Page 32 of Break the Barrier

“I can’t believe gentlemen like you still exist,” I say, takingthe hand that is offered to me and stepping down out of the truck.

“Well, we’re few and far between, unfortunately. I recommend holding on to the one you see,” he replies quickly, as if he’s thought about it before, and I turn my gaze to him, giving him a probably too-big smile.

He grins down at me and follows me up the steps to the second-floor landing where my door is.

The tension builds for me, and I wonder if he can feel it too.

I want to throw caution to the wind and invite him in, but something in my mind tells me to wait, to hold off on going quite that far just yet.

I don’t know whose benefit it’s for yet, either.

Reaching into my handbag, I grip my keys and pull them out. I turn to face Logan again, but he’s taking two steps forward. His left hand goes to my right hip, and his other hand grabs mine.

His eyes lock on mine, and I watch his chest move on a deep inhale. My eyes lock on his, and I pull him with me, my back hitting my door.

He continues to look down at me, his lips are so close to mine that I can feel his breath hitting my lips. So badly I want to arch into his chest, bringing us flush against each other, but I hold back.

For several long seconds, he stands there, half holding me and making my heart beat faster and faster the longer he waits.

“Logan,” I breathe out, wanting so desperately for him to be the one to make the first move.

“Thea, I’d really like to kiss you.” His words surprise me, and I open my eyes from where they fell slightly closed. I take inhis serious expression and can tell he’s having to physically hold himself back.

“Then kiss me,” I reply, and permission granted, he bends down and presses his lips to mine, taking my breath from me.

I feel his hand curve around my hip tighter, and his other lets go of my hand, reaching up to cup my jaw, holding me to him. He presses his lips to mine harder and more demanding, tilting my head and getting a better angle.

I groan when his tongue touches mine, and he takes that as a good, clear sign that I’m more than happy to be taking part in this little make-out session.

We move like this for several more seconds, me getting more and more worked up. My hands have moved up over his shoulders, my right hand curling into the hair at the back of his head.

His hair is ridiculously soft.

After another moment, he slows us down until he’s pecking at my lips, and I’m completely out of breath.

When I finally open my eyes, he’s smiling down at me like he knows every single thought that’s filtering through my head.

His hat is tilted up from where it got pushed out of our way.

For a moment, neither of us speaks. We just hang here in this tension-filled space, waiting for the bubble to be broken.

“That was worth every day I waited for you.”

His words make me melt right there on the spot, and it’s then that I realize our whole ploy, to make everyone think we’re dating for real, is no longer fake.

12

logan

I barely hadthe will to actually go to sleep last night, the end of the night running through my mind repeatedly until I had a problem I had to take care of.

But it wasn’t just that part. It was the whole date.

From the moment I picked her up and saw that fucking addictive blush on her skin to the moment I walked her to her door, and she pulled me to her, pushing me—with zero reluctance on my part—to kiss her, it was the best date of my life.

Lue noticed too.

“Why are you smiling so much?” she asks curiously from the passenger side seat. She has her backpack in her lap, her hair done in two neat rows of braids that her friends helped her do last night, and a smile on her face.