“It was unfortunate that you stopped by when you did.”

“Yes, it definitely was.” I shook off the disgusting image of him under those women. “Although I was relieved to hear Oliver wasn’t home.” I scoffed.

“One thing you should know about me, Cassandra. I love my son. He is my first priority.” Logan leaned in further against the table, eyes locking with mine. “I may not have the best track record with women, but I treat them with respect and give them exactly what I can offer.”

“Which is?”

His tongue darted out once again, and a flutter of nerves sent a chill through my body.

“Anything they could ask for…in the bedroom.” His voice was slow, rough, and enticing.

I dropped my head, breaking eye contact, heat creeping up my cheeks. God, what I bet he could do in the bedroom. Heat pooled in places I’d never felt before. I cringed at my body’s response.

Looking back across at him, I gave a tight smile. “So, you have any other sisters or brothers?” I asked quickly changing the subject.

He nodded, his eyes lit with amusement.

“Care to expand?” I nudged.

“Not really.” He shrugged, still watching me with a slight smirk, as if he could read my mind. “Julia’s my only sister, and I have two brothers. Not much more to say.”

“Sibling issues?” I laughed. “I wouldn’t know anything about that.”

“You’re an only child, I take it?”

I nodded, resting my elbow on the table and titling my cheek into my palm. “So you bought the newspaper to give Julia for a graduation gift, and now a house. Kind of wish I had a brother.”

He chuckled once. There was something in the way he laughed that soothed me. As if it could heal me from the outside in.

“Well, she is my only sister. Plus, my brothers are not really around much to help her.”

“What about your parents?”

“They live in the city. My mother is oblivious to anything financial, and my father prefers us to earn our own money. He refused to pay for Julia’s schooling when she failed to achieve a scholarship.” His jaw ticked but smoothed a second later replaced with a hint of a forced smile pulled at his lips.

“I’m not good at understanding fathers.” I shifted in my seat and ran my fingers over the grains in the wood of the table.

“I heard about your father. Caleb told me he left when you were young.”

“It was a long time ago,” I grumbled, uncomfortable talking about it. “So what do your brothers do? They live in the city with your parents?”

“My older brother Lawrence is happily married and yes, he lives in the city. He has a son a year younger than Oliver.” He smiled to himself. “And Jax is…exploring life, having fun”

“Having fun?” I snickered, cocking an eyebrow.

“Yes.” His tone spoke volumes. Jax must have been the wild one in the family.

“Well, you’re lucky to have them.”

“Sometimes.” he grinned, teasingly.

A comfortable silence settled between us as we sat there. It was nice, Logan West was surprisingly a normal guy. Well, besides his deviant sexual behavior. Although in another life, I could see myself enjoying that side of him as well. But that wasn’t the case; we were night and day different in this one.

“Thanks again for checking on me, but you better getting going. I would hate to be the reason you left your realtor waiting.” I stood from my chair. It had been a pleasant conversation and I didn’t want to ruin it with heated stares and unnerving sexual tension.

“Of course, sweetheart. I’m glad you’re all right.” With a strained look in his eyes, he stood, and walked toward the door.

I followed, smiling as he turned back to face me. His hands were shoved deep in his pockets. He wasn’t ready to leave just yet; I could see it written all over his expression.

“You know, this is a lovely home you have.” He looked past me. “It has that female touch.”

“Well, I am a female.”

“That you are.” He grinned, licking his bottom lip before quickly shaking his head and looking away. “Would you mind doing me a huge favor?”

I raised my eyebrows, waiting for him to continue, wondering where this was going. Oh, the favors I could do for him. No, bad thoughts.

“I’ve never been too good at the whole house hunting thing to be honest. I mean, I know what I like, but women have very different tastes.”

“That they do.” I smiled, awkwardly, waiting for the favor.

“Would you mind…accompanying me today? There are four different houses I need to look at and I have no idea which would be best for a girl like my sister. You would be helping me quite a lot.”

I could tell he was trying and since he had not resorted to his old flirtatious head games I was nodding in agreement.

“Why not.” This was it, a real attempt at being…friends. “I must warn you though, I can be brutally critical.”

“I would expect nothing less from you, sweetheart.” His smirk lit his face with delight.

“Fine, give me twenty minutes to get dressed.”

“I’ll give you fifteen since the realtor has already been waiting for ten.” He chuckled when I sprinted out of the room.

Chapter Fifteen

Exposed

“Don’t look at me like that! I’m telling the truth, all of them were horrible choices.” I laughed, sitting across from Logan in a booth at a small diner outside of town.

“Come on, one of them has to be fit for Julia.” Logan sighed, picking up his menu. “My real estate taste can’t be that bad?”

I gave him a pointed look, covering my grin with my menu. “I’m trying to be gentle, I swear, but why would she want to live next to the golf course? And in an obvious bachelor pad?”

“Fine, that one may have been a bit masculine but—”

“A bit!” I scoffed, a muffled giggle slipping out. “There was a giant mirror on the ceiling in the master bedroom!”

“Fair point.” He smiled, lowering the shiny menu. “I do have to admit, I’m not keen on the idea of having a full sports club filled with men hanging out that close to my baby sister, but the third option… that had promise.” His smiled faded when I made a disagreeing face. “What was wrong with that house? It’s not far from a shopping plaza. Isn’t that what girls like?” he quickly added, hoping to sway me.

I let out a puff of air, offended, and placed the menu down in front of me. “Your sister will not be shopping at an Auto supply or The Military Surplus, I assure you.”

“There were a few women’s clothing stores,” he defended.

“Believe me, I’ve met Julia, she won’t be shopping at any of them either.”

“What do you suggest then, sweetheart?”

“Honestly, I think you need to keep looking. Why not ask Julia to pick it out herself? It’ll be her home after all.”

The waitress walked over wearing a bright-yellow apron and cheerful smile, pad in hand, ready for our order.

“Where’s the fun in that? I myself have always enjoyed surprises,” he said, smiling up at the young woman with a large, round pregnant belly.