one of the back doors and stepped into a parlor. "You're soaked," he said. "Change of plans. I'm going to find something dry for you to wear."
 

"Let me guess: all I have to do is take off my wet clothes."

"Callie, come on, do you really think I'd be that rude of a host?" Logan asked. He grinned as he waited for a response. "I'll take them off for you."

Callie gave Logan a playful tap on the arm and smirked. "Well, if you keep this up, I'll definitely win our bet. You know I have a perfectly dry wardrobe down at the guesthouse." As she finished her sentence, a gust of wind blew the door shut behind them.

"That would mean going back out in the storm. Let's take the door slamming as a sign that we're supposed to stay here for a while. Follow me, and I'll get you something comfortable to wear. Or you could just wear nothing."
 

"Wouldn't you like that?" Callie said flatly. Her tone grew harsh and she crossed her arms. "I think I might take my chances with the storm."
 

"Easy there," Logan said, "I was just kidding. You can come with me, and I'll get you something to wear, or you can wait here and I'll come back with something."

"I'm not sure I should leave you out of my sight."
 

"To the bedroom it is."

"Don't get any ideas."
 

"Who, me? Lucky for you, there's not a thought in this head of mine."
 

"No?" Callie asked coyly. "Well, I kind of figured you do your thinking somewhere else."

Logan laughed. "I've been accused of that in the past. Then again, you say it like it's a bad thing."

"No, not at all. Cleaning up after men like you pays my bills."
 

"Come on, haven't I already told you that there are no other men like me?"

"That's what all men like you say. It's what allows you to keep screwing things up. You think you're the exception to the rule."
 

"Well, haven't you ever at least wanted to be the one making the mess instead of running around trying to fix everything? Sometimes things should stay broken."

"I like what I do. Sure, some parts of the job suck, but others are fun. I like the challenge of it, the rush. I'm sure it's similar to how you feel whenever you're starting a new venture, except you don't have any time to think or plan and all you get to do is react and hope everything turns out alright."

Logan smiled. "But do you love it?" He watched Callie pause and look at him. He was still trying to be playful, but he could tell he had touched on something deeper. "Forget I asked that. I don't want to get in trouble with the Haven clan. Next thing I know you'll have that aunt of yours on me like you did at your sister's wedding."
 

"You know, Vi still talks about you."
 

"Only woman I've ever met who I couldn't keep up with."
 

"Is that true?"
 

"Closer to true than I'd like to admit. She is a wonderful dancer, though."
 

"I'll make sure to tell her you said that."

"Why don't we keep that between us? Come on. I'll find something dry for you to wear." Logan led Callie up a back staircase to his bedroom. His clothes had soaked through as well, and his pants clung to his body as he started taking off his shirt. "Luckily I have most of my wardrobe here at the house. There's only so much that can go on the boat. He flicked on a light and tossed his wet shirt into a corner. "Let me see if I have anything that might work for you."