“If you weren’t disappearing all the time, maybe you’d know,” Chelsea smiled at him.
Hunter didn’t smile back. “But you know. So you can tell me.”
Xander laughed and pulled Chelsea tightly into his side. “Don’t let him bully you, sweetheart. If Luisa doesn’t want to know him, she doesn’t want to know him.”
“Oh she wants.” Hunter said. “She totally wants.”
Min looked at Chelsea’s face for her reaction. Chelsea was looking apologetic.
“She made me promise, sorry Hunter. And you know what she’s like, she’s restless.”
“It’s okay. You all know I’m going to track her down anyway. With or without your help.”
“Hunter wants to get to know one of Chelsea’s friends a little better,” Logan leaned close to keep her up to speed.
Min nodded, she’d gotten that. “But she’s not interested?”
Logan laughed. “Maybe, maybe not. Hunter will find out either way.”
“You bet I will,” Hunter lifted his glass to Min. “I find out everything.”
Did he?
“Ignore him,” Danielle said. “They all like to think they know it all.”
“Whereas you do?” scoffed Connor.
“Of course I don’t,” Danielle answered her brother. “I’m not half as arrogant as you guys.”
Min chuckled. Good for the kid sister. She wasn’t going to sit back all meek and be intimidated by her big, bad brothers. Unlike Min—when the step-siblings had started arriving, she’d been so intimidated she’d withdrawn into her shell. Speaking up had become impossible as she’d been compared to them time and time again—and found wanting.
But tonight? Tonight she’d joined in.
“You didn’t think I’d talk to them like that, did you?” She turned to Logan, asking under the cover of the others’ conversation.
“I’m not the one who thought you wouldn’t,” he said. “You talk back to me all the time.” He brushed his finger over her lips. “Mouthy, is what you are.”
She blinked. Was she?
Yes. With him she was. With him she was a different person from that quiet kid who’d been so unhappy. With him, she was herself.
And now, for the first time ever at this kind of social gathering, she relaxed—and talked. Sure she stuttered a couple times, but no one seemed to notice.
And surrounded by a bunch of overly-muscled men with sharp humor and two other women who could more than hold their own against them, it was a lesson in how-to. Watching the by-play between the boys was hilarious. It was obvious they’d known each other a long while. Loved each other.
A family.
Nothing like the family forced upon her—and her equally unhappy step-siblings. Not once, but twice. Both times failures. Both times worsening everything.
But now, she loved watching Logan in full entertainer flight. He was such fun to be around. She could see the amusement and affection in his friends’ eyes as they listened to him. And she could totally understand it.
Even when he was mercilessly teasing them.
Yeah, it was that x-factor, charisma, brilliance of personality thing that so few people had. One-in-the-room type stuff. He simply shone.
But as the meal progressed, he quietened too, the others picked up the conversational slack. His hand rested heavy on her thigh, his fingers caressing in a light, sensual rhythm.
It seemed he was always touching her in some way.
Just looking at him was a constant source of arousal, so for there to be contact as well? She was melting. And she was sure he knew it.
She shifted her leg, but he didn’t stop. She glanced at him and saw the small smile on his lips. He met her gaze and she saw that wicked mischief glinting within him.
Tease. But he was so damn good at it.
During dessert she tried to divert her focus. She had to stop staring at him like some love-struck teen, had to pull herself together. She glanced around the room, trying to notice other things—anything—about other people present. But it was impossible, she was so acutely aware of Logan and the way his fingers were slowly, inexorably working their way higher up her thigh—almost to that pulsing point between her legs.
She was just about to excuse herself for a recovery trip to the bathroom when she noticed a tall, loud man light up a cigarette over at the bar. One of the waitresses swiftly went over to him, but it was obvious the guy was going to give her some grief. Min glanced about for the maître d’.
“This is a no smoking bar.” The waitress spoke clearly, firmly. “If you want to light up, you need to take it outside.”
The people standing near him fell silent, watching.
“Snowing outside.” The man answered flippantly and took a long drag of the cigarette.
“There’s a sheltered area,” she replied coolly.
He blew the smoke out. “It’s freezing out there.”
“There are heat lamps.” Even icier.
“I like it in here.”
“But you can’t smoke in here.” The waitress stood firm.
“Oh yeah?” He strolled the last two paces up to her, towering over her in total arrogant, intimidating stance. “Because it’s gonna stunt my growth?”
Tilting her head back, the waitress looked the guy square in the eye, placed her palm boldly on the front of the man’s jeans—cupping his cock?
Min gasped.
The guy’s face lit up in total delight.
But then the waitress spoke. “You should be worried,” she said coolly, enunciating each word so clearly everyone in the room could hear her. “I’d stop smoking if I were you.”
The guy jerked back. Then took a threatening step forward. “Bitch.”
Connor stood, whipping his seat out with a noisy scrape. Min turned and looked at him—she wasn’t the only one who’d been watching that by-play?
He was across the room in a second. Logan tensed beside her. Hunter was already on his feet and three paces behind Connor who now stood at the waitress’ back.
“Take your cigarette outside,” Connor said. His voice dripped ice. And menace.
The giant smoker looked at Connor, taking a moment to assess. His eyes flickered to Hunter and then back to the waitress. His mean gaze narrowed. “Happily. It’s more frigid in here than it is out there.”
The waitress turned and faced Connor, her head high. “I didn’t need your help, but thanks anyway.” She turned on her spiked heel and walked away.
“Oh... yeaaaaah.” Hunter shook his hand like he’d been burned and grinned at Connor.
Min glanced at Logan to see how he was enjoying that piece of fierce womanhood. To her surprise he was looking at her and winking.
“Think that one caught Connor’s attention,” he murmured.
Min glanced at Connor. He was looking as fierce as the waitress had, watching that the jerk had left the bar altogether. But then the direction of his gaze shifted, to the woman now back behind the bar and serving patrons like the last ninety seconds had never happened. After a second, he turned and walked back to their table.
“I know her,” Dani said as he got within earshot.
Connor’s stabbing glance shot to his sister. “How?”
“Oh... I live local,” Dani answered in a ‘duh’ voice. “Bill loves having her behind the bar. Says she’s a ball-breaker.”
“Dani,” Connor said crisply. “So crude.”
Min felt Logan’s laughter.
“What?” Dani answered back. “It’s also true. You just saw how ferocious she is.”
“Just tell me who she is.” Connor snapped.
“Savannah Nash.”
“Nash?” Logan asked, sounding thunderstruck. “Con—”
“I’ll handle it.” A grim-faced Connor interrupted Logan. “Leave it to me. You’ve got your hands full with the engagement party.” He raised his hand in a half-wave. “Sorry to bail out early, but I have a few things I need to work on.”
“Sure.
”
“You come too, Dani. You shouldn’t really be here anyway. Not this late.”
Dani rolled her eyes and looked reluctant, but stood anyway. Her brother’s word was law?
Min watched them go. “He works hard, doesn’t he?”
“Every hour he can,” Logan nodded. “Unlike me.”
“You’re not as lazy as you like to make out.”