Positioning her feet on the floor and flexing her leg muscles as Clive had taught her, she lifted the tray in one smooth movement onto her shoulders. Then she blinked. “Wait, neon comes before argon. And Krypton comes before… Oh, dear.”
She steadied the tray and began to walk carefully toward her next table. She would have to take extra care with her drink trays tonight because she was obviously flustered. Otherwise, she never would’ve mixed up the order of noble gases in the periodic table. She forced herself to concentrate as she crossed the room, talking to herself as she walked. “Now where was I? Oh, yes, krypton, xenon, radon. Now the alkali metals. Lithium, sodium, potassium-”
“Looking good, Gracie girl,” Dee said with a wink as she passed her in the aisle between tables.
“You, too, Dee.” Grace grinned. She’d never had a friend like Dee before, someone who was smart and funny and so much fun to talk to. Grace’s closest friend in Minnesota was Phillippa, and while they had a good time at work together, Grace didn’t have many friends outside of the lab. Not a friend like Dee, anyway. She hadn’t known her long but already felt so close to her.
Grace didn’t know what she’d do without Dee, once she went back to Minnesota. They could email, of course, but that wasn’t the same. The thought depressed her enough that she had to put it out of her mind. For now, she would think positively. She was here on the island because of the spores, of course, but Dee was near the top of her list of best reasons to come back to Alleria someday soon.
Grace made it to her customers’ table and back to the bar before she realized she’d forgotten to name the rest of the alkalis.
What was wrong with her? It was a good thing she’d gone back to her room to rest for a few hours that afternoon. Lord knows how much more loopy she’d be tonight without that nap. She vowed never to overindulge again, knowing what a mess it made of her memorization skills, among other things.
A low-level buzz stirred its way through her system and Grace turned around to see what was causing it.
Logan.
Glancing around, she realized nobody else in the room was taking an interest in his presence but her. Where in the world had that buzz come from? She didn’t know, but her insides were tingling and the pale hairs on her arms were standing up.
He stood a few feet inside the doorway and stared at her with an intensity that nearly had her knees collapsing. As she gripped the edge of the bar, he jerked his chin toward the door. Did that mean he was leaving?
“I’ll take over your tables,” Dee whispered in Grace’s ear as she took hold of her drink tray. “Go.”
Her friend nudged her away from the bar and Grace stumbled toward the door where Logan stood waiting. The bar crowd became a vague shadow and the raucous laughter faded to a soft drone. All she saw was him.
Heart pounding, she met him at the door. Were his eyes always that compelling, she wondered. Or was tonight special? Was there something more in the way he looked at her? She saw the tension in his features and knew he was experiencing everything she was. The sexual pull between them was off the charts, no matter what periodic table she might use to try to define it.
But oddly, Grace had zero interest in quantifying anything that lay between them. The fact that their feelings for each other existed was enough. The look in Logan’s eyes said it all. He’d come for her. He’d meant what he said. He wasn’t setting her up for a fall or trying to fire her. He wanted her. And in that moment, all her earlier worries dissolved. She knew she was safe with him.
He took her hand and they strode out of the bar side by side. She gazed up at him and thought,
And if not, she would never let him know it.
Her scent enveloped him and fueled his craving for her. Logan had almost stayed away tonight, thinking she’d come up with some excuse to refuse him. But in the end, he had to see her. It didn’t mean anything.
It barely registered that some of his staff were watching him. He’d noticed Dee taking Grace’s tray, knew they were friends and he was grateful for it. As for the others, if his behavior stirred up any gossip among them, they would have to get over it.
As Grace walked toward him, he was pitifully glad he’d come. Her thin sarong was backlit by the lights of the bar and Logan could see the outline of her gorgeous legs as she sauntered toward him. His gaze was riveted to the apex of that silhouette, the subtle brush of those slender thighs as she moved closer, the curvaceous shape of her hips, the subtle rise and fall of her breasts that seemed to signal her own need.
She’d worn her dark red hair loose tonight and it fell in bouncing waves over her shoulders. He wanted to gather it in his hands and bury his face in those lustrous locks while he lost himself in her hot core.
It took every bit of control he had-control that slipped with every step they took together-not to lead her into the nearby utility room, pull off her bikini bottom, thrust himself inside her and quench this hunger. But the cold wall of a janitor’s closet wouldn’t do for their first time together. He intended to spend a long, long time savoring her- and for that, he wanted complete privacy. And a damn strong mattress.
They entered his suite and he wasted no time. As the door clicked closed, he flipped the lock, then turned and lifted her into his arms, giving in to the need to hold her again as he had the night before. With her pressed against him, he could recall all over again the feminine softness of her body skimming his hard chest.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and nestled her head against his shoulder as he moved quickly through the front salon and into the bedroom. Once there, he covered her mouth in a hot, devouring kiss that she met with equal fervor. Then he placed her gently on the bed and watched as her eyes searched his face and her arms reached out for him.
“Come to me,” she said. It was the first time she’d spoken since he’d grabbed her hand and led her out of the bar. Now, as he stared hungrily at her lips glistening wet from their kiss, he knew he was about to reach the end of his famous control.
Kneeling on the bed, he straddled her, took hold of both her hands and pulled her arms up over her head. The action caused her breasts to thrust out for his pleasure. He reached behind her back to untie her bikini top, then slipped it over her head and tossed it aside. He stopped and took a moment to gaze at her exposed, perfect breasts.
“Gorgeous,” he muttered, taking both breasts into his hands to mold them gently, using his thumbs to stroke her rosy nipples to stiffness.
He bent to take one nipple into his mouth, sucking gently, licking and teasing it with his teeth and tongue. Then he switched his attention to her other breast, plying her sensitive nipple with sensual nips and licks until she moaned deep within her throat. She was writhing beneath him now and he slid himself up to claim her mouth in another kiss so heated, it could end things here and now if Logan didn’t force himself to step back and slow down.
He untied the knot of her sarong and pushed it aside, then slid his fingers under the edge of her bikini bottom, seeking her most intimate spot. When he slid one finger inside her, she groaned in need.
“Tight,” he murmured. “And so hot.” He eased another finger in, then moved both fingers out and back in again as her flesh grew even more heated and moist with her need.
“Logan,” she whispered. “Please.”
Her hair moved in waves around her head like a dark red halo and her intoxicating taste and scent filled his senses. As her sweet body twisted against him, tempting him beyond the edge, his mouth sought hers blindly, renewing his claim on her. His hard length pressed against her, demanding entry.
“I need to have you now,” he said, barely recognizing the uncivilized rumble in his voice.
“Yes, yes,” she urged him.
He jumped off the bed and quickly removed his clothes. Reaching into the top drawer of his dresser, he grabbed a condom and slipped it on.
Then he returned to her, yanked her bikini bottom down and threw it across the bed. Grasping thick strands of her hair in his hands, he urged her to meet his gaze. “I want you too much, Grace. It’ll have to be hard and fast this first time.”
