Shatter (St. Martin Family Saga) (2 page)

Logan squatted between her legs and looked up at her. She supposed he was trying to be comforting and non-threatening, but he was in her space. She eased back a bit.

“Who’s Brandon?” he asked.

“Brandon was my husband. He died five years ago. We’d had the restaurant for a while, and it was thriving. Then things started to change.”

Logan used his index finger to lift her face so they were eye to eye. “How about I help you and you help me? I’ll track a few things, see if there might be some sensible changes you can make to yield a higher profit. In turn, you’ll let me sell my brew. What do you say?”

Jessie nodded. They were so close she could feel his heat and smell his scent. He smelled of the outdoors, of grass, gasoline, and leather. And hops. She imagined she smelled the scent of honeyed hops on his skin.

His eyes were like jewels, their color a pure, clear green, and his sincere demeanor was reassuring. He was very masculine, and her stomach fluttered as she imagined how his body would feel above hers. Her attraction to him was immediate, and she wondered what it would be like to kiss him. She didn’t have to wonder long—he leaned in and placed his lips on hers, slowly sucking her bottom lip into his mouth. His tongue slid past her lips and teeth as he tasted her mouth. Her tongue tentatively twined with his. He tasted of yeast, and she idly wondered how much beer he drank on any given day. With a smooth move, he sucked on her tongue. Without warning, she became wet with desire.

It had been too long—way too long—since she’d felt passion. Of their own will, her hands slid under his shirt until she was touching his warm skin. He was smooth and slim, and with her fingertips she traced the long lean section of his torso. Needing to see him, she pulled his shirt over his head. His shorts hung low on his hips, so low she could see his pelvic muscles and the light trail of hair that led into his shorts. Had she thought him cute? A colossal understatement. He was bronzed male perfection. She was entranced, and in response, her body beckoned for his touch.

She wasn’t the only one admiring and touching. His hands caressed her breasts through her shirt until he growled and tugged it out of her shorts, pulling it over her head. She immediately reached around to her back and unclasped her bra, sliding it down her arms. Her nipples hardened at the waft of cool air from the vent behind her. His head lowered and he sucked a nipple into his mouth, rolling it between his teeth. She moaned low in the back of her throat, holding tight to his shoulders. He laved and sucked until she thought her knees would give out, and then he moved to the other nipple and repeated the pattern.

Unwilling to stand motionless and wanting to touch more of him, Jessie cupped the erection clearly visible through his shorts. God, she didn’t think the man was wearing underwear. She gasped her surprise and pleasure. He pulled back from her and looked to where her hand was stroking him. He cocked his head and rocked against her. When he looked back at her face, a slow and very masculine smile stretched his lips. Immediately they were attacking each other’s shorts—unbuttoning, unzipping, sliding and pulling. Clothes and shoes went flying. His hands fisted in her hair, tugging, and it all came down. He planted his face in it before he rubbed his stubble across her jaw and neck, down to her chest.

Goose bumps ran down her arms as his hands tantalized the nerve endings in her scalp. The soft abrasion from his facial hair had her sex on fire.

They stood naked in her office. Anyone could come in, and the possibility made Jessie burn with excitement. She shifted, wanting to see him again, but his hands weren’t idle and he slid one down her body until he pressed his palm against her damp curls. He moaned when he discovered her wetness. One finger slid through her folds, and he pushed inside. The fingers of his other hand were in her mouth, mimicking the movement from below. She couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, could only feel. She sucked at the fingers in her mouth, rocked against the one insider her body, the one making her needy, the one that had her body clenching, craving release.

He tugged his finger free of her but before she could complain, he’d pressed in again, using two fingers. God, he was invading her body, filling her, and she loved it. He unerringly found the spot where all sensation was bundled and curled his fingers into it. Jessie’s head jerked back, and she released a broken cry. Wanting to come, needing exactly what he promised with his fingers, she tightened the hands holding him, one at his shoulder and the other at his hip. She wanted to wrap her legs around him, but they stood in the middle of the room and his hands were busy; she’d have no support. Still moving with him, still tasting his fingers, she lifted one foot to the nearby chair, opening herself to him. They pressed against each other at the same time and both moaned. Jessie tipped her head, needing to see his fingers pumping into her. Then she looked up. He slid his fingers from her mouth and ran his thumb across her lip. She bit down and began to tremble. His eyes never left hers as he used his palm to rub her clit. At the first touch, she erupted onto his hand. Logan massaged her until the last wave wracked her body and then he removed his fingers and placed them in her mouth. She licked her taste from his fingers.

Jessie reached for his cock. Breathless, her heart still racing, she said, “I need you.” She didn’t recognize her voice, a voice laced with sultry, deep need.

