Logan's Leap (10 page)

She
started at the base and ran her tongue upward, making Logan gasp and tighten
his hips. When her lips wrapped around the tip, he called out her name.

Holding
him steady at the base, she moved up and down over him, alternating teasing
with her tongue, her teeth and her fingertips. She could tell by his murmurs
and his movements that he was getting close so she pulled back, increasing her
grip on the base. His eyes flew open and their eyes met. “Keep your eyes open
and watch what I’m doing to you,” she demanded.

“It
makes it too personal,” he argued around quick shallow breaths.

“Suit
yourself,” she smiled taking him in again and moving up and down at a rapid
fire pace with both her mouth and hand.

“Oh…Jayna…Now!”
he yelled through gritted teeth as he emptied into her. His body went lax on
the couch and Jayna raised her eyes to him. He was looking at her.

“I
thought you said it was too personal,” she chided as she crawled up next to him
on the sofa.

“I
couldn’t help myself,” he admitted, pulling her into his arms. “You’re too damn
beautiful not to watch.”

“Thank
you,” she murmured, snuggling into his chest.

“I
wish there was something I could do for you now,” he said, stroking her hair.

“I
don’t need anything. I don’t think I could emotionally handle anything right
now. But I feel close to you and I enjoyed pleasing you.”

Logan
shifted in his seat so he could look her in the eyes. “Did he…did Reginald
force you to…”

Jayna
stopped him with a finger placed gently on his lips. “Coerced, bribed, and
threatened…yeah he did. Did he ever hold me down and physically make me? No.”

“He
forced you,” Logan said through gritted teeth. "It’s all rape.”

“I
know,” she murmured. “He never touched me after I got pregnant though. Not only
did he find me repulsive, but I convinced the doctor to order no sex.”

“Smart
girl,” he said with a chuckle. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

“Thank
you. For the most part I’m okay, you know. I just need to get my bearings. It’s
been a crazy year.”

“I
understand,” he said, kissing her temple. “Someday it will be all over and
you’ll have your whole life to look forward too."

“I
can’t wait,” she said with a yawn.

“Come
on, let’s head upstairs. I have a feeling CJ will be screaming for your breasts
soon. I know I would be if I were him,” Logan quickly dodged a thrown couch
pillow. He was relieved to see Jayna smiling again.

Chapter 7

The
next couple of days were calm and relaxing for Logan, Jayna and CJ. They
quickly settled into a routine of leisurely, laughter-filled meals, short hikes
that helped Jayna start to regain her strength, and plenty of time spent
getting to know each other.

As
Logan went about his daily tasks, the word 'family' popped into his head
several times and he had to forcibly push it away. Jayna and CJ would never be
his family. He didn’t
want
them to be his family. There was no room for
that nonsense in his life. It didn’t really matter how much he loved her
kisses, the stroke of her hand over his excited, heated flesh, or the look in
her eyes when he made her smile. But most of all he loved the time they spent
taking care of CJ together. At just over a week old, the little boy was more
and more aware every day and watching him change was amazing, like nothing he
had ever witnessed before.

On
their fourth night in the cabin, they settled in to watch a movie. Dylan’s
stash of family-friendly movies had been uncovered in a living room cabinet.
And as had become habit over the last few days, Logan sat with his back against
the headboard with Jayna sitting between his legs, her back resting on his
chest. CJ slept peacefully in the mini-crib.

When
the movie froze right at the beginning, neither of them wanted to fiddle with
the disk or the DVD player so they turned it off and sat together enjoying the
sounds of the night coming in from outside.

“Logan,
can I ask you a question?”

“Sure,
I guess,” he said hesitantly. He had a feeling she was going to ask about
something he wasn’t all that willing to talk about.

“Why
don’t you believe in marriage and family?”

Logan
felt like groaning out loud, but he just sighed instead. “I’ve learned that
love brings devastation to people.”

“Who
hurt you that badly?” she murmured. “She must have been someone you loved a
lot.”

Logan
was quiet for a while, debating how much to tell her. Part of him wanted to
confess everything but part of him wanted to push her away and run. “It wasn’t
a woman,” he finally admitted. And then the whole story came out – about his
brother Ben’s love story, his brother Russell’s disastrous marriage and Dylan’s
unrequited love for his childhood friend Nicoletta and subsequent playboy ways.

