Page 19

Chapter

Nineteen

brIDGETTE

I woke up on the verge of screaming. Without thought, I reached out and gripped Logan’s hair, my fingers clenching tightly to the dark strands. It took a moment for my sleepy brain to comprehend what was happening to make my body feel so fucking good.

Logan’s head was between my legs, doing things with his tongue that I wouldn’t even be able to describe. It felt so amazing that it only took him mere seconds to have me writhing and shaking. Before the scream could die down around the room, Logan was already up, covering my body with his own. He easily slid inside me, making all the nerve endings light up from the friction.

“Good morning,” I whispered, my voice husky from sleep and all the screaming I just did.

He grinned down at me. “Good morning, little witch.”

I gasped as he rotated his hips and hit something inside me that I hadn’t known existed.

“Oh yes, do that again,” I demanded on a groan. Without hesitation, Logan did it again. And then again, and then again. He kept rolling his hips as he thrust inside me, making sure his cock brushed against the sensitive spot that was sending me into orbit. I hadn’t known what the big deal was about sex. I thought the hype was way overblown. But ever since Logan and I had become intimate, I quickly learned exactly what the big deal was.

Logan buried his face into my neck and shuddered. “You feel so fucking good, Bridgette.” He pulled back to stare into my eyes, and as he gazed down at me, it was almost as if he could see into my soul. “I’ll never get enough of you,” he rasped.

After several more thrusts, he groaned deep in his throat, and I could feel him expand inside of me, triggering my own release. I mourned the loss of him as he withdrew, and then I felt the wet heat hit my skin as he released on my belly. With a heaving chest, Logan rolled to my side.

“I want to wake up like that every morning,” I said, only half joking. If I actually did get that kind of wake-up call every day, I was reasonably certain I would lose all feeling in my legs—permanently.

“I’m sure that could be arranged,” he chuckled.

We both lay on our backs side-by-side as we caught our breath. Once his chest had stopped heaving, Logan sat up. “Stay where you are. I’ll be right back.” I didn’t have the energy to tell him I had no intentions of moving. He slid off the bed, and I summoned enough strength to turn my head, watching him as he sauntered into the bathroom. I couldn’t help but admire his back as the muscles there rippled and flexed. Yeah, I could definitely get used to seeing this every morning. The water turned on and ran for a few minutes before he came back with a warm washcloth. I felt my cheeks grow hot as he cleaned the mess he’d made all over my belly.

“I’m going to go make you a cup of coffee.” He looked down at me, the way I was starfished out on the bed, and chuckled. “You’re adorable, do you know that?” He placed his fist on the bed beside me and brushed his lips over mine in a gentle kiss. “All right, be right back,” he said.

I could hear moving around in the kitchen, and I must’ve dozed off again because the next thing I knew, he was placing a cup of coffee down on my nightstand.

“Here, you relax. Drink your coffee. I’m going to jump in the shower really quickly.”

I blinked up at him. “Do you need to go to work today?”

He shook his head. “I just need to grab my files. I want to go over the case again. I’d like to see if there’s anything that pops out at me. I also have other cases I’m working on as well that I need to check up on.”

I watched as he dug through his duffel bag. He pulled out a pair of jeans and a T-shirt and then carried them into the bathroom. I sat up and picked up my cup of coffee, and as I took a sip, I heard his phone ding on the nightstand. My eyes were immediately drawn in that direction. I couldn’t help but see the text that popped up with the name Kristy. I frowned as I read.

Kristy: You’re right. I’m sure Sammy would love to see you. We’re going to be at our favorite park if you want to see her. Be there in about 30 minutes.

I glanced at the bathroom and was just able to make out the shower from my position on the bed. I couldn’t help but wonder who Sammy was. I knew they didn’t have any children together, so maybe it was a niece? I shook my head and told myself not to overthink it.

A few minutes later, Logan reappeared, rubbing the towel on his head, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. I never thought a man could look so delicious just out of the shower. Even though he was already clean, I was half tempted to ask him to come back to bed.

“You got a text,” I said nonchalantly.

“Oh yeah?” he asked, and he picked up his phone. I watched as his eyes lit up as he read the message. I glanced away quickly as he turned to look at me, not wanting him to think I was spying or being suspicious. “I’m going to go ahead and run to my apartment and grab those files. I’ll be back in an hour or so, okay?”

