She stiffened. “So you slept around?”
“We’ve all made mistakes, Kassie. I hate you’ve been with other men, but it’s something I have to live with.”
She stood and walked away, keeping her back to me. “Only one, Logan. There’s only one man I’ve been with besides you. It wasn’t easy for me to let someone in after you left. I wish you would’ve come to me earlier. I needed you more than you know, especially when my mother died.”
I walked up behind her and put my arms around her waist. When she didn’t recoil, I held her tighter. “And I was there, Kassie. Your mother was an amazing woman.” She burst out crying and I held her until she stopped. I didn’t want to let her go. “After I let you go, I knew you hated me. When I assumed you were happy with someone else, I had to face the fact I lost you. I’d never been so angry with myself in all my life. I loved you, and even to this day, I never stopped.”
She turned around and laid her head on my chest. “Even when I tried to hate you, I still loved you too. I can’t help but think about all the years we lost.”
I tilted her chin up and looked down at her lips. “We can’t get them back, but we can always make up for what we lost.” I pressed my lips to hers and her arms around my neck tightened. She opened her mouth and I pushed my tongue inside, loving the way she tasted.
Kassidy
I felt like I was in a dream. Everything felt right for the first time in my life. But when I opened my eyes, it wasn’t a dream. Logan’s arms were wrapped around my waist and I could feel his breath against my ear. After talking the entire night, we finally fell asleep around three in the morning. My phone vibrated across the hardwood floor, but I couldn’t reach it. Logan tightened his grip so I couldn’t get it.
“What are you doing?” I laughed.
“Keeping you close. Who’s calling you so early anyway?”
I glanced out the window at the sun. “I don’t think it’s that early. We need to get up and get to work. Or better yet, I need to get to work, and you to the track. You have a race to get prepared for. Will you be coming with me?”
“Yes. That way I can make sure you’re protected.”
“You don’t really think someone will come after me, do you?”
He shrugged. “Not sure. My partner’s investigating the Hendrix team. They seem to be the ones who hate your father the most.”
“Is that who’s truck was here last night?” I asked.
“Yep. He’s undercover as well. One of these days, you’ll meet him. Until then, I want to keep his identity private. Just like I want you to keep all of this about me a secret. You, your father, and Ethan are the only ones who need to know the truth.”
I nodded. “I understand. I won’t say anything.” Now that I was free from his grasp, I grabbed my phone and looked at the time. “Shit.”
Logan sat up and scratched his head. “What is it?”
“It’s seven-thirty and I missed a call from Sean.” He also left a couple of text messages.
Sean: Where are you? I tried calling.
Sean: I’m on my way to your house.
“Great, he’s on his way to my house,” I groaned.
His gaze narrowed. “I was going to ask you this last night, but I wasn’t ready to bring it up.”
Swallowing hard, I held my breath. By the look on his face, I could tell it was something that concerned him.
“You and Sean seem close, but I can’t help but sense something between you two. And I’m not talking in a brother and sister kind of way.”
Releasing a heavy sigh, I bowed my head. “I was hoping this wouldn’t come up, but if we’re going to be honest with each other, I guess it’s better to get it out in the open.” I lifted my head and faced him. “Remember when I told you I’d only been with one other man besides you?”
His jaw clenched. “It was him? Your step-brother?”
“Yes, but it was before our parents ever got together. After that, we separated ways.”
He scoffed. “Doesn’t look like he sees it that way.”
I couldn’t argue with him there. “That’s why I have plans to set him up with my friend, Janie. I know he still has feelings for me, and it doesn’t help that I’ve basically been single the past eight years.”
“Do you love him?”
“I do,” I admitted truthfully, “but not in the way you think. He was there for me after you left and he hasn’t left my side since. He and Levi were all I had.”
Logan got to his feet and held me. “You don’t have to explain. But I have to ask, are you going to tell him about us?”
I breathed him in. “Yes. With you being back, there’s no way I can keep my feelings hidden. Maybe he’ll see he needs to move on too. Now, I need to go. Sean’s probably almost to my house.”