Jayna
was shocked and stunned. How did a person get over something like that? How
could she prove to him what was wrong with his way of thinking? She had no
delusions that he would ever be hers, but someday she hoped he could have his
own family. He would be a wonderful husband and father, and it wouldn’t be fair
if he missed out on that. “I’m sorry about your brother,” she finally said. “I
can’t even imagine what he must have gone through.”

“Me
either,” he whispered, kissing her temple. Keeping his lips off of her was near
impossible no matter how much he knew he should. “Hey, I’m hungry, do you want
a snack?” he asked, moving from behind her.

“Yeah,”
she answered. “And a soda please.”

“Sure,
I’ll be right back.”

Jayna
heard the microwave open and close and the sound of popcorn starting to pop.
The bed vibrated beneath her right hip and she shifted to the left to see what
was causing it. The prepaid phone was lying there, it must have fallen out
Loan’s pocket. She recognized the grocery store’s number.

**********

A
tall, well-built man, wearing a black suit walked into Harper’s Rock grocery
and studied everything that was going on around him. He didn’t see any of the
managers milling around at the moment so he walked calmly up to the teenaged
cashier at register one. “Miss, my car broke down out there and my cell phone
is dead. May I use the phone to call a tow truck?”

“Sure!”
she gushed with a big smile. “I’m just closing down. Help yourself." She
pointed to the phone next to the register and walked away. The man picked up
the receiver and dialed the number he had written on a piece of scrap paper.

“Hello,”
came a female voice.

“Yes
ma’am, is Logan there?”

“I’m
sorry, he’s busy at the moment. Can I take a message?”

“Oh,
just tell him that there was a problem with a shipment of hair products. There
was a fire at the manufacturing facility so they will be delayed.”

“Sure,
I’ll tell him. Thank you.”

The
man hung up the phone and left the store, looking carefully around him. Once
inside his car he pulled out his cell phone and dialed. “Hey Joe. It’s her. I’d
recognize her voice anywhere. Now we just need to find out where she’s hiding.”

“Thanks
Frank. I had a feeling that the strange phone number I found when I hacked into
the manager's phone would give us the results we needed. I’ll call the boss and
fill him in.”

**********

Logan
came back upstairs with a bowl of popcorn and two sodas. “Did I hear you talking
to someone?" he asked when he noticed CJ still sleeping peacefully in his
crib.

“Yeah,
the store called. There is a shipment of hair products that will be delayed
because of a fire at the manufacturers.”

“Oh,
okay. Nothing too major then. Andrew will handle it.” Something felt off. He
needed to call Andrew and get some details. What happened at the store
shouldn’t have warranted a call. The staff was perfectly capable of dealing
with it by themselves. He knew he would have to stay vigilant over the next
couple of days – just in case.

Logan
put a different movie on and they sat side by side on the bed, enjoying their
snack. Just as Jayna finished the last of her soda, CJ began to fuss. Logan lifted him out of the crib and grabbed a diaper and wipes from the nightstand to
change him. When he was clean and dry, Jayna put him to the breast while they
continued to watch the movie.

Logan
wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. She rested her head on his
shoulder and CJ began kicking his feet in excitement. “Why are you kicking me,
little man?” he said with a smile. “I’m not trying to take your food.” He
reached over and grabbed a little pajama-covered foot, shaking it gently back
and forth making CJ just kick harder, trying to dislodge his foot from Uncle
Logan’s grip.

“You’re
paying more attention to me than to your food. Are you ready to burp?” CJ let
go with a gassy smile and Jayna handed him over to the expert burper.

Logan
patted and rubbed his back until he was rewarded with a series of small but
effective burps and one loud toot. When he lifted him off his shoulder, the
sweet little man was asleep. “Do you want to wake him to nurse on the other
side or just put him back to bed?”

“Just
put him back in the crib. I hate waking him.”

Logan
did as she asked then sat down on the bed next to her again. “The movie is
almost over, do you want to get some sleep before he wakes up for the next
feeding?”

“I’m
not tired yet,” she stated. “I think I might read for a while.”

“That
sounds like a good plan. I think I’ll read for a bit too.”

Jayna
got up and dug through the books Dylan had in a box by the bed. She found one
that interested her and crawled into bed. Logan had retrieved his book from the
nightstand.

“Does
your brother read romance novels to improve his technique?” Jayna asked,
holding her book up for him to look at.

Logan
laughed. “No.  He buys boxes full from yard sales and brings them here for the
guests to enjoy. I don’t think my brother knows what romance is.”

“You’ll
have to let me know when he finally finds the one woman who will teach him
exactly what it is,” she said before opening her book.