I looked up at him, searching for anything on his face, but he gave nothing away. I didn’t know if he was hiding it from me, or maybe he thought it wasn’t significant enough to tell me. I just gave him a small smile and said, “Okay, Detective. I’ll see you soon then.”

He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on my lips. I could smell the mint from his toothpaste, and it reminded me that I needed to get up and get myself ready for the day.

“All right, little witch, I’ll see you soon.” With a wink, he picked up his shoes and pulled a pair of socks from his bag before walking out of the bedroom. I heard him rustle around in the living room a little bit, then his footsteps as they went down the stairs.

I jumped out of bed, ran into the bathroom, brushed my teeth as quickly as I could, then ran a brush through my hair. I looked at my reflection in the mirror and decided I was good enough. Going back into the bedroom, I threw on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt of my own and slipped on a pair of sandals. I heard his motorcycle engine rev outside and knew he was about to pull away, so I rushed to grab my keys.

I ran down the stairs just as the sound of his motorcycle began to fade. I opened the back door into the alley and watched as he turned left onto Main Street. I let the door close behind me and ran down the alley to the end, then looked down the street and watched as Logan stayed on Main Street. There was only one park in town going in that direction, so I knew exactly where he was heading.

Taking my time, I told myself that I was just going to walk to the coffee shop to pick up a muffin. I tried not to let my jealousy cloud my judgment as I walked straight past the coffee shop and headed to the park that was another few blocks down, but I could absolutely admit that I was letting my curiosity get the better of me.

Within just a few minutes, I could see the park up ahead. I didn’t want to hide my actions like I was doing something wrong, but I also didn’t want to interrupt whatever it was that Logan and Kristy were doing. I desperately needed to see for myself who Sammy was, so I crossed the road to enter the park. I found a bench to sit down on near the entrance.

It didn’t take long for me to figure out precisely who Sammy was and what Logan was doing. I watched him pull back his arm and throw a tennis ball. The bright orange coat of a golden retriever ruffled in the breeze as she raced across the grass to retrieve the ball. I watched with a smile on my face as Sammy slid past the ball with her tongue hanging out. Then, she quickly changed directions. As she ran back toward the ball, she scooped it up in her mouth without stopping and made a beeline straight for Logan.

When I glanced back at him, it was clear to see the love he had for this dog. I sat for a few minutes longer, watching as Logan threw the ball several more times. In between each throw, he knelt on the ground and gave her scratches behind the ears and pets on her tummy when she’d roll over. As Kristy stood back with her arms crossed over her chest, Sammy ate up the attention, and the bond was visible even as far away as I sat. It made me dislike Kristy a little bit more, knowing that she was keeping this dog from Logan.

I stood up to leave, having found all the information I needed. I gave them one last glance, then Logan turned his head and smiled directly at me. At that moment, as our gazes connected across the park, I knew that he’d known I was there all along. Of course he did, I thought to myself ruefully. My mate was a detective; what else did I expect from him? I smiled back, gave him a small wave, then turned around to leave.

The next time I came up to the coffee shop, I stopped, heading inside. The bell rang over the door as I entered, and I took a deep breath of the delicious scent of coffee brewing along with the baked goods that were stored behind the glass cabinets.

“Hey, Bridgette. Would you like your usual?” the barista greeted me as I walked up to the counter.

“No coffee for me, thanks. I already had a cup, and I don’t want the jitters today.” I smiled back. “But I would love some of your chocolate chip muffins.”

“All right, coming right up!”

I placed the cash down on the counter and waited, knowing that it wouldn’t take long. Within the next minute, she had my muffins bagged and ready for me. I took the paper bag from her and waved off my change. “Keep it. I’ll see you on Monday,” I called out as I walked toward the door.

My stomach was rumbling by the time I reached the shop and unlocked the red door after sliding my hand over the glossy surface. I locked the door behind me since I wasn’t going to open the shop that day. I stood there for a moment and took a look around. Seeing the usual suspects in places that they shouldn’t have been, I shook my head but decided to leave it alone for the moment.