Logan picked her up and set her on the edge of the desk, and she placed her hands behind her for support. His hands slid across her warmed skin to the backs of her thighs, lifting them to bend her knees and push her hips back. He openly stared at her sex, on display for him and swelling from the exposure of his gaze and the feel of the cool air. She opened even wider, wanting him as wild as he made her. This lust-filled Jessie, a stranger to her, couldn’t even get embarrassed. She felt only need; his blatant perusal had turned her into a savage. She watched as he rubbed the head of his cock through her wet core and positioned himself at her entrance. His eyes connected with hers as he pushed in slowly, so very slowly, allowing her to adjust to his thick cock. He pressed home, never turning his attention from her face. Once he’d seated himself fully, Jessie nodded. His hands rode up her long legs, holding the backs of her thighs as he pulled back and then pistoned into her liquid heat again and again. He reached again for her clit and massaged it until she convulsed around him. When she could think again, she felt the increased warmth and moisture from his release, but all sound had combined into a dull din, and she was slow to gather her senses.

As soon as the haze from her climax cleared, Jessie was ashamed at what she’d done. She couldn’t believe what had come over her. She had practically thrown herself at Logan. No, not practically. She had literally thrown herself at him and demanded sex. Five years she’d held out because of her commitment to Brandon. Five years and now she’d taken a man on the very desk Brandon had used for payroll. Jessie threw her gaze heavenward and whispered, “Forgive me, Brandon.”

Logan, emptying inside of her, said, “What’s that?”

Jessie swallowed the frog in her throat. “Nothing.”

The worst part was that she’d enjoyed what had just happened, though
enjoy
didn’t quite capture what she felt.

And then there was Alan. As soon as she remembered him, she was overwrought with guilt. She’d started seeing Alan so that Michael would have an upstanding male influence in his life. Michael needed that. Still, he wasn’t bonding well with Alan, and that worried her. Jessie wondered if her little boy would warm to any man. She pushed her fist into her chest as it tightened with guilt. She willed herself to hold back tears as a little twinge of spite shot up her spine. She’d tried to be intimate with Alan, but he’d told her he didn’t believe in sex before marriage. Maybe if he had, she wouldn’t have been so crazed with attraction for a handsome veritable stranger.

She’d just had sex with her new business partner.

How were they going to work together after that?

2

L
ogan had his
answer: she didn’t hold herself back in the sack, or in this case, on the desk.

A knock at the door and a voice calling her name had Jessie jumping up and off the desk.

“Shit!” she whispered.

She hurried over to the door. “Just a minute please,” she said as she latched the knob, effectively locking it. She scooped up his clothes and threw them at Logan. She was back in hers in a flash and had her head bent over, braiding her hair into submission, before he’d done more than pull on his shorts. “Please, you can’t say a word about this to anyone,” she pleaded.

Logan shook his head. “Hadn’t planned on it.”

She was frantic and erratic with her movements as she harshly whispered, “Hurry up!”

“Who’s at the door?” He pulled on his shirt and slipped into his sandals.

She applied pins to her hair. “Just my… um… my accountant.”

Logan’s eyes tightened. He knew from her reaction that the man on the other side of the door did more than crunch numbers. What was she playing at? She’d made the first move, staring at his lips the way she had. He’d only intended to kiss her but then she’d gone and slid her soft feminine hands up his shirt and he’d lost all control.

She whispered, “Sit in that chair.” She grabbed some papers off the desk and made her way to the door. She opened it and stepped out. After seeing that the coast was clear, she went back and sat at her desk chair, leaving the door fully open. Logan wondered what the hell was going on.

Jessie cleared her throat and straightened the stack of papers in her hands. “Okay, so you’re going to supply us with beer. The taps haven’t been in use since we bought the restaurant, so you might want to check them.”

Logan already knew about the taps and had planned to do just that. So she was back to being all business. And not a word about what had just happened. Interesting. “I’ll have the taps drained and filled to check for leaks. Any repairs that are needed will be on me.”

“Okay, well… you’ll just do your thing, I guess.”

She stood and extended her hand. Was she serious?

Logan quirked a brow. “Uh, I don’t think so.”

Jessie’s eyes fixed on him and narrowed. A man Logan assumed was the accountant walked into the office. He placed his arm around Jessie’s shoulders and kissed her chastely on the cheek. She was still glaring at Logan.

The man extended his hand to Logan. “Hi there. Alan Smith.”

God, even his name was boring.

Logan took his hand and offered, “Nice to meet you. Logan St. Martin.”

“You’ve got the brewery in town.”

