Warmth. It seeped from Logan’s arm around her waist, right through her skin and into her heart. It was a warmth she’d been craving throughout the last week, ever since waking up in that hospital bed with hypothermia.
His thumb drew small circles against her ribs as Blake and Aidan spoke, sitting opposite them in a booth at The Grind.
She was still in shock about Lizzie. Never in her wildest imagination had she thought the woman’s emotions hadn’t been genuine.
Logan’s head lowered, his mouth brushing against her ear as he whispered, “Stop beating yourself up.”
She glanced at him, nodding. The man had been her everything over the last week. Not a day passed when she wasn’t grateful for him. “It’s hard.”
His hand tightened. “I know. It will take us all a while to recover from everything.”
Logan hadn’t said the words out loud, but she knew he was shouldering a large chunk of the guilt. Guilt for letting himself get shot. For not being able to protect her from the start.
She shuffled closer. More beautiful warmth.
The low thrum of the coffee machine pulled her attention to the counter. Customers buzzed around the shop, their chatter echoing through the space.
“I’m just going to talk to Courtney.” She leaned up, pressing a kiss to his lips before standing and walking across the room. She felt Logan’s eyes on her the entire way. That had become her norm. Any time he wasn’t by her side, he was watching.
She took a seat at the counter. She and Courtney had chatted a lot over the last few days. About Kieran. About her past. About what had happened on the beach.
And Courtney had spoken briefly about what happened here at The Grind, with Grace apologizing profusely for getting her entangled in it all.
Her friend’s spine straightened as she made coffees. Suddenly, she turned, hands on hips, eyes narrowed. “Grace, stop. I’m fine.”
Grace kept her voice gentle. “I know.”
She’d already told Courtney that she was here if she needed to talk to someone. The woman had been locked in the freezer with Nicole’s dead body for almost two hours before Aidan had found her. Nicole had been dead for over a week. The smell alone would have been unimaginable.
Now, Courtney gave her the same smile she’d been giving her since their rescue. The one that said, “Thank you for your concern but it’s not necessary.”
Guilt pressed on Grace’s chest. She just didn’t believe that Courtney was as “fine” as she claimed.
Her friend turned back to the coffee machine. “And having all those guys constantly checking on me in the hospital wasn’t so bad. I swear I saw jealousy flick across every nurse’s face.”
Grace smiled. Courtney wasn’t ready to really talk. But if the time came when she was, Grace would listen. “Well, I’m here for you, and I’m glad you’re safe.”
It could have been worse. So much worse. She only just suppressed the shiver of unease that threatened to snake up her spine.
Courtney walked over to Joey, handing him two coffees before returning to Grace. “It’s you that we should be worrying about. How are you doing?”
“Honestly, waking up and being told Kieran was dead…I was able to breathe my first easy breath in over eight years.”
Well, maybe not “easy”, not after becoming his victim again. But the relief had been overwhelming. It still was.
“And your dad?”
Grace swallowed. “Doctors want to keep him at the hospital a little longer for observation.” He’d been unconscious when Logan had woken and broken out of his restraints, but his heart was still beating. The hospital had confirmed lots of bruising and a few broken bones, but the worst was the fracture to his skull.
Courtney reached across the counter, taking Grace’s hand with her own. “But he’ll be okay?”
“He should make a full recovery.” Thank God.
He’d still been unconscious when Logan’s team found him. If Grace had been the one to find him, out cold, bleeding on the floor…
She breathed through the pain of what had happened to him.
He’d only been kidnapped the day before. Returning home from work when he was hit on the back of the head, knocked out cold.
His work noticed his absence and tried calling, but her father hadn’t been missing long enough for anyone to be overly worried.
Courtney squeezed her hand. “You and your dad are here, alive. Safe. If either of you need anything, even if it’s just coffee and croissants expedited to his room, you let me know.”
Grace smiled. “I’m sure he’ll take you up on that offer when I mention it.”
“Good. It will make me feel like I’m helping.”