“I
didn’t take you as a romance novel kind of girl,” Logan said looking over at
her.

“Oh
yes,” she sighed. “I’ve been to hell and back, but I still believe in love.
Maybe you should give it a try,” she said seriously. “You might find yourself
happy for once.” The reality of what she’d just said hit her and she grimaced,
closing her eyes to wait for his response.

“Maybe
you’re right,” he murmured. “If only I knew how to let go of…of all the shit…”

“I’m
sorry Logan, I was out of line.”

“You
were just telling the truth,” he said softly. “There is no need to apologize.”

Jayna
turned to look at him. “Someday, Logan. Someday, the right woman will teach you
how to not be afraid of love.”

“Only
if I let her,” he whispered, opening his book. “And that will never happen.”

They
lie there reading for a half-hour when Logan turned his light off. He leaned
over to kiss Jayna’s cheek as he had for the past few nights before he went to
sleep. Only this time, for some unknown reason, he bypassed her cheek for her
full, luscious lips.

What
started out as a soft peck goodnight turned into something slow, exploring and
sensual. “I’m sorry, I just can’t help myself,” he murmured.

“I’m
glad,” she smiled, pulling him back down into a kiss. Her hands roamed over his
shoulders and down his back to rest at his waistband.

“I
want to touch you so badly,” he groaned.

"Go
ahead,” she said, taking his hand and placing it near her breasts. “CJ needs to
learn to share some time.”

Logan
smiled and moved his hand into her shirt. “Shh, don’t tell him, just in case.”
His fingers gently played over her breast and nipple moving down to the
underside to cup its glorious weight. He squeezed gently and Jayna moaned,
arching her back to press against him. His lips left hers and traveled down her
neck and onto her collar bone. His fingers tentatively teased her nipple.

“Oh
God, Logan!” she whispered breathlessly

“Don’t
tell me that bastard never did this,” he said, gently closing his lips over her
nipple to tease it with his tongue.

Jayna
suddenly sat up and moved out of Logan’s arms.

“I’m
sorry,” he said, his voice low. “It’s none of my business."

Jayna
looked at him with her tortured brown eyes. “It’s not that,” she murmured. “You
were right. At first everything was great with him. We did everything. But then
after a year, he’d just climb on board, pump away and that would be the end of
it.”

“I’m
sorry,” Logan said when she remained quiet. “You deserve so much more.”

“I
know I did,” she said with tears running down her face. “But I stayed with him
and let him treat me like a piece of meat. Why, Logan? Why in the hell did I do
that?”

He
took her into his arms and let her cry. “I can think of a few reasons why you
may have stayed with him.”

“None
of them could ever be good enough reasons.”

“Hey,
don’t be so hard on yourself,” he comforted. “You may have been afraid of
change, or afraid you’d lose your job. Hell, who knows why we do anything in
life. The important thing is that you left. You took your life back.”

“I
know you’re right,” she said, wiping her tears, "but when I think about
it, I just feel so…so damn stupid!”

Logan
wrapped his arms tighter around her and pulled her down to lay with him. There
was nothing more he could say. It would take time for her to forgive herself.
He closed his eyes and started to think of ways he could possibly end this mess
sooner for her, but there was nothing he could do but wait until Reginald was
stupid enough to make a move.

Suddenly
a loud noise sounded from outside. Logan sat up and listened. The noise sounded
again. “Stay here. Get the gun out of the nightstand and protect yourself at
all cost.”

He
put his hoodie and shoes on and rushed down the stairs. The bad feeling from
earlier was now back. Preparing the rifle once again, he stepped out the door.
The flashlight was still in the pocket of the hoodie so he took it out and directed
the beam of light toward the part of the fence he’d just repaired. An old moose
was attacking a whole section of fence. When the slats were lying flat on the
ground he took off into the woods.

Logan
chuckled and headed back inside. Damn moose sure knew how to scare him out of
his mind. But at least Jayna was safe.

He
put the gun away and hollered up to Jayna that everything was safe. By the time
he made it back up the stairs, she had stored the pistol and was feeding CJ
again. “I’m not fixing that fence again,” Logan chuckled. “I’ll let Dylan deal
with it when he comes back up here. That damn moose might leave us alone now,”
he said, dropping a kiss on the baby’s head.

“He
was mad that you fixed his special spot. It needs to be lying down,” Jayna
laughed. “I’m just glad it wasn’t the goons.”

“Me
too,” he agreed, crawling into bed. “Are you almost done, buddy? I think your
mama and I should get some sleep.”