“That’s right. And you…”

“I’m La Bella Luna’s accountant.”

“The accountant. Then you should know that I’ll be working closely with Jessie to obtain a liquor license for La Bella Luna and to set up my brews on tap.”

Alan’s smile didn’t reach his eyes. “That’s nice.” He looked to Jessie, forcing her to speak up.

“Yeah, it’s going to be good for business and give us a new market to expand into.”

Logan smiled at her use of his words. She was a quick learner.

Alan said, “A new market. You mean beer drinkers.”

Logan nodded. “Yes, beer drinkers. The profit from draft alone could surpass food sales. Since you’re her accountant, I don’t have to tell you what that would mean for this place.” Logan wanted to add
It’s my come that’s seeping from her weeping channel
, but he settled for a slight smile.

Alan clasped his hands together. “Yes, that would help.”

Logan aggressively added, “It’ll do more than help; it will save this restaurant.” He started to walk out and turned back to say, “I’ll be back later to check out those taps.” Jessie’s gaze was burning a hole through the floor.

As he drove to the brewery, Logan’s thoughts were consumed by the woman he’d just taken in the back office of La Bella Luna. He had felt what she felt—the desire to have her had been too strong to ignore and he guessed that was why she’d given herself so fully to him. He didn’t suspect she did things like that very often. He’d seen her, after orgasm, when her eyes filled with liquid and she pressed her fist into her chest. He’d wanted to ask her about it but then they’d been interrupted.

She was seeing this Alan Smith guy, a dud. And he’d been judgmental when Logan mentioned the beer-drinking clientele. He couldn’t understand why a woman like Jessie would be involved with a guy so uninspiring. His hair was receding, and his clothes were boring. He was Mr. All Business in khaki pants, Polo shirt, and comfortable rubber-soled dress shoes. Yet looks aside, he was all wrong for her. Given their chasteness with one another, he knew they’d not been intimate. As soon as he’d entered the room, her fire had died.

If she were Logan’s, he would want her always aroused, always throbbing and wet for him.

≈

That afternoon Logan returned to La Bella Luna, as promised, to inspect the unused taps at the bar. He also brought paperwork for Jessie to fill out to get the ball rolling on the liquor license.

Seated at one of the tables was a chestnut-headed boy with bright blue eyes. As Logan walked around behind the bar, the boy moved to one of the bar stools, using the rungs to crawl up to the seat.

He held a Harry Potter coloring book and crayons.

Logan turned on the water and squeezed the pressure from one of the hoses. A low hiss and pop released and the suction started.

He looked up. Blue eyes met his.

“Whatcha doin’?”

“I’m checking out these taps. What are you coloring there?” Logan picked up the coloring book to look at the cover and then set it back in front of the boy. “Do you like magic?”

The child nodded vigorously and kept his eyes on Logan as he made his way around from behind the bar.

“Hmm, you’ve got the big box of colors.”

The boy smiled. “There are one hundred and twenty in this box.”

“Whoa, it’s a wonder you can carry it.”

“I’m real strong. See?” He flexed his biceps, and Logan reached over to squeeze the muscle.

“Ouch! Be careful where you point that thing.”

The boy squealed with laughter as he beamed up at Logan. Logan waved his open hand in front of the child’s face. “I’m a magic man. Did you know that?”

The child never took his eyes from Logan, but he shook his head. “Nuh-uh.”

“Well, I am. What’s your name, partner?”

“Michael.”

“Well, Michael, prepare to be amazed by Logan the Magnificent.”

“Yay!”

“I’m going to turn around, and I want you to pick one of the hundred and twenty crayons from your box and place it in my hand. Don’t let me see it. Ready?”

Michael was bouncing up and down on his seat. “Ready!”

“Okay.” Logan placed his hands behind his back and turned around, presenting his palms to the boy. “Go!”

“No peeking.”

“No peeking, I promise.”

Logan felt the crayon drop into his right palm, and he pivoted slowly back to Michael, careful to keep his right hand behind him. While he turned, he used the nail on his left thumb to scrape some of the wax from the crayon. With the crayon still enclosed in his right palm, he brought his left hand out from behind his back. Spreading his hand wide he waved it slowly in front of Michael’s face.

“Hmm, I’m getting a good energy from you.” As Logan waved, he saw that the wax under his fingernail was green. “Yes, I think you like things that are the color of grass and frogs. I’m thinking your color is green.”

Michael squealed with delight and leaped from the stool and into Logan’s arms. A giggle escaped Logan’s lips. He loved kids. That’s why he chose pediatrics for his residency. With Michael in his arms he realized he missed interacting with children.

Logan twirled the boy around, getting him to squeal again. They stopped when Logan saw Jessie heading toward them from the office area.