“Thank you. You’ve been such a good friend to me since I arrived in Cradle Mountain. You, Logan, and his entire team have made me feel so welcome.”
Courtney smiled. “Does that mean you’re here to stay?”
“Yep. For as long as Logan will have me.”
Courtney squealed, clapping her hands. “Yay! The man is obsessed with you, so that’s obviously going to be forever.”
Sounded perfect to Grace.
When the door to the coffee shop opened, Courtney looked up, her cheeks immediately flushing. Grace didn’t need to turn around to know who had entered.
Jason.
To confirm her thoughts anyway, Grace glanced over her shoulder and, sure enough, all six and a half feet of the man were heading toward Logan’s booth.
He shot a quick look over to them, his gaze landing on Courtney before sending a wink her way.
Grace turned back to Courtney, noticing the red in her friend’s cheeks had deepened.
Cute.
Courtney was just grabbing for a cloth when she paused, letting out a little squeak. Her eyes glowed with excitement. “They’re here!”
Turning her head again, this time Grace saw a man and woman entering the shop. They held a big bag of what looked to be camera equipment.
Ah, it was time for the magazine photo shoot.
Grace wasn’t surprised to hear her friend had won Most Unique Coffee Shop in Idaho. She’d been expecting it. But she was definitely proud.
“How do I look?” Courtney placed her hands on her hips and turned from side to side.
“Amazing.” Her dress was bright pink with colorful polka dots, and the streaks in her hair looked even more fluorescent than normal.
Courtney’s smile widened. “Thanks. Time for me to dazzle!”
She watched her friend head down to the other end of the counter. Grace was barely alone for a second when a pair of large, muscular arms wrapped around her waist from behind. Warm breath brushed across her ear and neck, sending goose bumps racing along her skin.
“I think I should win an award too. For waiting so patiently over there.”
Grace chuckled, spinning around on her barstool and placing her hands on his shoulders. “Hm, I agree. How about a kiss as a prize?”
“How about ten?”
“I can do that.” She could do twenty.
Skimming her hands through his hair, she pulled his head down slowly, pressing her lips to his. Grace’s heart drummed against her ribs. It always did with Logan.
“Mm.” He eased back, but only a fraction. “I could kiss you all day.”
When his gaze dropped to the bandage on her neck, his jaw visibly tensed. The tension only lasted for a second before he seemingly forced himself to calm.
He’d been doing that for days. Fire blooming in his eyes before he had a chance to mask it.
Grace took his face in her hands, letting the warmth of his skin penetrate her limbs once again. “I love you, and I’m okay.”
Because of him. His strength. His courage. His love. She was okay.
Grace’s small hands on his cheeks brought him back to her. So did her words. She’d repeated that same sentence many times in the last few days. The woman knew he needed to hear them.
Kieran was dead. Grace was alive and safe. That’s what he had to focus on.
She kissed him again. Just like always, it reached a part of his soul that no one had ever touched.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to let you out of my sight again.” He was a step away from signing himself up as her lifelong bodyguard.
She tilted her head to the side, a small smile stretching her lips. God, he loved that smile. “Well, you’ll have to. Because I paid my deposit today.”
Some of the tension eased from his shoulders, a smile stretching his lips. “You did?”
“Mm-hm. You are currently looking at Cradle Mountain’s newest business owner. McKenna Counseling is one step closer to opening its doors.”
His hands tightened on her waist. It was official. She was staying in Cradle Mountain. Staying with him. “Are you sure this is what you want?”
“Logan Snyder, I love you. You are what I want. So if you’re here, I’m here.”
His eyes shuttered, forehead touching hers. “You have no idea what those words do to me. I love you, too, Grace. Thank you.”
Her fingers grazed the back of his neck. “Why are you thanking me?”
“For being so strong. For surviving. For loving me.”
He was grateful for everything.
This woman had given him a peace like he’d never felt before, making everything he’d gone through in life up to this point feel worth it. Because it had all led him here. To her. And this was exactly where he wanted to be.
