Page 31

I follow behind him, happy that he understands exactly what I need and when I need it. Usually before I even know it myself.

Upstairs, the shower runs hot and steamy, the pressure better than the stream I've had the last few nights up at the cabin.

Logan and I stand under the spray, washing off the mountain air and pine needles from our weekend. His hands are gentle as he works shampoo through my hair, fingers massaging my scalp in a way that makes me melt against him.

"God, I missed this shower," I murmur, letting the warm water cascade over my shoulders.

"Mm. I missed having you naked and wet," he rumbles in my ear, his hard chest pressed against my back.

"You literally saw me naked and wet this morning."

"That was different. That was cold mountain torture."

I laugh, tilting my head back against his shoulder. "Poor baby."

His hands slide down my sides, working the soap into my skin until I feel his rapidly hardening cock pressing against my ass.

I reach behind me, finding him already deliciously hard. My fingers wrap around his thick length, feeling the silky-smooth skin stretched over steel.

He's hot in my hand, pulsing with each beat of his heart. The water cascades around us as I stroke him from base to tip, my palm gliding easily over his shaft as his hands slide over my breasts with silky, soapy palms.

"I love how you feel," I whisper, my voice nearly lost in the steam.

Logan groans, his hips pushing forward into my grip. I run my thumb over the sensitive head, feeling the slight ridge and the velvet-soft skin there.

"Emma," he breathes against my wet hair.

I tighten my grip just enough to make him gasp, loving how responsive he is to my touch.

"You like that?" I ask, twisting my wrist slightly on the upstroke, feeling him throb against my palm.

His answer comes as a deep, primal sound from his chest, his hands gripping my hips tighter. I continue my slow exploration as the shower beats down on us, hot water streaming between our bodies.

His breathing grows ragged against my ear, and I can feel the tension building in him with each stroke.

"Fuck, Emma. Let me show you just how much I like it," he growls playfully.

Before I can respond, he spins me around and lifts me, pinning me against the shower wall. Water streams between us as he captures my mouth in a kiss that's all heat and promise.

"Logan," I gasp as his lips move to my throat. "Shouldn't we be talking about Arena Day logistics—"

"Later." His hands grip my thighs, spreading them wider as he kneels before me.

"The setup for the story corner needs to be—oh fuck!"

His mouth finds my clit, and every coherent thought dissolves. I bite my lip to keep from screaming as his tongue works magic between my legs.

The shower streams down around us as he eats me out like a man starved, determined and thorough, until I'm coming apart against the shower wall. My fingers fist in his wet hair, my hips moving to make my pussy grind against his mouth.

Before I can catch my breath, he's standing, lifting me again and pressing me against the tiled wall. I feel the head of his cock at my entrance, and then he's pushing inside, filling me with a vicious, powerful thrust that makes me scream.

"Now we can talk logistics," he pants against my ear, not moving.

"Logan… Oh!" I try to sound annoyed, but it comes out as a moan when he shifts his hips.

I barely have time to catch my breath before Logan's spinning me around, my palms flat against the slick shower wall. The water beats down on my back, steam rising around us as his large hands grip my hips.

"Bend over," he growls, his voice a rough command that sends shivers racing down my spine.

I arch my back, pushing my ass toward him, feeling utterly exposed and desperately wanting. His fingers dig into my flesh, possessive and hungry.

When he finally slides home in one long, deep stroke, I gasp, my fingers scrambling for purchase against the wet tiles.

"Fuck, Emma," he groans, his hips flush against my ass. "You feel so good around me."

Just as I'm adjusting to his fierce pace, his hand leaves my hip. The sharp crack of his palm against my ass echoes in the shower, followed immediately by a burst of heat that makes me cry out from the pleasure burning into my skin.

"Oh god!" The sting blooms across my skin, somehow intensifying the pleasure of him inside me.

"You like that?" His voice is rough velvet in my ear as his cock drives deeper.

"Yes," I gasp, pushing back against him, silently begging for more.

His answer is another smack, slightly harder this time, the impact sending a jolt through my entire body. My muscles clench around him, drawing a deep groan from his chest.

"Fuck, do that again," he commands, his rhythm faltering momentarily.

The next slap lands on my other cheek, the sting balanced now, my skin tingling and hot beneath the shower spray.

Logan's pace increases, his thrusts growing more urgent as his hand alternates between caressing and spanking my ass.

Each strike sends a shockwave of sensation straight to my core, the line between pain and pleasure blurring until I can't tell where one ends and the other begins.

My moans echo off the bathroom walls as Logan fucks me harder, the gentle sting of his palm against my wet skin driving me closer to the edge.

"Tell me about the story corner," he says, pulling out slowly and then slamming back in.

I cry out, my nails digging into his shoulders. "It's... fuck... it's going to be in the back corner… fuck… of the arena café space."

He rewards me with another deep thrust and a spank of my ass.

"And the hot chocolate station?"

"Near the entrance, so—oh God, right there—so kids can get drinks first."

He sets a rhythm that has me babbling about bookmarks and jerseys between gasps and moans. It's ridiculous and hot and perfectly us.

When we finally come apart together, water still streaming over our flushed skin, I rest my forehead against his, breathing hard.

"Fuck, Logan. Best planning session ever," I pant.

Logan chuckles, pressing a soft kiss to my lips. "We should do all our meetings like this."

Afterward, we dry off and collapse onto my bed, my ass still tingling. I trace patterns on Logan's chest, my mind drifting to Arena Day.

With Clara gone and Summit Café sold, I really am Iron Ridge's only coffee option now. All those customers who've been split between us will be looking at me.

At Chapter & Grind.

At everything I've built.

The community program has already shown that Logan and I work magic together. The promotional video, the charity festival, the connection we've built with the town.

It's all led to this.

Arena Day is my chance to prove that Chapter & Grind isn't just a cute coffee shop. It's the heart of something bigger. Something lasting.

And with Logan beside me, loving me, believing in me... for the first time, everything I've ever dreamed of feels within reach.

My café. My business. My future with him.

Which means, for the first time in my life, I have something worth fighting for.

But also… something I could actually lose if the trade rumors are true.