“The man of your dreams.” Logan’s dry tone brought an instant smile, which she smothered just as fast.
Maybe he wasn’t upset with her, after all.
“I didn’t know tubs of Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food could talk. Weird.” Despite her snark, Marti found herself headed for the door.
She unlocked it and opened it a crack, poking her head out.
“There are so many things wrong with what you just said,” he pointed out.
“Like?” she challenged.
“Where to begin?” He gestured with his hand. “First, the fact that you even consider ice cream as an acceptable substitute for a man just proves you’ve been dating all the wrong men. Second, chocolate ice cream with marshmallow and caramel swirls? It’s so basic.”
Marti gasped theatrically. “Take that back. It has fudge shaped fish in it.”
“Chocolate fish, huh? That’s what gets you going?” Logan pursed his lips as his green eyes danced. “Maybe you’d like me better if I had gills.”
“I think I like you plenty enough.” She swallowed. Her heart might pound out of her chest.
Who was she? Where was the Queen of Single?
“Is that so?” Logan stepped forward and lowered his gaze to hers.
“Maybe.”
“Flirting with me McBride?”
“You wish.” She tried to laugh but it died on her lips.
He grinned down at her and shoved his hands in his pockets. “Hey,” he whispered.
“Hey,” she said, barely recognizing the sound of her breathy voice.
He dipped his head down and pressed a kiss against her forehead, while she leaned into him, resting her palm on the hard plains of his chest, feeling the rise and fall of his breath.
Something stirred inside her chest, and she thought, he finally did it. He made me crack—I’ve gone nuts.
“Are you here because four days away was too much?” she asked, keeping her tone light.
“You know, I thought it would be like a vacation, but as it turns out, four days away was entirely too much. Ninety-six hours too much, to be exact.”
Marti pressed her face into his shirt and grinned, inhaling the fresh, clean scent of the cotton. “Come on.” She yanked on his arm, dragging him into her apartment.
Logan stopped abruptly on their way to the couch. “What happened here?”
Marti turned. He stood, arms outstretched, staring at the wrecked Christmas tree with wide eyes.
She grunted, waving it away. “It’s nothing.”
Logan laughed. “Step aside, McBride, and let the man fix it.”
“You did not just say that.”
His answering grin said it all. “You know, you’re supposed to water these things.” He lifted a branch and half the needles fell to the ground.
“Ya don’t say.” Marti flashed him a sour expression as she moved to the coffee table and retrieved her hot chocolate.
“How long has it been this way?” he asked.