Logan paused at the sound of laughter and more than one voice coming from the other side of Marie’s door. He frowned, thinking how it sounded suspiciously like the kind of noise all those adolescent girls back at the mansion made.
He took a deep breath, trying to get rid of the frown as he knocked on the door. He heard footsteps, followed by the sound of a lock turning, and a chain being removed.
Marie’s face appeared. “Hey, sugar.”
Logan’s eyebrow quirked at the term, but he smiled. It sounded so right coming from her. “Hey, darlin’.”
He looked her up and down, feeling a deep growl of approval begin to rumble low inside him at the sight of her exposed skin. She wore a black singlet and little black shorts, knee-high striped socks covering her legs. Marie tilted her head, apparently trying to work out whether he was checking her out or not, brown eyes sparkling with curiosity. Logan made no attempt to hide the fact he’d been looking at her, showing her a toothy grin that made her cheeks start to turn pink.
A blonde girl appeared behind Marie, her blue eyes glittering with interest. “Ooh, who’s the fine looking wild man?”
Logan bit back a smirk at the sight of Marie’s face turning from pink to red, her eyes pleading him for help. He just crossed his arms over his chest, his hazel eyes watching her intently. He too was interested in hearing how she’d introduce him. A redhead joined the blonde, and a brunette stood up by the sofa, craning her neck to see what was going on.
Marie cleared her throat, waving in Logan’s direction. “Logan.” Her eyes darted from him to the other girls, then back to him. She looked down when she saw him watching her. “He’s… he’s my friend.”
The blonde looked him up and down. “Friend, huh?”
Logan raised an eyebrow. “You got a problem with that?”
The blonde’s eyes widened at the edge to his voice. She shook her head quickly, and then backed up a bit to let him in. Logan draped his arm around Marie’s shoulder, pulling her against him.
Logan smiled. “Am I too early?”
Marie shook her head as she bit her lip. “No, we were just finishing up.”
The redhead’s eyes were flicking between him and Marie, and Logan couldn’t help the look of amusement that crossed his face.
“You gonna introduce us, or what?”
Marie let out a little gasp. “Oh, sorry. Logan this is Cindy, Lisa and Helen.”
Typical, thought Logan. The blonde was Cindy; the meek little brunette over by the sofa had inclined her head when Marie said ‘Helen’, so the redhead had to be Lisa.
He looked down at Marie. “Study group?”
She nodded in assent, moving away from Logan to start packing up the books spread out on the coffee table.
The blonde had gotten over her fright, and was now narrowing her eyes at him. “So, Logan, what do you do?”
He saw Marie falter as she moved, but she didn’t turn around. “I teach.”
Three sets of eyebrows went up at this piece of information.
“Where?” The question had come from the redhead.
“A school in Westchester.”
The blonde, Cindy, looked skeptical. “Which school?”
Logan frowned, his patience wearing thin. “The School of Hard Knox.”
He heard Marie choke back a giggle. He couldn’t believe that the three girls were actually standing there giving what he had said serious thought, like they were trying to work out where the school was and if they knew anyone who went there. He resisted the urge to run a hand through his hair in frustration. He decided instead to watch Marie as she moved around the room, hips swaying, and hair swishing. Again, a low rumble was building up in his chest and he wondered where it came from. The reaction he was having to Marie was new. Must be the skin, he thought. All that beautiful, creamy, smooth skin.
He shook his head to clear his thoughts. They’d only just got back to being friends two days ago. This was not the time to be considering anything more.
He nodded at the three girls as they filed out, his ears pricking up at the blonde’s parting comment to Marie.
“You have to tell me everything tomorrow, okay? I want details.”
Logan raised his eyebrow at Marie, and that full on blush was back, her cheeks burning bright red as she shrugged.
She stood awkwardly by the door, not daring to move in closer towards him. “Ready to watch the game?”
Logan nodded, taking a seat on the sofa. Marie cleared her throat, busying herself with grabbing snacks from the kitchen. She handed him a bottle of beer as she sat down next to him.
