A Forever Kind of Love (Kinds of Love 1)

“Are you sure about that, Maddy?” I hesitated to say it was a bad idea, but I knew I was going to have to help Tyler sell the dog to her. “Tyler's such a good kid. He deserves a friend.”

“You've made a friend here, too, haven't you?” Maddy asked, changing the subject and catching me off guard.

“What? I haven't found a dog...” I really hoped she didn't know about Logan.

“Disappearing all day and now sounding all happy and content? Please. There are some definite hotties around here,” she said, trying to sound nonchalant and failing miserably. She was living vicariously through me. “That surfing instructor was pretty easy on the eyes. Please tell me it's the surfing instructor.”

“Maddy, I have no idea what you're talking about.” That was only a little lie. I didn't know who the surfing instructor was.

“Fine,” she pouted. “Just know that I'm a little jealous, but I'm glad you're finally finding a way to relax. How about I see you for lunch tomorrow? You can tell me all about his perfect six-pack abs then.”

I couldn't help but smile. “Sounds good. I'll see you then.”

“Oh, and one more thing,” she added quickly. “Stay away from Logan Hayes. You don't need him complicating things or messing with your head any more than he already has. That man's trouble.”

“I'll keep that in mind,” I replied, hoping I wasn't giving everything away with my voice. Maddy had the ability to see right through me when she wanted to.

“Okay. Have fun, and I'll see you tomorrow.”

“Bye, Maddy.” I clicked the phone off and tossed it onto the bed. I was about to disregard Maddy's recommendation-- hell, I already had. That shower had waited long enough.

Chapter 22

Gray light seeped through the edges of the boarded-up window, but instead of making Logan’s room seem gloomy, it simply made me sleepy. I guessed it must still be early morning, but with the storm hiding the sun, it was difficult to tell. A gust of wind shook the boards on the windows, but they were locked down tight. So far, the hotel had withstood the force of the hurricane as if it were nothing more than a summer breeze. Noah had done a good job.

I rolled to my side, expecting to find a warm body to cuddle up against. Instead, I found empty sheets. The space was cold. Logan was long gone from the bed. A moment of panic washed over me, but peeking out through the doorway, I could see the glow of a computer screen in the other room. I instantly relaxed. He was just working. I could understand that. The man ran a multibillion-dollar travel company; he had to work sometime.

I reached out to the nightstand and checked my smartphone. It was only a little after eight in the morning, but the little blinking alert light was going crazy. In addition to all the emails I'd ignored previously, I'd received five urgent messages. I hoped, maybe, that one or two of them might be my consultants asking to return to Dream Vacations, or maybe my lawyer telling me I'd be able to destroy Gerald Hayes in court. Either way, I needed to go to my room and use my computer.

I slid silently out of bed and tiptoed out to the living area. Logan's room was similar to mine. He sat typing away at the work desk. I crept up behind him, grinning like a naughty school girl at the thrill of startling him. It looked like he was emailing someone, but I did my best not to read over his shoulder.

“Good morning, handsome,” I whispered seductively in his ear.

Logan jumped practically three feet into the air and slammed the laptop shut. I giggled and came to sit on his lap. He stared at me for a moment, his hand still pressing down on his computer.

“Good morning to you too,” he finally spit out. There was an edge to his words that I wasn't expecting, but I put it off as just being annoyed that I had scared him. He quickly shuffled the papers laying on the desk into a computer bag and out of sight. It was almost as if he didn't want me to see them.

He pushed me off his lap and stood up, putting the laptop into the bag with the papers. Once everything was away, he took a deep breath and smiled at me. His shoulders dropped down to their proper position, and he looked far calmer. I wondered what could possibly be in that bag that had him so anxious to keep it private.

“You okay?” I asked, trying to get my bearings. I had been expecting warm kisses by now.

“Yes,” he said, but his head shook no. “Just catching up on work stuff. Lawyers stress me out. You want to go get some breakfast?”

“

I can't,” I replied, looking around the room for my clothes. I had thought I had taken them off here, but I didn't see them.

“Room service again?” Logan asked, wrapping me up in his arms. This was the morning greeting I had been expecting. He pulled me in to him, his bare chest against mine. Between his skin and the panty-dropping smile he was using, I was tempted to stay. Very tempted.

“I can't,” I said, kissing him softly before disentangling myself from his arms. “While room service does sound wonderful, I need to go check my email.”

I saw my shirt peeking out from beneath the couch and pulled it out. Logan was right behind me as I stood, nipping on the soft spot of my neck and sending shivers down my spine. His breath was hot and welcome on my skin. “You sure?”

I let myself relax against him again, his kisses teasing the delicate skin of my neck and the shirt nearly falling from my fingers. “I can’t,” I managed to say a final time, though not without hesitation. I stepped away and turned to look him in the face. “I have this little business problem I'm trying to fix today.”

He grimaced slightly. “Right. That. I promise, I'm doing what I can to make it right.”

I knew this wasn't his fault. It was his father's. “I really appreciate it. I do.” I put the shirt up over my head, starting the process of getting dressed. “You want to get a table for us downstairs? I'll do my best to get through my emails quickly, but then we can at least still have breakfast.”