Page 31 of Sin Bin

“You sure about that?” she retorted playfully. “I could be a horrible employee for all you know.”

“Nah. I don’t believe that for a second.” He put on a serious face. “If they don’t give you the job, I’m driving over there and kicking their asses.”

She laughed. “You’d better not!”

When the valet pulled up with the truck, Logan opened the passenger door for Meadow and helped her up into the cab. Once again, the touch of his hand spread goose bumps across her skin.

After tipping the valet, he slid behind the wheel. “Where to?”

She gave him her aunt’s address and watched him plug it into his phone, which was connected to the illuminated GPS display on the dashboard.

“I should have called her after the meet-and-greet to let her know I’d be home even later.”

“Wanna call her now?”

“Nah. I don’t want to wake her if she’s in bed.” Meadow nestled into the leather bench seat and let out a contented sigh. “That chocolate Kahlúa cake was sooo good.”

“Told you.” Logan grinned as he pulled away from the curb. “So you’re a chocoholic, eh?”

“I am,” she admitted with a laugh. “Chocolate is like crack to me.”

Logan chuckled. “Same.”

Meadow leaned her head back against the headrest, studying his profile as he drove. He had a tiny dark mole on his cheek that was sexy as hell. So was his buzz cut, which was beginning to grow out some.

He glanced sideways at her. “What?”

She smiled lazily. “I always remembered you with a wild mop of thick black hair. It was beautiful. Why’d you cut it off?”

His expression grew shuttered. Guarded. “I got tired of asking women not to run their fingers through it.”

She gave him a puzzled smile. “Why didn’t you want women running their fingers through your hair?”

He didn’t answer for a long moment. When he spoke, his voice was brittle with raw pain. “My mother used to ruffle my hair all the time. I didn’t want to be reminded of her.”

Meadow stared at him, her heart squeezing with sympathy. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

He gave a hard shrug. “It’s ancient history.”

Meadow could see through his tough exterior to the wounded child inside. There was still so much she didn’t know about him. But she knew a damaged soul when she saw one, being one herself.

She looked at his bruised left knuckles on the steering wheel and murmured, “I always thought you might become a boxer.”

The ghost of a smile touched his mouth. “When I was growing up, my favorite boxer was Thiago Cervantes. He’s from Argentina and he was an orphan, so I related to him. I looked up to him so much that I wanted to be just like him when I grew up.” He draped his wrist over the arch of the steering wheel and flicked a glance at Meadow. “I remember how excited I was when I found out that he was coming to Vegas for a fight. My foster father at the time promised to take me to the fight if I kept my grades up and did my chores. I was super stoked. Going to the fight was all I could think about for weeks. I dreamed about meeting Thiago and shaking his hand. I thought maybe he’d even let me try on his boxing gloves. For the first time in ages, I had something to look forward to.”

He paused, making a hard left turn. “The night of the fight, my foster father was passed out drunk on the couch. Turns out he’d never intended to take me to the boxing match. He only said he would to keep me in line, and he thought it was pretty hilarious that I’d gotten my hopes up.”

“Oh no.” Meadow stared at him, her throat tightening with sympathy and anger. “I am so sorry, Logan. You must have been so hurt and disappointed.”

He looked sardonic. “What can I say? Story of my life.”

Her heart ached for him.

As a heavy silence fell between them, she turned away to stare out her window, watching the city rush by.

Her aunt lived in a picturesque suburb of Denver. Her cozy one-story bungalow was nestled on a quiet cul-de-sac.

When they arrived at the house, Logan pulled into the driveway behind Aunt Rosalie’s car. A light was glowing in the living room window. Meadow wondered if her aunt was waiting up for her. She wouldn’t be surprised.

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