“Thanks, darlin’.”
Marie smiled, her hand disappearing down the side of the sofa as she looked for the remote. “You’re welcome.”
Half an hour later Logan’s arm was around Marie’s waist as she leant back into him. Both were watching the hockey game, but Marie suddenly tensed as the hand that Logan had draped around her crept up under her tank top, his fingers making lazy circles on the bare skin of her stomach. She felt her body heat up, a blush blossoming on her face. Her breathing became shallow and she was barely aware of the little moan that slipped out of her mouth. She tilted her head back when Logan’s hand decided to venture a little higher up her body, stopping just shy of the underside of her breast. Her fingers gripped tightly to his other hand, and her eyes fluttered closed when she felt Logan’s lips brush the outer shell of her ear. She twisted awkwardly in his hold, trying to get her lips to his. Logan’s hands suddenly disappeared from under her shirt and out of her grip, and before her brain could figure out how, she was in his lap, his lips on hers.
Marie moaned, shifting so that she straddled him, her hands grabbing onto his shirt collar as his tongue skimmed her bottom lip. She made him wait a little longer before opening her mouth, Logan’s hands slipped up under the tank top, his palms sliding over her bare skin. His tongue slid over hers, taking in the taste of the Chinese food and ice tea that still lingered, and then he let out a growl as he identified the sweet, salty taste that was all Marie. Marie rose slightly, her hands moving to grip his hair as she pushed her tongue against his, looking to gain access to his mouth. She could make out the faint traces of cigar, pressing her body into his as he let her explore his mouth. One of Logan’s hands moved down to grip her ass, smiling into her mouth when he heard her moan of approval as he squeezed it.
Marie nipped his bottom lip as she broke the kiss, her eyes slightly out of focus when she looked at him. “That was new.”
Logan looked at her like he’d just realized what they were doing. He stood up, placing her gently on the ground before taking her arms from around his neck. “I’m sorry, but you were there with the skin and I just had to.”
Marie tugged on his t-shirt as he made a move towards the door. “Hey, don’t run away on me now. And don’t be sorry.” She smiled at him. “I’m not.”
Logan shook his head, a hand running through his hair. “I shouldn’t have done it.”
Marie now had both her hands on his shirt, but she knew if it really came down to it, she wouldn’t have the power to stop him if he chose to break away. “Logan, don’t sweat it. Seriously.”
He turned so that he was facing her, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry, I just… I don’t think I’m ready.”
Marie’s eyebrows rose slightly at his words. She never thought she’d hear them coming from Logan. Then again, she hadn’t really been expecting that kiss either. “That doesn’t mean you need to run away.”
Logan’s hand dropped from her shoulder. “You don’t understand. If I don’t leave now, I’ll never leave.”
Marie chewed on her bottom lip, looking at him with big, brown eyes. “And that’s bad?”
Logan sighed, pulling her into a hug, his chin resting on the top if her head. “Yeah it is. If I stay now, I don’t think it’ll be for the best.” He pulled back, lifting her chin so she’d meet his gaze. “I don’t want this to become something we’ll regret, and that’s what it’ll be if we start something now. It’s too soon.”
Marie frowned. “It doesn’t feel too soon.”
Logan gave her a half-smile. “That’s the problem.”
He kissed her forehead and stepped back from her, pulling her hands from his shirt. “I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
Marie wrapped her arms around her waist. “Yeah, right.”
Logan looked at her, a playful growl coming from his lips. “I will, promise.”
Marie looked down at the floor. “But you won’t be coming over, will you?”
She looked up when he had said nothing, shocked at the regret that was plainly written on his face.
“I can’t.”
Marie frowned, trying to find some anger to replace the sadness she was feeling. “Can’t or won’t?”
Logan turned away, heading to the door. “Pick one.”
Marie stood staring at the closed door, her fingers on her lips as she tried to work out what had just happened.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thanks to Jenn for the beta work.