As soon as Michael saw Jessie, he said, “Mommy, guess what?”

“What’s that, baby?”

Michael patted Logan’s chest. “He’s a magic man.”

Jessie gasped and slapped her palm to her own chest. “No way!”

“He is Logan the Magnificent.”

Logan looked from Jessie to Michael. “Is this pretty lady your mommy?”

Michael nodded. Logan looked to Jessie and said, “Great kid.”

“Thanks.”

He transferred Michael into her arms. They exchanged a kiss on the lips and Michael told her all about his big art project at school. Logan felt as if he was intruding on a private moment but he couldn’t help staring. He’d longed for that kind of bond after his parents had died. It was clear Jessie’s connection with her son was bone deep. In that moment he knew she’d stop at nothing to see his every need met.

“Your grandmother is here to take you home, buddy,” Jessie told Michael.

“But I wanna stay here with Logan.”

Logan looked to the little fella and said, “I’ll tell you what—will you be here tomorrow?”

Michael nodded.

“How about I meet you here again after school and show you another magic trick?”

Michael stretched out his arms, leaning away from Jessie, and Logan hefted him into his arms again.

“Okay!” Michael hugged Logan’s neck and Logan patted Michael’s back before putting him down.

Logan busied himself organizing the application papers at the bar while Jessie walked her son out to meet his grandmother. Jessie’s attitude toward the accountant made sense to Logan now; she saw Mr. Khaki Pants as a role model for Michael.

When she returned to the bar and got herself a soda, Logan started his inquisition.

“Brandon never met his son?”

She shook her head.

Logan’s lips tightened as he thought about all the responsibilities forced on this woman at such a young age. What impressed him most was how she was managing it all. As he looked around the restaurant he wouldn’t classify it as busy, but there was a stream of probably repeat customers who seemed to know the staff by name. The restaurant was warm and intimate like the woman in charge.

Logan watched Jessie sip her soda and roll silverware into napkins. He was curious to know her relationship status. “What’s the story with you and Alan?”

Jessie shrugged. “Alan’s good to have around. Michael needs a man to watch, to emulate.”

Bingo, Logan thought. “So you want Michael to be an aging accountant with no idea of how to appreciate a woman.”

Jessie frowned. “I want Michael to be an upstanding citizen within the community.”

Logan’s brow rose, and he pushed the forms across the bar in her direction “I’ve taken the liberty of filling out these forms for your liquor license.” He pointed toward the bottom of the page. “Sign here.”

He drummed his fingers on the bar while she signed. Then he leaned toward Jessie.

“An upstanding citizen? There are a lot of us in town. And most without the stick up the ass your accountant is walking around with.”

“Logan! I’ve got customers.”

“Are you suggesting it has never crossed your mind?

Jessie focused on the fingers she rubbed across the slick surface of the bar. I know Alan isn’t super cool and fun, but he is loyal and consistent.

Logan held his arms out to his sides. “I’m loyal and consistent but I don’t walk around like I’m constipated.”

Jessie’s lip quirked as she attempted to hold back a giggle. “That may well be true but you do own a bar and you don’t take yourself seriously.”

Logan pressed his hands into the counter, “I might add that my
bar
is a brewery. A successful one, and since when is it a crime to have a sense of humor?” Why was he pressing her on this issue? Did he really want to take Alan’s place as role model to her child and her lover? He watched her sensual movements as she folded another napkin in place and took a sip of soda from her glass. Her long slender neck was exposed as she swallowed down the liquid. She licked the residual drops from her thick lips. Yeah, he definitely wanted a chance at anything she had to offer.

“It isn’t a crime to be funny, but I have a son to think about. Alan may not be fun, he may not do magic tricks, but he is stable. He’s an accountant, which means a steady job, and he’s always on time.”

Logan leaned his head closer to hers so nobody would hear him say, “While those are great qualities in an employee, I don’t think they’re necessarily the best for a good father, a good husband, or a good lover.”

Her eyes darkened immediately to a steel blue, and he knew she was thinking about the sex they’d had in her office. Good.
He
was certainly thinking about it, wanting to repeat it. God, it had only been a few hours and he already needed more of her and as soon as possible.

Jessie sighed. Her hands clenched before she pulled them off the bar, hiding them from him, and her brows furrowed. “You think you know so much about me. You come in here with your fancy words and your handsome face and start taking over and intruding on my business and my body, knowing how desperate I am, pushing and shoving and making me feel that I need you so much that I let
you
—an outsider—force his way in. Do you know how that makes me feel?” She glared into his eyes. “Can you just do your thing without making me feel even more inferior?”