Logan bursts out in laughter, unable to hold back his relief at Avery’s words and their utter appropriateness. Avery joins in with a few giggles of her own.
“It was a bit weird, yes.”
Avery slides into the passenger seat and looks over at him, a calmness exuding her.
“It’s so strange how she knew those things. I mean that definitely wasn’t a coincidence.”
“Not speaking as a doctor; yes, it was pretty fucking eerie how spot on she was.”
“Is it bad that it made me happy?”
He looks over at Avery’s beautiful face and he can’t help but think, mine. Logan grasps her hand and places his lips on the back in a soft kiss.
“I can’t fucking wait to be married to you, too,” Logan says as he gazes across the console mentally replaying every word the woman spoke.
You’re the air she needs to breathe; you’re what keeps her alive. She’ll be the reason you live, and you’re what brought her to life.
***
AVERY TAPS HER FINGERS nervously on the steering wheel of her car. She’s parked on the street, two houses down from her father’s. She had hoped that he wouldn’t be home, but the two cars in the driveway give the impression that luck is not on her side.
Trying to calm her nerves, she takes a few breaths, closes her eyes, and leans her head back against the headrest. She thinks back to her night with Logan.
When they arrived in Carson, Logan took her to his house after she agreed to stay with him for the night. They made stir-fry and stayed up watching a football game. They never left each other’s side while they talked about random things, like what school was like when they were kids and what she thought of Carson.
After the game, Logan took her back to his bedroom where he feasted on her body as if he were a starving man and she was his favorite meal. His mouth touched every part of her skin and his tongue left wet paths that sizzled beneath the surface. He brought her to orgasm twice with his fingers and tongue before he penetrated her body with his erection.
God, he was marvelous.
The way he would speed up until he knew she was getting close, then he would slow down, prolonging their coming together. They couldn’t get enough of each other. It was like being a part of this magnetic field that only felt complete when it met its other half. And she truly believed Logan was her other half. As much as she loved Nick and Declan, she never had this connection with them - this all-consuming need to be with them.
This morning they talked about the woman from the bakery and laughed at her pronouncement, but she couldn’t stop secretly hoping what the woman said was true. Everything she surmised about their pasts was correct, so how could she be wrong about their future?
Logan made love to Avery one last time on his kitchen counter, while she was making them breakfast. It was passionate, sultry, and steamy; a combination Avery couldn’t get enough of, and apparently, Logan couldn’t either.
He brought her back to the clinic so that she could pick up her car, then Avery returned to her apartment after promising to head to Logan’s after her visit with her father.
Avery opens her eyes and takes a deep breath, thinking back to the words Logan whispered to her before she left. The most calming statement he could have uttered.
“Avery, there is nothing about you not to love.”
Putting the car back into drive, she steers the vehicle into the driveway and parks it behind a new red pickup truck. She grabs the cupcake box and exits the vehicle, shuffling her feet as she ascends the brick stairs.
Before ringing the doorbell she gazes up at the large two-story brick structure. The colonial style house is the largest in the neighborhood, taking the full plot on the cul-de-sac. But the size of the home isn’t what alarms her. It’s the fact that the home looks lived in, welcoming. There is a Duke flag hanging from the flagpole, a mix-match of flowers in the garden bed, worn paint on the front door, and six small handprints on a wooden board propped up against the house. Avery glances left and right taking in her fill of the large porch before pressing the button that could forever change her life.
Ringing the bell she waits patiently for someone to answer the door and after two minutes with no response, she presses the doorbell once more. Her anxiety level has skyrocketed at this point and she feels herself nervously rocking back and forth, tapping her fingers along the cupcake box. Feeling her hands start to sweat, she sits the box on a chair next to the door and wipes her palms on her black pants.
Avery presses the bell once more, as a defeated presence overcomes her emotions. As she takes a step back, intending to head toward her car, Avery hears the doorknob turn and she holds her breath, frozen in place.
She turns her attention to the brick porch as a woman with beautiful blonde hair the color of straw, cut into a medium length bob, answers the door. She is dressed smartly in a pale pink cardigan set that Avery is certain is made of cashmere and a pair of dark denim jeans with gold flats. The dark brown eyes nestled against her olive skin assess Avery kindly.
She smiles and asks, “I’m sorry we were out back and I didn’t hear the bell. Can I help you with something?”
“I...um...is there a Joseph here?” Avery whispers, her gaze still fixed on the ground, though she tries to make eye contact and peeks up from behind her lashes, anxiety fueling her nervousness further.
“There is. Was he expecting you?” she inquires, her eyes narrowing slightly in question of Avery’s intentions.
“He wasn’t. I’m….um….” Avery begins, then reaches into her pocket to retrieve the note she wrote with Logan this morning. “Could you just give this to him? I didn’t mean to barge into your day.”