Sweet upgrade.
“The restaurants are here, and here, and the bar is in this main building, just around the corner. It’s open until midnight each night, sometimes later, depending on how many guests are still awake. Breakfast is served to your rooms and included in your rate. The rest of the day is yours to do with as you wish. Our chefs are excellent, of course, but we can also recommend a number of smaller cafes in town if you’d prefer something more casual.”
Tori glanced at Logan, and he nodded. “Casual sounds good for tonight, anyway.”
The clerk gave them two recommendations, then handed over their room keys and they headed through the main building and stepped out into a luxuriously landscaped courtyard. In one direction a few larger buildings stood, and in the other, a series of villas. That’s where their rooms were. On the way, they passed a couple swimming pools. The party one with a swim-up bar, an infinity pool that overlooked the ocean and spilled down to another pool on a lower level. And just steps from their villa door, a sunken, secluded hot tub that made Logan think of late night drinks and lopsided smiles. Moonlight and damp strands of hair, clinging to rosy cheeks.
“This place is fantastic,” Tori said, breaking into his suddenly inappropriate thoughts.
“Yeah,” he said, giving his head a shake. “Amazing.”
“We’ll have to try out that hot tub later,” she said as she slid her key into the lock.
Logan choked on a cough. “Mmm.”
“Not your thing?” She pushed the door open and gasped, saving him from answering the question. “Oh. My…Wow.”
Wow was right. The villa was small, but the view was out of this world. Full-length windows—no, full-length slider doors, he realized as they moved closer—led out to a verandah that overlooked a private-ish beach and the clearest turquoise water he’d ever laid eyes on.
And given how many private beaches he’d done an amphibious assault on, that was saying something. Although not being shot at definitely improved the view.
He set the suitcases in front of the two side-by-side bedroom doors and joined her in front of the wall of glass. “What do you want to do first? Swimming? Veg on the verandah and read for a bit? Explore?”
She twirled around. Her lower lip was caught between her teeth and her eyes were bright. She shrugged. “I don’t know. Yes. All of that.”
But Logan knew better than to expect this happy high to last very long. It wouldn’t take long for her sadness to cycle back. This entire week had to be about maintaining a steady, level support for Tori. Whatever she needed, he’d be there for her.
“How about we settle into our rooms, then go for a walk down the beach? And then come back here to regroup before we go find some dinner. Maybe take a nap.”
She squared her shoulders and frowned gently. “You want to take a nap?”
“Uh… Sure.”
“Or are you treating me with kid gloves?”
He laughed. “Well, yeah. That, too.” He paused. “That entirely. No, I don’t need a nap. But at some point, you’re going to crash, and that’s okay.”
“At some point, I’m also going to want to go dancing and get drunk. You’re not going to stop me, are you?”
“Hell, no.” Maybe stand in front of her so no drunken tourists could get too close… “I’m not going to stop you from doing anything you want to do. But I am going to encourage you gently to take a knee from time to time.”
“Is that football? You know I don’t do football references.”
“One of the many things I love about you—zero competition for what we watch on Sundays.” He winked at her. “Yes, it’s a football reference. I’ve never used that on you before? I use it on my troops all the time. It means—”
“Take a break. I get it.” She crossed her arms, clearly offended—albeit not very seriously—by the suggestion that she wasn’t capable of rolling with the punches.
No, he wouldn’t have used it on her before. She was always a force of nature, her energy levels rivaling his even after a hundred hour work week. But this was an exceptional circumstance.
He held up his hand and wiggled his pinky finger at her. “I promise you, no excessive coddling. Let’s unpack, then hit the beach.”
She held her hand up, her fingers sliding against his before her baby finger twisted around his pinky and they shook on it. He ignored the electric spark he always felt when she touched him. He’d given up the right to indulge in that sensation when he joined the Navy and moved across the country.
“You swear?” she asked softly, her eyes extra-big and extra-blue.
In that moment, he’d have promised her absolutely anything she wanted. So that made it just like every other moment together. He nodded. “I swear.”
Five