“Hey, Mildred,” I called as I passed, then walked up to the register. No matter how much I considered it or searched around, I had yet to figure out why the wards had gone off the other night. It didn’t make any sense to me since no one had broken in, and it didn’t look like anything had been taken out. But the raging curiosity just wasn’t leaving me alone. Shaking my head with the same confusion I’d had since that night, I walked past the sleeping familiar on his cat tower and through to the back room, then up the stairs to my empty apartment.

I grabbed a napkin from the kitchen and then sat down on the couch. Reaching into the bag I placed on the coffee table, I pulled out one of the muffins, took a big bite, and moaned at the delicious, sweet goodness. I eyed the stack of books that were sitting on the coffee table in front of me, next to the pastry bag. I had gone through most of them the day before. Though I confirmed that the symbol I had believed meant power was, in fact, the correct symbol, I had not found anything about the other symbols, including which god the killer had been making the sacrifice to. Honestly, it didn’t even matter which god it would’ve been since the outcome was the same. The killer was stealing power from the witches, taking all their magic to make themselves stronger. But we really needed to know who was doing it and then figure out how to stop them.

As I finished my muffin, I got lost in the pages of the book that I was reading. Footsteps coming up the stairs had me looking up.

“Hey,” I said quietly and then frowned. “How did you get in the back door?”

He gave me a chastising look. “You didn’t lock it.”

I cringed and cocked my head to study him. He looked relaxed. “I’m sorry I spied on you.”

He shook his head. “Don’t be. I should’ve said where I was going.” He came to sit next to me on the couch. I noticed that he had a messenger bag with him and realized that was likely how he carried his folders while he was on his bike. He set the leather bag down, and I pointed out the white paper bag full of muffins.

“I got breakfast.”

“Great, I’m starved,” he replied and pulled out a muffin. He began peeling the paper away. “We got Sammy a year ago, right before I found out that she was cheating on me. In the divorce, she cried to the judge. She said that she needed Samantha. She said that it was going to be hard losing her husband and that taking her dog as well would be too much for her to cope with. I don’t know why, but the judge decided to let her keep our dog. Even though she was considered ours, Samantha was really my dog. I had done all the training. All the caring for her. I fed her, walked her, and played with her. Kristy somehow decided that keeping my dog would be the best way to hurt me. She wasn’t wrong.” He took a big bite of his muffin. “This is really good.”

I nodded. All the food at the coffee shop was absolutely delicious. “She’s trying to get your attention, you know?” I said softly.

He nodded as he swallowed. “I know. I don’t know if she will ever give Sammy back, but it was nice spending time with her today,” he said sadly.

I nodded. “I understand that.”

He looked at me as he pulled the stack of folders out of his messenger bag. “You have questions?” I shook my head and then paused and nodded. “I know you do,” he smiled.

I sighed. “I don’t want to be that person. I have no reason to be jealous. I know that you have a history that came before me, and you owe me no explanations.”

“Maybe not, little witch,” he reached for my hand and held it, giving it a little squeeze of reassurance. “But I’m willing to give them to you if you just ask.”

I looked down at my lap, not seeing the book that was resting there, and blinked my eyes a couple of times. Moisture had grown there without me realizing it. In a soft voice, I asked, “Do you still love her?”

I felt him gently take my chin and turn my head to face him. He swiped his thumb over my cheek. “I don’t,” he said decisively. “Whatever feelings I once had for that woman, she killed the moment she cheated. You have absolutely nothing to worry about when it comes to Kristy. I can’t force you to believe me,” he said as he studied my face. “What I’m telling you—what I need you to understand—is that when I commit to a person, I commit wholeheartedly. I don’t believe in cheating. You know as well as I do that faith is a powerful thing. You were given to me by fate, the gods, whatever the case might be, you’re mine, Bridgette.”

I nodded my head as a single tear broke through my lashes and rolled down my cheek. “And you’re mine?” I asked.

Leaning forward until his breath ghosted over my lips. "Abso-fucking-lutely." And then he kissed me hard and deep. When he broke the kiss, he rested his forehead against mine. “I’ll do better with communication. But I need you to do better with trusting me. Okay?”

I nodded in agreement. A languid feeling had swept over me at his kiss and his declaration. I could genuinely say that I was not worried about Kristy or him returning to her. I could sense that Logan was not a liar, that he wouldn’t lie about something so important.

He sat back, opened the top folder, and started scanning the contents, and I went back to the book. There were several potions my grandmother had written down that I wanted to try out.