“Sorry. I thought you’d be faster.”

I smirked. “I like taking my time.”

She laughed to herself and then climbed under the covers, but not until I got a good view of her in a pair of cotton shorts that were pretty low cut. Her belly button was exposed from the matching tank, and I noticed a tattoo in the shape of a sun going around it. Quickly, I turned off the light and climbed into my own bed, hoping I wasn’t going to snore so loud she wouldn’t get any rest. I’d been told it could get pretty annoying.

“If I snore let me know.”

“Same goes for me,” she replied.

“You snored the whole way here,” I taunted.

“Really?” Even in the dark room I could see enough to know she’d sat straight up in the bed.

“Don’t worry. It was cute.”

“Cute? How can snoring be cute? I’m so embarrassed.”

I wiped my face with my hands and chuckled lightly. “Really, it was nothing to worry about. We’ve got a long day ahead of us tomorrow. Try to sleep, Cassie.”

“Goodnight, Logan.”

“Yep, same to you.”

I don’t know about Cassie, but I waited a while before I allowed myself to fall asleep. I wanted her to go to bed first so she wouldn’t hear me. When I couldn’t possibly control my body, I let myself fall asleep.

I woke to the sound of someone cussing. A loud thump shot me out of bed. I turned on the light and jumped out of bed, looking around the room for the reason. Cassie was on the floor between her bed and the wall. She was sitting up holding the side of her face. “What the hell happened?”

“I forgot where I was and had to go to the bathroom. I climbed out of bed and smacked right into the wall.”

I walked over and crouched down in front of her, noticing her skin was already beginning to bruise. “You’re going to need some ice.”

“You should go back to sleep. I’ll be fine.”

I clenched my jaw while considering her theory. “No. I’m going to get you some ice. Are you able to stand? Do you need me to help you in the bathroom?”

“No. I can manage just fine, thanks for asking.” I waited until she got to her feet before giving her room to get by. When she entered the bathroom and closed the door I hurried out into the hallway to find the ice machine. When I came back into the room she was still in the locked lavatory. “You okay in there?” I asked.

The door unlocked and cracked open. “Yeah, just embarrassed.”

I located a rag and wrapped some ice inside of it before lifting it up to her head. “I’ve done it before. In my line of work you’ve got to go where the cases take you. I’ve been so tired I’ve forgotten where I was. It sucks.”

“Thanks for the ice.”

“Yeah, sure. It’s not a big deal.”

“You can go back to sleep now. I promise I won’t get out of mine again tonight. I bet you didn’t know I was such a klutz.”

“You’re fine, Cassie.”

I didn’t close my eyes when I got back in bed, not until the light turned out and I heard her climb on her mattress. The next time I woke the sun had came up. Cassie was sitting in bed watching television with the volume turned down. “What time is it?” I inquired.

“Seven. I didn’t want to wake you, especially after last night’s episode. You’re probably sorry you brought me along.”

“Nope. It’s nice having the company.”

When I got up from my bed to head into the bathroom, I heard her say something under her breath.

“I’m sorry, can you repeat that?”

She seemed shocked. “You weren’t supposed to hear me.”

“Woman, I have the hearing of a bat. Nothing gets past me.”

“I was wondering if you sleep in just your underwear every night.”

“Does it bother you? I’m covered.”

“You’re pretty awake from the looks of it.” She pointed toward my crotch, causing me to look down and see my stiff erection poking the fabric of my shorts like a sideways teepee.

“Oh, shit. It’s got a mind of it’s own in the morning. Sorry.”

She laughed. “It’s a natural reaction I suppose. Now you know why I didn’t want you to hear me.”

I left her with an amused grimace before entering the bathroom to get cleaned up. When I came out from showering and brushing my teeth, Cassie was dressed and ready to go. Her clothes were different from the ones she’d worn the night before, and her normally flowing dark brown hair was pulled up in a tight ponytail. “Do you need to use the bathroom before we head out?”

“I did everything before you woke up. I was just waiting to get dressed so I’d be comfortable. I wasn’t sure how long you needed to sleep before you were fully recuperated.”

“Are you hungry?”

“I could eat. Breakfast is my favorite meal.”

“Yeah, I noticed. We share a love for pancakes, remember?” We’d had pancakes several times since she’d been staying with us. I didn’t mind at all, since I too had a preference for them.

“Let’s get out of here then. Time is wasting.”

We found a diner off the main highway to eat at. We shared a pot of coffee and had a stack of pancakes each. Cassie was the first to finish. “I think I’ve gained ten pounds in the past week. If I keep eating like this I’ll weigh more than the cattle my father raises.”

It was hard to picture her overweight when she was still so tiny. I wondered if she took after her mother, and if her other siblings were as good looking as she was. Cassie definitely had good genes. Those eyes, so green and alluring, they did things to me, especially when we were in situations as this. In another life I could have seen myself doing everything possible to be with her; to know her completely. I knew once she was home there was a good chance I’d never see her again. It wouldn’t be worth it to spark something up that could never amount to anything.

Still, a man could dream about it, and that’s exactly what I’d done last night, with her in the bed beside mine. I wanted to feel bad about it, but something wouldn’t let me.  Then I got a great idea to make a pit stop and do something fun. At least I could fill her with fun times before I left her in shock and hating me. “Have you ever been skiing?”

“Sure. My uncle in Kentucky had a place in the mountains. I used to love going there with my cousins.”

“Then it’s settled. We’re hitting the slopes as soon as we make it to the other side of Colorado. Are you game?”

“Hell yeah.”

Knowing we were about to have some quality time together, aside from our long journey, made me feel better. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to her yet. The only problem with my new and exciting plan was the idea of having too much fun and never wanting it to end.

Chapter 25

Cassie

This guy was making it hard for me to focus on everything else going on in my life. He’d taken me in, provided me shelter, clothes, and food. Now he was taking me places, and going out of his way to make sure I was comfortable. I wanted to believe he was just being a good agent, but I wasn’t that naïve.

I may have had terrible luck with men, but I knew when one was interested more than being a friend. This trip was the perfect opportunity to get to know him on a more personal level, and I’m not talking about what color his sheets were at home. I already knew that from doing the laundry. I’m talking about the chemistry I felt when we were in certain circumstances together. I hadn’t noticed it before, back when I’d first come to live with him. It was more in the recent couple weeks. He’d been different. It’s what made me want to apologize and start over. I could tell it bothered him that I was still holding a grudge. He’d done his job. Yes, I’d lost my boyfriend because of my involvement with the authorities, but Brant was in the wrong, not Logan.

After leaving the diner, I decided to drive for a while. Logan seemed to be in a good mood. He moved his hands to the beat of the music and sang along to a few songs. Then we got on the conversation of favorite bands. From there we talked about our favorite movies, coming to learn we had similar tastes.